Page 44 of Deadly Games
For the first time ever, I was actually starting to think we stood a shot at stopping Cronus, but this moment was so much more than that. I snuggled up between the two of them, intent on enjoying the bliss for as long as they’d tolerate each other. Aside from the casual bickering that lulled me to sleep, I thought it was a pretty damn good start.
Chapter 20
Fenrir
As soon as we received the word that Dionysus and Loki had found Kore, I had to fight the instinct to go to her side. Ever since we’d slept together, the bond I’d felt with her from the beginning had grown even more intense, but that was all the more reason to stay away for now.
With half of Olympus looking for her, my presence would only draw more attention. Same with Hades. For the moment, we had both agreed to go back to the Academy to do some damage control. Hades had been in a meeting with Odin and the OSTF for the last six hours, and I could only imagine how much fun he was having convincing them that he had no idea where his fiancee had gone with two other gods.
Better for them to think she only had two allies. That would allow us to move more freely, at least for the moment. According to Loki, Cronus was the one who’d given Thor the order to attack Kore, which raised more questions than it answered.
Was Cronus aware of who Kore was, and what she was destined for? Did he know we’d been to the Ether to meet with Ares? Until we knew for sure, she wasn’t going to be safe anywhere, let alone at the Academy.
At least we had Helle under control, for the moment. Not that it was hard when we could literally pin a murder on her. The only reason I hadn’t made all our lives easier by coming clean and letting her take the fall was because we needed to know just how deep the conspiracy went. Better for Kore to be in hiding, anyway. At least until we knew who we could trust.
When it became my turn to get interrogated, I prepared for the worst, but there wasn’t much even Kunzite could do to me. She was probably one of the few who actually knew what I was, assuming Odin had told her, and when I saw the wariness in her strange eyes as I entered the room, I knew he had.
A hellhound was probably the one thing that could make a member of the OSTF uneasy.
“Good afternoon, Fenrir,” she said, nodding to me from behind Odin’s desk. “Please, have a seat.”
“I take it the Headmaster is in the broom closet?” I asked, sinking into the chair that felt comically small in comparison to my broad build.
“He was gracious enough to provide this office as our investigation headquarters, for the time being,” she answered, her thin hands folded on the desk in front of her. “I take it you haven’t heard anything from Ms. Ademone, either.”
I could tell from the disbelief in her tone that Hades had been as much of an asshole as I expected. His gifts probably made him immune to her power, just as mine did, but if she had managed to crack that walnut, I almost pitied her. “I haven’t heard a thing,” I answered, not bothering to put too much emphasis into my words. She didn’t believe them, but I could tell from her stony gaze that she knew she wasn’t getting the answers she wanted. Just going through the motions for the sake of paperwork.
“I’m sure you understand how this looks,” she said, leaning in.
“How does it look?” I asked innocently.
She frowned, almost too faintly to notice. Before she could say anything, I felt a strange pulling sensation I hadn’t felt in months deep within my chest, like someone had me tethered to a leash. Hades had gone through the portal, and he wouldn’t have gone without telling me unless he was summoned.
No. Summoning implied he had a choice in the matter. If he was gone, that meant Cronus had dragged him in.
“Where are you going?” Kunzite demanded, leaping up from the desk.
“Duty calls,” I said, ignoring the guard I brushed past on my way down the hall. High and mighty as she was, no obligation was greater than the one I had to Hades, issued by Cronus himself. Even if it meant killing the old god one day.
By the time I reached the gate near the heart of Atlantis, I could sense that Kore was near. Not being able to go to her was torture, but I couldn’t leave Hades at the mercy of his father. Not when everything hung in the balance.
Heimdall was waiting at the portal, as always. He looked me over, furrowing his heavy brow. The god was as ancient as they came, but the only sign of it was his naturally silver hair. He was as big and broad as I was, maybe even an inch or two taller, but the axe in his right hand was all for show. At least, it had been for the last few centuries.
“Your master isn’t with you?” he asked.
“He was summoned,” I answered, stepping up to the silver plate in the center of the portal room. The circular walls surrounding it were made of a translucent blue crystal that reflected the light in rainbows that danced all along the stone walls.
Heimdall’s grave expression told me he understood perfectly just how rare and unpleasant that particular honor truly was.
The only consolation was knowing that Kore was still in Atlantis. I had to count on Loki and Dionysus to protect her.
“Safe passage,” Heimdall said, dropping the base of his axe against the stone floor. The disc below me was illuminated in blinding white light, and as soon as it disappeared, I found myself standing at the dreary gates of the Underworld.
The graying wasteland on the realm’s border wasn’t quite as barren as the Ether, but in a way, it felt even gloomier. There was something haunting in the chill of the air, and the faint cries of the wind sounded like the echoes of the lost souls drained away by the capricious ruler of the Underworld.
Despite what he thought, I knew Hades would be a better ruler than his father. Deep down, he cared more than anyone, not only for this world but for the one above it. I just hoped I could keep him alive long enough to get the chance.
As I made my way toward the palace, a growing unease traveled deep through my bones. I could feel Hades drawing closer, but something was wrong. It wasn’t physical danger. My instincts had grown too sharp to miss that, but there was definitely something amiss.
