Page 115 of Hell On Earth
Hades needed me as much as I needed him. Just because the earth wasn’t shaking didn’t mean he was waiting patiently or being idle. He’d find a way to come to me again even if I didn’t summon him.
With that thought, I closed my eyes.
Maybe it was the long day or the absolute silence in the house but whatever the case, I drifted off without realizing it and woke to the sun streaming in through the windows above.
I stared at the light while my sluggish brain got going.
The decoys. Right.
I reached for my phone.
It was after nine in the morning, and a string of messages waited in the group chat.
Eliana: Grabbing drinks.
Oanen: Any seltzer water?
Fenris: Are you 90?
Me: Just his palate. He over-salts already too.
I frowned and checked the time on my so-called response. Obviously, Zotera had been responding again.
Fenris: Don’t worry. The popcorn is perfectly salted.
The next message was two hours later.
Oanen: We have Ashlyn.
Eliana: Megan went after Thanatos. Tell me if you see Adira.
Me: Stay safe. Please.
Eliana: We’ll be fine. Just stay with Fenris and Oanen.
That was it. I flipped back the covers and hurried from my bedroom. The rest of the house was quiet.
“Zotera?” I called, trying not to panic.
“Kitchen,” Megan called.
Surprised to hear her voice, I hurried to the kitchen and found Megan sitting on the counter, watching Zotera make some actual French toast.
“I just read the texts. What happened?” I asked.
“We successfully deflected Thanatos and Adira again. They both portaled into the game room. Despite the entertainingly awful movie Eliana had picked out to watch, we were ready. Oanen and Fenris both shifted to protect you and Zotera. You were both adorably asleep, by the way. Fenris, that freaky furball, had a blast opening and closing your eyes.
“Anyway, I went after Thanatos. He disappeared as usual. Eliana stayed behind to deal with Adira, who only lingered long enough to tell Eliana that she needed to think of the people she loved. Then she disappeared.
“But the whole thing was caught on video, which Eliana had been smart enough to set up. We showed it to Mr. and Mrs. Quill. They asked if I’d felt any wickedness from Adira. Once I said I hadn’t, they were pretty quiet about the whole thing. I know they're not happy, but I also know they’re not going to do anything unless I can report some wickedness.”
Her phone started ringing.
“Eliana,” she said, answering it on speaker.
“Megan,” Eliana said in a panic. “She’s at my parents’ house!”
Megan immediately disappeared.
