Page 6 of Absolved In Death

Because I went through a…hole-y phase…in the 1700’s, I answered him. Past me did a lot of deplorable things. His cackles rang through my mind, and I shut that shit down. I needed to focus.

“Finding a needle in a haystack might be easier than finding the culprit,” he lamented.

The fighting ensued, our soldiers finishing off the last of the stragglers. I whistled, getting the attention of a bear shifter to myright. He stopped mauling one of Red’s soldiers and waited for my order. “Tie that one up, bring them to the dungeon.”

“I have a feeling we’ll be busy later,” Desmond predicted with startling accuracy. His shadows curled up his biceps, winding their way around his chest as he flicked his wings closed.

Busy hands do the dirty work,Voice sing-songed to me.

“Right you are,” I agreed.

Apollo oversawthe coven’s disposal of the carnage while Desmond, myself, August, Charlie, Angela, Marilyn and Nonna gathered in our barrack. Desmond and I caught them up on everything that happened.

“So we don’t even know if they even made it to Hell proper,” August clarified.

“Judging by the expression on Diana’s face and the movement behind her in the portal, I highly doubt it,” I said.

“Red’s attack right after is confirmation enough for me. It was a distraction, so we couldn’t fix the problem. If I had to guess, I’d say he trapped them somewhere.” Desmond ran his fingers through his beard, rubbing his chin in thought.

“Hell is like Swiss cheese. A million hidey-holds…” I trailed off, deep in thought. “And our mindlinks aren’t working… And the only one she’s soul bonded with is with her, so that’s no use.”

I used to be salty as fuck about Feathers’ soulbond with Diana, and Bash’s claim mark. But now I understand that this family we created wouldn’t work without all of us. And it would take all of us to find her.

“I don’t know much about higher magic, but unless we can pinpoint where they are, they need to get themselves out of this mess,” Nonna crossed her legs, leaning forward slightly in herchair. “I have a feeling Diana will save them all.” Charlie nodded in agreement, grasping Nonna’s hand.

“Glad you’re so optimistic, Ma, but it isn’t that easy sometimes,” Angela fretted, winding her fingers together. “At least Judas and Bain are with her.” Marilyn hugged her sister, and Charlie brought them in for a group hug. All of us in this room were missing someone we loved.

There was a curt knock at the door, which immediately put me on high alert. I gave Apollo temporary access to our place, so he’d fade right in if it were him. Whoever was on the other side of the door was powerful enough to mute their magical signature and conceal their identity to magical beings around them.

Desmond aimed his scrutinizing gaze at me, weaving his shadows under the door.I can’t tell who’s there.

Loud knocking on the door got everyone’s attention.

“Ares, open the door!” Zeus shouted. Of course he’d come here and rub my face in our failure.

Against my better judgment, I let him. He wore a dove gray suit with a crisp white dress shirt. There were some small blood specks from the battle, but they barely detracted from his gold jewelry. Seriously, his thick chain gleamed so brightly it could attract a whole swarm of golden pixies. He was pretentious as fuck, as usual, dressing to impress. Hades followed behind him, in a much less showy ensemble. He still looked biker chic, but his jeans and white tee had no tears. His hair was slicked back, with a clean five o’clock shadow. He immediately beelined it to Angela and took her hand, kissing the back of it.

“Ómorfi kopéla, I am so sorry about what happened to your niece. We’ll do whatever it takes to find her,” he said in a deep, soothing voice I had never heard from him in my centuries of life.

He called her ‘beautiful girl’? Oooh, he’s got it bad, Voice teased.

Hades snapped his fingers, and an enormous bouquet of bloomed roses in various red, pinks, and whites appeared in his hand. Her whole face went red as he presented them to her. Nonna eyed him up, then gave me a sly smile. I knew she couldn’t read my mind, but I mentally promised to catch her up on all the gossip she missed as soon as we brought our girl home.

“Patéras, what brings you by?” I tried my hardest to sound civil, because the last thing I needed was Zeus being Zeus and acting like a diva because no one paid him any attention. He cared for no one but himself, and I highly doubted he’d ever change.

“We came by to help,” he responded, his face set in a serious frown.

Fucking doubt that,I linked Desmond.

Agreed. Zeus only helps Zeus.His shadows swirled around his body, trailing along the floor a few feet away, a defensive reflex in case Zeus tried any funny business.

Zeus must think he’s a comedian, because he’s tried a lot of funny shit. But that ‘I’m here to help’ joke takes the cake,Voice cackled in my mind.

Not to mention he’s a fake fucker who cheats, lies, and steals on the regular,another, hoarser voice whispered from the very back of my mind…the place I usually stored my darker, less savory thoughts and never visited again.

Voice’s laughter boomed through my brain, making my ears ring.He ate his first wife, constantly cheated on your mom, fathered tons of kids out of wedlock, tricked Pandora into unleashing evil into the world, and overthrew his father. Should I say more? Sucks he’s not actually funny. More like a narcissistic sociopath with little to no regard for anyone’s life but his own, at best.

Zeus waved his hand to get my attention.“Are you two going to stand there and stare or put us to work?”

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