Hades leaned forward and braced his forearms on his thighs, bringing his cigar to his mouth as he took a drag from it. “Maybe I’m more of a masochist than a sadist.” He blew out the smoke, still staring at me. “Being around all of them makes me feel like I’m suffocating.” I saw a flash of white as he smiled after he spoke. “Only positive note is they’re all afraid of me.” He stayed quiet. “And I enjoy smelling the fear coming from them.”
I didn’t respond because, just like the guests inside, I too was afraid of Hades. He just gave off predator vibes, like a massive beast stalking the wild for his next kill.
The few interactions I’d had with him had been so cold, and he was more like a stranger to me than my uncle.
I knew he and my father disliked each other, and knew they both hated my grandfather. The three of them worked together, or had until my grandfather had a stroke and was no longer involved I the business side of things. I’d heard my father and mother discussing it and his care, and how they’d much rather have “professionals” handle things.
I had a feeling they just didn’t want to deal with it.
So for a while now, it had only been Hades and my father keeping their empire a powerhouse in the industry. They worked together, but only because they had to. They tolerated one another.
I’d asked my father once why he didn’t like Hades. Why he acted like it was painful to be in the same room with him. But all I got was a placating smile and my father telling me I was too young for such topics.
I faced forward again and stared at the gardens, but was acutely aware of Hades’ presence. It was like this dark stain that spilled across the table, an inkblot that you could never get out.
And when I heard the slight scraping of the iron chair across the stone patio indicating he’d risen, I felt myself tense.
He’d never been mean to me, never spoke a cruel word in my direction. He’d never been… anything toward me but aloof. In fact, I was pretty sure this was the most he’d ever said to me.
I sensed him walk closer to stand right beside me, but he kept several feet between us.
Neither one of us said a word as we glanced out over the grounds.
I was about to turn and head back inside, knowing that being around those strangers would be a lot less uncomfortable than standing beside my uncle, but his voice stopped me.
When I felt his gaze on me, I glanced at him. He was a massive man, a foot taller than my father, and wider than the football players I’d seen on TV.
“Let me give you a little piece of advice, Persephone.” He brought his cigar to his mouth and drew a long puff from it, his eyes narrowing slightly as the smoke coiled from the end before dissipating in the air.
When he pulled it away, he held it in for just a second before exhaling that cloud. The cigar smoke smelled sweet.
“Never trust happiness.” He held my gaze before facing the gardens and straightening to his full height. “It’s poison. It changes people, corrodes their veins, and rots them from the inside out.”
And then he turned and laughed, leaving me outside alone to let his words sink in.
I didn’t see or hear from him again for another seven years.
Chapter2
Persephone
Seven years later
It was the day before my eighteenth birthday when I felt what true pain was like.
My parents had been taken from me, leaving me an orphan and at the mercy of a world that was cruel.
The thought of seeing their flowers topped with white and purple colors came to my mind, but I blinked quickly.
I squeezed my eyes shut and tried not to let the memory of their caskets lowering into the ground consume me.
“I’m so sorry.”
“My condolences.”
“Thoughts and prayers with you.”
Those were the things people said to my face, empty words thrown to placate others because they didn’t know what else to say.