Drag Me Up

by RM Virtues

  She rolls her eyes. “Don’t worry. I made sure they were secured.” She pauses a moment, biting her lip. “You wanna take tomorrow off? Roll around in bed with me some more?”

  He licks his own lips, the thought alone sending shivers down his spine despite just having come. He knows what she’s doing and why she’s doing it, and for once, he cannot find a single reason worth turning down a day at home. Although more accurately, he can never find a single reason worth turning down spending more time with her. He nods.

  “As long as there’s chocolate,” he declares.

  She chuckles, lightly smacking his chest before she pulls him into a kiss. He holds her closer and melts into it, soaking up every ounce of passion she offers him and offering the same in return. He thinks he figures it out then. Or maybe it had been when he’d first found her in the sea of party guests as he stood on the balcony in Elysium. Either way, he knows now. He loves her, and there is nothing he wouldn’t do to protect that.

  27

  Hades

  Hades sleeps in the next day. It’s the best sleep he’s had in a very long time, if not ever. He wakes up, rolls over, and seeks out Persephone’s warmth. She curls into him like a flower to the sun the moment he touches her, and their first fuck of the day is quick and rough and filled with passion. She opens up fresh scratches on his back, and he feels himself losing more and more control each time he gets lost in her. Just like she demands him to. He eagerly pays the toll.

  He’s about to follow her to the shower when his phone begins to ring. He knows by the tone that it’s Charon, which immediately puts him on high alert. Charon isn’t in the habit of calling him before seeing him in the morning. If there’s an urgency, it’s deferred to Hecate or Thana. Hades lunges across the bed for his phone, answering the call.

  “Yeah?” he grunts, turning on his back.

  Charon’s tone is all business. “We found Midas.”

  Hades freezes. “Where?”

  “In the Harvest District, preparing for a trip it seems. He’s downstairs in the security office now.”

  “I’ll be down in fifteen.”

  The moment he steps into the shower, Persephone senses the shift in his demeanor, and he doesn’t attempt to hide it from her. He explains the development, and she urges him to hurry down, but before he climbs out of the shower, he has a thought.

  “Come with me,” he states although it is not entirely a command.

  “What?” she questions, looking up at him.

  “I want you there,” he states. “I mean, I - I know you don’t want a leadership position, so you can say no, but if you do want to go, I’d like you to be there.”

  Her lips twitch as she continues to lather her body, but she doesn’t answer immediately. He waits patiently. It isn’t that he wishes to involve her in the mess per se. It’s that he wants her and everyone else to know that they are equals, and he trusts her to aid in making decisions. He doesn’t want her to feel out of place in a district he hopes she might call her home.

  After a moment, she nods. “Okay, but - for moral support this time.”

  “That’s acceptable,” he sighs with a smile. “But I want you to know that if you want to do this together, I would like that. I trust your judgment and value your opinion.”

  “And my fists?”

  His smile widens. “Very much so.”

  “As you should.” She humbles, leaning up to kiss his cheek. “And you’re right. I don’t want a leadership position, but we support each other, and I want to do my part.”

  “I’ll take what I can get.”

  She smirks. “You better.”

  For once, it’s a quick shower, and in ten minutes, they’re exiting in the bathroom. In fourteen minutes, they’re walking into the security office where Thana, Hecate, and Charon stand around the small table in the corner. Sitting with his back to the door is the tall, slim man with the discernible tattoo clawing up his neck. He squirms in his chair as Hades enters, and when the leader of the Underworld rounds the table, the man’s eyes immediately fall to his lap. Persephone moves to stand at his shoulder, just as imposing. Hades feels stronger than ever.

  Taking a seat opposite Midas, he rests one ankle on his knee and leans back, threading his fingers together and resting his elbows on the arms.

  “You know what I want to know,” he begins with a slow breath. “Let’s just make this a very simple transaction.”

  “I’m not saying anything,” Midas immediately shoots back.

  “You are.” Hades doesn’t falter. “How you decide to say something is up to you. I know you work for Coeus, but you know I know that too. You knew it when you walked in here that day, and it’s hard for me to believe you would be so careless as to let yourself be identified, especially considering you were so careful not to let the cameras see you start the fire. Therefore, I would be inclined to say that you wanted to be identified as one of Coeus’s men as a countermeasure. What I want to know is who paid you to be their countermeasure, Midas.”

  Judging by the man’s demeanor and the substantial lack of surprise, Hades would say he’s very much correct in his assumption. Midas remains quiet although his hands grip the arms of his chair hard. Hades sighs heavily, tapping the tips of his fingers together.

  “Do you want money, Midas?” The man’s shoulders fall, but he doesn’t look up. “You were getting ready to leave town I imagine, which leads me to believe that your - employer called you last night. They may have been spooked or upset, and they told you to run... far. Maybe they had been housing you, protecting you, but they realized they couldn’t protect you from me. And they were right, so make this easy on yourself. Because I don’t want you. I want a name.”

  “I want to leave,” Midas growls.

  “You don’t talk, you don’t leave,” Thanatos says, leaning down beside Midas until his mouth hovers next to the man’s ear. “It’s that simple, my man.”

  Hades stands suddenly, and Midas jumps. At last, he looks up at the man looming over him. He swallows hard. This is one of the few instances where it pays off, what Zeus has done to Hades. Hades made himself a myth, but within it, Zeus made him a monster, passing off his most heinous and repugnant traits onto his older brother so that he can play hero any chance he gets. That will be rectified in time, but first, Hades must make good use of his reputation. Even if it means uncovering a truth that hurts him more than it can ever hurt his brother.

  “You think I’m stupid, Midas?” Hades asks, and his tone is a cold wind in the room that has his culprit shuddering. “There are two people it could have been. I call them both, tell them you gave them up the moment I got a hand on you, and we can see which gets to you first. Or you tell me, and I send you on your way. No one ever has to see or hear from you again. You choose, or I choose for you.”

  Hades can see the man warring with himself, frantic and fidgeting as he weighs his options. He’s evaded them this long. There is no doubt in Hades’ mind that he’s considering his odds of making it out of this office with his dignity intact. He won’t, but Hades doesn’t point that out just yet. He lets him sweat a bit before speaking again.

  “Tethys must have paid you quite handsomely, hm?” he asks, pressing the pad of his thumb against his lip. “I can’t imagine it would come cheap, usurping your loyalty from her brother and using it to get you here. To attack my casino, my district. She knew it was a suicide mission one way or another, and I just wonder who would pay more for your spine — her or Coeus. Once she finds out—”

  “It wasn’t Tethys!”

  Hades can suddenly see how Zeus and Midas might have gotten along. For one, their egos seem to mirror one another in the confines of their outbursts. Midas looks ready to stand too before Thana’s strong hand on his shoulder pins him in his seat. All of this is almost too easy, but there is little doubt left to cling to. All Hades needs is for Midas to say it. It all ends much the same way. The only difference is that Tartarus has the chance to be an ally rather tha
n a liability.

  “Then who was it, Midas?” he questions, skirting around the desk to perch at the edge beside the man. “Who ordered you to bomb my casino?”

  “I can’t - tell you!” he nearly whines, the veins in his neck threatening to burst.

  “Because he’ll kill you?” Midas’s eyes widen. “Here is what you keep failing to account for. If you do not tell me, you won’t live long enough for him to kill you. You endangered countless people, people I care about, people I would kill to protect twice over.”

  There must be a change in Hades’ voice that Midas senses because he throws himself back in the chair and puts his hands up.

  “It was your brother, man!” he shrieks, shaking his head. “It was Zeus!”

  Hades draws in a breath through his nose but doesn’t waver. “Go on.”

  “He paid me - big money. Huge. More than all my years with Coeus combined. He said all I had to do was take out the theatre, make sure it couldn’t be used. Elysium was a bonus. He - he wanted me to plant it right before some show there, but - I couldn’t do that, so I just did it when I saw you leave.”

  “You couldn’t do it, huh? Why, Midas? Did you think I might spare you if you didn’t kill anyone?”

  Midas deflates, and Hades can tell he’s on the verge of tears. Coward. “I - I know I’m not making it out of here alive, okay? I’ve heard the stories! I know!”

  Hades surveys him for a moment. Yes, that’s the rumor. People who come into the casino in possession of a problem for Zeus don’t usually leave, with or without it. Although more accurately, they don’t leave and go home. Many of them are many miles away from Khaos Falls. Others failed to heed Hades’ warnings and had been swallowed up by Zeus’s personal guard. The rumor is important though, he supposes. Or it was to Zeus’s reign. Hades thinks he can keep it alive a bit longer.

  He smiles. Midas’s face falls into one of terror.

  “Get him out of here.”

  Before Midas can manage another word, he’s out cold, and Thana radios Aga and Leo. Within ten minutes, they’ve carted him to the service corridor and down the elevator to the garage. Charon removes the tape recorder from his pocket, hitting the “stop” button and setting it on Hades’ desk. Evidence is important when you’re planning what Hades is planning. Evidence is the crux of legitimacy. Persephone has remained quiet throughout the entire meeting, but she moves to stand in front of Hades now. He can read the question in her eyes.

  “He’ll be on a ferry headed out of the city by tonight,” he assures her.

  She raises a brow. “So you just - send them off to be someone else’s problem?”

  “Not entirely. What do you know about Heraklion?”

  She stares at him, understanding slowly donning on her face. “My mama said the only way to get there is on the back of a deathwish, and it’s a one-way trip.”

  He nods. “His fate remains in his hands, he doesn’t fall at mine, and the city is safe from him. It’s the best case scenario, I would say.”

  She smiles, nodding. “You are very good at this.”

  “I’ve had a lot of practice.”

  She moves to sit down, and Hades crosses his arms in a moment of thought. He has to be very careful where he treads next. Now that he has his proof however, he can —no, he must move forward with the plan that has been coming together in his mind for the past few weeks. It is bold, and it is ambitious, and it will change everything in a most irrevocable way. There is no room for error.

  “Hecate, call Nyx,” Hades at last says, eyes distant, still on the future. “Let her know that we’re coming to dinner. Make it discreet. No one outside of this room is to know of it.” Hecate nods. “Charon, I want eyes on Zeus from sun up until sundown and every hour that falls in between. I want all of his movements tracked and noted. No exceptions.”

  Charon nods too.

  “What’s the move?” Thana asks.

  Hades huffs. His words hold worlds within them. “The only one we have left to make.”

  28

  Persephone

  Despite Hades’ insistence, Persephone hadn’t attended dinner at Tartarus. While she likes the idea of being directly involved in the politics of the district she resides in, it isn’t something she wants to make a habit of. She’d attempted to find the meaning in it when she’d accompanied Hades downstairs to interrogate the arsonist, but it reminds her too much of the destiny her mother had tried to prescribe to her. She’ll give her input when necessary, but she would rather leave the leadership to Hades and his council. They are more than capable after all. They’ve made it this far without her. Her only concern at the moment is ensuring that Hades stands his ground against Zeus. This dinner seems to prove that he is. Once he hands over his blueprint to Nyx and Erebus, there really is no going back. Nonetheless, she does her part that night when Aunt Hestia invites her and Aphrodite out to dinner.

  It had been a welcome surprise. Persephone misses her aunt and hates that this line in the sand drawn for her mother must extend to Hestia as well. Hestia hadn’t lectured nor warned nor mined for information. She had simply enjoyed the company of her girls, and they had done the same. It had been a breath of fresh air, something Persephone had truly needed after everything going on the past few weeks. Before dinner concludes however, Persephone does take the time to brief them on Hades’ next steps. She’d asked his permission to do so, and he had been eager to give it. She figured if she told them, not only could she make sure they were prepared, but they could also do the same for her. She would of course need to have this conversation with Demeter as well, and so she sought their advice on how best to tackle the subject with her mother. In the end, they had all agreed that it was best to handle it head on, but they each knew it could only really go one way. Persephone would simply have to push through it.

  Throughout the night, her mind had continued to wander to Hades and Hecate and their dinner in Tartarus. She’d been eager to get home and check in on him, but she’d still expected to get back to the casino before he did. Instead, she finds him in his office, tugging at his tie and staring down at several documents.

  She walks in, moving around to lean against the desk at his side, undoing his tie for him with expert fingers. He looks up at her with a tired smile.

  “How did it go?” she asks.

  He leans back in his chair, expelling a heavy breath as if the knot of his tie had been holding it hostage. She takes note of the lines in his face, the thickness of his beard, the droop of his eyes. He has never looked older than he does right now, and she knows he has the weight of the world on his shoulders. If she could alleviate him of it, she would, but she knows he needs to choose to put it down himself. All she can do is show him what the finish line looks like if he does.

  “I think it went well,” he concludes, licking his lips. “They’re supportive of our agenda. Granted, we had to make a few promises, but none that were unexpected.”

  “You knew what they would ask for before you walked in there.” It’s not a question.

  “I never would have walked in there if I didn’t.”

  “But - they’ve been locked down for weeks. How did you know they would even see you?”

  “I made some educated guesses and calculated risks, I assure you, but after I knew it was Zeus, everything else made much more sense.”

  “To who?” Definitely not to her.

  He chuckles, taking her hand in his. “The lockdown was a tactic, nothing more. They knew they would put us on edge. They just wanted what they were promised, and they figured I would inevitably work it out and fulfill that promise with a few extra bells and whistles for the trouble.”

  “Fair enough.”

  “My thoughts exactly. But when the bombing happened, I think they knew they had a choice to either break lockdown and declare their innocence or let me find the culprit on my own. If they chose the latter, they could milk the chaos that the bombing caused for their own gain. Again, they were betting on me coming to
them. Whether it was to accuse them or make peace, Nyx would have gotten her audience.”

  “And what if you would’ve just attacked without talking to her?”

  He shakes his head. “I’m sure many people in Tartarus feared that, but Nyx and Erebus knew better. While there remains some bitterness about how Zeus came to be in charge, they know who I am. They know how I do things. I came to Nyx and her father when we took power. I was upfront and honest with them, and I showed them what would happen if they fought it. Then I negotiated the terms of the transfer, and I gave them as much as I could without failing my cause. They know I always state my purpose before I do anything, and unlike Zeus, they still believed it would apply to them even now. They gambled on that, and they won.”

  She looks at him, awe in her eyes before she bursts into laughter. “You are something else. Are you sure you’re real? Because you got me questioning it again.”

  He looks up at her, and beneath all that fatigue is a glint in his eyes, one born purely from excitement. It makes her heart flutter, as well as her stomach. That’s the glint he gets as he kisses down her body, hands following his trail, tongue hot against her skin. She loves that damn glint. He answers only with a kiss to the inside of her wrist, and she shivers. Yep, definitely real.

  “I talked to my aunt a bit after dinner,” Persephone offers almost breathlessly before she forgets to, moving to perch herself on his lap. She nearly purrs when he wraps his arm around her waist. “She thinks my mother will go for it, after she goes off for a bit of course, but I’ll talk to her first thing tomorrow.”

  “What opposition would she have?”

  “Well, it’s you for one.” They both smile. “But I think with the terms you’re offering, she’ll see the benefit of good business.”

  “That’s all it is at the end of the day. I’m not trying to buy your mother’s approval.”