‘Is she always this disrespectful?’ he frowned at Hades.
‘Brother you haven’t seen the half of it yet,’ Hades smiled slowly.
‘Zeus I have no wish to be your enemy, but this is our world, not yours. I will not bow to you and I will not pander to your temper tantrums. You also no longer have any authority over the Hell dimensions. I am the Guardian of Infernum; the Hell dimensions…all of them are now my responsibility.’
Zeus’ eyes blazed hotly.
‘Don’t,’ Olivia warned, ‘you would not believe the fire power I’m packing now and it’s all still a bit new.You really don’t want to throw down with me.’
His nostrils flared.
‘I appreciate I’m being slightly blunt and very undiplomatic right now,’ she replied, ‘but my back is killing me, my feet are swollen, I’m tired and all I want are some French fries and milkshake, and a twenty four hour marathon of the TV series Supernatural…maybe some m&ms too.’
Zeus’ mouth twitched slightly.
‘I don’t know how Hades and that husband of yours put up with you,’ Zeus muttered.
‘Theo married me, he doesn’t have a choice and Hades...he’s a masochist, he likes it.’
Hades shrugged as Zeus glanced over at him.
‘We’ll see,’ Zeus’ eyes narrowed, ‘I’ll be watching you Olivia.’
Zeus turned to leave.
‘Uh Zeus?’ Olivia called, ‘haven’t you forgotten something?’
He turned back to her, following her eye line to where the Goddess Calypso lay unmoving in Roni’s arms. He looked back at Olivia, who folded her arms, her brows rising as she stared at him pointedly.
Growling in irritation, he flipped his hand negligently. Calypso’s back suddenly arched, her eyes flew open and she sucked in a deep loud breath.
‘There,’ he scowled, ‘satisfied?’
‘Thank you Zeus,’ she smiled at him.
‘So you do have some manners then?’ he sniffed.
‘You be sure to stop by for a coffee sometime,’ Olivia smiled at him pleasantly, ‘and we can get to know each other better.’
‘I get the feeling I should be running in the opposite direction whenever I see you,’ he replied dryly.
‘Where’s the fun in that?’ she smiled.
Shaking his head, he disappeared in a swirl of gold.
‘So, if you’re now the Guardian of all the Hell dimensions does that make you my boss?’ Hades asked wryly.
‘No way,’ Olivia shook her head, ‘the Underworld’s all yours. I’m just here to make sure no one tries to abuse the ancient powers.’
She stepped closer to him reaching up on tip toes and planting a fond kiss on his lips. He pulled back slightly surprised at the show of affection.
‘I won’t ever forget the love and loyalty you showed me tonight Hades,’ she whispered.
His face flushed slightly and he stepped back.
‘All of you,’ she glanced around the clearing at her friends and family, ‘thank you.’
She watched as Roni helped Calypso to her feet, before she stooped low and picked up Hester’s Grimoire. Olivia walked over to her as she held out the book and she took it in her hands. It no longer held the pulse of power she’d always felt when she touched it. The cover was just hard, worn leather and when she opened it, the dry scratchy pages no longer swirled and changed words in an ancient language. It was now nothing more than plain ink and everyday household spells.
She’d held Infernum in her hands all these months without even knowing it. Nathaniel had, had the book, as had her mother and none of them had known the Hell book was concealed deep inside its pages. Now it was nothing more than a dusty old spell book. She was Infernum; she could feel it pulsing inside her, part of her, yet separate at the same time.
She handed the book to Roni with a smile.
‘Add it to Hester’s exhibit at the Museum.’
‘Are you sure?’ Roni’s eyes widened.
‘Yes,’ she nodded slowly as her eyes slowly drifted across the clearing to the one thing she’d been avoiding.
She crossed the distance and dropped down next to her mother’s lifeless body. She smoothed her hair from her face and stroked her cheek, then her mouth. Looking out across the Hollow to the woods surrounding them, all she could see were dead trees, blackened by the fire. Her beloved woods were now empty of Hell creatures but they were also completely destroyed.
Her gaze returned to her mother, then to the tree beside them, the Hollow itself; the tree, which had started all of this, the marker of the devil’s trap. Olivia reached out and placed her hand on the deadened tree. Moss began to sprout beneath her warm palm, spreading along the bark. The segments of the tree which had peeled outward reached back up toward the sky, twisting themselves back together to form a solid trunk, from which new branches began to grow. Tendrils of ivy crept across the ground like tentacles, wrapping themselves around her mother’s body and pulling her toward the tree.
Olivia stood slowly and watched as the ivy carefully lifted her mother’s body up against the trunk, winding around and around until she was lashed to the tree. Although her eyes remained forever closed, Isabel’s mouth opened and a light appeared. Glowing beneath the skin of her throat until it spilled out of her mouth, it hovered in the air, a glowing ball of pure white light. Olivia reached out and the pulsing ball of light landed in her cupped palms.
‘Olivia,’ Hades warned, ‘her soul must be sent to the Underworld; she must answer for her crimes.’
Olivia glanced over to Hades for a moment, her golden eyes holding his before she turned back to the tree in front of her. She opened her hands and the ball of light rose up plunging into the tree where Isabel's chest would have been if they could have seen it through the thick Ivy. The heart of the tree pulsed once and then twice with that same white light. The ivy spread up and over Isabel’s face, absorbing her into the tree trunk. When she could no longer be seen, the huge canopy of newly formed branches above her ripened with leaves and burst into blossom. It was a Cherry Blossom tree. It was completely out of place, nowhere near native to the East Coast. It shouldn’t have thrived in this climate, especially out of season as they left autumn behind and headed into winter, but as Olivia looked up at the stunning pink and purple blossoms she knew this particular tree would bloom all year round, century after century. Her mother would live on forever in her tree.
As the tree bloomed, the ground beneath them deepened, suddenly covered with a rich deep green moss, which spread out through the woods, bringing to life every tree and shrub it touched, healing every burned limb and branch. Her mother’s tree would not be the only one to live, the whole woods would flourish.
‘Olivia,’ Hades deep voice rumbled, ‘why did you do that? After everything she did, you just let her go?’
‘Yes I did,’ she turned to face Hades.
‘But why?’ he asked in confusion.
Olivia looked up into the sky which was now clear and sparkling with starlight, blinking as the first few flakes of snow began to fall.
‘Because this is the dawn of a new world Hades,’ she smiled softly, ‘and it begins with mercy…’
Epilogue.
‘Experts are baffled, after many reports on Halloween of a large fire in Mercy Woods, still no evidence has been found. Although they will have to wait for the spring thaw to fully assess the woods, it appears any reports of the fire might have been exaggerated.
In other news the search is still ongoing for missing Governor of Massachusetts Simon Flores, he disappeared the same night as Doctor Karen Wilson, police have still to uncover any new leads in this case…’
Olivia picked up the remote and shut off the TV. A loud thump and a scrabble of claws had her turning and glancing at her dog Beau, who was happily hopping along the floor. He’d not long had the cast taken off his broken leg and he was still slightly unbalanced. Although, she smiled in amusement, it didn’t see
m to bother him as he tumbled and rolled across the floor with her fire drake, which she’d affectionately nicknamed Manny. It had been love at first sight for the oddly mismatched pair and they’d been inseparable ever since. Finally worn out, Beau curled up on the rug in front of the fire, the small fire drake climbed up on top of him, turning in a circle then settling down and wrapping his wings around his little canine friend.
Stroking her huge belly her gaze drifted back to the window as she watched the snow flurry. It had been nearly two months since that night in the Hollow and while for the most part life had returned to normal, under the surface so much had changed.
Mac, Jake and Danae had returned to Mercy police department and took regular steps to ensure the Veritas weren’t spying on him and by extension her. For the most part the Veritas had backed off as far as she knew, especially since the disappearance of Karen Wilson and Simon Flores. She knew what had happened to them of course, Karen had been mauled to death by Hell hounds while trying to kidnap her and Simon Flores had been shot by Mac in self defense, when he’d tried to kill Mac in an attempt to tie up a loose end, seeing as Mac had refused to return to the Veritas. Fortunately the fire in the woods had disposed of their bodies, their bones scattered and buried beneath moss and shrubs. It was highly unlikely anyone was ever going to find them.
Roni had returned to the museum and Calypso had returned to Barbados with a promise that Jake and Roni would visit her the following summer. Louisa was still on leave with her beautiful son Jace and Tommy had returned to the store.
Olivia was trying to rebuild her relationship with her father, who’d become quieter and more withdrawn since the death of her mother. He’d spent so long being mad at her and now he finally understood the lies and mistakes they’d all made, he was having trouble coming to terms with how he felt about his deceased wife.
Life had not returned to normal for all of them; Tammy was not the same woman. Although she and Mac were still living together things had been strained between them for a while. It was worrying, having been tortured by Nathaniel herself Olivia understood a little of what she was feeling but she also got the impression there was something else bothering her and whatever it was she refused to talk about it.
As for herself it had been an adjustment, one she was still coming to terms with. She’d had vast amounts of ancient knowledge dumped in her head and when it wasn’t her pregnancy keeping her awake, it was the whispers in the darkness. She was exhausted and more than ready to give birth and have her body back to herself.
She looked down and smiled as her belly visibly lurched with the curve of an elbow followed by a knee.
‘Not long to go now,’ she murmured.
She heard the front door open and close, followed by the familiar sound of Theo stamping the snow off his boots. A few moments later he appeared in the doorway.
‘Hey,’ he walked in and over to the couch, taking a seat next to her.
‘Hey,’ she smiled as he dropped a kiss on her lips, ‘how did it go?’
‘Okay I guess,’ he sighed. ‘Physically she healed well but, I don’t know, she’s different.’
‘I know,’ Olivia reached for his hand, ‘but you need to give her time. She went through a traumatic ordeal; it’s going to take her a while to work her way through it.’
‘I guess,’ he frowned, ‘I hate knowing that he hurt her.’
‘I know that you do,’ she soothed him, ‘but you can’t change the past. Just be there for her when she needs you.’
He blew out a breath and looked over, placing his hand on her belly and smiling when he felt the hard kicks beneath his palm.
‘They’re restless,’ he smiled.
‘You’re not kidding,’ she sucked in a breath and winced. ‘I think I’d sell my soul right now for a solid eight hours of sleep.’
Theo leaned over and kissed her belly.
‘Hey,’ he murmured against her belly, ‘quit giving your mommy a hard time.’
Olivia chuckled, her big belly jiggling with the movement.
‘We can’t wait to meet you,’ he spoke softly to her belly, ‘we love you so much.’
Olivia’s heart flipped over in her chest and she melted at the sight of her husband talking to her belly.
‘Well not just yet,’ she smiled, ‘there’s something I need to do first.’
‘What?’
‘Some unfinished business,’ she replied as he looked up at her. ‘I made a promise and I need to keep it.’
He sat up, his eyes narrowing slightly as he stared at her, ‘you’re going back to the Crossroad aren’t you?’
‘I gave my word Theo,’ she sighed, ‘I’ve been thinking about this for a while and I think it’s time.’
‘Okay then,’ he shook his head.
‘Okay?’
‘I know better than to argue with you when you’ve made up your mind,’ his mouth curved. ‘When do you want to go?’
‘Now,’ she shrugged.
‘Now?’
‘Might as well get it over with,’ she patted her belly, ‘not much space left in here. To be honest the babies could come any time now.’
‘Well I guess we’d better get moving then.’
She watched as he stood and disappeared into the hallway reappearing moments later in his boots, holding both their coats in one hand and her boots in the other. He put them on for her, lacing them firmly, as she could no longer even see her feet let alone reach them.
She scooted herself awkwardly to the edge of the couch and then stopped.
‘Stuck,’ she breathed heavily.
He leaned forward and laughed, hauling her gently to her feet and helping her into her coat.
‘Ready?’ he asked.
She pulled the Time’dhal from her collar and laid it in her hand.
‘Wake up,’ she whispered as it jolted and warmed in her palm. The metal melted and reformed from the delicate little filigree locket she preferred, to the old tarnished compass Hades had given her. She took hold of Theo’s hand and gazed back down to the compass. ‘Take us to the Crossroad…’
The needle twitched and began to spin, the room blurred around them and the light dimmed. When the spinning finally stopped they found themselves looking up at a tall circular wall covered in ancient scrubby vines and directly in front of them was a large wooden door with an iron handle. Olivia reached for the handle and stepped through, closely followed by Theo.
They walked along the flagstone path to the center where the four pathways of the compass points intersected. They paused in the center, looking around at the seemingly empty Crossroad.
‘Where is she?’ Theo asked, but even as the words left his mouth he heard a cackle behind him.
They both turned to look and found the old woman sitting in her wooden rocking chair at the edge of the path, her needles clicking in the dim light and her shapeless gray knitting in her lap, the yarn running to a basket at her feet which contained more balls of the same distressing gray color. She looked much the same as she had last time Olivia had seen her.
Her iron gray hair poked out from beneath a shapeless knitted hat, her face was old and wrinkled, with a long wicked hair poking out of her chin. She wore an old moth-eaten shawl around her hunched shoulders which was crossed over her chest and tied at the small of her back. Once again Olivia was struck with the thought that the woman would not have looked out of place during the French revolution, sitting at the steps of Madame La Guillotine watching the Aristos led to their death. She was exactly the type to sit there cackling in delight as heads rolled.
‘Marguerite,’ Olivia greeted her.
‘Olivia West,’ she grinned, revealing a row of blackened stumps instead of teeth, ‘wasn’t sure if I’d see you again.’
‘I made a promise,’ Olivia replied, ‘that when this was all over I would return and set you free.’
‘Oh pretty, pretty little girl,’ she grinned, ‘this is far from over
but I’ll take that get out of jail free card.’
‘Well, a deal’s a deal,’ Olivia shrugged, ‘come here.’
‘But I’m a little old lady,’ she hunched over further, ‘you wouldn’t make me get these old bones out of my chair would you?’
‘Cut the crap Marguerite,’ she rolled her eyes, ‘I’m growing two tiny humans right here, that trumps rickety bones… now come here.’
Marguerite cackled in delight as she tossed her knitting to the floor and practically leapt in the air to do a heel click. Old bones her ass. The old woman practically skipped across to Olivia and Theo positively vibrating with excitement. Olivia reached out her hand tentatively, hesitating at the thought of having to actually touch the grubby old woman. With a grimace she placed her hand on her head and closed her eyes.
She could feel the chain binding the woman to the Crossroad; she reached out and grasped it, gave it a sharp tug and watched as the links broke.
‘There,’ Olivia breathed out and stepped back.
Marguerite’s eyes suddenly widened, her hands flying to her neck as a choking sound escaped her mouth. Her fingers scrabbled at her neck as if she were struggling to breathe, her eyes rolled back in her head and she fell backwards, stiff as a plank.
Olivia glanced down at her blandly, folding her arms.
‘Really?’ Olivia replied dryly. ‘That’s not winning you any Oscars you know.’
Marguerite peeked one eye open and let out a cackle, before leaping to her feet. She skipped around gleefully, lifting up the hem of her skirt and doing a complicated little dance with her feet.
‘Oh finally free!’ she swung around in a delighted circle.
She stopped suddenly and glanced down at herself in disgust. With a snap of her fingers, gone was the old lady and in her place stood a much younger woman. She ripped off the shapeless woolen hat allowing her thick brown hair to tumble down her back. Her face was unlined and incredibly beautiful and her body was lush and overripe with curves.
‘That’s much better,’ she shivered running her hands over her curves.
The Guardians Complete Series 1 Box Set: Contains Mercy, The Ferryman, Crossroads, Witchfinder, Infernum Page 198