“Just call me Cinderella.”
“Hmm. Don’t know her.”
“You wouldn’t.”
I hurried to the portal set into the bookshelves, not hesitating now that I was inside. Quickly, I entered, letting the ether suck me in and spin me through space. I felt a tearing sensation as I left the underworld—the pomegranate potion trying to keep me there, no doubt. My stomach lurched, and my head throbbed. It spat me out in my library, and I stumbled forward, making room for Lucifer.
He exited directly behind me, looking around with curiosity. “So this is where you live?”
“Yep.” Pride streaked through me. “Or at least, where I work.”
“Not bad.”
“Not bad?” I sputtered.
He grinned.
“You’re a jerk.”
He shrugged. “Where to next?”
“You can walk in Guild City? Hades can’t.”
“It’s his curse, not mine.”
“Why don’t you live on earth, then? Why pick a place like the underworld?”
“I have my reasons.”
“Yeah, yeah.” I couldn’t help but think of Alia, but I didn’t ask about her. “Come on.”
I led him toward the door, my insides starting to churn with the familiar pain of the pomegranate potion. I couldn’t be here long, but I’d enjoy it while I could. As we left, I couldn’t help but run my fingertips over the bookshelves as we passed. I missed it here. Sure, the low-profile job had been part of my plan to hide from Hades. But I’d genuinely loved it.
“You miss it here,” Lucifer said as we stepped out into the watery sunlight of an overcast English day.
I shot him a glance. “You’re more observant than I’d have thought.”
He shrugged, then looked around, interest gleaming in his eyes. “Nice place.”
I tried to see it through his eyes, through the gaze of someone who had spent a long time in the underworld. It had to be fantastic. Instead of the all-black buildings of the underworld, the white plaster and brown wood buildings were positively cheerful. The shop windows were full of color and magic, dancing teakettles and clashing swords, floating stationary and twirling dresses.
But it was the people who looked most different.
“They look so happy,” Lucifer murmured, quiet enough that I knew he hadn’t meant me to hear.
But I had. “There’s no miserable god to drag them into his morose orbit.”
Lucifer almost choked on a laugh. “Morose orbit?”
I shrugged, dodging around a gnarled old tree that grew out of the cobblestone pavement. “If the shoe fits.”
“I don’t think the god of death can be called morose,” he said.
“I just did, didn’t I?”
“He’s a product of darkness. Literally. He doesn’t quite have feelings like that.”
Oh, he had feelings, all right. But then, Lucifer had never seen him like I’d seen him.
Lucifer continued, sounding almost like he wanted to defend his friend. “It’s the nature of his soul, the darkness that formed him, that makes people feel miserable around him.”
I didn't feel miserable around him. “What do you mean, the darkness that formed him. Like, literally?”
“I’ve said too much.” He eyed a particularly nice cocktail bar to our right, one that was run by the dwarves, who were known for their restaurants. “Why don’t we stop in here?”
“No. We’ve got places to be.” I hurried past the bar, reaching the alley that led toward my guild tower.
Lucifer followed me. “What is the situation with the guilds?”
“Thirteen of them, and everyone has to be a member of one.”
“Which guild is yours?”
“Shadow Guild.” Most were named after the species that had started them—the witches, shifters, dwarves, or fae.
“Who’s that for?”
“The weirdos.”
I felt his surprise, and looked over to see his pale brows rise. “Really?”
I nodded. “The Shadow Guild is for those who don’t fit anywhere else.”
“I suppose there aren’t a lot of goddesses running around Guild City, so it makes sense you’d be there.”
“Sure.” It was still hard to swallow the fact that I was a goddess.
Finally, we exited the alley onto the open square in front of the Shadow Guild tower. It rose tall in front of us, a square stone structure with ivy crawling up the sides and mullioned glass windows that gleamed dully in the pale sunlight. On the opposite side of the square from the tower sat the abandoned shops.
“Why are all the shops empty?” Lucifer asked.
I shrugged. “No one wants to own them.”
“Why? You Shadow Guild people scare them off?”
“Could be, but it’s probably because the tower here was hidden for a few hundred years. No tower means no reason to come to this side of town. So no businesses.”
“Why was the tower hidden?”
“Oh, that’s a long story. Let’s just say someone didn’t like the weirdos.”
“Hmm.”
“Sounds like you can relate.”
“Maybe.” He smiled, and his eyes flickered, as if concealing a hidden pain. But instead of sharing, he gestured toward the tower. “Shall we?”
“Yeah. Let’s.” I started toward the tower, looking forward to seeing my friends. With every step, I felt the tug of the underworld, the pain of being away. We’d need to make this quick.
I caught sight of Eve in the upper window, her pale pink hair gleaming. She leaned out and smiled. “Back so soon? Victory already?”
“I wish.”
Eve frowned. “I’ll come down to meet you.”
I strode toward the large wooden door at the base of the tower. It was swung open, welcoming, and I stepped through. The massive room was dominated by a huge fireplace. We’d hung art on the stone walls and outfitted it with tables and chairs to make a cozy public space for the guild.
Eve raced down the stairs to meet us, her eyebrows rising as she took in Lucifer at my side.
I knew what she was thinking—he was even hotter up close. And scarier.
“Eve, this is Lucifer. Lucifer, this is Eve.”
“As in, the?” she asked.
He nodded. “Lovely to meet you.”
She gave him a skeptical look, no sucker for pretty words, then turned to me. “What’s up?”
I pulled the fabric pouch of pomegranate seeds out of my pocket and handed it to her. “This is a sample of the pomegranate tree that poisoned me. The apothecary in the underworld said they could possibly be used to find a spell that could break my curse.” I looked at Lucifer. “You’re not going to try to stop me, right?”
He shook his head. “My only orders are to keep you safe.”
I nodded. It was as I’d expected. Lucifer was Hades’ friend, not his lapdog. “Good.”
Eve’s brows rose, and she looked at me. “You think there might be a cure out there? I thought you searched everywhere for a cure. I tried my best, too.”
“I did. And I had no luck. But I also didn’t have a sample of this.” I raised the seeds.