“What? How?”
“You know I’m able to make myself and anyone else with me invisible.”
“Oh. I forgot about that.” Then I snort, trying to keep the laugh that’s stuck in my esophagus from coming up.
Hades tilts his head to the side and narrows his eyes. “What’s so funny?”
“I just thought you’d be angrier.”
He smirks. “At this?” He shakes his head. “You sneaking in to the control room is nothing that would make me mad. Besides, you haven’t even seen my real temper. And that’s something I hope you’ll never have to see.”
Vivid flashbacks of our moment in the hall resurface. If that wasn’t real temper, then he’s right, I don’t want see it.
We walk down the hall and arrive at the front doors to the palace. Hades yanks open one of the large cast iron doors. “Well how is she?”
“Who?” I ask, puzzled. “My mom?”
He nods.
“She looks much better.”
“Good. Then we can get going without you being distracted.”
I smile, excited that he has another surprise in store for me. “Where are we going?”
“Now I’m sure you know I’m not going to tell you.”
The vast wasteland of the underworld lies in front of me and sucks all the joy out of me. It makes me feel like the Grinch minus Christmas. All I need is a village full of tiny people with sloped button noses and oblong hairstyles to terrorize. Stay or go. Stay or go. If I stay down here with Hades I’ll consumed by an eternity of dull, drab grey skies, thick smog, and sadness. There is nothing happy or joyous about death. It may put an end to a person’s suffering especially if they have a fatal disease, but what if they didn’t lead a good life? They’d suffer during their life and they’d suffer forever after they died. And what if I have to aid Hades in giving them their final judgment? I’m not sure if I can handle that.
There is still a part of me that wants to stay. I glimpse at Hades next to me and a small smile curls on his plush lips. My insides crack and fizzle like I’ve just swallowed a mouthful of pop rocks. The affection I feel for him grows as each day passes and he’s the only reason I’d consider staying. And I don’t know if that’s a good enough reason.
“Come here,” he says softly.
I creep closer like a starfish on a sandy beach being lured back into the ocean by the tide. Hades is the water and as soon as he touches me my tentacles will come alive. I want to be suctioned to him, to latch on to him as long as I have to. He pulls me close and I inhale his musky scent. A smell that I hope I’ll never forget; whether I stay or go. He covers me with his arms. I feel warm. He’s my down comforter. He’ll never let me freeze. “Close your eyes,” he tells me.
Time whirls around us. We’re in the middle of a cyclone. Spinning in circles and despite the dangerous situation I know I’ll be safe. He will always keep me safe. He clutches me tighter to his chest, the muscles in his arms clench and for a brief moment I feel like I belong here. Wrapped up in a tangle of his limbs for all of eternity.
Then he releases me and part of me aches. I ache in spots where his fingers just were. The spots throb like fresh bruises and won’t quit until he puts pressure on them. Rushing water whooshes and fills my ears and I spin around thinking he might have brought me
to a beach or something. Depression sails through me like a Jet Ski bouncing around on waves when I realize we’re back at the dock on the Styx.
The brownish green water splashes against the dock and I center on fog that hovers above the water. Hades senses that I might be upset and brushes his fingers against my face. “You look upset,” he says in a voice full of gentleness. “Is something bothering you?”
I can’t understand why his touch feels cold yet warm at the same time. “Is it always so bleak and depressing down here?”
“You get used to it.”
I feel like I’m glancing at plains of misery, an up close and personal version of what death is supposed to look like. “I don’t think I could ever get used to this,” I say. “I’d miss the sunshine too much. I’d miss watching things live.”
Hades drops his hand from my face. “Just wait,” he comments. “There is so much more of the underworld that you have yet to see.”
The ferry appears next to the dock and Charon hangs over the side. “Master,” he hisses. Hades takes one hand and Charon takes the other as they help me onto the boat. My eyes dart across the rows of wooden benches until I center on the wooden bench in the back right corner of the boat. I sit down as Hades appears on the bench across from me. Then Charon begins working the oars as I stare off into the choppy waters of the river of death.
Fifteen minutes into the ride and I can feel Hades eyes on me. He’s staring, a thoughtful look in his eye. “So why did we have to take the ferry?” I face him. “Couldn’t you have just whisked us there yourself?”
“Yes,” he says, still penetrating me with his gaze. “But then I don’t think the shock value will be as good.”
“Shock value?” He smiles and my heart picks up beating rapidly. “You know you should do that more often.”