Demons of the Sun (38 page)

More knocking, then Mrs. Lewis’s muffled voice came from the door. “Please open the door, Persephone. I can hear you in there.”

Persephone unlocked the door and swung it open. Mrs. Lewis’s eyes widened as she looked at her.

“I know, I know,” she said, smoothing a hand down her outfit. “It’s…a long story.”

Mrs. Lewis crossed her arms. “Is it true you’ve been living alone for months? That your grandmother no longer lives here with you?”

Persephone’s vision blurred around the edges. She felt lightheaded—weightless—and her right thigh suddenly felt very hot. She stepped forward. It was time to go.

She pulled the door closed behind her and started past the counselor.

Mrs. Lewis placed her hand on Persephone’s shoulder. “Honey, where are you going?”

“I’ve got to go,” Persephone said.

“I’m concerned about your current living situation, and we need to have a serious talk.”

“Yes. Serious. Must go now.” The tugging was getting stronger, like there was a string attached to her heart and someone was yanking it. Without another glance at the woman, Persephone walked down the sidewalk toward the destiny awaiting her.

***

The needle on the speedometer wobbled back and forth, going into territory it had probably never been before. Vibrations rattled the entire truck, but Jax didn’t ease off the gas pedal.

After calling Persephone and leaving her a sappy voicemail about how much he loved her and missed her, he’d gone with everyone else to the hotel. But he couldn’t relax.

Something was wrong—he felt it in his bones.

So he’d left everyone at the hotel, jumped in the truck, and barreled out of Alabama as fast as he could. Now he was speeding down I-59, only a few miles from leaving Mississippi and entering Louisiana.

If he didn’t make it in time, he’d…He didn’t even want to think of what he would do. The dagger should be his biggest fear, but all he could think about was Persephone. The nightmares, her confession about the demon blood and the pull she sometimes felt, and how she’d been so worried she’d asked him to cut her hand off.

I’m an idiot. I should’ve never left her alone. This was my job, my calling, and I screwed up.

To the west, the sun hung low, dipping toward the horizon. Soon it would be gone from the sky, and demons would be free to roam. With any luck, Persephone would be tucked into her home, safe and sound. He’d join her and everything would be fine.

The sick feeling twisting at his gut told him that wasn’t going to happen, though.

***

Excitement surged through Persephone as she neared Jackson Square. She’d see Adrastos soon. For years she’d dreamed of this moment—she just wished this strange fuzzy feeling would go away.

A couple people stared as she walked down the sidewalk. One woman’s eyes bulged, and she leaned down and put a hand on her young son’s back, scooting him faster and mumbling something about New Orleans and people dressed like vampires. She glared daggers at Persephone as she passed.

I’m having the weirdest déjà vu.

Her thigh felt like it was on fire now. She thought about lifting up her skirt to check on it, but there were too many people out and about, and apparently she’d already offended at least one of them. Maybe when she got to the square, she could find a secluded spot. 

She entered the square and searched the faces for Adrastos.

What if he doesn’t make it in time?

The sun skimmed the horizon, and the color started to fade from the day. She needed to find Adrastos, and then they needed to get somewhere safe. Maybe Mara’s.

Mara. I never finished talking to her.

An alarm went off in her head.
The ceremony. I was going to ask her about the ceremony.
Her thoughts came tumbling back to her. Isadora’s body had been found. That’s what she needed to tell Mara, so they could figure out when and where the ceremony was going to be.

It was also why she’d considered not meeting Adrastos. It was too dangerous to be out with the ceremony looming, and as much as she wanted to see him, she had to think about keeping herself safe. So she could keep the dagger safe.

The darkening sky, the murders, the ceremony. Fuzziness turned to hysteria. This was all wrong. She shouldn’t be here. Her breath quickened, and the scenery bled together as she spun around—the statue of Andrew Jackson on his horse, trees, smeary groups of people.

A hand gripped her shoulder.

She whipped around, her heart thundering in her chest. 

The tension slowly leaked out of her body, quickly replaced with lightness and warmth. She let out a relieved breath. “Adrastos.”

“I told you I was coming for you,” he said, the start of a smile on his lips.

“I’m so glad you’re here, but something’s wrong, and we need to get out of here before it’s too late.” She glanced around the square. “Where are all your men?”

“Coming. I saw you and I couldn’t wait.” His approving gaze ran down her, causing her heart to skip a couple beats. “You look stunning.”

Heat crept into her cheeks. “Thanks. I’m not really sure how I ended up wearing it.” She grabbed his hand. “That’s what I’m trying to tell you. Something weird is happening. We need to get to my voodoo priestess and figure it out.”

Tightening her grip on his hand, she stepped toward the street. But Adrastos didn’t budge. She looked over her shoulder at him. “Didn’t you hear me? We’ve got to hurry.”

“We’ve got to wait for my men. Don’t worry, my love. They’ll be here shortly.” He tugged her back to him. Eyes locked onto hers, he lifted his hand and ran his thumb along her lip. “I’ve waited for so long to hold you in more than just your dreams.”

A shiver ran down her spine. She thought she’d felt the full effect of his touch before, but it was nothing compared to the electricity humming through her veins now. All she could do was stare, mesmerized by the way his predatory eyes stared back at her. Like he wanted to devour her.

Everything that had seemed so urgent moments ago disappeared, and now, all she wanted to do was be here with him. Everything would be okay as long as she stayed by his side.

The last rays of light disappeared, leaving gray in their place. Adrastos leaned down, his lips moving for hers, and she didn’t think she had enough self-control to stop him.

Then she sensed the demons. She pulled away and scanned the area. All the people filling the square only moments ago were gone. Hulking demons with glowing red eyes came out of the trees, all of them heavily armed. Every muscle in Persephone’s body tensed, and her stomach dropped down to her toes.

Adrastos wrapped his arm around her waist. “It’s okay, my love.” He kissed the top of her head. “Now that my army’s here, we can get started.”

***

Darkness crept across the sky as the sun dropped out of sight. He’d made it in the nick of time.

Jax parked the truck in front of Persephone’s, sprinted down the sidewalk, and took the porch steps two at a time.

He knocked, reaching for the doorknob.

The door swung open. His scalp prickled. Persephone never left the door unlocked. He didn’t feel her either, but he pushed that back, wanting to be wrong, and entered the dim house. “Persephone?”

Something crunched under his foot. Shards of glass sat in a puddle of water; her phone rested a few feet away.

His alarm grew to full-blow panic, making all the blood rush to his head. He ran down the hall to her room.

Her closet door was ajar. There at the back, the false wall where she hid the dagger, hung open. The box the dagger was kept in rested haphazardly on top of a couple pairs of shoes. He moved to look in the box.

The clear case sat inside.

And it was empty.

Persephone could only stare into Adrastos’s face. She wanted him to take it back. Clarify that he didn’t mean the demons.

But he didn’t.

Furious tears sprang to her eyes. All this time, he’d been lying. She stepped back. “I trusted you,” she choked out. She took another step back. “I loved you.”

“You still do,” Adrastos said.

She shook her head. Even as she tried to deny it, her heart screamed it was true. “Who are you? Who are you, really?”

He casually shrugged one shoulder. “I go by many names. Hades is the most common.”

“No,” she whispered. She couldn’t believe she’d been carrying on a relationship with the God of the Underworld—didn’t want to believe it.

“I couldn’t exactly tell you who I was in the beginning, so I went with a nickname Zeus gave to me. I want you to know, though, I never lied about my feelings for you.”

Persephone closed her eyes, trying to keep herself from coming completely undone. His voice soothed her in a way that made it difficult to focus on his betrayal. A realization dawned on her, and her eyes flew open. “You sent demons after me. And Lamia, you sent her, too.”

His nostrils flared. “After you told me you were in love with someone else, I didn’t have much choice. I made it clear you were to be brought in alive. Sure, necessary force was to be used, but I knew you’d heal.” He arched one of his dark eyebrows, and his voice dropped back to a low, seductive hum. “You’re even stronger than I realized. And by my side, you’ll be even more powerful.”

She didn’t feel strong or powerful. It felt like she was going to shatter where she stood. The wind would sweep away her remains, her broken soul drifting into the night. A lump formed in her throat, and she took another step back.

“I’m not going to be by your side.” She gritted her teeth. “I’d rather die.”

“You’ll change your mind. It’s your destiny. That’s why no one can steal you from me.” He made a big show of looking around. “And where is the Warrior who thought he could take what belonged to me?”

Persephone wished Jax was here, while being incredibly glad he wasn’t. She forced down the awful ache gnawing at her chest and glared at Adrastos—Hades. “I don’t belong to you.”

“Yes you do. You know it.” His eyes bored into hers. “You feel it.”

Heat surged through her body; her hands longed to reach out and touch him. She needed to be near him like her lungs needed oxygen.

She closed her eyes, trying to fight the desire to close the space she’d put between them.

“It’s our destiny to serve together,” Adrastos said, his voice wrapping around her like a warm blanket. “You are my queen, Queen of the Underworld.”

“No.” The word came out in a whisper, not near the power she wanted it to.

“I need you. My life’s incomplete without you.”

She could hardly breathe. It was so hard to focus. She wanted to be in his arms, wanted his lips against hers. Her dreams floated over her, reminding her of how it could be—how it was supposed to be.

Demons crept out of the shadows and lined up behind him. They were huge, all scaly muscle, weapons, and claws.

Raising an eyebrow, Hades said, “I believe you brought me something.”

Heat flared out from her thigh. Persephone yanked up her skirt, desperate to get whatever was burning her skin off of her.

Her mouth dropped as she stared at the dagger. The last thing she’d ever do was bring it into the open. Yet somehow, there it was, strapped to her thigh. Her gaze rolled up to Hades and the hoard of demons behind him.