Slipping off the desk, I brushed past Apollo. Without realizing what I’d done, I had moved toward the shelter of Aiden’s body. Completely at ease, he slipped an arm over my shoulders, the look on his face daring anyone to say a word.
I looked up at him, remembering how much Solaris had cared for the First. The love I saw in Aiden’s silvery eyes had been reflected in the First. And I felt—remembered feeling—the terrible decision Solaris had made—protecting others by destroying the First. Piece by piece, it came together.
“Solaris tried to stop the First, and there was something she did… or was trying to do. Something that would’ve worked, but the Order of Thanatos made their move before she could complete it.” I let out a frustrated sigh. “She knew how to stop the First—kill him, somehow—but I don’t know what it was. It’s like that information was shielded or erased somehow.” Frustrated, I bit out a groan. “Too bad I can’t talk to Solaris.”
Laadan cleared her throat. “But that is something, dear. At least we know there is something out there.”
“Wait,” Marcus said. “Solaris would be in the Underworld, right?”
Apollo’s eyes were suddenly sharp. “She would be, but I can’t travel to the Underworld. Hades still has his panties in a bunch.”
Solos smirked as he leaned over the back of the couch. “Well, that’s another dead end.”
“Not really,” Apollo said.
I suddenly got a real bad feeling about this.
“What do you mean ‘not really’?” Aiden asked, his arm tightening around my shoulders.
Apollo moved to stand in front of the window. Pale moonlight cast a strange glow around him. “Well, if Alex thinks Solaris can help us, then it’s an avenue we want to check out. And who better than Alex?”
Aiden stiffened. “What?”
“She could have some Apollyon girl-talk,” Apollo said, his blue eyes dancing with amusement. “Actually, I’m not really suggesting that Alex—”
“Wait.” I slipped out from under Aiden’s arm. “There’s a possibility that we could reach Solaris?”
When Apollo nodded, optimism took hold. The rush was like getting buzzed off of wine coolers—harmless at first, but packing a hell of a downer the morning after. “And I could get to the Underworld?”
Apollo’s gaze flickered beyond me, settling on Aiden for a moment, and I knew that, if I went down there, Aiden would come, too. An old part of me would’ve protested, but now I understood why he wouldn’t allow me to do something like that alone, and I wasn’t insane enough to try it. I’d need help.
“You could,” Apollo answered.
I could barely contain my excitement. Little Alex wanted to do cartwheels across the living room. I knew in my marrow that Solaris knew how to stop the First. That she held the knowledge to stop this, because she’d planned on doing it before.
But then the one big problem surrounding going to the Underworld surfaced.
“Do I have to die again?” I added quickly, because I was pretty sure Apollo might be thrilled with the idea of killing me at this moment. “Because the whole dying part of going to the Underworld sucked butt last time.”
Apollo’s eyes rolled. “Dying isn’t the only way into the Underworld, but it’s the safest.”
Well, that sounded like an oxymoron if I’d ever heard one.
“There are several entrances to the Underworld in the mortal realm,” Apollo continued. “The closest to our location would be the one in Kansas.”
“If you say Stull Cemetery, I’ll probably hug you,” Luke said, and then he shrank back when the Sun God turned to him. “Or not—no hugging necessary.”
“Stull Cemetery?” I asked, glancing around the room. Something about the name did sound familiar. “I cannot be the only person who has no idea what that is… other than a cemetery.”
Aiden shook his head. “I’m right with you.”
“How cute,” Apollo murmured.
I ignored him. “So?”
“Go ahead,” Apollo said to Luke. “Tell them what it is, since it’s obviously hugging material.”
Crimson stained Luke’s cheeks. “Legend goes that one of the gates to hell is in Stull Cemetery in Kansas.”
“Oh, gods,” I muttered, remembering where I’d heard this before. “Wasn’t that a season finale on Supernatural?” When the boys nodded, my eyes rolled. “Seriously? Are Sam and Dean going to be there?”
Luke and Deacon looked way too happy about that idea, and then Deacon threw out, “Luke has a theory.”
“I do.” Luke flashed a grin. “Stull Cemetery is a freaky place with a lot of unexplained things happening, just like other places labeled ‘gates to hell’. I think that the gates to hell are actually gates to the Underworld.”
“You’re correct.” A ball of golden light appeared above Apollo’s hand and he started tossing it up in the air, over and over, reminding me of Seth. “The gateway was actually inside a church there, but Hades came through one night on Halloween and everyone thought the idiot was the devil. Kind of blew our cover—we tore the church down.”
“Nice,” I said, watching the ball. He was inches from smacking it into the light fixture.
“But the gateway is still where the church stood.” Up went the ball of golden light. “And we’ve taken some precautions, after a few mortals accidentally stumbled upon it.”
My brows rose.
“So, what happens to mortals when they find one of the gates?” Aiden asked.
Apollo caught the ball of light. “Oh, you know. They tend to become one of Hades’ dogs’ chew toys. Anyway, the gates only show now to someone of godly descent.”
“Pures?” Marcus asked.
“Ah… no.” The ball vanished and Apollo looked straight at me. “They’ll appear to gods, original demigods, those created by taking ambrosia, or the Apollyon.”
I elbowed Aiden. “I feel so special.”
“That you are.” He grinned when I shot him a look. “So, we find the gate and go through it. Sounds easy.”
Apollo laughed. “It’s not that easy. The gate is guarded now, even to those it appears to.”
My stomach sank. “Do I even want to know?”
He flashed a smile, and my tummy hit my toes. I so did not like when Apollo smiled like that. “There are hellhounds and guards.”
“Oh, goodie.”
“And then there are spirits—most don’t get past the spirits.” Apollo stepped back. “But if you do, the gate appears and you’re in the Underworld, but going into the Underworld without a guide is not only dangerous, but stupid.”
So I needed to play with some dogs, beat up a company of guards, and call the Ghostbusters? And I needed a guide? Okay. This didn’t sound too bad.
I smiled. “I know just the person.”
CHAPTER 18
“Caleb,” Olivia whispered, speaking for the first time. When I nodded, she shot to her feet. “I want to go.”
Apollo arched a brow. “Two people sneaking into the Underworld trying to find one soul among millions is insane and dangerous. No one else can go.”
Olivia turned her wide, pleading eyes on me. “I have to go then. It has to be me. I need to—”
“And that’s why it cannot be you,” Apollo said before I could respond. “You will be focused on finding Caleb instead of the mission at hand.”
Her hands curled into fists at her side. “How is that any different than Aiden? He’ll be focused on Alex!”
I slid the person in question a look, but Aiden had the same expression that Apollo did. There might be a lot of tears and pleading, but there would be no debate.
“And that’s what we need,” Apollo said, almost gently. For a moment, I was almost convinced that he pitied her. Not in a bad way, but like he could sympathize with her, which would be amazing since gods were really lacking in the empathy department. “There’s no guarantee that they will even find Caleb, but either way, we need Alex to come back out of the Underworld with the
information we need. Alive.”
Some of the other gods probably didn’t feel that way.
Apollo’s gaze settled on Aiden again. “You would give your life for her?”
I didn’t like that question at all and I opened my mouth, but Aiden answered without hesitation. “Yes.”
The god nodded. “I know you would too, Marcus, but Aiden would…”
Marcus looked less-than-pleased but nodded. “I know what you mean.”
A bitter taste crawled up my throat as my heart turned over heavily. Going into the Underworld would be insanely dangerous, and the idea of Aiden risking his life scared the crap out of me, but as my gaze fell over the room, I knew that out of everyone there he was the most skilled.
Realizing that she wouldn’t be able to change anyone’s mind, Olivia said nothing as she walked out of the room, head high. Sorrow panged in my chest, as potent as the fear. It wasn’t fair. I wished that Caleb and Olivia could have had one more moment together before all their future moments were stolen from them.
After Olivia’s exit, plans were quickly made for our departure. The group would stay behind, as was safest for them, and Aiden and I would leave in the morning for… Kansas. Other than an apparent Underworld gate, I had no idea what was in Kansas. Hay bales? Dorothy?
“There’s something else,” I said to Apollo after the group scattered. Aiden remained behind, closing the door, seeming to know what I intended to tell Apollo.
“I can’t wait to hear,” Apollo said dryly.
I took a deep breath. “I saw Seth yesterday.”
Apollo’s brows slammed down as he opened his mouth, but no words came out. Maybe I should have clarified. “What I mean is,” I said quickly, “kind of.”
“Kind of?”
I nodded. “He was able to pull me… inside my own head. It looked and felt real, and it was like I was dreaming… but I wasn’t.”
His eyebrows began to lift. “That makes no sense, Alex.”
“She was talking with Lea and started to get a headache right before it happened, like before, when she was on the Elixir,” Aiden explained, since obviously I couldn’t form a coherent sentence. “Alex fainted—”
“I didn’t faint,” I grumbled, feeling my cheeks flush.
Aiden’s lip curved up on one side. “Okay. She was suddenly not walking or talking anymore. During that time, she saw Seth. Apparently, he used Hermes to pull her in.”
“Hermes?” Apollo hissed—actually hissed like an angry lion. “That little, punk-ass bitch.”
My brows rose.
“I actually felt somewhat bad about stealing his helmet and melting it down.” Apollo sounded indignant. “Hermes won’t be helping Seth anymore.”
It was hard not to laugh when Apollo got all butt sore, but somehow I managed. “By the way, when did you steal his helmet?”
Apollo shrugged. “A couple of days ago.”
“Do you think that’s why he might have helped Seth?”
“Hmm…” Apollo’s face screwed up. “Good point. Anyway, did Seth tell you anything?”
Geez. “He didn’t really say anything important. I have this feeling he was really just testing it out, but if you can stop Hermes from helping, then it shouldn’t be a problem.”
A muscle flexed in Apollo’s jaw. “Can he transfer power in this state?”
“No. And he can’t read my thoughts.” I leaned against the wall, smothering a yawn. “It seems more like an annoyance than anything else.”
“It’s more than an annoyance.” Aiden’s eyes flashed silver.
“He sees it as a ‘violation’,” I explained, upon seeing Apollo’s puzzled look. “But it could be worse.”
“As in him doing something like that when you’re in the middle of a battle or in the Underworld?” Apollo asked.
“Well…” I frowned.
“I’ve been thinking,” Aiden continued. “We know Hermes helped, but it has to be more than that or Seth would have done this the moment you broke the connection. When you were on the Elixir, he seemed to be able to reach you when it started to wear off, and when it wore off, you were exhausted. Maybe that has something to do with it—how tired you are.”
“Makes sense. I guess I just need to get my beauty sleep.”
Aiden looked unimpressed. “That’s the best theory I can come up with.”
“It does make sense.” Apollo stretched his head to the side, his striking face tense with annoyance. “You two are still connected, and even though you’ve shielded out the bulk of that connection, he may be able to get to you when you’re weakened, with or without Hermes.”
“Like a crappy two-way radio,” I muttered.
“Exactly. And especially if Hermes created a path to you.”
I so did not like the sound of that.
Apollo smiled at Aiden then. “Needless to say, I think you know how important it is to stay close to Alex.”
“Like you even have to point that out,” Aiden responded.
Apollo smirked. “The trip to the Underworld isn’t going to be easy, and that’s not even taking into consideration Alex’s newly-acquired narcoleptic tendencies.”
I rolled my eyes. What part of “wasn’t asleep” did they not understand?
“And if this happens again, you may not believe he can glean any important information, but you need to be careful that you do not let on to what you are doing, especially your new mission.”
“I know,” I said, staring at the worn chair next to the god. “I’m pretty sure he doesn’t know what Solaris was planning to do with the First, but he knew there was something. And maybe we’ll get lucky. Seth may not be able to pull it off again.”
Neither of them looked convinced.
“Okay, back to the bigger problem at hand. The one I can sort of help you with.” Apollo strode over to the desk, finding a piece of paper and pen. “The Stull portal should place you beyond the entrance to the Underworld, at the beginning of Asphodel Fields. They might not really be fields, or they could be.” He paused, glanced over his shoulders. “They have changed every time I’ve been there. Sometimes they are vacant. Other times they are not. Souls that you encounter there will be… relatively harmless.”
I crept closer, peering over his shoulder. He was drawing a map. I recognized “Styx.” The rest I figured I’d recognize if I’d paid attention in class.
“There will be tunnels you will enter. You should be able to find a place to rest there for a few hours since the souls are unable to travel through them. Get there before night falls and stay there until the sky is golden. If you don’t make it there before night, you’ll find out why souls don’t travel there.”
I waited for him to elaborate and when he didn’t, I exchanged a look with Aiden.
“You do not want to be roaming any part of the Underworld at night.” Apollo’s pen swept over the paper. “From there, you will cross into the Vale of Mourning.”
“Oh, that sounds fun,” I said.
Apollo smirked. “You will eventually come to a crossroads. One way will lead you to Tartarus, and the other will lead you to the Elysian Fields—this will be the Plain of Judgment. You’ll want to make yourself as invisible as possible. And I don’t mean necklace-invisible.”
He set the pen down and handed the map over to Aiden. “I can call in a favor and get word to Caleb, have him meet you there. But from that point…”
“We’re on our own.” When Apollo nodded, I bit on my lip. “Okay.”
“Wait,” Aiden said, eyes narrowing on the map. “Isn’t the Plain of Judgment near Hades’ Palace?”
“As I said, you two will want to make yourself as invisible as possible. I have it on good faith that Hades will be at Olympus, but he has many eyes guarding the palace.” Apollo’s folded arms were the size of tree trunks. “I need you both to understand that the Underworld will be dangerous. Caleb could be anywhere, and it won’t be like the last time, when your arrival was noted. You will see things you cannot unde
rstand. Things that you will want to intervene in, but you won’t be able to.”
I swallowed at the seriousness in his tone. “I understand.”
“Do you? You have shown very little impulse control in the past, Alex. You will be unwelcome there. And it’s just not the Underworld.” His cold, steely gaze moved to Aiden. “The gates are well-protected.”
“We understand,” Aiden responded calmly.
Keen knowledge flared in the god’s eyes. “Be careful. Most who enter the Underworld do not leave, and those who do are irrevocably changed by what they experience.”
Apollo started to fade out as we stared at him, no doubt our expressions mirroring the seriousness of what he’d said. Just before his body was enveloped in shimmery blue dust, he said, “I’ll owe you two for this, and everything else.”
It was way too early to be up moving around, but here I was, standing beside one of the Hummers, glaring up at the morning sun.
Aiden was saying goodbye to his brother, and I was trying to give them some space while maintaining my balance on one foot. It was the only thing from keeping me falling over on my face. Last night, Aiden had called an “early night” and literally forced me to bed like he was my babysitter.
“You need to be well-rested,” he had argued, and then sat watch until I went to sleep. And even after about eight hours of shut-eye, I still didn’t want to get up at the crack of dawn. We had a long drive ahead of us—about nine hours and nearly five hundred miles. A plane would’ve been quicker, but there was no way we were getting the weapon stash past mortal security without using compulsion on half the TSA. And it would’ve been harder to explain why Aiden was painting runes in Titan blood inside a 747. With that and the talisman Apollo had given me, at least it should be a relatively uneventful road trip.
“Alexandria?”
I turned at the sound of my uncle’s voice and headed toward where he stood just off the porch. “Hey.”
He tried to smile, but it was forced. “I know you’ll be careful, but really—be careful. Okay?”
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