Face of Death (2 page)

I faced Hades, set on keeping him talking as long as possible. Leticia and McKenzie, the two youngest Ophi, looked like they couldn’t survive any more pain. “So, this is it? This is your plan for us? Keep us here for all eternity? It doesn’t make sense. We’re still alive. You don’t have our souls.”

Hades’ eyes burned into me. Literally burned with hellfire. I fell to my knees, and Alex reached for me, wrapping his arms around me and blocking me from Hades’ view. The fire subsided as soon as Alex broke the connection.

He held my face in his hands. “Jodi? Are you okay?”

I nodded, but I wasn’t okay. None of us were.

“There’s something to be said for the living,” Hades said. Alex and I turned to face him. “I can hurt you so much more than the dead. I have both your souls
and
your bodies to punish.”

This was all about payback. He hated us because we had taken souls from him. Now, he was going to make sure we paid for it.

“Well, then.” He clapped his hands in front of him, and Victoria and her group advanced on us. Leticia whimpered. McKenzie sobbed. Lexi cowered as her own sister, Abby, moved toward her. The others managed to hold their ground, along with Alex and me. Then, Hades surprised us all. “Shall we get going?”

“Go where?” All I could imagine was a deeper level of Tartarus—someplace darker, hotter, and more painful, if that were possible.

“You’ll be moving to the Fields of Asphodel.” If his expression wasn’t so stone cold serious, I would’ve sworn he was trying to trick us—lull us into a false sense of security before unleashing some new form of torture ten times worse than the last.

“But why?” Not that I wasn’t relieved to get a break from Tartarus, but something was up, and I didn’t like not knowing what.

“Your former friends have been doing a commendable job doling out your punishments.” He nodded briefly at his new servants. This wasn’t at all what I’d intended. Victoria and the others were supposed to be suffering down here in the underworld, not living it up torturing souls. “However,” Hades continued, “this kind of torture all the time would kill you, and I’m not ready for you all to die. Yet.”

I should’ve known. He was dragging this out. Keeping us alive for as long as possible, maybe forever. I had to find a way out of here. Hades motioned for us to follow him, and just like when we’d arrived in the underworld, it was like our bodies had minds of their own—or more like they obeyed Hades—because we were following him. Of course, we were all happy to get out of Tartarus, even if it was only for a little while.

Arianna, who had become like a second mom to me—although biologically she was Lexi and Abby’s mom—fell in step with me. “We’ll figure something out,” she whispered.

I nodded and turned to Tony, who was on the other side of Arianna. “We need to talk. I think I have an idea, but I’m going to need your help.”

He gave me a weak smile, and I couldn’t help thinking he doubted any plan I’d come up with would work. I was never really one for paying attention in class, especially when it came to mythology. I had this thing against Zeus. After finding out that it was Zeus who put Ophiuchus in the heavens to stop him from taking souls from the underworld, well, let’s just say he’ll never get a Christmas card from me. But Zeus aside, I did remember that only a few people have ever made it out of the underworld alive.

That was the beauty of my plan. I wasn’t going to try to get out of the underworld alive. I was going to try to raise my own soul. My human soul. The one I’d killed. I was going to force that soul into the body of another dead person.

I was going to become one of the living dead—and hopefully not the zombie kind.

The walk to the Fields of Asphodel was surreal. Mostly because it wasn’t a walk at all. Hades sort of floated us there in a cloud of black smoke. It was his preferred method of transportation. As we crossed the Phlegethon, the river of fire, I couldn’t help wondering if Hades dipped us closer to the flames; my feet and ankles burned as the flames licked at them.

Finally, we came to rest above the Fields of Asphodel. Hades dropped us—yes,
dropped
us—and we landed in a heap in the middle of fields filled with asphodel flowers. As we got to our feet, I noticed the asphodels were about three and a half feet tall. They looked beautiful with their long stalks and white petals, which had the slightest tint of red down the centers. Not at all what I’d expect to see in a place like this.

McKenzie reached out and touched the white flowers. “They’re so strange. They almost look good enough to eat.”

“No!” Tony yelled.

Now that Hades was gone, having left in his cloud of black smoke the second he dropped us here, everyone was starting to act more like themselves again.

“What?” McKenzie looked like a puppy that had just been scolded.

“Asphodels are the food of the dead. We’re still alive, but if you eat one of these, that could quickly change.” Tony looked around the group. “No one eats them. In fact, no one can eat anything here. If you do, you’ll be stuck here forever.”

“We’re stuck here anyway,” Lexi said.

Alex took my hand in his and walked us away from the group. I needed to talk to Tony, to get my plan in motion, but I couldn’t resist the urge to be alone with Alex. Part of me was still shocked he didn’t hate me.

We sat down, letting the asphodels give us a little privacy. Alex leaned forward and gently brushed my cheek with his fingers. “How are you holding up?”

I shrugged. “We’re in Hell.”

“I noticed.” His lips had a hint of a smile. He was trying to make me feel better. I almost couldn’t bear it. He wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for me. He’d left the school, left me, but I’d tracked him down and made him come back.

“I’m so sorry you’re here.” I lowered my eyes, guilt consuming me to the point where I couldn’t look at him.

“Hey.” He lifted my chin with his finger. “Nowhere I’d rather be.”

“Yeah, right.” I rolled my eyes. “Seriously, Alex, it’s my fault you’re here. If I hadn’t—”

He leaned forward and kissed me. After all the torture I’d endured, his touch felt like Heaven. My lips tingled. My blood soared through me. I felt alive. I kissed him back, realizing my blood was mixing in my veins. I wanted to do something for Alex, make up for the fact that I’d brought him here. I transferred some of my power to him—a trick I’d learned from Chase, of all people. Alex moaned in response and pulled me onto his lap. The thing about having power transferred to you was that it consumed you. You couldn’t think about anything else. Alex was running his hands up the sides of my face, through my hair, and down my back. He pulled me closer to him, deepening the kiss.

I knew I couldn’t let this go on. He’d be ripping his shirt off soon if I didn’t stop this. I gently pulled back on my power, easing him down from his euphoric state. I pressed my lips against his and held them there. I could feel his shoulders slump when he realized I wasn’t giving him any more. I leaned back and stared into his eyes.

“Why’d you stop?”

“Because we’re in the middle of the Fields of Asphodel and you were about to…” I couldn’t finish the thought. Alex and I had come close to going there on more than one occasion. I was convinced it would’ve happened already if Chase hadn’t interrupted us back at the school, but this wasn’t the time or place.

“I guess you wouldn’t want the first time to be—”

“In Hell.” Saying it brought reality crashing back down around us. I moved off Alex’s lap, sitting down beside him.

He reached for my face, and I thought he was going to kiss me again, but instead he said, “I’m glad I came back to the school. I want you to know I don’t regret anything that’s happened.”

“I do.”

“What, you want to get rid of me?” He pretended to look hurt.

“Alex, be serious.” He was always making jokes to try to lighten the mood and make me feel better. I didn’t deserve to feel better right now. “I regret letting Chase come to the school. If he hadn’t, none of this would’ve happened.”

Alex shook his head. “Hades set you up. Chase came to the school because Hades wanted him there. There was nothing you could’ve done to stop it.”

“I could’ve resisted Chase. I could’ve listened to you. You knew he was trouble before he even got there.”

Alex sighed. “No. I was jealous. Chase is…” Why is it that guys can never admit when another guy is attractive? “I knew he’d be into you, and since there’s nothing wrong with your eyes, I knew you’d be attracted to him, too.” I tried to protest, but Alex put his finger to my lips. “Even if you didn’t want to be.”

At least he knew I didn’t want to have any feelings for Chase. I never had. The entire time Chase was using his powers on me—first to get me to like him and then to control my every move—I wanted Alex. I wanted to
only
want Alex. Even with the power boost, even with Hades doing everything he could to split Alex and me up and send me running into Chase’s arms, I still wanted Alex.

“I love you.” The words were muffled by his finger, which was still pressed against my lips.

He cupped the back of my head with his hand and pulled me to him, kissing me again. This time I didn’t transfer any of my power to him. I didn’t need to. We were creating a little magic of our own.

“Jodi?” Tony called.

Alex and I pulled apart, both of us out of breath. He leaned his forehead against mine. “Think Hades has any clue what we’re doing right now?”

“He’d be here if he did. No way would he let us enjoy ourselves for even a second. You heard what he said. These breaks from Tartarus and the torture are only to make sure we don’t die before he can punish us for as long as he wants.”

“Or,” Alex said, “he does know and he’s going to make us pay extra for it later.”

I kissed him lightly on the lips. “Totally worth it.” I forced a smile.

“Oh, Jodi, there you are.” Tony put a hand above his eyes and peered out over the asphodels. “This place is like a maze with no end.”

“Sorry.” I stood up. “I guess we made it more difficult for you to find us since the asphodels were keeping us hidden.” Of course, that
had
been the whole point.

“No problem, but since we don’t know how long we’ll be here, I think we should discuss your plan.”

“Right.” I turned to Alex. My plan meant leaving him behind. Leaving all the Ophi behind. A big part of me wanted to abandon the idea completely and look for another way. But if my leaving could give me a chance to find a way to free us all, I had to do it.

Alex was at my side again, sensing my hesitation. “What is it?”

I took a deep breath and turned to Tony, hoping it would be easier to get this out if I wasn’t focused on Alex or the look of concern on his face. “This is, like, the hardest place to get in and out of, right?”

“To get out of, yes. In, as you can see, isn’t so difficult.” Tony’s eyes closed like he was trying to block out the image of this place.

“Well, I have this crazy idea. I don’t even know if it’s possible, but it’s all I’ve come up with so far.”

“How crazy are we talking?” Alex reached for my hand, lacing his fingers through mine. I got the impression he was trying to hold on to me, almost as if he knew this plan was going to take me away from him.

“The craziest thing I’ve ever thought of.” I turned back to Tony. “My human half died that night in the cemetery, when I drank the blood from Medusa’s bloodstone locket. I went through a transformation, and you all thought I was dead.”

Alex squeezed my hand. “Do we have to relive that moment right now?”

“It’s important. That’s the moment I’m basing my entire plan on.”

Tony raised an eyebrow at me. “Jodi, your soul is still inside you. You know that, right?”

I’d figured that out, since my soul wasn’t lurking around in the underworld. “Yes. That’s what I’m counting on, actually.”

Alex squinted at me. “I’m not following. What are you talking about? What does your human soul have to do with anything right now?”

Tony exhaled loudly. Ever since Tony discovered how Chase had been hurting me with his power, he’d been really protective of me. In so many ways, he was becoming a father to me, and judging by the look on his face, he was worried about what my plan might do to me. “She wants to split her soul.”

Alex’s eyes widened. He stared at me as if I had three heads like Cerberus.

“Am I right?” I could tell Tony wanted me to say no, wanted me to find another way.

I nodded. “If I can raise the part of my soul that was human, I could get out of here. I could find a body to use while I searched for a way to free you all.”

“Whoa, wait a second.” Alex let go of my hand and started pacing. “You want to split your soul, the human from the Ophi? Am I getting this right?”

“Yes.” My voice was small, not at all as confident as I’d hoped I’d sound.

“Is that even possible?” He was looking at Tony now.

Tony held his arms out and let them fall to his sides. “There’s never been an Ophi like Jodi. She’s the only one who has ever been half-human.”

My hopes faded as Tony basically told us he didn’t have a clue if my plan would work or how to even move forward with it.

“But…” Tony took me by the shoulders, and I could see the battle going on in his mind between his desire to protect me and his ability to recognize me as his leader. “You’re a necromancer. You should be able to feel both parts of your soul. If you can tap into the human part, you should be able to raise it.”

“Just like that?” Alex sounded horrified. “What, she’s going to rip her own soul out?” He shook his head. “I’ve never felt any of the souls I’ve raised, but I’ve seen what happens to Jodi when she raises one. She feels everything they go through.”

“But I can block those feelings now,” I said. Tony let go of my shoulders as I turned to Alex. “This is our only chance. No matter how much this hurts me, I have to try.”

“No.” Alex’s mind was made up. “This might kill you. Have you even stopped to think about that? I won’t lose you like this. We’ll find another way.”

Tony stepped back, giving us a little room. It wasn’t exactly privacy, but it would have to do.