by Anna Edwards
“I wish it were that simple, my son.” My father pushes back the heavy oak chair he’s sitting on and stands. “Pluto’s intrinsically linked with all the gods, just as I am. We are all symbiotic with each other. I’m not sure how much we’re going to be able to stop him.”
“We can bind him in some way. Destroy his business, run it into the ground, and force him to the Underworld. The longer he’s on Earth, the more trouble he’s causing.” My temper’s rising. I’d spent the morning dealing with business at my estates in Tuscany, and then my father called me here for this crisis meeting. I’m sick of discussing how we’ll proceed when it comes to Pluto. I want his head on a platter, preferably stuffed with my favorite fruit.
“Mars, you must be sensible.”
“I’m done with that.” I groan with frustration. “I want blood.”
“That’s the war inside you talking.”
“No,”–I interrupt my father and bang my fists on the table again– “it’s the person who’s had to put a goddess back together that’s talking. I’ve had to watch her nearly destroy herself every time a flower has wilted from her emotions.”
“How is she dealing with her emerging powers?” my father asks, changing the subject.
“Well.” I’ll not be distracted, though. “Pluto uses illegal activities to generate funds. Let’s hit him where it hurts. Let’s cut off those funds. His drug shipments hit Naples once a month. That day is soon. Let’s bust him and have them taken away. He won't be able to sell them, and he'll have to concentrate on generating money elsewhere. It’ll distract him from the fight for the gods, albeit for a short period of time, but enough to allow us to retrieve and secure more before he discovers them.”
Hercules steps up to the desk from where he’s been quietly watching in the corner of the room.
“Father, I’m actually inclined to agree with Mars. We’ve been sitting back for far too long, now, waiting for Pluto’s next move. I know it has been because of the fear of harm coming to humans, but I have to say if they’re involved willingly in drug smuggling, they deserve all that’s coming to them.”
“Apollo?” my father questions my other brother.
“I don't think it would hurt to take the fight to him for once.”
My father sits back in his chair, his whole demeanor weary and full of defeat.
“I was wrong to ever think a time of peace would exist again for the gods. Too much has happened, and there’s too much hatred. When we mix that with the ever-expanding human elements, I agree a pre-emptive strike is our best course of action.”
I reach out over the mountain of files on his desk, which will be filled with god related cases.
“I wish nothing more than peace, especially with Vicky in my life.”
Hercules chuckles.
“I never thought I’d see the day my brother would want to stay home and have sex with the same woman.”
“Shut it,” I retort and hold a fist up.
“Happens to the best of us.” My father lets out a long breath and smirks. “You’d better get back to her. I’m going to go see your mother. Hercules, Apollo, you can make the necessary plans. Find out when the shipment is due, and we’ll put a stop to it.”
My brothers and I shudder at the thought of what he’ll be doing with my mother in a few minutes.
“Well, brothers, father has spoken. You better get on with your work.” With a purposeful show, I grab my crotch and give it a tug. “I have instructions to go and make Vicky happy.” I leave the room to the sounds of them groaning.
I reappear in my lounge in Tuscany.
“Vicky?” I call and head toward the kitchen for a drink. Two half empty glasses sit on the table. Strange? I muse and pour myself some water into a clean glass, which I retrieved from the cupboard. “Luigi?”
My son has spent more time at our place, recently, than the home he shares with his mother. He’s taken a real liking to Vicky, and I love to watch it. Although, if he’s here now, he’s being sent home. I need my cock buried deeply inside Vicky’s succulent pussy and to hear her scream my name over and over again. My son being here doesn't really allow for that, no matter how much I adore him.
I finish my water, scoop up the other two glasses, and deposit them in the sink for washing later. A floral feminine scent fills the room, but I know instantly, without even looking, it’s not Vicky.
“Bellona,” I huff out with frustration and turn to face her where she stands in the doorway. She’s dressed in only a silk gown, which leaves little to the imagination with its gossamer transparency. Leaning back against the kitchen cupboards, I cross my feet at the ankles and fold my arms across my chest. “I think you better turn straight around and leave.”
“Why?” She runs her tongue slowly over her lips. Once upon a time, I would have found it sexy. In fact, I’m pretty certain it’s the reason she got pregnant in the first place, but right now, it irritates me and makes my skin crawl.
“Because whatever game you’re playing isn’t going to happen.”
“Why not?” She saunters toward me, seductively swaying her hips. Her tiny hand is placed in the center of my chest, but there’s no warmth coming from it, only chills so cold my body shudders.
“I love Vicky,” I reply adamantly.
“She’s not worthy of you. She’s weak and will never be able to cater to all your needs. Only I know the darkness running through your head because it’s there in mine, too. We both will never see the world as others do because we have the power to destroy it with one angry word.” She leans forward to kiss my chest through the casual t-shirt I’m wearing. I push her back.
“No, and I’m warning you. If you don't leave, this second, and allow me to find Vicky, then it’ll be your world that’s destroyed. I’d never want to upset my son, but if you can't behave with at least a little decorum, then I think I may have to reconsider you being in his life.” I bend down low, so I’m in her face. I’m not a nice man when it’s called for, and the next words I speak are designed to cause as much pain as possible to my former consort. “Maybe I’ll have him call Vicky his mother.”
The gasp she makes causes the room to shake.
“No.” A single tear drops down her cheek. Bellona doesn't cry…. she’s a Goddess of War. I place my finger in the tear, and the force of the emotion behind it takes my breath away. I double over, clutching my chest at the intense pain ripping through it. I’m gasping for air as the feelings running around Bellona’s mind cascade through my body in a torrent so fierce that my head is left spinning.
“Luigi!” I cry out.
Her bottom lip quivers.
“I didn't have a choice.”
“Choice?” Her words suddenly hit me like a ton of bricks. “Vicky? Where is she?”
“He promised me he'd give him back. He’s all I have, Mars. He’s my world. He’s what keeps me grounded and stops me from starting the wars you fight so hard to prevent. I can't lose him. I can't. Please.”
Without thinking, I grip her around the neck and pin her up against the wall. Her eyes go wide as saucers as she registers the shock of my actions.
“What did you do?” I growl out with so much fury a storm erupts outside the villa. Rain descends in a powerful downpour, blanketing the world from view. Thunder booms out its loud call of anger while lightning erupts from the sky in a potent flame.
“I had no choice.”
“Tell me,” I shout, and the wall behind her crumbles into smithereens on the floor. My house rocks, and the earth shakes from a quake so powerful that a line to Hell itself is ripped open through my kitchen floor.
“Pluto said I would get Luigi back if I brought Vicky to him. Please, Mars. He lied. He still has our son, and he’s going to kill him. You have to stop him.”
I drop her to the floor as the words slowly register in my head. I’ve lost Vicky, again, but this time, my son has gone with her. Pluto has the two people in his hands who mean the world to me. I would die for them. I can f
eel that I’m broken. He’s won. I take one final look at Bellona who lies, a sniveling mess, on the floor.
“Run, hide because this ends now. You’ve wanted a war my Goddess, by fuck, you’re going to get one.”
I turn and look at the jagged hole that’s shattered the marble perfection of my home. I stride over to it and call for my spear, which instantly appears in my hand. My eyes shut, and the clothes of mankind I’m wearing disappear, replaced by ancient Roman livery, a symbol of my strength and fury.
“When Luigi returns, get him as far away from here as possible. Rome, Italy, our world will fall today.”
I shuffle my foot closer to the edge of the hole. The earth's core burns from within, but I don’t feel its heat, for my own exceeds anything a puny planet can throw at me, now. I don’t shy away from it. I don’t feel anything, not even when I jump into the hole and descend into the Underworld.
Chapter Twenty-Two
VICKY
Pluto groans, his panting breath searing my ear. As he shudders over me, I feel his cock pulse, filling me with his cum. The burn of his seed makes me convulse in pain. But pinned as I am with his weight, there’s no escape.
Biting the inside of my cheek until I taste blood, I refuse to let him hear me cry. Eyes screwed shut, the tears burn behind my eyelids.
I fought hard to stop him. Refused to go quietly, but he overpowered me. With his inhuman strength, I never stood a chance.
The cold marble surface of his desk presses against my thighs and torso, grounding me to the defilement I’ve just had to endure.
“I can see why Mars enjoys your cunt so much,” he mutters in my ear, thrusting lazily into me a few more times. “It really is divine in every sense of the word.”
I wince as his softening cock pulls out of me.
My head's still spinning from his ferocity. It was so fast there was no time to brace for what was to come. The bikini I’m wearing was barely a barrier against his attack. All he had to do was hook the scrap of material to one side to take me.
Peeling myself off his desk, my legs shake weakly. I’m fully aware of his cum trickling down the inside of my thighs.
The darkness Mars had kept at bay the last week simmers to the surface, and just beneath my skin, it seethes.
Pluto is a monster.
Turning slowly, I confront the devil himself.
Raised and still bleeding, his cheek bears the claw marks from where I attempted to defend myself.
“You look so beautiful tainted and wearing the marks of my possession.” He smirks. Reaching for his crotch, he zips up his trousers.
“You’ve got me and taken what you wanted. Now, let Luigi go,” I reply, my voice a rough whisper. I hate him and wish I had the power to make him burn.
“And lose a bargaining chip? I don’t think so.”
“Mars will come for him, no matter what. He’ll destroy you.”
Pluto chuckles. “Oh, I’m counting on him coming, but he won’t hurt me, not if he wants to see his son again. No, the God of War will become my pawn.”
When he takes a step closer, I can’t stop my instinctive reaction to flinch back.
“You’re weak and pathetic, Vicky. Look at yourself–the Goddess of Love?” With calculating paces, he crowds me. “I’ve fucked you against your will. Let my pet psychopath kill your friend and hurt you. Does that invoke love inside you or a thirst for revenge?”
Lips pressed together, I clench my teeth.
He’s right. What I feel is anything but love. Rage. An insidious need to strike out, so he experiences the same raw, harsh emotions and sensations he’s given me.
“Embrace the hate. Let it fill you. You’ll be so much stronger when you do.”
Meeting his eyes, I shake my head. “I’m not going to give you what you want.”
“Oh, you will, in time, which is something I have plenty of. I intend to keep on enjoying you. As concubines go, I think you’ll keep my attention for a very long time before I get bored.” Snatching a fistful of my hair, Pluto drags me up against the length of his chest. Cock hardening in the front of his trousers, it prods my stomach through the coarseness of the material.
Twisting my head, I try to avoid his lips, but his teeth sink into my bottom lip, holding me in place.
Everything inside me screams out in loathing.
Hand gripping the back of my skull, he keeps me in position as he devours my mouth.
I want it to be over. He’s so fucking repellent it makes me want to gag. To wash his taste and scent off me forever.
Palms pressed against his shirt front, somehow, I find the strength to shove him away.
Pluto grins, rubbing the pad of his thumb along his jaw as he watches my expression of disgust.
That one gesture is enough to make me snap.
He thinks he can get away with it all. Degrade me. Rape me. Bring the world into chaos and Mars to his knees. Whatever he does to me, I won’t let him hurt the man I love. Somehow, I’ll find Luigi and get us free.
Lunging for him, I go for his face with a scream rising straight from my soul. Fingers connect with soft flesh. I drive them deeply, scoring my nails into his skin.
Pluto hisses.
A backhanded blow sends me to my knees. My cheek’s on fire from the punch, and I’m left with the taste of blood on my tongue.
“I like your fire but not your claws. With Mario dead, I had to find another torturer. I think my new apprentice is fitting for the task.”
Yanking me up by my hair, he drags me forcefully across the floor.
I clutch his wrist, and a scream leaves my throat–the agony is blinding. He’s going to leave me to one of his minions. Have me tortured again while he looks on? Panic fractures inside me, and I know I won’t be able to live through this a second time.
Writhing, twisting, I can’t break free as my bare feet scrape against the unyielding hardness of the cold stone floor.
The sound of a metal door opening registers. A second later, I’m drawn upward and slammed back into a chair.
Arms captured, they’re pinned to my sides.
Giving me an unfriendly leer, the two males restraining me click the cuffs into place, preventing me from moving.
“Let me up, you son of a bitch. I’m going to kill you myself.”
Clucking his tongue, Pluto dabs with a handkerchief at the fresh damage I’ve left in red, long scratches on his arrogant face. “Such pretty, empty threats. You’re in my domain, now. The Underworld. There’s nothing you can do to harm me permanently here. You’re barely a toddler in terms of a goddess. Still unsure of your powers. Still not fully awakened.”
Jutting my chin out, I spare him a glare. “Oh, trust me, you’re going to be screwed when I am.”
Smirk creeping up his lips, he nods at one of the guards.
Stalking to the door, the male returns a second later, but he’s not alone.
Luigi.
Pale, shaken, Mars’ son can’t hide his look of terror as he spots the God of the Underworld hovering in the corner.
“Come here, boy.” Crooking his finger, Pluto beckons him closer.
Hesitation dances over the young boy’s handsome features.
I’m more than sure Bellona and Mars must have warned him about this monster.
Pluto huffs in annoyance. It’s obvious he doesn’t like being disobeyed.
“Luigi. I don’t have much patience. If you don’t wish to change places with your father’s whore, here, then do as you’re told.”
The words jolt the child from his frozen stare. Eyes rounding further, he finally becomes aware of my presence. “Vicky?”
I’m thankful to still be wearing my bikini. In his hurry to have me, Pluto at least spared me from being naked in front of the boy.
“It’s going to be ok,” I tell him, praying it won’t be a lie.
Stalking forward, Pluto takes Luigi by the scruff of the neck. “No talking and wasting time,” he mutters as they come level with a table. Unrolli
ng a cloth, he uncovers a collection of knives hidden beneath. “Alessandro and Salvo are going to teach you to use these.”
Breath stuttering helplessly in my lungs, my attention bounces to the two silent men.
No.
Things click into place. Pluto intends to have Mars’ son as his next killer. Disbelief threatens to choke me before it slips into rage. How could he plan to destroy his innocence? It’s evil. Vile.
“No.” Fury laces my tone. “You can’t do that to him.”
Nervously, Luigi glances my way. “I can’t. Won’t hurt my friend.”
“Then, you replace her in the chair.” Pluto informs the boy with such icy assurance I have no doubt he intends to see it through if Luigi continues to refuse.
I’m trapped between a need to protect Luigi and prevent the pain, which I know awaits me. Closing my eyes, I call on my resolve. Can I bear this again, or will it finally break me?
“It’s ok,” I tell the child, my smile weak.
“But, Vicky…”
“No, Luigi, I’d never forgive myself.” Sitting a little taller, I try not to let him see my fear as I open my eyes. “You're a brave boy, but I couldn’t let you do that to save me.”
Choosing a blade, Pluto presses it into the boy’s hand. “I don’t want her permanently damaged. Teach him the places to inflict the most pain,” he tells his watching men. “Make sure she experiences plenty of agony but don’t touch her face.” He guides the smaller hand that he’s holding forward, driving the tip of the weapon through the skin of my shoulder.
Luigi tries desperately to jerk away but lacks the strength.
Muscles tensing, a scream rips from my throat as the metal is dragged along, cutting as it goes.
“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m expecting your father to turn up.” Releasing his hold, Pluto pushes the boy aside, finally done with his tormenting. “Your mother, I am sure, has let slip exactly where you are. It was expected. While he loses his temper, I intend to use both of you to my advantage.”
Handing one of the guards the knife, he straightens his suit jacket before strolling from the room.