“Why shouldn’t I have?”
“Oh my God, that you would go there—-” She shook her head miserably. “You’re not supposed to be like this. I dreamt of this so long, and I never thought it would come true, but now that I’ve finally met you—-” She glared at him.
“If you look at me like that one more time,” Hades murmured pleasantly, “I shall take you to bed and will not let you leave until the next sunrise.”
A squeak escaped Ever, and she quickly averted her gaze from his, thinking despairingly, This is definitely not the Hades she had read about. He wasn’t just adulterous but he was even more sadistic and—-
Outside the tent, the creatures let out another cry, and Hades said, “We have arrived.”
“W-where?” she asked without looking at him.
“The Underworld.”
Before the fact could even sink in, Ever found herself once again swept up in the god’s arms and a second later, he had flown her out of the tent and taken her to stand a short distance from a pair of gates that seemed as tall as mountains. They were unlike any gates she had ever seen in her life, but in a way they were also exactly like what she would expect of the Underworld.
This was where the dead go, she thought weakly, so of course it had to be frightening.
And it was that, with the gates made of superimposed corpses that seemed to have been buried between layers of perpetually burning rocks. Once in a while, a pale limb would protrude, causing the layer of burning rock to expand before snapping back in—-
She swallowed at the wailing sound that followed, like someone being tortured.
“Are those real?” she whispered.
“A preview of Tartarus is the best way to describe it.”
She gulped. Tartarus was where the titans were imprisoned as well as where irredeemably damned souls went, never to be seen or reincarnated again.
“Are you ready to enter the Underworld, milady?”
She slowly turned to look at him. “I don’t have a choice, do I?”
He laughed. “You say that, and yet your eyes appear to be glowing in excitement.”
Oh!
As her cheeks turned red yet again, he considered her thoughtfully, an idea occurring to him. He asked carefully, “Do you know which oracles are dedicated to Apollo, milady?”
“Delphi is the only one I know, nothing else.”
“Do you know which city honors Hermes as its patron?”
“Sorry, no.” She paused before saying awkwardly, “I’m sorry if my lack of knowledge disappoints you. I actually haven’t finished high school.”
Hades was stunned. “But you appear well-read—-”
“Not really, and most of the books I’ve read are from the library.”
Blaming himself for the note of shame that had crept into her voice, he said gently, “There is nothing shameful in what you have revealed, milady. But I also beg your forgiveness for making you speak of such things.”
She shrugged, obviously discomfited, mumbling, “It’s okay. It’s no big deal.”
But it obviously was, Hades thought and he made a mental note to send for the wisest scholars so that his future queen could learn to her heart’s content.
But first—-
He offered his hand. “Shall we?”
“Umm—-”
Seeing her glance at his hand like it was a snake about to bite her, Hades bent his head and whispered to her ear, “I’m beginning to think you have a secret liking of being threatened. Do you, milady? Because I can think of several quite easily right now—-”
Ever grabbed the god’s hand. “Let’s go?”
Hades straightened. “A pity.” She grunted, and the sound, albeit unfeminine, was also genuine and this pleased him immensely.
As they started to walk, the god asked Ever for her name.
“Ever.”
“And you are from England?”
“Yes.” Did he really not know, Ever wondered, or was this some sort of test?
“You spoke earlier of a magical door,” Hades prompted. “Tell me how it came to be and how it transported you to my world.”
“It started when I heard music, the one playing at your party. And then I heard voices, probably your guests, and I followed the sounds until I came to a room in the library and then it was gone.” Ever drew a breath as she remembered the sense of crushing disappointment that had weighed down on her at that time, and she whispered, “It made me sad.”
“Because you wanted it so badly?”
She nodded. “I had almost lost hope when I found a crystal key, and that was when the door appeared. The key unlocked it and the next thing I knew, I was here.”
“Do you have the key with you?”
She nodded.
“May I study it when we reach my castle? I promise to be careful with it, and I shall only study it in his presence.”
She hesitated for a moment before nodding once again.
“Thank you.” By now, they were standing right in front of the doors, and he said gravely, “My kingdom lies behind these doors, milady.”