by Bella Klaus
“Where is she?” Mother said, her voice breathy.
My gaze swept across the array of torture equipment to the far end of the room where a door swung open. Mother waddled out in her own body, rubbing her hands over a swollen belly.
“Well well well,” she said, her voice dripping with scorn. “If it isn’t Little Miss Multiple Orgasms. I should have cancelled that subscription to Netflix. Clearly those raunchy shows rotted your brain.”
My eyes bulged. We hadn’t been parted for more than a week, yet she looked days away from giving birth. I couldn’t help thinking about the oysters they had ordered in the Eiffel Tower. Hades had made a snarky comment about their need for an aphrodisiac, but I hadn’t taken it seriously… until now.
“What happened to you?”
She sniffed. “I never did explain the birds and the bees.”
“Obviously, you got pregnant having sex with Samael. All my life, you told me about the dangers of growing plants too quickly, but you’re prepared to do this with a child?”
“Such filthy language.” Mother flew across the room and backhanded me across the face, making me fall back into the demons.
“Shouldn’t the wrath of Hell have punished you for attacking me?” I snarled.
Mother sniffed. “Samael took control of the Third while I carry out this important mission.”
I curled my hands into fists. “Luckily for you, I don’t strike pregnant women.”
She bared her teeth. “Ragnar, Tothguar, seize this filthy little slut.”
The demons hesitated.
Mother’s eyes flashed. “Are you questioning the orders of your queen?”
I turned to them and shrugged. “It’s up to you.”
They both wrapped their hands around my arms, taking care not to hurt or bruise anything. “Sorry Your Majesty,” Ragnar murmured, his voice low. “But we can’t disobey our queen.”
“It’s all right,” I replied to the demon.
Mother sniffed. “I suppose you’ve come to beg for my forgiveness.”
“Not really,” I said. “But you won’t stop attacking my husband until I give into your demands, so here I am.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Don’t make that reprobate sound like he’s the victim. Hades stole my most precious possession.”
I rolled my eyes. “You said my vessel was falling apart.”
“It is,” she said with a nod.
“And you wanted to help move my soul to Persephone’s body.”
Mother’s eyes softened. “It’s your body. We could have restored you centuries ago. Instead, Hades kept you hidden to punish me for not approving of your marriage.”
I pressed my lips together and tried not to sigh. Hades wouldn’t be so selfish as to deny me the chance of existence. “He didn’t know you were gathering pieces of my soul.”
She shook her head. “That’s what he wants you to believe, but trust me when I say the filthy demon only wanted a sex toy to defile.”
My mind drifted away as she continued to rant about how Hades had wanted her since they were gods in Greece. According to Mother, when she chose Zeus and had me, Hades decided to avenge himself with my abduction.
“You see.” Mother placed a hand on her chest. “It’s not you he hungers for. It’s me.”
“Right,” I muttered. “All this time, you’ve been protecting my purity.”
Mother lowered her lashes. “I love you more than my own life.”
This time, I really did roll my eyes. The woman standing before me was the goddess of lies and delusions of grandeur. Maybe if I played along with her and stopped defending Hades, I might get out of this transfer with my mind intact.
“Thank you for keeping me alive all these years,” I murmured. “And I’m sorry for going astray.”
Mother took my hand and brought it to her lips. “I forgive you. For all your transgressions.”
My nostrils flared, and I clenched my teeth. The only thing keeping me from lashing out was the prospect of gaining Persephone’s power. With her magic, I could control the plant invading Hades’ body and rid the Fifth Faction of the scourge of those carnivorous vines.
“Thank you.” The words tasted more bitter than concentrated aloe-panacea.
Her large hand cupped the side of my face. “I usually give you a cup of sleepy tea for the transfer, but I don’t think I will today.”
“Umm…” My brows rose to my hairline. “Why?”
Mother moved as fast as lightning and slammed a blade between my ribs. My entire body fell backward, only for the demons to hold me steady. I cried out, first at the shock of the blow and then at the pain.
White light streamed from my chest, and I glanced down to find she’d stabbed me with the dagger she always kept on her hip.
“Mother?” I stared up at her, my eyes bulging.
She curled her lip. “This time, you can endure the transfer without the benefit of sleepy tea. You will die slowly, and I will transfer your soul into a beautiful new body.”
“Why?”
“This is the first time you’ve betrayed me so completely.” Mother shook her head. “I warned you over and over about the dangers of the outside world, yet you hungered for it. You hungered for him.”
Pain spread across my chest, and my breaths became shallow, barely grazing the tops of my lungs. This was it. I was finally dying, but it wasn’t from any sickness. It was at the hands of my own mother.
“I’ve performed a few enhancements on your old body,” she said with a sniff. “Your hymen is intact, and I’ve removed all traces of your illicit pregnancy.”
“You can’t keep me as a little girl,” I rasped.
Mother shook her head and offered me a sinister smile. “That’s exactly what I intend to do. But this time will be different. This time, you will learn to hate those things you craved. This time, I will put you to work and make you kill Hades.”
All thoughts of gaining Persephone’s magic faded to the background, and I struggled within the grip of the demons. Somewhere in the depths of my mind, I hoped Mother would send me to the Fifth. Maybe then, Namara would press the other memory stone in my hand and restore my mind.
“Hey, did you remove Zeus’s dick and give it to Samael?” Blood poured from my lips as I said the words. “Is that how he got you pregnant?”
Mother reached for the hilt of the dagger and pulled it out, only for lightning bolts of pain to strike my every nerve.
Blood poured down my dress and spilled onto the floor. I screamed. “How could you?”
She slashed my throat. “Quite easily when you talk like such a vicious whore.”
Even more blood cascaded down my chest, soaking the front of my dress and forming a pool at my feet. It splattered over Mother’s maternity gown and even on her grinning face. My head spun, and I lost all sensation in my extremities.
“When I have cleansed your memory and soul of the taint of Hades, you will become my virgin avenger. Then you and I will rule the Factions of Hell together.”
My lips parted to deliver an insult, but I lost all feeling in my face. The pulse between my ears beat harder and faster than normal, signifying that I was at my end. I slumped forward, the life draining from my body, and my vision turned black.
I floated from my limp body, watching Ragnar and Tothguar lower me face-down to the floor. The Hell ring glinted on my finger, most of its stones splattered with blood. My soul rippled with a mix of anxiety and dread. Istabelle Bonham-Sackville said it would return to me somehow, but what if it didn’t?
If I didn’t gain access to that memory stone, everything I’d just suffered would be in vain.
Mother tilted her head up and grinned. “Now that I can see souls in their full magnificence, I’m staggered by your inner beauty.”
Lightning crackled across my bodiless form.
She pouted. “Don’t be like that. The vessel I chose for you was overly lascivious. This next one is immortal, durable, and isn’t quite so obsessed with se
x.”
Focusing my power, I struck out at her with a lightning bolt.
She wrapped her fingers around it and sighed. “Thank you, darling, for the infusion of magic, but it’s no longer necessary. Samael made me the Queen of the Third, and the throne gives me all the power I need.”
If I had eyes, they would have bulged—this was part of why Mother and the coven had been so obsessed with me. It looked like each time they transferred my soul to another body, they could feed on my magic.
“This is working out wonderfully,” Mother led me across the room by my lightning bolts and stepped in to reveal a white room about half the size of the underground dungeon. “Here is where I’m keeping your physical form.”
Persephone lay on a platform with a sheet covering her body. Without all the dirt encrusting her skin and with her features relaxed, she was beyond breathtaking, red hair spilling over her bare shoulders.
My lightning crackled. This was the woman Hades had pined after for two thousand years. The woman who had walked out on him more than once and then gotten herself killed. Deep down, I had been envious of the memory of Persephone, but now, I was going to become her.
“The process will be even simpler than before.” Mother’s voice cut through my musings. “There’s no chance of the body exploding with the might of your magic and no pesky soul that might struggle to take control.”
She pulled me across the room like a kite and placed the tip of my lightning bolt into the center of Persephone’s chest. “Welcome home.”
The world flip-flopped. I opened my eyes with a noisy gasp. Bright light burned my retinas, and I squeezed them shut. Before I could work out what was happening, the surface beneath me gave way and plunged me into a vat of water.
Stale liquid entered my mouth, my nostrils, my throat. I screamed as it traveled down my lungs, making them as heavy as millstones. I thrashed my arms and legs, trying to rise to the surface, but strong hands pressed down on my head and kept me submerged.
What was she doing?
Why was I in this water?
Who was this person holding me down?
Who was I?
As the water wiped my memories clean, my body went still. It felt like death, only infinitely calmer.
Soft lips pressed on my forehead and pulled me out of slumber. I let my eyes flutter open and stared into the face of a beautiful woman with hair the color of wheat. The morning sun streamed in through the narrow window of a white bedroom, illuminating the side of her face like sunlight hitting a buttercup.
“Hello?” I asked.
She gave me a dazzling smile, her blue eyes sparkling with warmth. “Are you ready for your medicine?”
I glanced around the room, taking in the blank walls, a table with a single chair, and the teddy bears lined up at the foot of the bed. “Is this a hospital?”
“We’ve only just gotten you home.” The woman chuckled.
My head tilted to the side. What on earth was happening? “Sorry, but who are you?”
Her face fell. “You don’t remember your mother?”
What?
I reared back, taking in her form. She was heavily pregnant and wearing a floor-length white gown that accentuated her large frame. I guessed she was six feet tall or more and looked strong enough to fight a middleweight boxer.
I shook my head, loosening strands of vibrant red hair. “I don’t even know my own name.”
The woman pressed her hands to her lips, her brows drawing together. “Let me call for the doctor.”
I flopped back onto the mattress and stared at the wall. How could someone forget everything, including their own parents? Questions rolled through my mind. Had I knocked my head? That would explain the amnesia. I bit down on my lip. Surely if I had amnesia, I would lose all my abilities, including how to speak?
Filing that question for later, I pushed off the covers and rolled out of bed, letting my feet hit the fluffy rug. I crept to the window and stared out across a huge meadow of wildflowers that led up to a tall mountain. This had to be our home.
The door opened, making me jump, and a smaller man with gray eyes strode forward. He was thin compared to the woman and wore a gray pinstriped suit, complete with a gold chain that looped out from the pocket of his waistcoat.
“This is Dr. Samael,” she said. “He will see what we can do about your memory.”
“It’s a pleasure to see you again, Kora.” He was well-spoken, even if he sounded like he smoked fifty cigarettes a day.
My brows rose. “So, Kora is my name?”
“Why, it’s Kora of the House of Olympia.” He gestured toward the bed, either for me to sit or lie down. “And this charming lady is your mother.”
I chose to sit. “What happened to my head?”
The doctor glanced at Mother and grimaced. “It’s rather delicate. Perhaps you would prefer to wait for me to leave—”
“She needs to know,” Mother snapped.
My eyes bulged, and I bit down on my bottom lip. What on earth did delicate mean? I leaned forward, fixed my gaze on Mother, and waited.
“A man named Hades came to the house and…” She dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief. “And he—”
Dr. Samael rushed to her side and placed his hands on her white gown. “My Lady, please don’t strain yourself. I’m sure that young Kora will read between the lines and work things out for herself.”
“What lines?” I asked.
Mother shook her head and forced a trembling smile. “Kora is brave and strong and has a big heart, but she isn’t as quick-witted as girls of her age.”
Heat rose to my cheeks. How could Mother possibly say that in front of the doctor? I gulped. Unless it was true.
Dr. Samael guided Mother to the table and chair. Mother clutched at her back and winced before lowering herself into the seat. She clutched her swollen belly and groaned.
“A little feline infiltrated our wards and befriended you,” she said between panting breaths. “She was a Hellcat who could transform into an innocent-looking girl, and she took advantage of your loneliness.”
My lips parted with a gasp. “How could I be lonely enough to be deceived by a cat?”
Mother shook her head and wailed. “I have asked myself this question every day.”
The doctor cleared his throat. “My Lady, I will inform Miss Kora of the situation. All this stress will jeopardize the baby.”
She rubbed circles over her belly. “I tell myself every day that this is an innocent life, but I will never love this child like I love my Kora.”
My breath caught in my throat. “Please tell me,” I said in a small voice. “You said there was a man called Hades. How is he linked to the cat?”
Mother twitched. “Never say that name in my presence.”
I flinched, my gaze darting from Mother to Dr. Samael. “Sorry.”
The doctor rubbed Mother’s back and made soothing noises in her ear until the color returned to her cheeks and her sobs subsided. I clutched at my heart, aching for them to tell me what happened.
A dark part of my mind was already piecing together the clues. Mother was pregnant and made a point of calling the baby innocent. It was a strange thing to say when babies were by default devoid of sin. And the mention of this Hades fellow who had come to the house. He had probably ravished Mother by force, leaving her suffering and pregnant.
I leaned forward, my hand over my aching chest. “Mother, you can tell me anything.”
She bowed her head. “The cat tricked you into opening the door, and Hades burst in with a horde of minions. He gifted you to them as a reward, and the savages tore your body apart.”
I stared down at my arms, looking for scars.
The doctor cleared his throat. “I’m afraid there was very little left of you by the time your mother raised the alarm.” He glanced down at her, his features solemn. “All I found was your soul, which cried out for vengeance.”
Mother dabbed at her eyes over and over until h
er mascara ran. “We had to transfer you into a new body.” Her lips tightened. “One that had been unsullied by Hades and his minions.”
A tight fist of panic clutched at my heart. “Were you there?”
She clapped both hands over her face and burst into noisy tears. “I failed to protect you. Hades drove a knife through my throat and pinned me against the wall. And he—”
Her breath hitched.
I stretched out my hands. “You don’t have to talk about it.”
The doctor shook his head. “It’s the reason your poor mother is in this condition. Of course, when I discovered that the widow Olympia was pregnant with her husband twenty years dead, it was clear to me what had happened.”
I swallowed hard. “Mother, I’m so sorry.”
“The doctor and I married to save our family from the scandal,” Mother blurted. “With your new stepfather, you might be able to weather this terrible tragedy with your reputation intact.”
My lips formed a tight line. A tragedy was lightning striking someone dead or a tsunami sweeping people off the beach. It certainly wasn’t the act of a foolish girl who allowed herself to be tricked by a cat.
“Where is this feline?” I asked through clenched teeth.
“The cat returned to her master and is probably waiting for another chance to betray you,” the doctor said with a tired shake of his head. “Hades, however, breached the sanctity of your home by coming here with so many wrongdoers.”
Mother slumped forward with a soft moan, and Dr. Samael rushed to her side. “My Lady!”
Panic flared across my chest. I stumbled out of bed, only to fall onto my face.
“Please Kora.” The doctor left Mother with her head lolling to the side to guide me back into bed. “It will take time to get accustomed to this new body.”
Nausea rose to the back of my throat, and I stared down at the doctor’s gloved hands. “Did they really tear me apart?”
“Beyond physical repair,” he said with a shudder.
“Why don’t I remember anything?”
Mother wailed from the other side of the room. “I wish someone could give me a few drops of forgetfulness elixir and wipe the torments from my head, but someone has to stay vigilant.”