“Because it was the right thing to do. The same way letting you go was the right thing to do.”
He was talking about when she’d willingly gone back with him to his underground lair in the Yucatan to once more be his Mistress of Torture. When she’d known sacrificing herself so Nick and the others and all of Argolea would be saved was the right choice to make. When Zagreus had realized she really was in love with Nick.
They stared at each other. An odd expression crossed his features, one that made her think he wanted to say more but wasn’t sure how. And in the silence, she realized the real reason he was here. Not just because he was struggling with Talisa and their relationship. And not simply to tell her about Max.
He was here to make amends for what had happened between them—between him and her in that underground lair long ago.
He stepped past her before she could figure out how to respond to that, careful not to touch her, but stilled when he reached the doorway to the hall.
Still reeling, Cynna looked after him.
He turned, but he didn’t meet her eyes. Instead, his dark gaze seemed to focus on her shirt. “Your child has his father’s powers. That will piss off a lot of gods—both on Olympus and in the Underworld. Do whatever you have to do to keep him safe.”
Cynna placed a hand over her belly. She hadn’t even realized Zagreus could tell she was pregnant. But she wasn’t afraid. If anything—as his gaze lifted to hers—she felt… protected… in a way she never had before.
Whatever had happened to him, whether it was the years he’d spent with the Fates after he’d let her go or these last few days alone with Talisa, had changed him. Changed him in ways even she could never have expected.
“We will,” she managed, her throat thick, wanting him to know it was okay. That finally, after all this time, everything they’d done to each other was in the past. “And thank you.”
He nodded once, then frowned. “She”—he cleared his throat—"Talisa will be back as soon as I can convince her to stop being so damn stubborn.”
Cynna chuckled and smoothed her hand over her belly. “Yeah, good luck there. That girl is exactly like her father, the bullheaded leader of the Argonauts. ”
His scowl deepened. “Wonderful.”
In a puff of black smoke, he disappeared as if he’d never even been there.
Cynna stared at the fading smoke in her kitchen, amazed that had just happened.
Zagreus, the Prince of Darkness, wasn’t quite so dark after all. And he was head over heels in love with a mortal.
A wry smile curled her lips. Honestly, she couldn’t think of a better match for him than the spunky, tough-as-nails warrior-female. Talisa could hold her own and put any male in his place—even a god.
Her mind skipped from Talisa to the Argonauts and how they would react when they learned the news. Then it jumped to Max.
Smile fading, she rushed for the stairs to wake her mate.
Chapter Eighteen
Zagreus flashed to the same forest where he’d taken Talisa after leaving that club. He still had a hike ahead of him, and he was anxious to get back to the castle and check on her, but he wasn’t stupid enough to open a portal anywhere near Ehrendia, just in case anyone was paying attention.
He moved through the darkness, the only sounds those of leaves rustling in the slight breeze, bat wings fluttering high above, and his bootsteps crunching needles and twigs along the forest floor. The familiar scents of moss and pine surrounded him, fir and Aspen rising to the stars, their trunks and limbs lit only by a smattering of moonlight. He didn’t see or smell or hear any of it, though. His mind was still too fixed on his conversation with Cynna. On her words, which he now couldn’t stop replaying.
She was right. Revenge was why she’d come to him. And revenge was why he’d let her stay, even though he’d known she wasn’t his mono mia. He’d been blind to everything but that singular goal, and he’d known he could use her to get exactly what he’d wanted.
They had been distractions for each other—twisted, cruel, toxic distractions. But somewhere along the way, in the years since he’d let her go, he’d lost his thirst for vengeance.
He wasn’t sure if it was because of the time he’d spent in Ehrendia, living among the nymphs and silens. Didn’t know if it had anything to do with the years he’d been trapped with the Fates. He only knew that he wasn’t the same god he’d been twenty-eight years ago. And the more he thought about it, the more he was starting to believe he was here in this moment now with Talisa because Cynna’s transformation back then had opened his eyes to something more.
To something greater than revenge.
To something a thousand times more meaningful than power and supremacy.
His steps came to a halt when he thought of Cynna again. He could only imagine what the female and her mate—his uncle and former prisoner—would say if he admitted he had them to thank for setting him on this path. Not just the one that had led him to Talisa, but the path that made him think he might actually be worthy of another chance.
The image of Talisa asleep in his bed filled his mind. Her silky hair falling around her face. Her smooth skin catching the moonlight through the windows. The way she’d curled into him last night, her warm breath heating his flesh where her cheek rested against his chest as she drifted to sleep. And her soft fingers, hovering over his heart…
A heart that was now beating hard and fast with the need to see her and touch her and prove to her just how much he wanted that chance.
Urgency brought his head up. Pushed his feet forward. The stone arch was only a handful of miles awa—
“Going somewhere, son?” Hades stepped out from behind a tree, directly in Zagreus’s path.
Zagreus skidded to a stop, but there was no time to react. The god-king of the Underworld threw his arm out and squeezed his fingers together as if grasping an invisible object.
Zagreus’s arms instantly slapped against the sides of his body, and the air rushed out of his lungs. He tried to wiggle free, but Hades jerked his hand up, the strength of his power thrusting Zagreus twenty feet in the air.
Zagreus kicked and flailed, but before he could find a way to make his arms work, Hades yanked down, the force slamming Zagreus face-first into the hard earth.
Twigs and rocks stabbed into his flesh. Pain radiated through his body as he gasped in a breath. He pushed himself to his hands, but Hades was ready.
The god wrapped that invisible grip around Zagreus all over again, wrenched him off the ground, then heaved him to the left.
He crashed into the thick base of an old-growth tree with a grunt, bounced back, then free-fell to the forest floor. His head smacked against a rock with a crack that echoed through the forest. His back took the brunt of the force, knocking the air completely out of his lungs this time.
“You thought you could double-cross me again and I wouldn’t find out?”
Zagreus tried to push up, but before he could get his bearings, Hades lifted him once more and slammed him into a tree to the right, as if he were nothing more than a rag doll.
His face and torso smashed into bark and limbs. Something sharp stabbed into his side, making him groan. His body smacked the forest floor once more, leaving him reeling in pain and confusion.
“I know everything, you pathetic immortal,” Hades growled. “You’re nothing without me. Do you hear me? Absolutely nothing.”
Two things occurred to Zagreus as he pushed himself to his hands and knees and tried to suck back air. Hades must have tracked those daemons when they went missing. And since then, he’d been monitoring this forest, just waiting for Zagreus to show up.
Zagreus knew better than to give anything away. He wasn’t entirely sure why his father was after him—though he had an idea. At the moment, he was just thankful he’d opened the portal here instead of closer to Ehrendia.
He managed to lift his head. Sweat and blood dripped into his eyesight, leaving everything blurry, and the concussion sur
ely wasn’t helping. But he could already feel his god-strength working to heal his injuries, and he knew showing weakness was a thousand times worse than being weak in front of his father.
He’d learned long ago never to be weak.
“You wasted both our time to come to Earth and tell me that? The toxic air in the Underworld is clearly messing with your head, old man.”
Hades growled and threw his arm out once more.
Zagreus wheezed as that invisible force contracted around his torso, squeezing out every bit of air, then his body was flying, not into a tree this time, but straight up, through the canopy and above the trees. So high all he saw were stars.
What goes up must come down.
Fuck me…
The thoughts whirled through Zagreus’s mind just before Hades’s powers wrenched him back to Earth. He crashed through limbs and leaves then smashed into the packed forest floor, this time so hard he knew bones cracked and shattered.
He lay immobile on his back, unable to move or even make a sound as he stared up at the broken tree limbs above void of greenery now, the stars beyond twinkling against a vast black sky.
It was beautiful. Quiet. Dark. The edge of a cosmic void he’d once craved. But he didn’t want nothingness anymore. He wanted chaos. And light. And the female who made him feel alive.
Footsteps sounded close. Zagreus blinked, unable to move more than his eyeballs, watching as his father moved around his right side and came into view.
Hades glared down at him with every ounce of hatred Zagreus remembered, his coal black eyes showing not a single ounce of mercy. “The Orb is missing from Olympus. There are only a handful of gods brazen enough to sneak in and out of Zeus’s realm and take it, and my money’s on you, seeing as how you tried to steal it once before.”
Zagreus didn’t answer. Couldn’t. But he wasn’t surprised his father was here about the Orb of Krónos. He’d been expecting a visit like this for some time now. His mistake had been being distracted tonight and not anticipating an attack.
Hades knelt at Zagreus’s side so they were face-to-face and perched his forearm on his knee. Then with a malevolent growl, he said, “I should send you back to the Fates for another twenty-five years of torment. But I’ve decided to give you the chance to prove your loyalty, instead. You have twenty-four hours to get me the Orb. If you fail, I will destroy this forest and all who dwell within it, including your precious little nymph kingdom.”
Zagreus’s eyes widened, a reaction he couldn’t stop.
An evil smile twisted Hades’s mouth. “Oh yes, my wicked son, I know all about your little perverted palace and everything that goes on there. My spies are like the stars, and your scheming has grown boring and predictable. You may be strong as far as minor gods go, but you will never be as powerful as me. And you will never control the Orb and my birthright.”
Hades pushed to his full height and scowled down at Zagreus as if he were a spider he wanted to squash beneath his boot. “I’ve shown you mercy in the past, because your mother begged me to and because I could not prove you were not of my line. But this time, if you betray me, any punishment you endured before will pale in comparison to what I will do to you. And I promise you, son, if you cross me again, my wrath will be limitless, and your torture at my hand will last for all eternity.”
He disappeared in a swirl of black smoke, taking what little moonlight had been shining down with him.
Darkness descended, and the air became silent. Nothing moved in the forest around Zagreus—no leaves, no creatures, not even the wind.
He gasped in a breath and let it out. Winced because his cracked ribs were already knitting back together and they hurt like a motherfucker.
When the pain eased a touch, he drew in another breath, slow and steady, as he worked to reinflate his lungs.
Okay… That was an ass-kicking he hadn’t seen coming. He could have gathered his strength and fought back, could have given Hades a real brawl if he’d wanted, but he’d restrained himself. Partly because he hadn’t wanted to trigger something worse. But mostly because he needed to rebound from this quickly if he had any hope of keeping Talisa safe.
Talisa…
Hades hadn’t mentioned Talisa. Hadn’t even referenced her. His father knew about Ehrendia, but that didn’t mean he knew about Talisa or who she really was.
Cringing at the pain in his arms, his shoulders, his back, Zagreus slowly pushed himself up to sitting, knowing he had to get to her. To make sure she was safe. His head was still in a fog but slowly clearing. He might have severed his spine with that last fall because a tingly feeling was just coming back to his thighs and shins and feet.
His mind came to a spinning stop.
Holy shit. His father had mentioned spies.
The nymphs were too timid to ever betray him. And his silens were as loyal as the satyrs were perverse. The only person who’d been anywhere near Ehrendia recently and who could be a spy was…
Pandora.
A dark energy swept through Zagreus, giving him strength, stimulating his healing. Pandora knew everything about Ehrendia. Everything about its inner workings. Everything about Zagreus’s activities. About Talisa. And now she had Max. Which meant…
Shit. Which meant those satyrs she’d gathered at that fortress really were an army.
An army with one purpose.
He glanced around the dark forest as he slowly pushed to his feet, seeing none of it. Swaying, he reached out to the closest tree trunk to steady himself, but he barely felt the pain anymore. All he could focus on was Ehrendia. And Talisa. And what he knew he could no longer stop from happening.
His pulse picked up speed. Plans swirled in his head as his strength returned. The one option with even a miniscule chance of success meant abandoning the only thing he’d ever wanted.
“There’s more to life than misery and revenge. So much more than I ever knew was possible. And it’s not dark, it’s light. All it took was doing the right thing.”
Cynna’s words echoed in Zagreus’s mind again, only this time they brought a pain to his chest that was sharper and hotter than anything Hades had ever done to him. He breathed through it, though, knowing Cynna was right.
There was more to life, no matter what it cost him. And this time he was determined to finally be more. For Talisa. Even for himself.
Before he could change his mind, he opened a portal and stepped through.
“And that’s all he gave you?” Casey asked, trying not to be frustrated as she stared at Cynna, standing in the middle of the queen’s office. “Nothing more?”
Cynna cast a worried look from Casey to Theron’s rigid features beside her, then to Isadora seated at her desk, and finally to Zander and Callia, waiting anxiously on the queen’s other side. “About their locations?” she answered almost apologetically. She glanced back at Casey. “Yeah. That was it.”
Callia and Zander exchanged hopeful glances. Isadora tapped her fingers on the big wooden desk as Demetrius, standing behind her, leaned down and whispered something in her ear. Theron didn’t move, but Casey felt her mate’s own frustration as if it was oozing from his pores. And even though she was just as anxious as him, she knew venting about it was not going to help.
It was the middle of the night. They’d all been woken from sleep when Cynna and Nick had shown up at the castle with news about Zagreus’s visit. The Argonauts and Nick had only just returned from the human realm a few hours ago after nearly a week in the field searching for leads. Casey and her sisters had spent the same time harnessing their Horae gifts, trying to pinpoint Max and Talisa’s location. But none of them had come up with anything concrete—not the sisters, not the Argonauts, not even Cynna, if what she’d relayed here tonight was true. At least, not for Talisa.
For Max, however, it was another story.
“It could be a trap,” Demetrius said as he straightened behind Isadora. “Even if those satyrs aren’t under Zagreus’s control—which is still iffy—he could be le
ading us to slaughter all so we won’t come after him.”
And Talisa. Casey heard the words Demetrius held back when he glanced her way.
“So, what?” Zander snapped, his eyes flashing from their normal silver to a stormy grey that indicated his legendary rage was bubbling right beneath the surface. “That’s reason to let my son continue to suffer at the hands of those beasts?”
“That’s not what I’m saying,” Demetrius said on a sigh.
“Max did the right thing by going after Talisa,” Zander went on as if Demetrius hadn’t even spoken. “He didn’t ask to be captured by those satyrs. And he shouldn’t have to pay for the fact his daughter”—he pointed at Theron—"was reckless and immature.”
“Watch it.” Theron squared his shoulders and shot a blistering look Zander’s way.
Casey felt tempers rising by the second, her own included. She pressed a hand against her mate’s chest to hold him back, knowing the males were seconds away from getting into it. This tension between all of them had been building since the second Elysia had told them Talisa and Max had been taken.
“Knock it off.” She glared up at her mate then turned her glower on Zander. “Both of you. Bickering isn’t going to bring our kids back. They were both reckless. As for immaturity, I’ve seen plenty of it from the males in this room, so let’s not go there.”
Her sisters nodded in agreement, but Casey ignored them. “We need to focus on what we’re going to do now, not on who’s responsible.” She looked toward Cynna. “How many satyrs did Zagreus say were at that fortress?”
“At least three thousand.”
“Three thousand…” Shit. “That’s a lot.”
“Zagreus didn’t have close to that at his lair in the Yucatan,” Nick said at Cynna’s side, his arms crossed over his chest. “That’s not just a lot, that’s an army.”
And armies were only formed for one purpose. Casey’s stomach dropped.
“Cynna.” Isadora looked at her half-sister from behind the desk. “Zagreus said he witnessed this army, and he’s sure it was Max who was with them?”
Wicked Page 28