by K. C. Hamby
“You fucking bitch!” Lilith roars after she gets one look at the blood-covered woman on the ground and sprints in the direction the shots originated.
“Shit,” I mutter and follow Nina.
Chapter 78
Edelina
Nina holds Althea’s hand as I squat beside them.
“I can heal her,” Nina whispers and the air around us begins to pop with static.
“No,” the dark-eyed Spaniard coughs. Her blood flows from her chest like a river of red, running faster as the seconds pass.
“What? Yes, I can!” Nina argues, but I place a hand on her shoulder before she can touch Althea.
“Listen, lass,” I tell her and nod to Althea.
“No, please let me go,” Althea whispers, blood drops bright on her pouty lips.
“I can’t!” Nina yells, breaths moving in the frantic direction of a panic attack. “Please, don’t make me. Please. You’ve taught me so much about myself. Please don’t go.”
Winema walks up and crouches on the other side of Althea, dark face speckled with the blood of the vanquished.
“Nina, you…you are ready to be without me. You are so strong and everything I…I knew you could...become.” Althea winces, eyes becoming unfocused and glazed. “I want….to be,” she tries, but her voice is failing her.
“She wanstae be with Caden, Nina,” I finish and Althea nods slightly, grateful, dark eyes finding mine.
“But…” Nina starts, but quickly quiets with tears slipping down her blood and paint-covered face. She wraps her hand around Althea’s bloody fingers and bows her head.
“My friend,” Winema murmurs, grabbing Althea’s other hand. “Go into the Elysian Fields and be at peace. You deserve it more than anyone I know. It has been a privilege to know you all these years.”
Althea smiles, but she says nothing, her face becoming progressively paler.
“Nina,” Falen whispers and sits on the bloody ground beside her, wrapping arms around her Mate as she sobs. Falen looks down at Althea with a rare soft smile on her lips. “Caden is waiting. She’ll be so happy to see you.”
“Will you….” Althea tries and takes a bloody breath. “Will you take me?” Her hand reaches out and grabs Falen’s.
A tear slides down the Reaper’s scarred face.
“Of course I will.” She glances to Ash over her shoulder, and he nods. “Of course.” Falen turns to Nina. “She’s ready, Nina.”
Nina coughs out a sob and throws herself over Althea, giving the bloody woman a tight—probably painful—embrace.
“Thank you. For everything,” Nina whispers and Althea smiles at her when she lets go.
Althea looks at Falen with a small smile and a nod and Ash drops to his knees on the other side of the dying lass. Him and Falen both reach out and touch their hands to Althea’s chest.
“O thánatos sas ischyrízetai, Althea,” they whisper together.
Death claims you.
Althea takes a final breath and stills. Falen reaches to Althea’s now stilled hand and...her soul sits up when Falen pulls on it. She has a radiant smile on her lips and stands with the Reaper’s assistance.
“Ready?” Falen asks and Althea nods eagerly, glancing lovingly at all of us.
With one look to us all, Falen and Althea vanish in a cloud of black smoke.
Silence overtakes the lot of us as we stare down at the completely lifeless shell of Althea, blood no longer flowing from the hole in her chest.
“Wait! She doesn’t have her payment to get in!” Nina screams and stands, looking around her wildly for something that isn’t there. “She needs payment for the Elysian Fields! Fal doesn’t carry payment with her!”
“It’s okay, Nins. I’ll make sure she gets in,” Ashy tells her, placing a heavy hand on her shoulder. He looks at me with a sad smile.
I’ll be back. Take care of her, babe.
I nod and he, too, vanishes in a cloud of black smoke.
Chapter 79
Falen
We Move to the River Styx where Charon is always waiting.
“Lady Thanatos,” he announces, regarding me with fondness. He looks to Althea. “My, you are not her normal company, dear one.”
“No, I am one of Hecate’s own,” Althea replies with a small bow of her head.
“Ah, my friend. What may I do for you?”
“She needs to be taken to the Elysian Fields, Charon,” I inform him, but my heart sinks realizing...“She doesn’t have payment as she departed suddenly and asked for me to escort her.”
“I’m afraid…” Charon starts with sadness in the depths of his eyes.
“She has payment,” comes from a black cloud materializing beside Althea.
Ash.
“Ah, hello Lord Thanatos. You are looking well!” Charon glances between me and my brother. “Wonderful to have you both in your rightful places at last.”
Holy shit Ash looks terrifying. Like Death’s nightmares, shadows dance around him, and his eyes glow amber fire. Power floods over me, dark and overwhelming as it rolls through the air.
Dark in the sense that he is Death, too. Because I am the darkness. Ash is the light.
“Goddess, Ash,” I whisper.
He smiles and gives me a wink. “Here is your payment, Charon,” Ash bows and reaches toward the man.
Coins drop into his open palm.
Charon smiles, gazing at the coins in his hand like a treasure hoarding dragon. “That’ll do, then. Are you ready, my dear?” he asks Althea.
“More than ready,” she replies and smiles brilliantly.
“Tell Caden I say hi,” I say by way of goodbye.
“Oh, of course I will.” She nods and grabs my hand. “Thank you, Falen.” Her other hand touches my cheek lightly. “Hecate chose well when she chose you. When she Chose both of you.” She glances back at Ash and he offers her a grin.
My eyes burn and blur as Althea lets go and grabs a helping hand from Charon. She sits lightly in the boat, smiling radiantly as Charon stands, effortlessly balancing in the back of the boat, pushing away from the shore.
“Next stop, Elysian Fields,” Charon sings and begins humming a happy tune I haven’t heard from him yet.
Probably because I only bring him Tartarus-bound souls.
The water of the river Styx moans in waves, ghostly faces of souls without homes appearing on the surface, glaring jealously at Althea before diving back down into their despair.
One soul sits on the surface, eyes mere holes of black, but they stare at me all the same.
“So,” I say, blinking away from such a creepy sight, and turn to Ash when the boat is no longer visible amongst the fog over the river. “You decided to join the immortals club.”
His eyes darken dangerously, reminding me of the deep shadows of the entrance to hell on Olympia. “I didn’t have a choice.”
“Bullshit,” I scoff. “You always have a choice. You chose to stay with Eddie, your Mate. You chose to spend eternity with her. And me and Nina. You chose to get those fucking Poachers off Olympia.” I raise my brows, daring him to argue.
He sighs, relenting, and pulls his fingers through his hair. “I know and I don’t regret it. I would burn the world down if it meant staying with Eddie. But...I don’t know if I can do this, Fal Pal.”
“Why not?”
“This power is...seductive.” He holds his hands in front of him and glares at the shadows seeming to cling to his skin. “I don’t want to lose myself becoming this person; this God.”
“Hey,” I call and touch his arm gently. The shadows from my own power touches his skin in a soft caress. “You won’t lose yourself. Not completely. I’m the goddess of Death and the darkness that comes with it. I take the burden and I will always help you when you need it. You’re not doing this battle alone. Love always wins against the monsters of our minds.” I pause, thoughtful. “That’s what brought me back.”
“Your love for Nina?”
“No. My love for you.
”
He stills and watches me with those eyes of death fire blazing as if they are his own form of furnace. I’m not sure if it’s disbelief I see in his stare or what.
The thought of my brother not believing I love him aches deep in my chest.
“When I saw you like that…bloody and dying, I was terrified. I couldn’t lose my brother. Not after everything we have been through and everything you’ve done for me. Not when you kept me as sane as you could after Mom died. Not when you took care of me. Not when you still believed in me when I was such a horrible person to you.”
“Fal Pal,” he chokes.
“I would blow up everything in my way if it meant I could save you. You dying made me realize I fought my Monster when I should have been embracing her. And I was so terrified of losing you, it was like something clicked.” I swallow the sob wanting to shove from my throat and take a breath, willing the stinging tears in my eyes not to fall. “Nina and Hades said that I’ve been trying to be either light or dark when I should find balance in both. I needed my darkness to save my light and my light to guide the dark. I forced my two halves together and here I am.”
“Because of me?”
“Because of you.”
“I knew you loved me.”
“Of course I do, dumbass.” I roll my eyes and huff.
His big arms wrap around me and pick me up. “I love you too, Fal.”
My stupid eyes sting again, but this time the damn tears roll down my cheeks. “Don’t you ever try to die again, or I may kill you.”
“You can’t kill Death, sister,” he chuckles, shaking me as I’m crushed in his hug.
“Maybe not, but I can make us poof into nothing, brother,” I snip. He sets me back on my feet and I adjust my jacket. “And you’re still Ash. You’re just a scarier, more powerful, Godly Ash. You probably still have the same stupid puns. Now you just have to make more death-related ones.”
He snorts, shaking his head at me. And the soft look in his eyes makes me wonder about his own descent into his role as Death.
“Did you…did you have to fight with your inner darkness when you became Death?” It’s almost a whisper and I hate how vulnerable I sound. I just want to know I’m not horrible for having to fight so hard; I need reassurance I wasn’t as dark inside as I thought.
His smile falls, seeming to understand the depths of my question. “No…I…I just had a lot of pain. Horrible pain.” The agony flashes in his eyes and I’ve never be able to relate more. “But no fight.”
My brows furrow. How could he not have had the fight? According to Eddie, it happens to everyone who gives up their mortality and becomes a being of the Underworld. Becoming Death is some dark shit. How…
“Because your father made it so you, Ash, would not be overtaken by the darkness,” comes from the shadows behind us.
“Hecate?” I ask and turn, knowing that voice anywhere.
“The one and only,” she chirps when she appears and smiles softly. Her dress is as flowing and obnoxiously magickal as ever.
I don’t know why I’m instantly irritated.
“What do you mean my father made it so I wouldn’t have to deal with the darkness?” Ash asks, crossing his arms over his chest.
His voice doesn’t rise in agitation when he mentions our father. He doesn’t clench his jaw hard enough to break bones. Ash doesn’t seem angry about the idea of Silas at all anymore.
I don’t know how to feel about it. I, for one, still hate the bastard with all the darkness in my black heart.
Hecate stops in front of us in her usual dark glory, triple moon Mark on her forehead wrinkled with her rising brows. “Your father knew you and Falen would one day have to take his place. He split the role of Death between you both in the only way he could: light and dark. He did not want you to be consumed and controlled by the darkness of this role as he was.”
I’m not shocked Silas was too weak to deal with his darkness.
I shake my head at myself. So was I.
And this thought pisses me off.
“And he just said to hell with me? Give Fal all the fucking darkness so she has to suffer?” I growl. I mean, I would take the darkness if it meant Ash didn’t have to suffer on my own accord, but to know Silas didn’t want to shield me too?
The knowledge burns as it withers a small place in my heart. I always figured I was his least favorite child but having confirmation of it is somehow worse.
Hecate’s eyes are saddened, but not in sympathy, thank the goddess. In understanding of my fury. “Falen, I know you feel as if he did not care for you. He did and still does. He was not aware he would have another child after your mother had Ash. He made it so Ash wouldn’t have to deal with the darkness before you were born. It was…a deal that could not be taken back, even though he tried. Unfortunately, the darkness Ash did not receive had to go somewhere and since you had the soul of Death in you as well, it naturally took its place in your being.”
I clench my jaw. No. I still must be mad at that fucking dickhead. This changes nothing.
“But Silas knew you were able to fight and contain darkness from the time you were born. You came into this world with shadows clenched in your little fists, the power to tame them coursing through your blood. As if you were born to house the darkness.”
I shift on my feet, moving my glare to the ground. Her explanation doesn’t make me feel any better and it only leaves me with more questions.
“Your father’s past was not the best in any light,” Hecate continues, either not hearing my thoughts or ignoring them completely. “His father, Elias, was…for lack of better terms, a monster. He made people fear death because he was so cruel. He was one of the only gods to go to Tartarus when his time was up. And the title of Thanatos was not freely given to Silas as it was to you both.”
I snort at the word ‘freely’.
“When Elias found out Nemesis sentenced him to rot in Tartarus, he refused to pass on his title to Silas.”
“Coward,” I mutter. Of course our grandfather is a piece of shit, too.
“Silas knew if Elias continued on as Thanatos, all would eventually be lost. Hope would be gone, and death would no longer be something to cherish and respect. So, he sought out Zeus and asked to fight Elias for the title. To the death. Zeus agreed, not seeing any other way to decide fairly without becoming a biased god killer and risking a mutiny.”
“I’m sure it wasn’t at all because Zeus loves drama,” I snap. I’ve never liked him much. He’s a rapist twat waffle who should be stabbed in the crotch. Several times.
“Falen, your thoughts are rather boisterous,” Hecate comments and I scoff.
“I mean, I’m not afraid to call Zeus a fucking scoundrel out loud if you would prefer,” I give, shrugging at the rise of her brow.
She presses her lips together as if she wishes I were a child she could punish.
“Wait, our father wasn’t immortal yet. He faced his father without it being an even playing field,” Ash comments, eyes wide, taking Hecate’s judging eyes away from me.
“Correct, but Zeus silenced Elias’ powers so the match would be fair. What you and Falen do not know is Silas was trained in intense combat and became a fierce fighter. His father relied on his powers his whole life as he became Thanatos when he was fairly young. It was an easy win for Silas.”
“Hell yeah, he’s a Thana,” I input. Even though I don’t like him, I can appreciate the good fighting blood running through our family line. “Or…I guess Thanatos.”
Hecate nods toward me with a sly smile. “However, right before the title of Thanatos transferred to your father, Elias cursed Silas to live his reign forever in the dark. Silas was consumed with so much hate and darkness, he lost himself for thousands of years. He wasn’t as cruel as Elias, but he was close.”
“Shit,” Ash curses and the shadows at his shoulders move as if they are irritated too.
The dread in the air is almost metallic on my tongue. I glance over t
o Ash and sort of…feel the doom lingering in the air around him. Is this because we are now connected?
I tighten my fists at my sides. There is so much about this bullshit I still don’t understand.
“When Alina, your mother, was born, I made them Mates,” Hecate’s new revelation brings me back to myself. “Sort of my own way to twist Fate.”
“Wait wait wait,” I interrupt, working my jaw around my annoyance. “Mates? Mom knew about Mates?”
“Yes. She knew of both of yours as well. Alina was...one of my closest friends and confidant. She was Predestined to be your mother and the Bringer of Salvation to the world.”
“What the fuck? How the hell did we not know this?” I ask Ash, the shadows around me twitching with my anger.
His eyes are wide and round, disbelief shining in the glassy amber irises. He just shrugs, as confused as I am.
“I masked her Mark.” Hecate announces, raising her eyebrows, proud of herself. “She never knew her Predestiny. She knew she was Chosen, but that is it.”
So, Hecate has known about mine and Ash’s Fates this entire time. Everything was set up like perfect pieces of a grandly fucked up puzzle, lining up and waiting their turn to be put into the bigger picture.
I thought we had free will.
“I feel like I’ve been the victim of a long con,” Ash grumbles and rubs his temples with the tips of his fingers.
I can’t help but nod my agreement.
This whole time, I’ve thought I was in control of my life. That I could choose if I wanted to be this Shadow Reaper, to be the goddess of Death, but when I didn’t want it, it drove me mad.
What kind of fucking choice is that?
“Do not feel this way, Ash. All this planning was to protect you both and lead you to your Fates. I had no intension of deceiving you. Only protecting you, your sister, and your mother.”
Ash’s only response is a sigh.
I personally have so much I want to say, and the resentment is building in my chest, hot and volatile. But this isn’t the time to explode.
I can have it out with Hecate later.