Page 68 of Guided by the Stars
The sound of coughing reaches my ears, breaking my trance. As the shadows dissipate, I see Jax bent over, trying to breathe. Shadows pour from his nose, his mouth, and his now-purple face slowly fades back to normal. With my emotions spiraling out of control, the shadows took over, filling every inch of space in the room, including his airways. I just choked my best friend.
With a wave of my hand, the remaining shadows disappear and I reach out to touch him before thinking better of it. “I’m sorry, I…” I stammer, but the words halt in my throat. My power is spiralling out of control as my mind teeters on the edge of insanity. “We need to get her out of there.”
I pace, my mind conjuring up image after image. Hades used to make me sit and watch the souls being tormented. When I was older, we’d walk through and he would test me, asking why each soul deserved to be there. And if I got it wrong...well, let’s just say I learned them quickly.
I shudder and snap back to the present. “I can’t see him physically harming her, but she’s human. Her human mind can’t handle the depravity of that place, Jax. He’s going to break her,” I say, searching through my dresser for weapons. I can’t let that happen, won’t let him destroy the spitfire she is and turn her into an empty shell.
Jax stands in the doorway, watching me. “Why the fuck are you just standing there? Gear up. It’ll likely be a fight, but we can’t just leave her there,” I say, but he shakes his head and continues to stand there. His face no longer holds the emotions I saw earlier, and while I thought he was watching me, I realize he’s not. His glassy eyes and a blank expression tell me that he’s caught in a vision.
Before long his vision clears and he nods, standing firm at the door. “Fine, if you want to be a pussy, that’s on you,” I snarl. “But I’m going to save my girl, so get the fuck out of my way.” I glare at him with a look that would send a weaker god running and if he doesn’t get out of the way, I’m prepared to go through him.
“For fuck sakes Kai, get your head out of your ass and listen to me,” he says, folding his arms. “You might think you’ve hidden your feelings, but you haven’t. He knows. He knew you’d react this exact way and took precautions. You don’t stand a chance. He made sure of it.”
When I say nothing, he steps toward me and continues, “I justsawa way for us to turn this in our favor and it’ll still help Adriane, just not immediately. Will you calm down and hear me out on this?”
I sit on the edge of the bed and process what he’s said. I know he’s right, the only chance I have to free her is if I show my power. And if I do that, Hades will realize everything we’ve kept hidden and our efforts will be for nothing. Plus, if Jax is right, and he knew I’d risk everything, I can’t play into his hands. There’s no way I’ll let her witness me being punished to save her, she wouldn’t accept that and then we’d have more problems to deal with.
“Fine,” I say with a sharp nod. “I’m not agreeing to anything, but tell me this fucking plan and quickly, before I change my mind.”
He grabs the chair from the desk in the corner and sits down. “It’s not safe for Adriane here. Not that it was ever really safe, but I see the way you look at her and as much as you’ve fucked around with Rose, you never looked at her that way. I like her too, she doesn’t deserve whatever shitty plan Hades has for her, so we have to get her out. We have to hide her from him and keep her safe.”
He’s right, I know he is, but I don’t see a way out. “We can’t send her off on her own, he’ll find her. He knows her energy signature now, it’ll be easy to track her and bring her back, just like he did with Persephone. She can’t fight him off on her own.”
He leans in close, resting his elbows on his knees. “That’s why we need to steal his helmet. As long as she wears it, no one can find her,” he says, one side of his lips turning up in a smile. “I just so happen to know where it is, which works out rather nicely since it’s our only option.”
If we do this, it means Adriane will be stuck alone with Hades. And even though she’s strong, I’ve seen her vulnerable side through the high walls she hides behind. She said she’d be fine, and I have to trust that she knows herself. I need to have faith in her strength to get through this. When she does, then at least I’ll have gotten something that will protect her.
If she can hold on to herself for just a bit longer, I’ll be able to save her. I’ll soothe her worries and replace the terrifying memories with new ones. A touch of fear is worth a lifetime of safety, isn’t it?
Determined to do right by her, I stand and unstrap a few of my weapons. The undead rarely cause problems, and my abilities are strong enough on their own, but I hold on to a few knives just in case.
“So what’s the plan?”
“You know the deal, man. I can’t give many details, but I think we’ll be fine. Plus, apparently you can choke anyone with those fucking shadows, so we’re good,” he says, rubbing his throat.
I wince. “Yeah, sorry about that. I’ll try not to get so pissed off at you in the future, as long as you aren’t acting like a tool, deal?” He chuckles and I can tell he isn’t holding it against me so I press on. “So where exactly is the helmet? I can’t see him leaving it out, and he sure as shit never shared the location with me.”
I try to pick apart different places in the palace that he might have hidden it. In the armory, perhaps? That would make sense, but that seems too easy. Honestly, it’s probably beside his bed so he can kiss it goodnight, fucking psycho that he is.
“Actually,” Jax says. “It’s in one of Persephone’s rooms, the one that overlooks the garden.”
Of fucking course that’s where it is. Knowing her, she probably likes to feel it’s power while she watches me get whipped. But she’s gone now, spending time with her mother, so it’s one less threat we have to look out for.
“Let’s go,” I say, and we file out of my room and down the hallway. Her rooms are on the opposite side of the palace than mine, but I know she’d have us closer if she could.
The silence is eerie as we make our way down the hall toward her chambers. It’s strange walking through the palace without guards standing watch, even though I never understood why Hades insisted on having so much protection. He may not be as powerful as Zeus or Poseidon, but that didn’t mean he was weak.
We stand on either side of the door, and I bring the shadows in to cloak us in case anyone comes down the hall. I lean forward to press an ear to the door, listeningfor any sign of life inside, but all I hear is the sound of my heart pumping.
Jax and I avoid this section of the palace as much as possible, so we have no clue what we’re up against.
After checking for sound himself, Jax nods and reaches for the doorknob, but I intercept his hand and shake my head. Mount Olympus will freeze over before I let him go in first. He may be bound to protect me, but there’s no way I’ll let him get hurt. Not on my behalf. Adriane may be in danger because of me, but I’m trying to fix it, and by the gods I won’t let anyone else be destroyed.
I put every ounce of stubborn defiance in my gaze, letting him know I’m not budging on this, and he makes room for me. With a deep breath, I push the door in slowly, being as quiet as possible as we sneak into the outer rooms of Persephone’s chambers.
Nothing seems out of place as we move on silent feet, scanning each area as we go. There’s a large doorway up ahead that leads to the sitting room and we head toward it. Sweat trickles down my spine with the knowledge that I can’t fail. It’s imperative that we find this helmet, I won’t fail her again.
In the corner of the room there’s an ornate shelf made entirely of obsidian, with bright red rubies on each knob of the glass doors. They gleam in the light shining from the large patio doors. Inside is the helmet, a garish piece of armor that turns the wearer invisible. As long as it sits atop your head, no one can see or hear you. What I don’t understand though, is why it has to be so ugly. If I’m hidden from view and no god can sense my presence, there’s no reason for it to be so offensive.
