by T. G. Ayer
She fell heavily and was lucky to be caught by Gavriel before she hit the ground hard. Gavriel gave her an admonishing glare. There was nothing she could say to the fact that her stupid leg could not hold her weight.
She'd have to stay put for a little while until it healed.
But as soon as she was strong enough to stand she would insisted Gavriel take her to Tartarus. She didn't have any time to waste lounging around in a sick bed.
Chapter 25
Later, when she was alone, Evie examined the room she'd been given.
Another rotunda with marble columns supporting a domed ceiling, painted with a scene from the mythology books. Perseus defeating the odious Kraken. In this rendition Perseus, a golden-haired muscle-bound young man, held the bloody, multi-vipered Head of Medusa above him. The Kraken was recoiling but was depicted as already half transformed, with parts of its octopus-like limbs cracking and falling into a turquoise ocean. The art was magnificent. Even the vipers looked real enough to pop their heads out of the ceiling and hiss at her.
The room had no doors or walls. On one side, pure white curtains hung between each column, billowing in the tender, fragrant breeze. On the other, beside Evie's decadently comfortable bed, they were held open by gold and ivory hooks carved into cupped hands. Beyond ancient willows and fields of Asphodel and daffodils, the sunset was a breathtaking, soul-calming sight.
Evie lay on the bed, bathed in the brilliant burnt-orange rays of an Elysian sunset. She basked in its golden warmth while threading Kampe's stinger between her fingers, threading it through and around each digit, lost in thought. She shook her head at the stray thought which popped in to remind her of that almost deadly miscalculation. The infant had been the Pearl. Evie could always trust her judgment, her instinct was always right. But where had that instinct gone when Evie had battled Kampe and retrieved the baby?
Evie shook her head again. Her judgment was so totally off, she was beginning to wonder if she was Warrior material any longer. She had been so sure the child was innocent. So sure she had almost risked Gavriel's life to save the creature. Almost. Berating herself now was pointless and usually Evie didn't resort to dwelling on the past, but the stinger was a physical reminder of her failure.
She deliberately kept her eyes off her now bare forearms. Clothed in some toga-like garment, Evie felt very naked. Especially with the Mark so revealed to any passing eye. The Mark had not faded. Still black as night and almost alive, the swirling whorls of script and markings were a brutal reminder that even though she was the rightful Ruler of the Underworld, she had been powerless and ignorant when it came to Kampe's deadly child. Ignorant and so naive.
Evie lay back, head sinking into the soft down of the pillow. She was so very tired. She and Gavriel had traveled such a long way to get to the Judgment Hall. She'd faced her mortality in the lava river making her way across the stone steps. She had barely survived the battle with Kampe and who knew where she would be now had Hecate not aided her.
She hadn't had the chance to explain to Gavriel about Hecate revealing her true self. How had he known that the bird would help her? And did he know the bird was Hecate in disguise? And why would Hecate want to help Evie in the first place? What could she possibly gain? So many pieces to this puzzle, none of which seemed to fit together. The Marks moved at the edge of her vision and Evie was reminded that their time in Elysium, and in Tartarus itself, was limited. She had to return to perform the reversal, forsaking her right to the throne. The only thing to be done was to get stronger so she could get out of there, see Daniel and get back to Julian to put things back in order.
Julian who would wait in vain if she lost herself to the beauty of this place. Evie rose from the pillow, slow and steady. She swung her feet to the floor, this time taking it really slow. Now seated, her head spun and the world tilted precariously. Dania had left her a lunch of roast pork and vegetables which now threatened to rise from her belly. Evie gripped the edge of the bed, holding onto her position and her lunch. It would be a shame to lose such a delicious meal. She recalled her amazement that such delicacies were to be found this deep in the Underworld.
At last, when her head stopped spinning and her meal settled back where it belonged, she edged forward and slowly rose to her feet, a tiny inch at a time. Aeon's went by, stars died and whole species became extinct, but at last she was standing upright, on trembling limbs whose muscles quivered in rebellion against her weight. Her head still swam but at least she was conscious.
She breathed slowly, forcing herself to relax. She remained standing, avoiding any pressure on her injured thigh, until she could bear it no longer. With a sigh she collapsed back onto the mattress. Exhausted. Pathetic. Even her leg throbbed despite her care not to stand on it. How was she supposed to confront an Archangel when she could barely stand on her own two feet. There was only one thing to do then - get strong, get past this inability to move around. She hated being stuck in bed, hated being coddled.
Evie lay back and rested for a few minutes then sat up again, rising to her feet. No faster than before, but more sure that she was going to stand up and not keel over into unconsciousness. This time her lunch stayed put. Within half an hour she was strong enough to stand up almost immediately, and had to remind herself to pace herself. As much as her desire to get out of Elysium was strong, her need to get well was stronger. She could not afford a set-back.
Not now. So, easy does it.
During her exercise routine darkness had fallen. Torchlight flickered outside the room. Evie rose to close the curtains at the foot of her bed, then thought better of it and lay back. She was supposed to be recovering, not pushing herself to heal too fast. She planned to regain her strength and leave before Gavriel insisted he had to come with her.
Watching him and his wife together had made her realize how special every moment was that he was able to spend in her company. Evie was certain that once he left Elysium, he wouldn't be able to return. And with the crimes he'd committed in his angelic lifetime he would never gain access to Elysium.
So for now she would play the patient. Then she would be able to leave and be back without disturbing Gavriel's time with Dania.
Two days later Evie was exercising again. Once seated she flexed and relaxed her injured foot, almost passing out on the first go. Her muscles were cramped, tight. Felt almost twisted like someone had gone in and tied fisherman's knots with her muscles. She was sorely tempted to remove the white bandage but the last thing she wanted was to alert anyone.
Besides, Gavriel hadn't come by to see her for two days; no doubt enjoying his sojourn with his wife. Was he reluctant to be reminded that the time he spent here was only temporary? Dania brought her meals, and tended to her wound. Despite her gentleness Dania had a stubborn streak a mile wide. Every time she visited she tried to pull Evie into the conversation. Mundane things like the weather here in Elysian compared to the Upper World, and the architecture and even the painting on the ceiling of her room. She learned a lot about this beautiful place, not that she wanted to. But although Evie smiled and was polite, she wasn't ready to talk. But it seemed Gavriel had spoken to his wife about Evie.
Dania glided through the billowing curtains, the sun casting a halo around her head. She bore a smile and a tray of sticky sweet pastries. She set the tray on Evie's lap and sat beside her legs, giving her knee a small pat. "Gavriel told me you knew Patrick?" She leaned forward eager for Evie's answer.
Evie stiffened. The mere thought of her mentor disturbed the bed of emotions she'd buried deep inside of her heart. It hurt to talk about him but Dania's innocent eagerness put Evie in a difficult position. She could avoid the topic and insult Dania or she could talk and dredge up memories better left alone.
When Evie opened her mouth, having decided to choose avoidance, she immediately shut it. It must have been the serenity of Dania's smile. In it she saw no subterfuge, no hidden agenda. Just a pure need to talk about a mutual friend. And Evie found herself unable to d
eny her.
"Yes. Patrick was my mentor. He was my guardian and the best father a girl could ever have," Evie said.
Dania nodded, her curls bouncing around her face. "Yes, Patrick had that aura around him. Of one with much love to give."
Dania's words reminded Evie of the first time she'd flown and Patrick's reaction. "You know, when Gavriel left me with him he forgot to mention to Patrick that I was of the angelic persuasion."
Dania nodded. "That sounds like Gavriel." She shared a secretive smile with Evie.
"So the day I first flew must have come as a huge shock to Patrick but he took it in his stride." Evie laughed. "I'd sprouted wings from nowhere and just began to fly off into the sky. Poor Patrick. He held on for dear life and managed to bring me back down to the ground."
"I bet he was more concerned about your shock than his own," she said.
Evie nodded. "Exactly. He soothed my terror and never once made me afraid or ashamed of my wings. We learned about my angelic side together and he never judged me."
"That was Patrick." Dania sighed. "I knew him through Gavriel but he never judged me either. I was always afraid of what people were saying - those that knew of Gavriel's true nature and of the sin we committed. But Patrick loved that we loved each other. He was all love and no judgment."
"And that was his downfall." Evie's voice was hard as she spoke the words, revealing an anger she'd held for a long time.
Dania's smiled disappeared. "Why do you say that, Evangeline?"
"Because if he'd had the sense to judge Marcellus and Daniel the way they deserved to be judged then he might still be alive today. I went to him repeatedly, warning him of things I'd seen, of my gut instinct, but he chose to believe the monsters were angels."
Dania snorted. "That would surely be difficult when the angels turn out to be monsters."
Evie laughed softly. "That is so true." She sighed. "You're right. I shouldn't be angry with him for his nature. But ..."
"I understand, Evie. You need him now more than ever and he isn't there. Grief is not an easy burden to bear. But you must find a way to forgive him. You must allow him to rest in peace."
Evie frowned. "You think he knows I am troubled?"
Dania nodded. "I believe so. Souls who have passed on retain a connection to their loved ones. They will sense anger and grief in those they left behind. And that will not allow them to rest. You must forgive him to allow him to be at peace."
Evie knew Dania spoke the truth. She nodded. "I will try although it won't be easy. I miss him terribly."
"It takes time but eventually it does get better."
Evie smiled.
The woman had found her weak spot. So they began to talk. First about Patrick and her days growing up with him. Then about her quest to find her father and her double disappointment. About the traitorous Marcellus and the Warriors who were her friends. Before long Evie realized she'd given in to Dania. Perhaps this was why she had remained wife to an Archangel? Only a strong woman could live with Gavriel. And beneath that sublime exterior lay a woman of steel.
So this was what having a mother would have been like. Evie enjoyed it, though she reminded herself this was temporary. She refused to care about another person that she simply had to leave behind.
Then Dania shifted in her seat and patted Evie's knee. "You should get some rest."
"Before you go, can you tell me something?" When Dania nodded, Evie asked, "How do you get to Tartarus from this part of the Underworld? I know I will go with Gavriel once I am ready but I was curious."
After a moment's hesitation, Dania leaned toward the window and pulled the curtain apart. Then she pointed at a rotunda that sat high up on a distant hilltop, surrounded by rose bushes filled with riotous color. "That rotunda is a portal to the Pits. Gavriel will take you when you are stronger. Now you must rest."
Long after Dania left, Evie continued to stare at the rotunda on the hill. Her doorway to the Pits.
The Pits, where Daniel was being held.
Chapter 26
Evie arrived at the entrance to the Pits, sword at her side, dagger in her boot, expecting a fight. A bit deflated, she was met by a fairly disagreeable creature, almost a minotaur, but not as large or as hungry as she'd expected. He watched her with glossy black eyes as she made her way up the stone pathway and closer to him. His horns gleamed in the light of the flickering torchlight that stood on either side of an entrance guarded by two sullen sentries, who held their spears close.
"How may I help you?" the minotaur asked in a sultry voice that was exceedingly odd and didn't mesh with his furred features at all. He glared at her coldly, as he waited for her response. He wore a black shirt open to the waist, a pair of tan leather pants and sturdy leather boots. In his hand he held a whip which he kept curled around his fingers, as if he was likely to shuck it out and use it in the next second.
He looked at Evie long and hard and just when she was about to squirm he spun on his heel and went to the entrance. He sent word with the sullen sentry for a guard to escort her to see Daniel. The minotaur returned to his post, and stood arms akimbo, as if waiting and ready for the next trespasser.
The guard arrived before Evie could become impatient. He was equally helpful and bustled her along, respectfully bowing his head at all times. He wore a white knee-length chitin that bared one muscle-bound shoulder. His deep blue eyes were watchful and held an expression of concern that Evie would not expect from a mere guard.
She kept her gaze averted and followed at the guard's heels. Evie swallowed nervously. She had not been expecting to be nervous. Soon, they were descending into a deep chasm. Tiny craters dotted the floor of the chasm where figures moved within each pit, wrenching at the chains which bound them, yelling obscenities or just screaming the blood-curdling scream of the demented. It didn't help that the air was choked with the odor of unwashed bodies, and bodily wastes. And something else that Evie wasn't sure she wanted to know.
Black stone walls and pervading darkness made the pits far too eerie to allow Evie to relax. The path they took curved down, hugging the wall until they reached the bottom. From here the pits were much larger in size, with the walls of the little craters at least four times taller than Evie's height including wings. Somewhere in this warren of craters they had stashed the Archangel.
Almost there. It was almost over.
Coming to see Daniel was akin to the purging of her sins. Gavriel had demanded a reason for her fool-hardly intention. Why did she want to do this? At the time she'd had no answer, had been following her instinct. Even now she wasn't so sure. It was more an instinctive need, than a conscious desire. The fact was that Archangel Daniel was her legitimate progenitor. Father was not a word she would want to utter in reference to the dark angel she had battled.
The angel who had been so keen on killing her.
Her feet slowed of their own accord. Would have come to a total stop except Evie and her escort had to slip aside in the narrow passage, allowing a cloaked figure to pass by. Cloaked figures were not unusual here in the depths of the underworld. Evie could see a few more walking up ahead, retaining their anonymity within the folds of shadowed hoods. But there was something familiar about the figure that had passed Evie. Perhaps it was the sense that it was a woman hidden beneath the folds of the drab linen.
At the very least it distracted Evie, until she was suddenly at the entrance of the pit serving as a prison for Daniel. She stood in the middle of hundreds of other pits, conveniently roofless so the prisoners could be policed at all times. A black wrought iron gate sealed the entrance of Daniel's prison. Another minotaur was on guard. He stared at Evie and her escort as if contemplating whether to allow Evie through. Then, rattling his keys, he clanked the gate open. He turned his eyes to the floor, but his curiosity was obvious as Evie could feel his eyes follow her into the pit.
The scenery here would never change. Black rock, oil torches, the cloying odor of death and something stale. Her escort said
nothing, just indicated for Evie to enter and positioned himself inside the gate. Safety first. Or Julian would have something to say. Inside the cell, darkness warred with the four torches flickering around the prisoner, despite the lack of a roof to the cell. Gavriel had certainly received the better bargain in the scheme of things. When Evie had first seen Gavriel he had been fairly clean, despite the bloody nature of his injuries.
Daniel on the other hand was as soiled on the outside as his black heart surely was on the inside.
His hair was matted and hung unkempt around his face. Evie knew for certain she would not get too close, just to avoid anything that may currently reside within those filthy strands. Her heart gave a plaintive wail - why could her father not have been Gavriel. Good, kind Gavriel who would never have wanted to hurt her the way Daniel had. In this moment before she met his eyes she recalled so vividly the battle in which he'd intended to take her life. And then the moment when she had realized that she had lived on the same estate for an entire decade with Daniel without ever knowing who he was. That he was actually the father she'd been searching for all her life.
Daniel moved his head. He knew someone was here to see him but refused to allow that visitor the satisfaction of his immediate attention. Arrogant. The squalor of his pit teased the bile within her gut. For the briefest second Evie wanted to run. To take flight, admit it was a mistake to want to confront Daniel. Leave it all as it was before. Try and forget it.
But it would never work.
Evie had known it all along. And despite their adamant demands to the contrary both Gavriel and Julian had known she was right. Or that there was at least something justified in her desire to meet the Archangel face to face.