‘Nice try,’ his mouth curved slightly in amusement.
‘Well can you at least tell me how you ended up here?’
He blew out a deep thoughtful breath as they continued to walk past the glass fronted display cases.
‘My father wanted me to do something that I didn’t agree with. I refused and he cast me down here and locked me in, to give me some time to think.’
‘How long have you been here?’ she frowned.
‘Time is irre…’
‘Yeah yeah I know irrelevant, forget I asked,’ she shook her head. ‘What did he want you to do?’
Sam hesitated for a moment, as if he were unsure how much to reveal.
‘He wanted me to betray someone I cared about,’ he replied finally.
‘Who was she?’
‘So sure it’s a she, aren’t you?’ he smiled.
She simply raised her brows and waited.
‘Fine,’ he answered after a moment, ‘she was…is a friend, sort of.’
‘How can someone be sort of a friend? If you care about her enough to be exiled because of her, either she’s important to you or not.’
‘She is,’ his voice was soft and tinged with an emotion she couldn’t quite name, sadness perhaps? Or maybe remorse. ‘You remind me of her actually,’ he looked up at Olivia. ‘She is beautiful and clever but she can be incredibly stubborn, and she’s sweet and kind. She has a deep love of lore and history.’
‘She sounds like my long lost twin, except for the sweet and kind part,’ Olivia chuckled lightly, ‘so what’s the problem? She sounds pretty perfect.’
‘She’s the daughter of a traitor.’
Olivia stopped suddenly and stared darkly at Sam. ‘And you hold that against her?’
‘No,’ he realized she’d got the wrong idea, ‘I would never hold what her mother did against her. It was not her fault, she had nothing to do with it and yet she is paying the price for it. Even her own people,’ he shook his head in disgust, ‘you should see how they treat her, it’s like they look at her and see her mother. They can’t see who she truly is. Even my people treat her with distrust and suspicion.’
‘I see so it’s like a forbidden love kind of thing?’
‘No,’ he shook his head, ‘it’s not like that.’
‘Isn’t it?’
‘We’re not even the same race.’
‘So! There’s nothing wrong with mixed race marriages.’
‘For humans perhaps, but not for us. Our races have hated each other for thousands of years, they barely tolerate each other. Any inter-race interaction is kept to a strict minimum. There’s no mixed race friendships, let alone marriages. I don’t even know if…’ he shook his head in denial, ‘it’s impossible, especially after what I’ve done.’
‘What did you do?’
He turned away and started walking again, almost as if it were easier to confess if he wasn’t looking directly at her.
‘I used to be like them, the rest of my people. I was raised to view the others as my enemy, not to be trusted. My father chose me, said he had something very important for me to do. He wanted me to seek her out and befriend her, secretly of course. He was convinced she was just as much a traitor as her mother. Tainted blood he called it. He was obsessed with the idea she was going to continue where her mother had failed.’
‘So what did you do?’ she asked softly.
‘I refused at first, but my father convinced me it was important and so with my ears ringing with words like duty, honor and loyalty, I did as he asked. At first I was so resentful I’m surprised she even bothered to speak to me.’ His eyes grew distant, tangled up in memories, ‘I think she was so surprised I was even speaking to her. She was so used to being shunned, by both her own people and mine.’
‘Sounds like a lonely life.’
‘It was,’ his voice dropped low, ‘I didn’t understand that at first. She once told me when she first met me, it was like being allowed to take a breath for the very first time.’
Olivia watched him silently, watching the silent play of emotion across his face until he began to speak again.
‘She’s never going to forgive me when she finds out.’
‘I think she will,’ Olivia told him gently, ‘if she’s the person you think she is. She may be hurt but she knows you love her so she’ll forgive you.’
He looked up at her and stared.
‘She doesn’t know how you feel about her, does she?’
He shook his head slowly.
‘Sam,’ she breathed.
‘You don’t understand Olivia,’ he frowned, ‘this isn’t just about overcoming prejudice. If they found out about us we would both be executed.’
‘Are you serious?’
‘I was protecting her.’
‘Sam,’ she spoke after a moment, ‘I’m not trying to interfere and I certainly don’t want to tell you what to do but I do know one thing, love is a gift that should be treasured, not denied. Sometimes it’s worth the risk. You just need to decide, is she worth it?’
‘Is Theo?’ he asked in return.
‘Yes,’ she whispered, ‘and I would rather live minutes with him then spend my whole life without him.’
He wrapped his arms around her impulsively and pulled her into an affectionate hug.
‘You’re like the sister I never wanted.’
Olivia laughed, squeezing him gently before pulling back and looking up into his eyes.
‘Then take some sisterly advice and tell her how you feel Sam, trust me when I tell you that you may never get another chance. You have to make the most of every moment.’
‘Carpé diem?’
‘Something like that,’ she smiled in amusement.
Suddenly the ground trembled beneath their feet causing them to break apart.
‘Did you feel that?’ Sam frowned in confusion.
‘What was that? An earthquake?’
‘That’s impossible, this isn’t like earth. It’s not a physical plane; it’s not subject to seismic shifts.’
The ground trembled again, this time harder, causing them to stumble slightly.
‘If it’s not an earthquake what the hell is causing that?’ Olivia breathed in alarm.
‘I have no idea,’ Sam’s eyes widened.
Suddenly there was a great tearing sound and the ground shook so violently they were thrown to the ground. The glass display cases shattered, sending glass showering over them. The floor heaved and groaned beneath them as Olivia curled into a ball and covered her head with her arms, trying to protect herself from falling debris. Priceless pieces of history tumbled to the floor and smashed which caused her a momentary jolt, until she reminded herself they were just replicas and not real. The frantic shaking seemed to go on forever until it suddenly stopped as abruptly as it started. Olivia looked up, coughing lightly in the dust filled air, her gaze searching the devastation for Sam.
‘Sam?’ she coughed again. ‘Sam are you hurt?’
‘He’s not here,’ a cool voice broke the silence.
Olivia looked up and her eyes landed on a familiar figure. Still impeccably dressed in an elegant suit he sat on the edge of a toppled over cabinet, his glossy black cane propped between his legs, his hands wrapped neatly over the deep blue jeweled handle.
‘Hades,’ she breathed, ‘where’s Sam? What have you done with him?’
‘Nothing,’ he shrugged dismissively, ‘I simply wished to speak with you without the time traveler overhearing.’
Olivia climbed cautiously to her feet, careful not to cut her hands on the crushed glass which littered the floor.
‘Did you do this?’ she asked accusingly.
‘No.’
‘If it wasn’t you, then what happened?’
Hades was silent for a moment, seeming to draw in a breath as if to rein in a wave of temper.
‘Something we did not anticipate,’ he answered finally.
She
took a minute to study him closely, his hair was no longer a deep shiny well-groomed blue black as it had been in the human world. Now it burned with the ebony and sapphire flames of Hell fire, banked low but still snapping and crackling as he turned his head. His expression had also lost the curious amusement it had borne the last time they met. Despite being in the overwhelming presence of a God she’d sensed a kind of playful curiosity then, that too was gone and in its place was a barely concealed anger.
‘Hades what’s going on?’ she asked carefully, ‘why are you here? Last time we met you said you’d be watching me, that this was some kind of an amusement for you.’
‘It is no longer a game Olivia,’ his dark eyes burned into hers.
‘Tell me what’s going on then.’
Hades tapped his long tapered fingers against the handle of his cane impatiently, his jaw clenching tightly.
‘Nathaniel has destroyed one of the Crossroads.’
‘What?’ Olivia gasped, ‘why would he do that?’
Hades stood abruptly, causing her to flinch nervously as he paced the debris strewn floor, restless and sleek like a caged panther. He turned back to her suddenly. ‘It seems we underestimated Nathaniel. I assumed he wanted the book to raise his brother from the Underworld, to use Infernum’s power to breach the prison I created for Seth and set him free so they could both move unhindered through the human world, causing whatever carnage and chaos they pleased.’
Olivia kept silent as Hades paced the floor angrily.
‘It seems they have both set their sights higher, or rather lower I should say.’
‘Ohhh,’ Olivia breathed out slowly, ‘they want to gain control of the Underworld.’
‘In order to do that they must first deal with me,’ he stopped pacing and turned to face her. ‘By destroying one of the oldest and most powerful places in the Underworld he has not only upset the balance but sent a message to all those who are opposed to me. What he has done is start an insurrection. He had to have had help destroying the Crossroad, he doesn’t have the access or the means to do it alone even with your mother and her limited abilities.’
‘But why destroy the Crossroad?’ Olivia frowned, ‘I thought he wanted my mother to make a deal with the Keeper?’
‘He does. I suspect he will attempt to destroy all but one of the Crossroads, to shift the balance of power and to prevent anyone from stopping or following him and Isabel. We have run out of time Olivia, you must reach the Crossroad before he does.’
‘Can’t you stop him?’ she breathed heavily. ‘You’re a God, surely you can do something.’
‘We are tearing the Underworld apart but we don’t know how many of the souls in the Underworld have sided with Seth and Nathaniel and how many are still loyal to me. We are on the verge of war. The stakes are beyond high now, there is no turning back. This isn’t about a second rate witch getting her hands on the book, it’s about two very old Demon Lords gaining control over all the Hell dimensions and if they do they will rise up and destroy the Earth. The mortal world will burn and they will climb over the corpses of your people to attack the very gates of Heaven itself.’
‘Oh my God,’ Olivia gasped, her hand covering her mouth.
‘God?’ he scoffed, ‘don’t expect him to do anything, he can’t even keep his own house in order.’
‘What do we do?’
‘I cannot find Nathaniel; he is being too well hidden by his allies. You will have to find him.’
‘How the Hell am I supposed to do that,’ she frowned.
‘Your mother,’ he replied, ‘you are bound to her by blood, the oldest magic there is. Find her and you find the demon.’
‘And then what?’ she snapped angrily, ‘just how am I going to stop a demon?’
‘You won’t have to,’ he replied. His eyes burned black and his voice was cold and menacing. ‘I will deal with him but you have to find him before he reaches the final Crossroad. Forget Theo, there isn’t time to deal with him. Once Nathaniel leaves the boundaries of the Underworld I cannot stop him. I have no authority in the human world, my brother Zeus saw to that when he cast me down into the pit.’
‘Are you fucking kidding me,’ Olivia ground out from between clenched teeth. Somewhere in the back of her mind a small voice was screeching at her not to provoke a God, but that voice was rudely elbowed aside as her temper erupted into a blinding fury.
‘Watch your mouth mortal,’ Hades hissed. His hair flared up as if someone had just turned up the gas, before bursting into a bright halo of blue fire.
‘Or you’ll what?’ she spat angrily as she stepped closer to him, ‘you’ll do what exactly Hades? From where I’m standing you need me far more than I need you. I am sick to death of everyone expecting me to clean up their mess the minute they snap their fingers. Like I don’t have anything better to do, like I don’t have the right to choose my own destiny. I am not a tool to be picked up and used whenever you feel like it. Find the murderer Cinderella, find the book Cinderella, stop a demon Cinderella, oh and yeah while you’re at it save the world. I don’t think so, I am going to find Theo and when I do, then I will find my mother and even stop the damn demons, both of them if I have to. Not because you’ve told me to or because it’s my destiny or some other bullshit like that, but because it’s the right thing to do, because I care more about the human world than any of you, because the mortals you so happily dismiss as inferior or just there for your amusement are the people I care about. So you can go straight back to Hell Hades because I am not leaving here without Theo.’
Hades watched her contemplatively, his gaze sliding from her blazing eyes down her arms to her hands. Sometime during her rage-filled rant at the God of the Underworld her hands had burst into flame. Her fingers clenched onto burning spheres of churning writhing sapphire and jet flames, like tiny fearsome primordial worlds burning in the palms of her hands. The flames licked up the skin of her arms burning the same electric blue as Hades’ hair.
His fingertip ran softly down her arm skimming her skin as if the flames weren’t even there, they certainly didn’t seem to burn him. When he reached her hands he cupped the back of her hand turning her palm face upwards to reveal the spitting and hissing ball of raw Hell fire. He raised her hand up between them so the fire was reflected in his dark eyes as he turned his serious gaze back on her.
‘This is why it has to be you Olivia,’ he spoke quietly, ‘why it has always had to be you.’
‘I will do what needs to be done Hades,’ she replied resolutely, ‘but we do it my way. No man rules my destiny, not even you. I choose… that is not negotiable.’
‘I almost feel sorry for Theo,’ his mouth curved suddenly at the corner. ‘You remind me very much of Persephone and if you are anything like her you will make his life hell.’
‘Then we have an agreement?’
‘Very well,’ he conceded, ‘find Theo but do it quickly there isn’t much time. The more damage Nathaniel does to the Underworld the quicker it will spread through all the adjacent worlds, this one included.’
‘What will happen to this world?’
‘I couldn’t say for sure, but it will sustain heavy damage as the walls between worlds begin to break down. We have to contain this rebellion and quickly.’
‘You know it would go a lot faster if you would just tell me where Theo is?’
Hades sighed heavily, rolling his eyes in exasperation.
‘Olivia you already know where he is, you just need to figure it out.’
‘Riddles Hades?’
‘Look, once you have found Theo you need to get to the Crossroad. There is a doorway hidden in this world which will allow you to pass through into the Underworld, you need to find it and use it. Once you are there…’ he hooked a slim elegant finger through the exposed golden chain at her throat and pulled, allowing the compass he had given her to slither from the open collar of her shirt, ‘use this.’
‘I still don’t
understand how it works, if you could just tell me?’
‘I can’t tell you until you know, and if you know I don’t have to tell you.’
‘More Riddles? Seriously? That’ll really make it so much easier.’
‘I don’t know why I like that smart mouth of yours so much Olivia,’ he shook his head, ‘it’s a compass, so ask yourself, what does a compass do?’
‘This is just crazy,’ she sighed as she turned the compass over in her hands. ‘Sometimes I wonder if I am actually insane and just hallucinating this whole thing.’
She looked up and caught Hades’ amused smile.
‘Then maybe you should take a look at the place where all the crazy people go.’
She blinked and suddenly Hades had disappeared.
‘Olivia?’ Sam gasped in relief, ‘I’ve been looking everywhere for you. Where the hell did you go?’
‘Where all the crazy people go,’ Olivia murmured as Hades’ voice echoed in her ears. ‘My God….’
‘What is it?’ Sam asked anxiously as she turned her wide eyes on him.
‘I know where Theo is.’
Chapter 9.
Olivia looked up at the building in front of her. Riverside psychiatric facility looked much as it had the last time she’d seen it, a tidy rectangular building with whitewashed walls surrounded by uniformly manicured lawns. Her heartbeat increased and she swallowed nervously, wiping her palms on her jeans. Taking a deep breath, she started to move, passing by the neatly trimmed shrubbery and heading for the main entrance. Once inside she turned and headed past the main reception. The building wasn’t as neat and tidy inside, the small earthquake caused by the destruction of one of the Crossroads had obviously affected many of the buildings. A vase had toppled from the nearby reception desk shattering across the floor in a rainbow of blue pottery and colorful flowers. Several magazines had slid from a small coffee table in the waiting area and were now heaped on the floor. She passed by overturned cheerful colored plastic chairs and headed for the day room.
It seemed like such a long time ago now, but this was the place where she’d found Theo after Sam had brought him forward into the 21st century and rather inconveniently dropped him in front of her car. After he’d been treated at the hospital for his injuries they’d transferred him to Riverside believing that he was suffering from amnesia. He’d been sitting in the day room that day, painting at the table by the window with his small palette of watercolors, amused by the place where they supposedly sent all the crazy people.
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