Page 49 of Wicked Ties
Mika gave a heavy sigh. “Ehhh. Do we have to?”
Matteaus’s voice boomed in the background, “What? What happened now?”
“It’s nothing,” Mika called back.
Matteaus’s voice moved closer to the phone. “Tell me.”
It sounded like Mika covered the phone with his hand . . . poorly. “There’s an Erebus and Nyx situation.”
“I am surrounded by fucking ancient children.” He yelled even louder, and we all jumped back from the phone. “The oldest are supposed to be the best. Did you get them into couples therapy like I told you to?”
Persephone fought to hide a smile. “Right. So I did my job.”
Mika completely ignored her and kept speaking to Matteaus. “I tried, but you can lead a horse to water. You can’t make it drink.”
Matteaus growled, “I have, in fact, led a horse to water and commanded it to drink . . . and it worked.”
“Okay, bye now.” Persephone held the phone away from her and hit the end button, then slid it into her pocket. When she turned to face us, she rolled her eyes. “Why is it always you people?”
Maze shifted from one foot to the other. “Well, what had happened was . . .”
Persephone cut him off. “You’re all always trouble. ALWAYS. And why is my garden destroyed?”
“From what I gather, they’re trying to get that one’s spirit back.” Liesin pointed toward me and then toward Maze. “And free that one from some kind of binding contract.”
“Wait, what contract?” Persephone motioned to the bundle of vines on the ground just a few feet away from us. “And who is that?”
I waved the book at her. “These ones.”
“And that?” She motioned to the bundle of vines once more.
“Is the Crone.” I answered her as quickly as I could.
“You brought her here? Oh, hell, no. We aren’t supposed to have anything to do with her.” She stomped her foot. “Do you want the Fallen displeased with the underworld? Because I sure as hell don’t.”
“We just need to—”
Persephone covered her ears. “No, nope. I obey the Fallen, and they say that is not something we get involved with.”
She opened her hand and those vines holding the Crone loosened ever so slightly. The waxy leaves curled away from her, and she wriggled around. Persephone’s face fell into disgust, and she shivered once more while looking down at the Crone. Her body burst into a rain of flowers that fluttered into the swaying wheat and disappeared.
“That won’t hold her for long.” Liesin turned to me and took the contracts out of my hands. “I will do what you need, but you’re going to help me fix this garden. You owe me. Plus, I’m keeping everyone else. Deal?”
I smiled. “Deal.”
A small thrill went through my body. Would this really work? Could I really save Maze? Just then the vines binding the Crone began to fall away. Liesin turned to Maze and poked him in the temple.
“Follow the leader.” And then the ground lit beneath him, and he, too, was gone.
CHAPTER 22
MAZE
Adrenaline pumped through my veins as my mind hurried to catch up to vision that assailed me. I saw everything so clearly. Liesin standing outside the doors of Tartarus waiting for us. I knew where, I knew why, I just didn’t know how.
“Maze.” Tilly pressed her hand to my arm and shook me. “Maze, we have to go now.”
“Umm, where did he just go?” Nova stood over the spot where Liesin disappeared. She growled in the back of her throat and curled her hands into fists at her side. Before I could answer her, she dropped into the ground and purple sparks shot up after her.
