Chapter Thirty-Six
“Did you get Silas?” Jake asked as we turned back toward the truck.
The sound of sirens was faint but getting closer.
“We gotta go,” Jackie said. “I don't know how Montana police deal with black people, but I'm not taking a chance on them being cool.”
“No, we didn't,” Gideon said. “So, be on your guard.”
“I'm asking because I know where he's headed.”
My hounds and I stopped in our tracks.
“Where?!” Gage demanded.
“Billings,” Jake said. “He's got a place in Emerald Hills. Silas told Michael to meet him there if anything ever separated them. It's supposed to be real nice.” He rattled off an address.
“Got it,” Garret said. “And thank you, Jake. That's a huge help.”
“Gotta go!” Jackie said again.
“Yeah, okay.” Jake looked at me one last time, then jogged to Jackie's car. The back of the car was crushed, but it still started fine, and in just a few seconds, they were shooting past us, racing back the way we'd come.
My mates and I got in the truck and did the same. We didn't have any trouble outrunning the police. A few minutes later, the sound of sirens had vanished. Then we veered off onto another road and headed east to Billings.
It was going to be a long night.
Three hours later, the sun was rising. That and the jostling of the truck woke me. I had fallen asleep across Gideon's lap.
Gideon stroked my hair back from my face. “Good morning.”
“Good morning.” I yawned and sat up to peer out the window. Trees lined the road. “Are we there yet?”
“Almost to the address Jake gave us,” Garret said. “It's off this road.”
“It's real considerate of Silas to go somewhere with privacy.” Gage, in the front passenger seat, grinned at me over his shoulder. “The homes back here have a lot of land around them. Perfect for muting the sound of a battle.”
“Good, but have you guys thought of a plan yet?” I asked. “Hades literally had his hands around Silas's throat and the guy still escaped.”
“What happened exactly?” Gideon asked.
“Uh.” I thought back. “Hades ran to Silas, grabbed him, and said he was taking him to Olympus. I'm still reeling from that gem, by the way.”
“You knew the Underworld was real. Why does Olympus surprise you?”
“I don't know. My brain is accepting things with baby steps.”
“What next?” Gage prompted. “How did Silas escape Hades?”
“Silas sort of exploded with light. It burst out of him and sent him flying backward, out of Hades's grip. Then he vanished.”
“No wonder Hades was pissed,” Gideon said. “A minor god shouldn't have been able to do that.”
“I don't think he did,” I said.
“What do you mean?” Gage asked.
“Well, Silas looked a little surprised to be thrown backward like that. I don't think it was his magic.”
“It's the god backing him,” Garret said. “And with light magic like that, Apollo is an obvious choice. I can't think of another Olympian with that ability. He was probably watching over Silas.”
“But why would Apollo take Silas's side against Hades?” I asked.
“That's a good question,” Gage said. “It doesn't make sense. We're needed here. Apollo has always supported us. To switch sides is unlike him. He's a pretty reliable god.”
“Didn't he chase a nymph, like totally hunted her down, and she was so afraid of being raped by him that she called on her father for help and got turned into a tree?”
“Daphne,” Gage said with a nod. “That's the myth. I don't actually know if it's true. I mean, all that stuff about Hades and Persephone is bullshit. And other than that, there aren't any stories about Apollo raping women. He's not like Zeus or Poseidon. It's one reason that Hades has always been cool with him.”
“So, if it is Apollo, Silas must be someone very important to him. Important enough to put the Earth in jeopardy and possibly destroy a valuable relationship,” I said.
“Holy fuck,” Gideon said. “She's right. Who's that important to Apollo?”
“Well, let's see,” Garret said. “Apollo's got siblings. I don't want to rule out women just because Silas appears to be a man.”
“You're right,” Gage said. “Silas could be a goddess masquerading as a man. Maybe she's someone Hades rejected.”
I lifted my brows. “That makes some women crazy.”
“And goddesses take crazy to another level,” Gideon said.
“Artemis is Apollo's sister and Hermes is his brother,” Garret said. “You know, I think Persephone is his half-sister. Because Zeus is her father. But we can rule her out.”
“There are other half-siblings,” Gideon said. “Uh, Athena, Dionysus, Aphro—”
“Dionysus!” Gage said. “Dominic mentioned that Dionysus showed up at his mate's bar. And Dionysus defended her against Michael.”
“Well, doesn't that put him in the clear?” I asked.
“Not if it was a ruse,” Gage said. “He could have done it just to get us off his scent.”
“That's brilliant,” Garret said. He glanced at Gage. “And Dionysus is brilliant.”
“But would Apollo be so protective of him?” I asked. “It would mean taking one sibling's side against another.”
“Apollo and Persephone have never been close,” Gideon said. “But Dionysus used to party with Apollo. They're more like full brothers than half.”
“Shit,” Gage said. “That's gotta be him. Silas is Dionysus. Their names even sound similar.”
“But what does Dionysus have against Hades?” Gideon asked.
“Ariadne,” Garret whispered in revelation.
“What about her?” I asked as shivers ran down my arms.
“This isn't in the myths. Some humans have speculated about it, but that's all. Only the Gods know what we're about to share with you,” Garret said.
“Ariadne,” Gideon said. “Shit. I forgot about her.”
“She was the one who led that guy out of the labyrinth, right?” I asked.
“Theseus,” Gage said with a nod. “And that fucker abandoned her on some island.”
“That's where Dionysus found her,” Gideon said. “And he married her. It was very romantic.” He shook his head. “But Ariadne was mortal, and she eventually died.”
“Oh,” I whispered. “He went after her soul, didn't he? Dionysus did.”
“Yeah,” Garret said. “Not just her. He also went to the Underworld to get his mother, Semele. She was mortal too.”
“What happened?”
“Dionysus found them both, and he was sneaking them out of the Underworld when a Cerberus found them. The Cerberus summoned Hades since the attempted escape involved a god. Hades arrived just as Dionysus blasted the Cerberus and freed himself, his mother, and his wife. He took his mother's hand, but before he could get Ariadne, Hades grabbed her. There was nothing he could do. It was save Semele or save no one.”
“So, Dionysus had to leave his wife behind,” I said. “Oh, fuck. That's awful.”
“Yeah.” Gage looked at Gideon, then at Garrett. “Something like that could make a god bitter.”
“We gotta tell Hades,” Garret said.
“He can't do anything unless we get him proof,” Gage countered. “We have to catch Dionysus.”
“What can Dionysus do?” I asked. “I mean, what's his god superpower or whatever?”
“He can make people mad,” Gideon said.
I snorted. “I can do that.”
“No, love. Mad as in insane. Dionysus's main magic is madness. He can drive a man into such a state of insanity that he'll murder his wife and children. In fact, Dionysus has done that very thing before.”
“Dionysus sounds like a dick,” I said. “I don't feel sorry for him anymore.”
“The man he attacked deserved it,” Gage said. “Granted, his family didn't, but the ones we love often pay for our sins.” He frowned at me. “Which reminds me—you're staying in the truck.”
“Good timing. We're here,” Garret said as he pulled off the road and parked among the trees. “That's the house.” He nodded down the long driveway he had parked along. At the end of it was a huge modern home with a sleek, white car parked before it.
“Are you sure, this is it?” I asked. “It looks normal.”
“We'll scout the area first,” Gage said as he removed his pants. Again.
“Wait,” I said. “How are you going to protect yourselves against madness?”
“The magic of gods doesn't affect us,” Gage said. “Hades protects us, remember?”
“Yeah? Then what about that love spell?”
The men looked at each other and grimaced.
“That was an exception,” Garret said. “I don't know why it worked. Even if an Olympian cast it, it shouldn't have affected us. But maybe we were vulnerable because we had only partially mated you.”
“Partially?” I asked.
“We accepted you, but you didn't accept us, Indie,” Gideon said.
“Way to go on making me feel bad,” I muttered.
“That's not why I said that. Just the opposite, in fact. I'm trying to reassure you that something like that won't happen again.”
“Exactly,” Gage said. “We're good now. We've made each other stronger.”
“Then I'll be fine too.” I lifted my chin.
“No, Indigo.” Gage pointed at me. “You're not—”
“Gage,” Gideon said with a heavy look. “We lost her last time because we left her alone. Maybe it's not such a bad idea to bring her along.”
“But she can't go invisible.”
“She can stay back until we clear the way,” Garret said.
“So, I'm going?” I asked.
Gage made a growling, grumbling sound, then said, “Yes, you're coming with us. But you're going to stay right next to me and obey every fucking command I give you. Understood?”
“Yes, sir!” I saluted him.
Gage snorted and got out of the truck. “I'm going to regret this.”