She left Hades’ club without telling Lexa and was almost home when she received a call from her worried friend. She’d felt bad, but Persephone hadn’t been able to stay in that dark tower any longer, and it would have been unfair to make Lexa come home just because of her mistake.
“Oh, yes, sorry. I wanted to prepare for my first day.”
“Not going to fault you for that. Well, welcome.”
“Adonis,” Demetri called as he stepped back into the doorframe of his office. “Mind giving Persephone here a tour of our floor?”
“Not at all.” He smiled at her. “Ready?”
Persephone followed Adonis. She was happy to see a familiar face, even if she had just met him last night. It made her feel more comfortable here.
“We call this the workroom. It’s where everyone follows leads and investigates,” he said. People looked up from their desks and waved or smiled at her as they passed. Adonis indicated to a wall of glassed-in rooms. “Interview and conference rooms. Break room. Lounge,” he pointed to a huge room with various, casual sitting areas and warm, low light. It was cozy, and there were already several people nesting. “You’ll probably prefer to write in here when you get the chance.”
Adonis showed her to the supplies closet, and she raided it for pens, sticky notes, and notebooks. As he helped her carry her supplies back to her desk he asked, “So, what kind of journalism are you interested in?”
“I’m leaning toward investigative reporting,” she said.
“Oh, a detective, huh?”
“I like research,” she said.
“Any subject in particular?” he asked.
Hades.
The god’s name popped into her head without warning. She knew it was because of the mark on her wrist. She was anxious to get to Nevernight and figure out what it was.
“No...I just…like to solve mysteries,” she answered.
“Well then, maybe you can help us figure out whose been stealing lunches from the fridge in the break room.”
Persephone laughed.
She got the feeling she was going to like it here.
CHAPTER IV – THE CONTRACT
Less than an hour after leaving the Acropolis, Persephone stood outside Nevernight, pounding on the pristine, black door. She’d taken the bus here and it had nearly drove her insane. She couldn’t sit still. Her mind had stirred up all sorts of fears and anxieties over what the mark might mean. Was this bracelet some sort of...claim? Was it something that would bind her soul to the Underworld? Or was it one of his horrible contracts?
She was about to find out if someone would just answer this damn door!
“Hello!” she called. “Anyone there?”
She continued to pound on the door until her arms hurt. Just when she thought about giving up, the door was yanked open by the ogre who had been staffing it last night. Persephone stumbled into him and quickly pushed away. In the daylight, he was even more gruesome-looking. His thick skin sagged around his neck, and he stared at her with small, squinted eyes.
“What do you want?” His words were a snarl and it wasn’t lost on her that he could crush her skull with his hand alone.
“I must speak with Hades,” she said.
The ogre stared at her and then slammed the door closed.
That really pissed her off.
She banged on the door again. “Bastard! Let me in!” She yelled.
She’d always known ogres existed, but she’d learned some of their weaknesses by reading a few books from Artemis’s Library at school. One of them? They hated being called names.
The ogre tore the door open again and snarled at her, blowing his stinking rot-breath in her face. He probably thought it would scare her away—and it had probably worked on others in the past, but not on Persephone. The mark on her wrist drove her. Her freedom was at stake.
“I demand you let me in!” She stomped her foot, and her fingers curled into her palms. She considered how much space was left in the doorway. Could she get past the huge creature? If she moved quick enough, his girth would probably throw him off balance.
“Who are you, mortal, to demand an audience with the God of the Dead?” The creature asked.
“Your lord has placed a mark upon me, and I will have words with him.”
The creature laughed, beady eyes shining with amusement.
“You would have words with him?”
“Yes, me. Let me in!”
She was growing angrier by the second.
“We are not open,” the creature responded. “You will have to come back.”
“I will not come back, you will let me in now you big, ugly ogre!”
Persephone realized her mistake as soon as the words were out of her mouth. The creature’s face changed. He grabbed her by the neck and lifted her off the ground.
“What are you?” he demanded. “A tricky little nymph?”
She clawed at the ogre’s steel skin, but he only pressed his meaty fingers deeper into her skin. She couldn’t breath and her eyes watered, and the only thing she could do was drop her glamour. As her horns became visible, the creature released her as if she burned.
Persephone staggered, and inhaled deeply. She pressed a hand to her tender throat, but managed to stay on her feet and glare at the ogre in her true form. He lowered his gaze, unable to look upon her or meet her bright, eerie eyes.
“I am Persephone, Goddess of Spring, and if you would like to keep your fleeting life, then you will obey me.”
Her voice shook. She was still rattled from being handled by the ogre. The words she had spoken were her mother’s, used at a time when she’d made threats against a Siren who refused to help her search for Persephone when she wandered away. In reality, Persephone was only a few feet away, hiding behind a nearby shrub. She overheard her mother’s crude words, and filed them away, knowing that without powers, words would be her only weapon.
The door opened behind the ogre, and he stepped aside, lowering to his knees as Hades came into view. Persephone couldn’t breathe. She’d spent all day remembering what he looked like, recalling his elegant but dark features, and yet, her memory was nothing compared to the real thing. She was pretty sure he was wearing the suit from last night, but the tie around his neck was loose, and the buttons of his shirt fell open at the neck, exposing his chest. It was like he’d been interrupted in the middle of undressing.
Then she remembered the woman who had wrapped her arms around his waist—Minthe. Perhaps she had interrupt them. She took great satisfaction from that thought, even though she knew she shouldn’t care.
“Lady Persephone,” he said, his voice was heavy and seductive and she shivered.
She forced her eyes level with his—they were equals, after all, and she wanted him to know it because she was about to make demands. She found him studying her, his head tilted to the side. Being under his gaze in her true form felt strangely intimate and she wanted to call up her glamour again. She had made a mistake, been so angry and so desperate, she’d exposed herself.
“Lord Hades,” she managed with a curt nod. She was proud that her voice did not shake, though her insides did.
“My lord,” the ogre said, hanging his head. “I did not know she was a goddess. I accept punishment for my actions.”