Emblazed (2 page)

“How could you let this happen, Jace?” Mr. De Luca screamed at me with tears in his
eyes.

I flinched at the pain, anger, and disappointment in his words, my guilt once again
threatening to choke me.

“Not my baby,” he continued, barely above a whisper.

“I did everything I could. I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough, but I won’t stop until
I get her back—or die trying,” I promised, avoiding his eyes. My emotions were still
fresh and raw, and looking at him was like throwing salt into the gaping wounds on
my soul.

“Do you have a plan to get her back? What do we need to do?” Kiera asked.

“I wanted to go straight to a portal, but the Oracle insisted that I come back to
get you guys. I know it’s a lot to ask, bu—”

“Say no more, we are all with you on this. We have to get Brie back,” Kimber interrupted.

I looked around at the faces surrounding me, and every one of them nodded their agreement.
The gesture should’ve made me feel better, but it only made me feel worse.
What if one of them dies during this? It would be my fault, and I don’t know if I
can handle any more guilt.

I nodded back before turning to face the Oracle. “Where are the portals?”

“There are portals in Sicily, Cape Tenaron, and the Acheron River in Greece,” she
answered.

“Which would be the best to use?” I asked.

“The Acheron flows directly into the Underworld. It is more secluded than the other
portals, however, you will need obols to pay Charon to ferry you.”

“What are obols?” Kimber inquired.

“The obol is the currency used to gain entrance into the Underworld. When someone
dies, they need to have an obol placed in their mouth prior to burial in order to
be granted passage into the Underworld. Otherwise, their soul will wander aimlessly
along the banks of the Acheron for a hundred years before being allowed entrance.”

“I think my parents may have some of those,” Zane offered.

“Most Elemental and Greek families have them. Even in this day, many still practice
this ancient tradition,” the Oracle informed us.

“I’ve never heard my parents talk about them, but I’ll ask,” Kimber said.

“I’ll ask mine, too,” Zane said as he took out his phone. He walked into the dining
room as he greeted his dad on the other end of the line.

Kimber texted someone on her phone before looking up at me and sincerely asking, “You
okay?”

I chuckled before replying, “Hell no. I’m the farthest thing from okay, but don’t
worry about me. We need to focus on rescuing Brielle.”

Her phone beeped, saving me from further inquiry. She frowned as she said, “My parents
don’t have any. Sorry, Jace.”

Zane returned to the living room before I could respond. “No worries. My parents have
five. I can go to Long Beach and get them before we leave.”

“Okay, here’s the plan. Zane and Kimber will go get the obols from Zane’s parents,
and then we’ll meet back here to discuss what to do once we get into the Underworld.”

“Sounds good. We’ll be back,” Zane said as he stood up and led Kimber to the door.

They exited, leaving me to deal with Brielle’s dad, sister, and the Oracle. Mr. De
Luca glared at me from the couch while Kiera fidgeted nervously with her hands.
Could this day get any fucking worse?

My head throbbed, and the pain caused my eyes to flutter open. Blinking a few times,
I focused on my whereabouts before sucking in a breath of shock and despair. Black
stone walls embedded with skeletons and the images of demons surrounded me as I was
forced to kneel in between two ornate, pewter thrones. A carpet, the color of blood,
extended from the doorway to the steps leading up to where the thrones and I sat on
a platform.

Everything was an exact replica of the images from my nightmare. Even my arms were
elevated, held in place above my head by invisible bonds. My muscles burned as they
tried to compensate for my weight. I could feel my powers weakly flickering within
me, trapped somehow inside my own body.

I wondered if that was Zeus’ or Hades’ doing.
How long have I been hanging here?
There was no way for me to find out what time it was, let alone how much longer we
had left.

Wet, sticky warmth clung to my temple, and when I wiped it against the inside of my
upper arm, blood smeared my fair skin. At least that was different from my nightmare,
which meant that it could be changed.
I’m not going to let us die down here
. I wouldn’t let my horrendous dream become reality.

I tried to call my power, but it felt like it was frozen deep inside me. No matter
how hard I tried, I couldn’t even get a single spark of flame or droplet of water.
Thanks to my stubborn nature, I wasn’t planning to give up. I would keep trying until
Jace rescued me or we
—nope, wasn’t going to think about that
. Jace would rescue me; I knew he would.

Thinking about Jace caused tears to rush to the rims of my eyes. I couldn’t sense
him or hear his thoughts—not one word or any inkling of a feeling. I felt so vacant
and lost without his presence, which I had grown accustomed to. We might have been
two people, but once our souls had reunited, it was as if we were one in every other
way besides physically.

It scared me to think that our connection might be severed, leaving us two incomplete
halves to one whole.
Gods, that would be practically unbearable
. I hoped that it was only the distance between us, coupled with the fact that we
were in two different realms that affected our bond.
Yeah, that had to be it.
I didn’t want to consider any alternatives.

I don’t know how long I tried talking to Jace in my mind. I told him how much I missed
him, and how sorry I was that I had gotten us into such a mess. I described every
detail of the room I was in, hoping that would help when he arrived. I told him how
much I loved him, and that I knew he would find me.

No matter what I said, I never heard a response. The tears I’d been fighting streamed
down my face from the void I felt from his absence. I didn’t know how much more I
could deal with—I needed to get the fuck out of there.

I resumed pulling and fighting against my bonds, causing sweat to pour down my face
and drip off my jaw. My hair was drenched and the cut on my head burned from my sweat,
but I wouldn’t give up. I had to get back to Jace, back to my family. I couldn’t even
imagine what my dad was going through, and Kimber was probably furious. I smiled a
little at that last part, knowing she would be raising hell trying to get me back.

The thought of Jace, my dad, and the rest of my family being affected by my situation
caused sudden, blinding anger to stream through me. I screamed as I thrashed and flailed
wildly, attempting anything to break the restraints that held me. When my throat burned
and my muscles protested in agony, I slumped in defeat, breathing raggedly to replace
the air lost from my lungs.

Sweat and tears stung my eyes as I once again attempted to free myself.
Don’t give up, don’t give up,
I chanted over and over in my head. I would not be some helpless prisoner. I would
escape—there had to be a way. I would not let Hades best me.

As if my thoughts had brought him, the doors flung open and in strode Hades, his mouth
forming his signature cocky smirk. I couldn’t wait to knock it right off his smug
face when I got my powers back. I’d make him fucking sorry.

He reached the bottom of the steps leading to where I was suspended. His eyes took
in my appearance, and his smirk grew. “Having fun?”

“Fuck you,” I spat hoarsely. I was surprised that I had a voice at all from the amount
of screaming I had done. I glared at him, wishing I had the power to incinerate people
with my eyes.

“Now, now, is that a way to speak to your great-grandfather?”

“Is this a way to treat your great-granddaughter, asshole?” I retorted.

“You have quite a mouth on you. I will enjoy breaking you until all that is left is
a crushed shell beneath my boot,” he seethed.

“And I will enjoy wiping that smug look off your face when I get my powers back. I
will make you sorry that you ever had a part in creating me.”

He grabbed my jaw roughly, sending sharp jolts of pain through my skull. “You would
be wise to watch what you say to me. I can make this worse than you can even imagine.
Worse than anything your nightmares can conjure up,” he said as he squeezed my jaw,
almost to the point where I thought it would shatter from the pressure.

I instinctively fought back, maneuvering my mouth to bite down as hard as I could
on the inside of his hand where his thumb and index finger met. The iron tang of blood
flooded my mouth and assaulted my taste buds. I should have been grossed out, but
my adrenaline and anger overpowered the disgust. All I wanted was to hurt him, even
if it was just a little. That would have to do for the time being.

Hades reflexively pulled back, but I didn’t let go. He ripped his hand out of my mouth,
leaving a small chunk between my teeth that I spat right at his feet. I glared at
him, knowing full well I would pay for what I had done, but not caring. His shocked
reaction and pain was worth it.

“You little bitch!” he yelled as he clutched his hand to his stomach with the other.

He flung his uninjured hand out towards me, and my insides felt as if they were being
sliced opened. My body burned intensely as blood came out of my nose and moisture
seeped from my eyes, but I didn’t know if it was tears, more blood, or both.

I shrieked in agony as spots dotted my vision before the darkness came and relieved
me. I could’ve sworn I heard Jace screaming my name in my mind, but then, there was
nothing—sweet, sweet nothing.

What the fuck is that?
Searing pain brought me to my knees on the living room floor. Bending over, I pressed
my forehead against the hardwood as I clenched my hands into fists.

I gritted my teeth to keep from crying out as Brielle’s dad placed a hand on my back
and frantically asked, “What is it, Jace? Is it Brielle?”

I wasn’t positive, but something deep down in my soul told me it was. It felt like
what Hades had done to me earlier at the High Council’s Court.
Fuck, I don’t want her to endure this! Why did I let him take her? Why didn’t I fight
back harder?

I pounded my fists against the floor as the pain continued to ravage my body while
my emotions ravaged my soul. Then, it was gone. Just like that, I felt nothing, but
not feeling Brielle was more torture than anything. I thought I was going to go insane
from my separation from her.

I called to her in my mind,
Brielle! Brielle! Answer me, baby, please!

After not receiving a response, I swiftly stood and raced for the backyard. Rage consumed
me at the thought of Hades torturing Brielle. I roared as I punched a hole in the
wall next to the back door before kicking the screen, sending it flying off its hinges.
I lit it on fire when it landed, along with anything that I could see that would burn.
I wanted everything to be consumed by flames, just as I was consumed by despair and
fury. Trees and bushes went up in a bright, orange blaze as I created an inferno that
mimicked the rage taking hold of me.

“Jace, stop! Stop! This isn’t going to bring Brielle back! Stop!” Zane yelled as he
came into my vision.

I paced angrily back and forth in front of him until he clapped his hands down on
my shoulders to stop me. Violently shrugging my shoulders to get out of his grasp,
I yelled, “Get the fuck off me! Let me go!”

I pushed him, something I had never done to Zane in anger. He stumbled, and Kimber
raced over to check on him. I glanced around the yard at the smoke that billowed up
from the fires that Kimber and Mr. De Luca must have extinguished.

Everyone had followed me out into the backyard, where they stood staring at me. I
breathed heavily as I tried to regain my composure, but without Brielle around, it
was almost impossible.