7th Circle (Hades Book 1)

by Tate James

"Cass," I replied, giving him an unimpressed brow raise. "I appreciate the clothing, but now I need to go deal with some things."

  His jaw tightened, a muscle twitching in his cheek under thick black stubble. "Don't shut me out, Red. I wanna help."

  Not even getting nearly blown up would make me magically forget how he'd intentionally tried to hurt me rather than tell the truth last week, though. So I just gave a shrug and tucked Zed's gun into the back of my jeans.

  "Well... you know what to do, Grumpy Cat." I gave him a condescending pat on the chest, then simply slipped straight past him. With no heels on, I was a full foot shorter than him—not great when I was having metaphorical dick-measuring competitions, but useful when I needed to be agile.

  I didn't hang around, knowing Zed would catch up before I got to the elevators at the end of the hall. He did, too, his shoulder brushing mine as we stepped into the carriage. As the doors slid closed, I caught a glimpse of Cass punching a wall.

  "So... something going on there?" Zed asked after a moment of silence.

  I gave him a sharp look, confused for a second, then remembered he had no idea Cass and I had kissed... several times. All Zed knew was that I'd made a pass at Cass and been rejected.

  "Uh..." I considered the question. "There was, briefly."

  Zed scoffed a laugh. "I'm guessing, based on that interaction, he fucked it up somehow?"

  I drew a deep breath, then exhaled heavily. Fuck me, I hurt all over. "Yep."

  He shook his head. "What a fucking idiot."

  I was inclined to agree. "Well, we have bigger fish to fry right now, Zayden De Rosa." I met his gaze, letting my apathetic mask fall for a moment and giving him a glimpse of the fear coursing through me. Fear that got worse with every additional attack and every paranoid thought. "I think Chase is behind this."

  Zed jerked in alarm. "That's impossible."

  I shrugged. The elevator doors opened once more, and we stepped out onto the busy ground floor of the hospital. We navigated our way through the people and out into the midafternoon sunlight. It seemed weird for it to be daylight still, given all that had happened in my day. But no matter how badly I might pray for the world to stop, it just kept on turning.

  Zed's car was parked in the open-air parking a short walk away with a fine under his windshield wiper. He just plucked it off and screwed it up, then opened the passenger door for me.

  "I know it's impossible," I told him when we were safe within the confines of his car. He didn't immediately turn the engine on, instead just shifting to face me in his seat with a deep frown on his face. "I know what I did. But... are we totally sure he died?"

  Zed's look was incredulous. "You think he could have survived a bullet to the face at point-blank range and a gas explosion?"

  Frustrated, I chewed the edge of my thumbnail until Zed tugged on my wrist, and I groaned. "I don't know what else to think, Zed. Nothing else even remotely makes sense. This is all so... fucking personal. 7th Circle was the last straw. It can't be anyone but Chase. Can it?"

  He just stared at me, horrified by the suggestion but also not offering me any other explanations. Fucking hell.

  "Look, I don't know. I saw you shoot him; that's something I know for sure. Whether he survived... with the fire after? It seems too farfetched." He shook his head, running his hand over his buzzed hair. "But... his body was pretty badly burned up when they pulled him out..."

  Dread churned through me. I'd wanted him to tell me I was being hysterical, that there was no way Chase could be back, tormenting me.

  "We need to know for sure," I murmured, my skin prickling with apprehension. "We need to close this question once and for all, or the paranoia will drive us crazy. That's probably what he fucking wants. You know how he got off on my fear. You saw." Those words tasted like poison on my tongue as I acknowledged the tapes that Zed had seen—my absolute darkest moments that had made me want to die.

  Zed swallowed hard. "Yeah," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "I know."

  I nodded several times, confirming to myself that this was the right course of action. The only course of action.

  "So, that's what we need to do, then. We need to dig up his grave and DNA test the remains." That sentence out loud almost sounded like a joke, and I needed to swallow the hysterical laugh that threatened to bubble out of me.

  Zed blew out a long breath, whispering a curse. But he didn't disagree. Instead, he just stared out into the distance for a moment, drumming his fingertips on the steering wheel, then nodded.

  "Alright. But tomorrow. You nearly died today, Dare, and you're black and blue as a result. Promise me one night of rest, and tomorrow I'll help you exhume the body of legitimately the most twisted son of a bitch I've ever known. Deal?"

  I wanted to argue and demand we go right now. But he had a point. I was in no state to dig up a grave alone, not tonight, anyway. And I could already tell he wouldn't be persuaded otherwise. So I gave a jerking nod.

  "Deal," I agreed. "Tomorrow. Hell, he's been dead for five fucking years; what harm will one more day do?"

  Zed winced. "Don't say that. Now I'm going to be all keyed up and jumping at shadows for the next twenty-four hours." He turned his car on, and I buckled my seat belt.

  We drove in silence for a while, until I noticed Zed taking a detour from the quickest route to my home and gave him a quizzical look.

  "Dallas sorted you out a new phone this afternoon," he answered my silent question. "Figured you'd want it sooner rather than later."

  I gave him an appreciative smile. "You know me so well."

  He shot me a look from the corner of his eye. "Better than anyone, boss."

  We pulled up outside Dallas's adorable suburban house and only waited a minute before he came out to the car with a baby carrier strapped to his front and a sleeping infant tucked inside.

  He brought his finger to his lips before he reached us and silently handed a phone through the open window to me.

  I mouthed my thanks to him, and he gave a little salute before heading back inside with a bouncing gait, clearly paranoid about waking the baby up.

  Zed pulled away from the curb, and I pulled a sticky note off the front of the phone to read it. It was just brief instructions for how to unlock it and reactivate all my wiped data from the old phone.

  Within a few minutes, I was back up and running. Then I groaned when the unread messages started rolling in.

  "Shit," I muttered, "Seph drove past 7th on her way home. She's freaking the fuck out."

  Zed wrinkled his nose. "Can't have been long ago; she usually has some after-school shit on a Thursday, doesn't she?"

  I checked the time on her messages, then nodded. "Yeah, only ten minutes ago." Biting my lip, I texted my sister back and assured her I was fine and that I had lost my phone earlier in the day.

  Her response made me snort a laugh.

  Seph: Oh. Cool. Fuck, I was worried and shit. Can you make that garlic and pepper steak thing for dinner? I'm so hungry.

  I showed it to Zed, and he just rolled his eyes.

  "I love that kid, but goddamn, she doesn't know how good you are to her." He gave me a pointed look, and I shrugged. It was an old disagreement between us that I had never told Seph about our father trying to sell her off as a thirteen-year-old sex slave.

  Ignoring his look, I checked my other messages and inwardly groaned.

  Wild Card: Hayden, wtf? Jo messaged and said not to come to work tonight. Then Seph said 7th burned down?! What's going on? Are you okay?

  There were several more messages after that, getting increasingly worried as he'd gotten no replies from me, so I quickly tapped out a response.

  Hades: I'm fine. Sorry, lost my phone this morning and just replaced it.

  I wasn't good at the soothing thing, so after sending that and rereading it, I awkwardly sent some heart emojis too. That would surely soften up my blunt reply, right?

  Wild Card: Can I see you?

  Flipping down the m
irror in the sun visor, I cringed at my reflection.

  Hades: Not tonight, I've got a lot going on...

  Ugh, it sounded like a brush-off even to me, and I knew that wasn't what I’d meant. Biting my lip, I quickly tried to fix it. I liked Lucas, and the last thing I wanted to do was turn him off because my social skills were lacking. But he simply couldn't see me all messed up like I was.

  Hades: Saturday?

  He wouldn't be working, so it was just a question of finding somewhere to go where we wouldn't be seen... that was, if I was still alive in two days’ time. Who fucking knew what tomorrow would bring.

  Wild Card: Done.

  Then the little bubble showed he was still typing, so I waited to see what else he would say.

  Wild Card: I know you're probably dealing with police and insurance and everything, but... call me when you get home tonight? I just have this bad feeling.

  He ended it with a worried emoji face, and my chest tightened. He was right to be worried, but I didn't want to admit that. Not to him. Not when he was my escape from my life as Hades.

  Hades: I'll try.

  I had no idea whether I would or not, but it seemed like a simple enough request. Maybe. Depended how long I managed to stay awake once I got into my sleep shirt.

  "Everything okay with Seph?" Zed asked when I put my phone down, and I blinked at him a couple of times.

  "Yeah, she's... you saw. I was just replying to... uh..." I trailed off, suddenly feeling awkward as hell admitting I was on casual texting terms with an eighteen-year-old stripper in my employment. But then how many times had Zed fucked the girls at Club 22?

  So, screw it. A little taste of his own medicine for once. "Lucas," I finally finished. "He heard that 7th burned down and was worried."

  Zed did a noticeable double-take. "The new stripper? That's... you're still fucking him?"

  Amusement rippled through me at his response. "Yeah, why not? I figured I'd take a page out of your book, Zed."

  Instead of finding my comment funny, though, he just scowled and tightened his grip on the steering wheel. Not the response I’d expected, but whatever. Maybe my humor needed some work.

  32

  Rather than just dropping me off at the door, Zed insisted on coming upstairs with me. He claimed he wanted to be sure I didn't pass out in the elevator, but once he was inside, I realized he probably just wanted to witness Seph's dramatics when she saw the state I was in.

  Bastard.

  By the time my sister stopped freaking out, she'd made me strip out of my new clothes and show her every single injury. She then scolded me profusely for being "dumb enough" not to notice a gas leak until it was almost too late.

  I loved her. I really did. I'd killed for her many times over and would continue to do so forever... but fuck me, sometimes I wanted to smother her with a pillow.

  By the time I'd changed into a pair of shorts and my sleep shirt, Zed had finished cooking dinner for us all, and Seph reluctantly quit lecturing me in favor of batting her lashes at him.

  I rolled my eyes at her antics, knowing full well she was being a brat and not actually interested in my second.

  "Thank you for cooking," I told him, sweeping my hair up into a high ponytail as I joined them both at the dining table.

  Zed turned to look over at me, then froze with a weird look on his face.

  I frowned. "What?"

  "Nothing," he replied with a smirk, turning his attention back to the food he was serving up for each of us.

  I sat down beside him and eyed the perfectly cooked steak with my mouth watering. He was still giving me a weird look, though, so I glared at him.

  "What?" I asked again. "I thought I was the one with head trauma, not you."

  He snickered softly, reaching for a bottle of wine he'd pulled from my Vintec, and poured himself a glass. Just one, for him.

  "Rude," I scowled. "Where's mine?"

  He arched a brow, then took a long sip before replying. "You have head trauma. No alcohol."

  I made a disgusted sound and snagged the glass out of his fingers. "Asshole."

  He waited until I had a full mouthful before muttering, "Nice T-shirt, by the way."

  I choked on the damn wine. Coughing, I peered down at my favorite sleep shirt and instantly remembered where it'd come from. Yep. It was Zed's signed Blink-182 T-shirt that he'd "lost" about eight years ago and I'd sworn I had no idea where it was.

  Oops.

  "Oh my god, you guys," Seph groaned, "get a room or something. All the eye-fucking is putting me off my food." She gave a dramatic fake gagging noise, then smirked as she chewed a mouthful of steak.

  Had I mentioned recently how I'd like to smother her?

  She must have sensed the murdery vibes rolling off me, too, because she quickly changed the subject and asked Zed about what would happen next with 7th Circle and how long it'd take us to rebuild.

  I was quietly glad for the shift of focus and just concentrated on eating my food without really participating in the conversation. By the time I finished my meal—which was delicious—I was damn near asleep on the table.

  "Okay, bedtime," Zed told me in a firm voice, nudging me with his knee. I was too drained to argue, just nodded and let him support half my weight on the way to my bedroom.

  Seph snickered behind us. "Don't fuck too loudly, you guys; I have school in the morning and need my beauty rest."

  Zed just chuckled and helped me into my epic-sized bed. "Hey, Dare?" he asked in a whisper after pulling my blanket up. I quietly loved that he was using my nickname more and more these days... even though I'd never admit it to him.

  "Mmm, what?" I mumbled, my eyes already closed.

  "Why does Seph think we're sleeping together?"

  My lids pinged open. "Because she's a sexually frustrated eighteen-year-old virgin and reads too many romance novels."

  He grinned down at me, smug as all fuck. "Uh-huh."

  I glowered. "She has an overactive imagination; don't get a big fucking ego about it."

  "If you say so. I'll let you sleep." He bent down and placed a kiss against my hair, just like he used to... but hadn't done in over five years.

  We both froze, then he started to retreat.

  I grabbed his wrist. "Stay with me for a bit?" I asked, cringing inwardly at how weak I sounded.

  I held my breath, half expecting him to refuse. But he just kicked his shoes off and lay down beside me with his arm draped over my waist and his face against my hair.

  "Sweet dreams, Darling," he whispered.

  We slept like the dead, not waking up until well after Seph was gone for school. Then we decided it’d be better to wait until after the cemetery closed before digging up a grave.

  Admittedly, we could have paid someone to do it for us. We could have just paid the groundskeepers to look the other way while we did it during daylight. But neither one of us wanted to risk breathing a word of our plan to anyone else.

  If—if—Chase had somehow survived, then we were in bigger shit than either of us were comfortable discussing. So we kept our mouths shut and waited it out. The second the gates to the cemetery closed at dusk, Zed and I got out of our car and popped the trunk to grab our supplies.

  "Uh, where's the other one?" I asked when Zed plucked the one and only shovel out and handed me two flashlights.

  He shrugged. "Oops. Must have forgotten it." The sarcasm was so thick I could have gotten stuck in it. Bastard.

  I glared at him. "Seriously?"

  He just closed the trunk and gave me an unapologetic look. "Sorry, boss. Guess only I can dig. You're cool to hold the light, though?"

  "Zed..." I growled, but he was already scaling the decorative wrought iron fence of the cemetery. Before leaving my place, he and I had argued whether I was physically capable of digging up a grave, considering how bad my bruising was over almost my whole body. But I thought I'd overruled him.

  Apparently not.

  Grumbling, I followed him over the fen
ce and gritted my teeth against how much it hurt to move my body like that. Sure, maybe he had a point. But I despised being treated as fragile.

  "You sure about doing this?" he asked in a quiet voice as we made our way through the picturesquely creepy grounds in search of Chase Lockhart's burial plot.

  "Fuck no," I muttered back. "But what other options are there? At least this way, if he's in there—or his remains are—then we can look further afield."

  Zed just nodded, leading the way through the narrow pathways until we reached the extensive Lockhart plot. The whole family had all died the same night, so they'd all been buried together with a huge monument marking the family name. Thankfully, each space was individually marked and we didn't have to dig up the entire family to find Chase.

  "There he is," Zed grunted, stomping a boot on a patch of grass. The little plaque at the head simply stated Chase’s name, year of birth, and year of death, nothing more. No "loving son" or "beloved fiancé of Hayden" because he was neither of those things. Not when he’d died, anyway.

  I let out a long breath, placed the flashlight down, and folded my arms to hide the way my hands were shaking. "I thought he was in our past, Zed. I thought this was over."

  Zed stabbed his shovel into the dirt and left it standing upright as he moved closer and wrapped his arms around me in a tight hug. "He is dead, Dare. I'm sure of it. But if this is what it takes to make you sure, then this is what we do." His big hand rubbed my back in soothing circles, and my anxious shaking eased. "I mean, just think of this as a management bonding experience. I bet Archer's crew never dug up a grave together."

  I snorted a laugh and pushed him away. "You're ridiculous. Come on, let's get this over with. I'm nervous about leaving Seph alone at the moment."

  She'd still been at school when Zed and I’d left to drive over to where Chase was buried, but I hoped to be back before she went to bed. It was Friday night, so hopefully she'd be up late.

  "You've got Cass watching the apartment, though?" Zed asked, quirking a brow at me as he started to dig. I nodded, having called in yet another favor from the big sexy bastard earlier in the day. "He's fast becoming the best babysitter in Shadow Grove," Zed joked. "She'll be fine until we get back."