Page 55 of Raising Hell
“You place yourself in danger by continuing this game.”
“No, you place me in danger by refusing to see this isn’t a game. Ignorance doesn’t absolve you of your promise. You swore no harm would come to me during the ten days I earned.”
He glared at me.
“Name your due.”
“Megan,” I said, crossing my arms.
We remained in a standoff for a good minute before he let out a frustrated snarl and beckoned me back to his lap. I quickly returned to my spot and draped an arm over his shoulder, toying with the hair at the back of his neck.
“I’m talking this time, too,” I said.
His face twitched, and I leaned in to press a very quick kiss to his chest.
“Keep your word. Keep me safe. Let me speak to her.”
“So be it,” he said angrily. “She comes.”
I turned my head to watch the entry and didn’t mind even a little when he snaked his arms around my waist and held on tightly. Megan didn’t leave us waiting for long.
A few minutes later, she strode through the door. The pissed expression didn’t bode well for a calm conversation.
“Someone tried to kill me, Megan,” I called before she reached us. “That’s why everything shook again. Hades saved me from the poison but was very upset.”
Some of the angry tension left Megan. She stopped in front of us, her gaze sweeping over me and the way Hades was holding on.
“Despite what you told him, he still thinks I’m Persephone,” I said before she asked. “Which isn’t a bad thing. I might not be alive if he hadn’t saved me.”
Megan looked at Hades, frowning slightly.
“I thought you trusted the furies,” she said.
“I did,” he said.
“Wow. Ouch,” she said.
“He doesn’t mean that, Megan,” I said while patting Hades’ chest. “He’s just been through a lot. They all have, which is why everyone here unquestionably believes I’m Persephone. She liked playing mind games and was crazy cruel. I’m talking about cutting people for fun, starving people, torturing them…stuff that level of cruel.
“Anyway, there was a guy who randomly appeared in a hallway a few days ago. He acted surprised when he saw me and vanished when Hades appeared. The guy was wearing a button-up shirt, Megan. Trust me when I say that no one wears those here. Shirts aren’t a thing. Not even for the women.”
Megan’s brows lifted.
“Yeah, it’s a bit of an eye-opener,” I said. “But that’s why he stood out. He showed up again a little while ago and gave me a cup of wine. I wasn’t paying attention to who gave it to me and drank it.”
Hades rubbed a hand over my back again.
“So this guy isn’t from here and wanted to kill you?” Megan asked, summarizing things nicely.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Exactly. I’m not supposed to be here, and he seemed surprised that I was that first time. Is that why he wants me dead? Because I don’t belong? Who is he? How did he get here? I thought only furies and gods could come and go as they pleased. But I’m here, so maybe someone else figured out a way. But why try to kill me?”
Megan frowned and looked at Hades.
“What do you think about this?” she asked.
