Page 85 of Painless
“Ah,” T-Bone smiled. “You have quite the cultural mix under one banner.”
“I still don’t know what any of it means,” I admitted. “I literally looked them all up in a book three days ago.”
“That’s the thing about gods,” T-Bone chuckled. “You never really know what they’re getting at, not until it clicks into place.”
“Right. Still fuckin’ waiting for that part.”
He stroked his beard, watching me curiously, if even appreciatively, then folded his arms across his chest.
“I think the gods led us to find each other, Reaper. Don’t you agree?”
“I dunno about all that.” I headed back for the door, Hades at my side. “So you’ve got good timing and a special bird. Doesn’t mean you’re any more trustworthy than before. Not until I see the proof with my own eyes.”
“So, you kicking us out of this place or not?” The demand came from Dyno, arms crossed as he leaned against a wall.
I paused in the open doorway, glancing down at Hades. Again, nothing. Not a word or even a feeling. My dog looked back at me, but apparently no one else was home.
“You can stay for now,” I answered. “But trust goes both ways, all right? Listen in on me again, I’m slicing your bird into three parts, which I’ll feed to the dog, cat,andthe falcon.”
The house wasdark when I got home, which meant Mari was still out tending to Jandro, or one of the other injuries from the attack. I flicked on a light, surprised to find Freyja sleeping in Hades’ dog bed.
“Why aren’t you with your human, rodent?” I knelt to rub her exposed belly, earning a palm full of teeth and claws for my efforts. “Suit yourself,” I muttered, heading to the kitchen in search of alcohol.
Three full drams of whiskey later, I realized it was a bad idea to drink alone. But by the time I reached that point, I couldn’t stop. Alone, with no one to watch me, my mind went down a road it hadn’t in years. I learned to soften up around Mari, but this was beyond even that.
“Fuckin’ Dallas,” I slurred, dragging my fingers down my face. “Why the fuck…”
His blood was on my hands, a wrongful death that never should have happened. While at the same time, he was a hero. A martyr. Selfless and pure. He’d become a Steel Demon legend, one that our grandchildren would talk about. Everyone would remember him fondly, as a man who was loyal, protective, and warm.
“Dallas!” I barked to the empty kitchen. “Why the fuck did you have to die? It coulda been, I dunno, fuckin’ Big G, an’ that woulda been fine.”
An idea went off like a lightbulb in the drunken haze of my brain, and I nearly missed the floor when I slid off the barstool. Moving clumsily from the kitchen to the living room, I looked around for Hades.
“Hey, dog!” I called out. “Hades, lord of the underworld, whoever the fuck. I needa talk to ya.”
A disgruntled bark whipped my head around to the dog bed, where the massive Doberman and black cat cuddled together like old friends. I was too drunk and focused on my mission to notice how strange that was, and stumbled closer to the animals.
“Hades.” I lowered myself to the floor, faithful whiskey bottle in hand. “We’re friends, right? Partners and all that. Well, I need you to do me a solid.” I took a swig from the bottle. “Bring Dallas back.”
The dog actually narrowed his eyes at me.
“Come on,” I urged. “You know he shouldn’t have died. He’s nothing like the ones you have me reap.”
Hades had the balls to yawn, poisoning me with a face full of dog breath.
“Damn it, Hades!” I pounded the floor with my fist, my desperation turning to anger. “He was a good man, all right? He had kids that needed him, a wife he loved. He never even looked at another woman. He didn’t deserve this.”
The dog blinked, but otherwise remained expressionless.
“What kind of fucking god are you?” I seethed. “You’re just sitting there mocking me! You have me reap for you, and I’m fine with that. But I ask you to spare one innocent man and I get nothing? I haven’t heard anything from you in weeks!”
You do not make demands ofme, Reaper.
The voice knocked me back. Pure fear gripped my heart in a cruel fist and refused to let go. I wasn’t even a man anymore, but a lowly, undeserving animal. I felt smaller than when my fathers yelled at me as a boy.
I rule the dead.Hades’ face remained unchanged, dark eyes staring at me with an eerie calm as his voice reverberated through all of my senses.I do not control life and death. I owe you nothing. You are a tool, an instrument for my bidding. But you are human, and even you do not wield absolute power as my reaper.
“Some fucking god you are,” I muttered.
