Page 24 of Fortune Academy: Year Three
Cerberus barked, absolutely gleeful while Logan nipped at his heels. The two played until Cerberus rolled onto his back, allowing Logan to pin the neck of one of his heads.
It was hard to believe, but size didn’t matter when it came to a pack. Logan really was an Alpha.
Luc began a slow clap, stepping forward as he dismissed his portal. “Fabulous. Just fabulous, Princess. You have chosen your Virtues wisely, it seems.”
I growled and formed another fireball, aiming it at his face. “Give me one good reason I shouldn’t end you right here for pulling that shit.”
The demon grinned and spread his arms. “You could kill me, if you like, but you need me, Lilith. I am the leader of the army that will push your precious Conduit of Calamity into the bowels of Hell. If you think you can do it without me, be my guest.” He sighed and closed his eyes. “At least I would die from a royal’s fireball instead of boredom.”
Rolling my eyes, I dismissed my flame and kicked the ground instead, cursing when I hit a stone.
“We’ll find another way to punish him,” Kaito interjected as he took my arm. “Just because you show him mercy doesn’t mean he won’t have to deal with consequences.” His tattoo flashed with a metallic silver sheen. “Everything comes with a price.”
“That’s my line,” Hendrik said as he brushed ash from his robe. “And yes, I should have known summoning a portal here would be a mistake.” He glared at Luc. “One I won’t make again.”
Logan yipped with excitement as Cerberus rolled onto his haunches, setting his heads down on his paws as he blinked at us with puppy-dog eyes.
We’ve wasted too much time,Logan said in my head, and by the way my other Virtues went still, I knew they could hear him too.Good thing I got us a ride down. You ready to hop on?
I stared at the Hell hound. “Ride?”
Orion whooped and sprinted to the dog, making me catch my breath when he startled the creature. To my relief, the hound didn’t bite off his head when the demigod climbed onto his back. Normally Orion was a giant, but on Cerberus, he fit without a problem. Orion gathered a fistful of fur and steadied himself, then patted the spot behind him. “Come on, little star. It’s not every day you get to ride Cerberus into the pits of Hell.”
He was right about that…
“Is this my life now?” I grumbled as I shuffled through ash toward the massive dog.
Dante chuckled and tucked an arm around my waist, lifting me up once I got to the hound’s giant paw. “It is, and you better get used to it, because it’s only down from here.”
Chapter 9
It was definitely pretty cool riding Cerberus into the depths of Hell. We’d wasted too much time getting sidetracked by Luc’s stunt, and it felt good to leave him behind in the smokey dust as my Virtues and I continued on our journey.
Jess stayed behind and I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. She’d assured me that she would keep our best interests as a priority from Luc’s end of things as best she could, although I didn’t really know how much sway she had with the unpredictable demon.
We went through tunnel after tunnel, going deeper into darkness that the hell hound seemed accustomed with. I wasn’t sure what I expected at the end of the smoke and rising lava that bubbled in pools at the tunnel’s edge, but the glittering palace wasn’t it.
Logan gave out a low whistle. “Damn. Is that our new house? Because I could dig that.”
“We’re not staying in Hell,” I said, my voice stern as I gripped Orion. He was too big for me to completely wrap my arms around, so I clung to his shirt while Kaito hugged me from the back, sandwiching me between two of my delicious Virtues.
Cerberus released a howl when we reached the palace gates, making me slam my hands over my ears. “You’re supposed to warn us when he does that, Logan!”
The wolf chuckled and dropped off of the hellhounds back. The massive dog was more than large enough to hold all of my Virtues and myself, and probably could fit a few more. I wondered if the hound was used to transporting royalty and her entourage around the lower levels.
To answer my question, Cerberus whined with excitement as the gates parted, revealing a stunning woman with a golden crown that sparkled like glass. A brilliant red jewel hung around her chest and rested on her cleavage, but the light that illuminated it came from within her body.
She spread her arms in welcome, sending her glittering sleeves to sweep with her movements. “My daughter. You’ve finally come home.”
Meeting Sonya in the flesh made me nervous, which surprised me. I’d already met one of my mothers and it hadn’t affected me like this. Maybe that’s because I hadn’t expected to meet Silvia when I’d gone to Heaven, but this was a different story. I’d been thinking about Sonya ever since I’d figured out that she was my mother.
The Queen of Hell? Yeah. That would freak anyone out.
She didn’t seem so scary now that I met her in person, but I knew appearances could be deceiving. She rested across from us in a beautiful garden as light shone down on my face—yep, that’s right.Light.
But not from the sun. Sonya had taken us inside her palace and into one of the large guest chambers where Blood Stones lined a white ceiling in the shape of a wide dome that towered above our heads. Each stone was fully charged, radiating warmth and heat that made it feel like we sat out in the sun. The effect made me slump into one of the chairs and lean my head back, allowing the pleasant warmth to banish all my pent-up tension from everything that had happened.
“I love to come here to think,” Sonya said.
