by Nicole Thorn
“Anything else?” I asked. “You’ve lived here together, but has it been quiet?”
Jasmine let out a sharp, nervous laugh. “Oh . . . no . . . ”
“All right then,” I said. “This is just lovely. I came looking for new BFFs and this is what I get? Cruel, really.”
Juniper, the queen of attitude, stared at me. “Oh, so sorry to ruin your day. Do you honestly believe this behavior is charming?”
She wanted charm? I could give her charm.
I moved right in front of the girl and I reached for her hand. I pulled it up and pressed my lips to the top. “My full charm would melt you, luv. So, I’ll be gentle.”
Juniper yanked her hand away, and the look in her eyes made me reconsider my thoughts on if she would’ve been willing to throw a punch. “Don’t touch me, you damn hooligan.”
I smirked. “You’ve ain’t seen nothin’ yet, darling.”
“Don’t call me by anything but my name.”
I heard ‘call me loads of sweet little nicknames’ so I would obviously have to keep doing that until I charmed her into being a decent person. I winked at her, and I thought she wanted to kill me.
It looked like a switch going off, when she looked me up and down, noticing my soaking clothes. Then she looked at my boots, and the light water tracks by the door. No mud. Literally just water. I kept my boots clean.
“Look. What. You. Did!” Juniper snapped. “I JUST cleaned this carpet!” She shoved at my shoulders and stormed into the other room, which appeared to be a kitchen.
I took a deep breath, attempting to understand how someone so young and so pretty could seem to have as massive a chip on her shoulder as Juniper did. Her sister seemed just fine, and though their brother stayed quiet, he seemed fine as well.
“Sorry,” I said, because I did get the carpet wet.
Jasmine waved her hand. “It’s fine. She’s just . . . very cleanly.”
Sure.
I wondered if it connected to her power to see. I couldn’t begin to guess which she got, but I could see how that might possibly put a weight on someone’s soul. Having that power can make you feel somehow responsible for the things you saw, and those you saw getting hurt. You couldn’t change fate, so it shouldn’t have bothered her.
My father would need to answer for this one. How I landed right in the middle of this magical town. Why the hell would he bring me here? Did he just want me to make friends with some people like me?
Oh, maybe he did.
Mum grew older, and I did not. It wouldn’t be all that out there to think he sent me to a place where I could have some immortal people in my life. But the seers were human, so I couldn’t have been sure. Best not dwell on it until the problem hit me right in the face.
I rubbed my hands together. “So, new friends, who’s gonna tell me how ya got a pet hydra in a pool?”
Jasmine told me that her brother got him for her at a carnival. I wanted to be part of a carnival that just gave away hydras that people assumed were normal fish. I could do with a pet in my life.
“And you kept it,” I pointed out. “I take it he’s friendly.”
Jasmine beamed at her pet. “He’s a sweetheart. Wouldn’t harm anything. Probably.”
The doorbell rang again, and Zander patted Jasmine’s hip before he went to answer it.
“Is she really okay?” I asked, jabbing a thumb in the direction of the kitchen. “I would hate to wake up to her sitting on me, holding a knife to my throat. I mean . . . probably.”
Jasper eyed me. “She’s fine,” he said flatly.
“Hello,” Zander said. “Can I help you?”
“You can,” a man said in a voice I knew. “I’m here for my son.”
I’d know that Australian accent anywhere, and I turned to see my father standing at the door.
The man and I had little in common, but I thought if you looked, you could see the resemblance. Though his hair was silver, he kept the length similar to mine. Perhaps a little longer. And he beat my height by a single inch, that he seemed to care lots about. Other than that, we had nothing in common. His eyes were dark, dark brown. Skin tanner, because I lived in the rain since I was born. And he dressed a little sharper than I did.
At the moment, Dad had on a sweater and jacket. His jeans were black, matching his trainers.
I’d gotten more time with my father than most children of the gods. Still not all that much, but I knew I had it fairly good. He popped up when he had some time, and he always made sure to take care of me and Mum. Most of the gods didn’t even bother claiming their children, let alone taking care of them financially. The humans they had children with almost never mattered to them, but my dad cared a lot about my mother. She had been kind for no reason other than she could, and she seemed full of life. He liked that. Simple as it could be for him.
“How’re you?” I asked him. “Screw anyone over today?”
He patted my shoulder. “Not yet, but it’s early.”
Dad looked up and his eyes landed on Kizzy, moving past Zander and I without getting invited in. “Oh! Look at you! I haven’t seen you since you were a baby, Kezia. My, you’re tall.” He put her face in his hands, and the girl didn’t move. She did however, stare with hate that impressed me, and a sliver of fear that tempted me to tell my father to stop. “The pictures your mother sent do not do you any justice.”
Kizzy smiled. “That’s very sweet.”
He let go of her. “And look at your brother.” He turned to Zander. “Tall. Tall is good. Nice to meet you.” Dad hurried over and shook his hand. “Hope you’re having a pleasant morning.”
Zander laughed. “Sure.”
Jasmine lifted up on her toes, tapping her fingertips together. “Oooh, I get to add you to the list of gods I’ve met.”
Dad lightly poked her shoulder. “Perhaps we should get trading cards. Want me to sign something for you?”
Since Jasmine clearly didn’t realize he meant it as a joke, she ran up the stairs to find something. Dad usually had more kindness than most gods, so he would probably sign whatever she brought him.
Everyone liked to paint Dad as a bad man because he ruled the underworld. He just got screwed over in a deal. Yeah, he kidnapped his wife and trapped her down below, but he had been lonely. He took good care of those belonged to him, and that included me and Mum.
“Did you get to see Mum yet?” I asked him.
“No, but I’m gonna check in on her after this. I have a present for her and I want to give her plenty of time to jump up and down with joy when I give it to her.” He smiled. “Such fun, she is.”
I knew that I should take this chance to ask him why the hell he sent me to Seattle but somehow, I didn’t think I would get a straight answer.
“How’s she been?” Dad asked. “Have you made sure she’s comfortable? Given her anything she asked for?”
I nodded. “Always.”
He strode over to Nemo, and knelt to pet the hydra as I did. “Good boy. I should get you a special treat.”
Kizzy cleared her throat from Jasper’s side. “Um, Hades?”
He looked over his shoulder at her, still petting Nemo. “Yes, my dear?”
She shifted on her feet for a moment. “Not that I’m not happy to see you, but so far, god visits come with a bad few weeks. It’s probably stupid of me to hope that you’re just here to see Verin.”
Dad sighed and stood up again. “Sorry, but yeah, it would be. You kids have every bad luck, so it would seem.”
Jasmine hurried back down the stairs, a notebook in hand. “Okay! I got something!” She stopped in front of Dad, holding the notebook tight. “Sorry,” she breathed. “I didn’t have anything like a picture or whatever. I just had this.”
He took it when she handed it over, and he grabbed her pen. I watched him sign his name, and then doodle a Pegasus before handing the book back. With utter delight, she thanked him and set the book somewhere safe.
“You’re much nicer than the c
artoons try and make you look,” Jasmine pointed out. Trust a girl like her to be able to recognize that a reputation meant nothing. Good for her.
“Thank you,” Dad said. “I don’t hold it against them. I do awful things all the time.”
“So do the other gods,” Zander pointed out.
Dad tapped his nose and nodded at Zander. “That they do, sonny. If you knew half the things my brothers have done, it would make you sick. And since people know a good chunk of it . . . that should say something.”
I didn’t like many of the gods, really. They could be cruel when they didn’t need to be, and I didn’t like selfish people. My mum taught me better than that.
“Anyway,” I said. “You’re here for more than a pop in?”
Dad sobered and sunk his hands into his pockets. “Yes. I’ve been wronged, and I need a little help fixing this.”
I looked at him again, and noticed the worry in his eyes.
“Just tell me what to do, Dad,” I said. “And I’ll get it done.”
I heard her as she came back into the room at what seemed like the worst time. Juniper had a bucket of suds in one hand, and a rag in the other, hands covered in rubber gloves. She came to a solid stop, her mismatched eyes locked onto my father.
One word. She said one word, and I’d never heard so much said in just one word.
“Dad?”
CHAPTER FIVE:
The God of the Underworld and a Hell Bitch
Juniper
Hades stood in my living room. Hades stood in the middle of my fucking living room. Hades, the god of the underworld stood in my motherfucking living room.
So, this is what a heart attack feels like. I had hoped that I’d never learn firsthand, but I was human, and we always seemed to screw ourselves over. I should put this bucket down before I make a bigger mess of my living room. I set it on the floor, and then went ahead and sat down next to it. I needed a minute.
“Now, Juni,” Jasmine said, approaching me with her arms held out. “I know that this isn’t exactly something you’re happy about, but Hades seems like a really nice guy. See, not killing anyone.”
I stared at my sister. “You just called a man who kidnapped and imprisoned his wife a nice guy,” I said. “Do you realize how stupid that sounds, Jazz?” I made sure that my eyes sparked in annoyance, so that she could see I was serious.
“Am I never going to live that down?” Hades asked, shaking his head. “She loves me. It’s not like I’m still forcing her to stay with me against her will. And Persephone willingly ate that seed. She knew the consequences when she did it.” He crossed his arms over his chest, and I could suddenly see Verin in him.
Speaking of Verin . . .
“I really don’t think it’s fair for you to judge him,” Verin said. “But I suppose that’s asking too much, since you blame people for everything, even if they didn’t do it.” He tossed his arms in the air dramatically.
“What are you rambling on about now?” I asked, glaring up at him. “Why are still in my house? Who even invited you in?” I turned my glare onto the rest of my family. They shifted their feet, but held their stance for the most part. Kizzy looked in my eyes, so I knew who to blame. My eyes narrowed even more.
“I’m starting to wonder why I’m in your house,” he said. “You’re nothing but rude to me. You’re lucky that I love my auntie Kizzy so much that I don’t want to abandon her to your evil ways.”
“Stop calling me that,” Kizzy said, tilting her head back, to stare at the ceiling. “If you keep it up, I’ll wrap you in vines so that you can never move again. I’ll make sure that you spend your days watching everyone move around you.”
Verin shrugged. “Eh.”
“Go ahead,” I called to Kizzy. “Do that. I’m tired of dealing with him.”
“Dealing with me?” Verin said, turning to look at me. “You are the one who seems keen on yelling at me whenever you can. What did I do to deserve such treatment? The three drops of water on your carpet? I’m sure the hydra does more damage than that on a daily basis.”
Nemo spit smoke and fire. We all turned to look at him. He dropped one of his heads into the water, and blew bubbles with another round of smoke and fire. I blinked at him for a second, and then turned back to my sister. She smiled at me sheepishly. My house would burn down one day because of him. He would destroy everything that I worked so hard for . . . and ruin the carpet while doing so.
My sister smiled at me again. “See? He’s just blowing bubbles.”
I put my head between my knees to ease the burning in my chest. Too much. It felt like too much. Too many people in my house, and too many of them were messy, or belonged to the underworld. A hydra sat in my living room, and my stress levels had skyrocketed.
“Ah, I think you broke the girl, Verin,” Hades said. It was a testament to my current mood that I didn’t react to his Australian accent, or the fact that he still stood in my house. In my living room. Breathe. It’ll all be fine, if I just breathe . . . “I didn’t do anything!” Verin shouted.
“Now, now,” Hades said. “There have been plenty of times that I didn’t do anything, but still had to apologize to Persephone. As the man, it is your prerogative to make sure that the woman is happy, at any cost.”
“Um, no,” Kizzy said.
“Yeah, I’d rather not,” Jasmine agreed. “I mean, fighting with Zander is too much fun. If he gave in quickly and apologized every time, four of my five favorite moments in our relationship wouldn’t have happened . . . ”
“Oh gods,” Jasper said.
“Hey, I don’t complain that you touch my sister,” Zander said right back at him. “Don’t get all pissy with me.”
“You do complain,” Jasper said. “Last week I found a note taped to one of my sculptures that asked me to please cease and desist. It was elegantly worded, but I still wadded the thing up and tossed it.”
“What?” Kizzy asked. “When was this? Why wasn’t I informed immediately?”
“I didn’t want you to kill your brother,” Jasper said. “I thought you’d feel guilty about it later. Plus, I was worried that you’d be embarrassed, and then I wouldn’t be able to do those things to you anymore.”
“AH!” Zander and Jasmine shouted at the same time.
“I know that was a revenge remark, but I’m in here too!” Jasmine shouted back. I lifted my head in time to see her covering her ears, and shivering. Meanwhile, Hades and Verin watched with not a little amusement. Hades also looked fondly at Kizzy, which creeped me out.
I certainly hoped he didn’t plan on kidnapping her. She belonged here. I wouldn’t survive it, but that wouldn’t stop me from fighting Hades for her safety. Which really cinched the whole insanity thing. Willing to take on the God of the Underworld pretty much said it all. With that in mind, I climbed to my feet, steadier than before.
“Ah, young love,” Hades said. “I should visit the nymphs while Persephone is away . . . ”
“Dad . . . ” Verin said.
“What? They enjoy it when I visit. So much better than when Poseidon visits. That jackass. No one likes him. If we could boot him out of our god club, then we would.” He looked so . . . pompous when he said that, that a small little titter escaped my mouth before I could stop it.
Hades winked at me . . .
. . . And now I’m on the floor again, with my head between my knees. He winked at me. I thought vomit needed to come out of me before I ever felt good again. But I couldn’t vomit. It’d ruin my floor, and I couldn’t get up to reach the toilet in time. WHAT IS HAPPENING!?
I heard a scuffle not too far off from me. I looked up to see Hades nudging Verin. They had an entire conversation with nothing but facial expressions. It had to be one of the oddest things I had ever seen, so I just watched it for a little while. Hades raised his eyebrows, Verin lowered his. Hades nudged him. Verin shook his head. Is this what it looked like when my siblings and I communicate silently?
Verin’s shoulders slumpe
d. “Fine,” he said. He turned on one heel so that he faced me. His expression looked impassive, and his tone sounded nothing short of grudging. “I’m sorry the water got on the floor. I’ll be more careful next time.”
My eyes narrowed. “Next time?” I said. Huh, looks like I could get on my feet after all. “There will be no next time. I don’t ever want to see you in my house again. I don’t know what the hell I did to deserve you here now, but I would prefer not to have a repeat of this lovely day.”
Verin looked at his father.
Hades shrugged. “You should have done it sooner. I’m telling you, the only way to deal with women is to make them think you’re sorry.”
“Hey,” all three of us women shouted at once.
“I’m so sorry, that was incredibly sexist of me.”
We all glared at him. Who would have thought Hades would’ve been like this? Charming while still being an asshole. I liked it better when it had just been my demigods, siblings, and me. None of this craziness ever happened then.
“You were telling us why you were topside?” Kizzy said helpfully, being the first to let his comments go. I stood up again, and brushed the seat of my pants off, just in case something got on them. They remained clean. Good.
When I looked over at the father/son team again, Verin watched me. I narrowed my eyes at him. He smirked, and it infuriated me. I should’ve put his head through a wall . . . at his house.
“Yes, yes,” Hades said. “I was. Looking for my son here, actually, but since he seems keen on visiting with all of you, then I don’t mind letting you all in on the secret.”
I didn’t think anyone wanted to know a secret from Hades.
“Is everything all right?” Verin asked. He didn’t sound all that worried. More like mildly curious.
Hades sighed. “Relatively speaking. We’ve run into a bit of trouble lately. Last night someone stole Cerberus,” he said.
Verin blinked. “ . . . how?”