Chapter Five
Istrode along the well worn path, the encroaching foliage and dark shadows of the surrounding woodland no match for the countless times I’d walked this path in the last four years. The greenish golden gleam of Victorian oil lamps burned in the darkness ahead of me, a more modern addition to the eighteenth century folly that marked the entrance to the Underworld. The building loomed before me, its Greek temple fa?ade a stark contrast to the encroaching wilderness. A sanctuary and a prison, all forged in white marble and shadowed history. Our fathers” legacy weighed on my shoulders—a lineage of DeathKnights—and now, it was our turn to uphold the dark honour.
I walked up the wide steps and between the Corinthian columns. A hooded statue guarded the door: Charon, the ferryman. One hand held a pole for the ferry, and the other was outstretched holding a shallow stone bowl. At the bottom of the bowl lay two gold coins, each bearing an engraving of a skull with a dagger. The sculpture above the door bore the same emblem and the date. 1779. The date the university of Blackvellyn was founded and the year the Deadmen’s Club came into being. The dark, heavy wooden door stood open already, and I walked through, tossing my own gold coin into the bowl.
The Deadmen’s Club was one of the most whispered about secret societies amongst the elite private universities in the world, if not the most. The membership was made up from elite and wealthy families from minor aristocracy as well as sons from the most prominent banking, business and political families in the UK and across the world, including my own.
As the only son of Corey Blackwood, the tech and media giant, my place in the Deadmen’s Club had been assured since before I was born, as had all of our positions”. Nate’s father had held a position high up in the military before he retired, now relying on his criminal security and mercenary business to fund his lavish country estate and his gambling addiction, and Bast’s father, well, he was the highest of them all.
Edward Blake, also known as Cronos, was the head of the Shadow Syndicate, the real world equivalent of the Deadmen’s Club, where the world’s financial, business, royal and criminal empires did business. If all the conspiracy theories about a new world order were true, it would be the Shadow Syndicate that would establish the new order. If the rumours among their descendants were true, the Syndicate already ruled the world. Edward was grooming his son to take over, hence why Bast had assumed the mantle of Hades this year - the head of the Deadmen’s Club. Our future success, happiness and even our very lives depended on him. I’d been friends with Bast a long time, and I didn’t envy his position at all, though he was the most driven man I’d ever met. Determined to live up to his father’s expectations. What was that quote? It is better to be at the right hand of the devil than in his way. I pitied anyone who got in Bast’s way.
I crossed the marble floor of the folly, heading for the stairs that descended down into the earth. The green glass of the oil lamps gave the white marble interior a ghoulish hue and I felt the thrum of anticipation mix with the weight of history, each breath I took a silent oath to the legacy of power and secrecy that the Deadmen’s Club had upheld since the days of its inception.
The stairs led to a short corridor opening out into the feasting hall which stretched out like an opulent dream from a forgotten age. The air was thick with the musk of incense, the walls adorned with tapestries depicting epic battles and gods long dead. Long wooden tables and benches ran most of its length with a head table at the top, and three carved wooden thrones behind it. The two on either side bore roses and skulls, but the centre one bore the skull and dagger of the club’s emblem. Within the week, this place would be the very centre of decadence and indulgence, but now it stood watchful and silent, waiting.
I moved down one side, taking one of the side doors that led to the offices beyond. Nate and I each had a small one, and Bast, as Hades, had the largest. It was here I found him and Nate. Bast sitting at the mahogany desk, flicking through folders, and Nate sitting off to one side, the gleam of his knife catching the flickering torch light as he scraped away crimson evidence from beneath his nails. I wondered who had pissed him off tonight, and whether they were still breathing.
”Trouble?” I asked.
”Nothing worth mentioning,” Nate replied. ”Handled.”
I knew better than to press further. Nate”s brand of ”handling” often left blood on his hands and bodies for us to bury. Handy, though, having our fathers” connections—especially within the university and the local police. It made our nocturnal activities less... problematic. We were DeathKnights, after all, each of us holding dominion over our fated slice of this dark empire. None of us were innocent by any means.
I took the seat across from Nate, tossing the skull mask on the desk with the other two, and took the glass of brandy Bast passed me. He flipped open three of the folders, revealing the information within and I leaned forward to look, even though I already knew their contents.
”Persephone,” Bast said. ”It”s time we decide. It’s Halloween in two weeks and we’ll need time to prepare for the first trial. What do we know so far, Tristan?”
”Sarah Pickford,” I began, picking up her folder from the array and flipping it open. Her picture stared back, pretty but no longer an option. ”I dug into her background. Seemed almost too good to be true, but it turns out that she”s tied to the Tridents. We can”t touch her without starting a war.”
”Agreed,” Bast said. ”I’d prefer to stay on good terms with them, especially with Dominic as Poseidon this year.”
I nodded. I’d met Dom a few times at various society functions and although he was extremely reserved, I knew him by reputation, and he was said to be fair, though he demanded absolute loyalty from his friends and colleagues. He was similar to Bast in that way, except whereas Bast ran hot as hell fire, Dom was as cold as ice. He was also related to Sarah and that meant she was off the cards for Persephone. The Trident Brotherhood wasn”t just another gang; they were power, legacy and money. Another branch of the Shadow Syndicate.
”Off the list, then,” Bast concluded, his fingers already dismissing her existence as he flicked the folder aside.
Bast flicked the next folder open with a predatory grace. ”Amelie Crane,” he said. ”Well connected, intelligent. Studying French and Law with a specialisation in Contracts. And let”s not pretend looks don”t matter—she’d play the role well.”
I leaned closer, my gaze skimming over the dossier”s contents. Photos of Amelie, caught unawares, her posture speaking of confidence, her smile calculated, dark hair caught back in an elegant French twist, curves in abundance, and impeccable style. Connections mapped like constellations, each star a powerful name.
”Passable,” I admitted. My mind was elsewhere, on another contender—one whose image seemed to burn behind my eyelids every time I blinked.
”Passable?” Nate snorted. ”She”s perfect. What”s not to like?”
”Sure, she’s hot,” I said. My fingers itched for the third folder, the one that held my true interest. ”And she’s well connected, and if the rumours I’ve heard are true, she pretty much thinks she’s a shoe in. But if we’re choosing our Persephone, my vote’s elsewhere.”
Bast’s eyes narrowed. “You prefer the third option? Interesting choice.”
”Paige, yes. Smart, talented. And yeah, completely fuckable.”
Nate made a sound that almost sounded like a grunt of agreement, and raising one eyebrow, Bast flipped open the third file and leaned back in his chair, the creak of leather loud in the stillness of the office.
”Paige Matthews,” he mused, thumbing through her file with a frown. ”Art major. Quiet, reserved, rarely goes out. She doesn’t fit the normal applicant. Why would she even apply? Doesn”t seem like her scene.”
”That”s exactly why she”s perfect, Bast. Isn”t it?”
”Explain.” His voice was flat, eyes narrowed as they lifted from the dossier to meet mine.
”Her innocence,” I took a sip of my drink and leaned back in my chair. “I looked into her and she’s not lying in her application. Sheltered upbringing, no drink, drugs or sex. She’s never even been on a date.”
He considered it, his fingers drumming a quiet rhythm on the desk. A smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. “She’s an actual virgin?”
I nodded, grinning as his smirk widened. “And not only is she an honest to god virgin just waiting to be deflowered, did you see who her parents are?”
Bast’s smile faded and he gave a sharp nod. “I did. It’s why I was planning to discount her. Neil Matthews and Pauline Tremaine were excommunicated from the Deadmen’s Club in their final year for their betrayal to our fathers. That makes her less of a find, not more.”
“Really?” I took another drink. “So you don’t think deflowering the sweet and innocent daughter of Pauline Tremaine isn’t reason enough? You don’t think your father would enjoy hearing about all the ways we’ve managed to corrupt and debase her? You’re Hades this year, after all. You’re the one who decides what her trials will be.”
Bast”s eyes darkened, and a sly grin curved his lips. ”The idea of making her squirm under our hands does have a certain appeal, and I would love to see the look on Neil”s face when he learns his precious little girl is our new pet. What do you think, Nate?”
”There”s potential,” Nate said, his voice as smooth and dangerous as the knife he was idly flipping in his hand. ”I”d like to see how fragile she really is. How much our sweet Paige can take before she breaks.”
Bast”s eyes lingered on the photo of Paige, her eyes wide and innocent. ”You think this is our chance for retribution?”
I shrugged. ”Retribution, entertainment. What”s the difference? We take her, we break her and remake her into our Persephone. Her parents finding out, maybe even seeing evidence of what their little girl has become is just the icing on the cake.The scandal, the disgrace—it would be delicious.”
The silence lingered as Bast absorbed my words, his gaze boring into mine. Then, he smirked.
”Maybe you”re on to something, Tristan. I like your thinking. Debasing their daughter would be rather poetic,” he said with a deliberation that was almost chilling. ”My father has already suggested we choose her. Did you get the cameras sorted?”
”I did.” I pulled out my phone and tapped the screen, bringing up the live feed from Paige”s room.
”Show me.”
The three of us leaned into the glow of the phone screen. Paige’s room and her bathroom appeared on the split feed. She stood in her bathroom, leaning close to the cracked mirror as she wiped away the makeup from the evening. I’d watched her leave and I could still remember the way those denim flares hugged her hips. I zoomed in, bringing her up to fill the screen. Her golden hair cascaded over her bare back, her daring top only covering the front. It might be perfectly innocent, but seeing that amount of bare flesh on my girl just made me shiver in anticipation.
”Imagine getting your hands on that,” Nate murmured, a predator”s gleam in his eyes.
”Focus,” Bast snapped, though his voice was tight with the same hunger that clawed at my insides.
I watch Paige move about the bathroom, unaware of our invasive gaze. My fingers itched to touch that hair, to pull her close enough to feel her warmth against my skin. As she stripped off her clothes and stepped into the shower, I could practically feel her skin beneath my fingertips, so pure, untouched... tempting. The water cascaded down her body, drenching her long hair and making her skin gleam.
”I”d say she”s a definite go,” Nate stated, his eyes never leaving the screen. ”We may have to be careful with this one though; we wouldn”t want to break her too quickly.”
Bast gave a gruff laugh. ”Patience has never been your forte, Nate, but you’ll have to keep your distance for a while. Rules are rules after all, and I am the Hades.” His dark eyes fastened on the pale blur of Paige’s body behind the frosted glass shower screen. “However we break her, that innocent little pussy is mine first.
Something twisted inside me as I visualised Bast touching her, tainting her innocence with his darkness. It was part of the game - she was our Persephone, after all - but something about Bast laying claim to her first sparked a primal instinct in me that I couldn’t ignore.
”Understood,” I replied, feeling a surge of jealousy but also a twisted thrill. It was not that I wanted to deny Bast his due as Hades, but the thought of getting my own hands on Paige, of bending her to my will, was intoxicating.
Nate gave a terse nod, his eyes still riveted on the screen. ”We”ll all have our turn. Just make sure you leave something for us, Bast.”
Bast”s smirk widened. ”No promises,” he retorted, his gaze not leaving the screen. The phone on the desk rang, cutting through the silence. Bast”s gaze lingered on the phone screen before he reached for it and answered with a curt, ”Father. Gentlemen,” he said to us, his eyes still locked on the screen of my phone. ”If you”ll excuse me.”
Nate rose from his seat, tucking his knife into his belt, and reaching out for one of the skull masks on Bast’s desk. ”I”m off to the gym,” he said.
”Good thing, too,” I grinned. ”You”ve been slacking.”
He shot me a look that could kill, but there was a smirk playing on his lips. ”See you at home, brother.”
”Later, Nate,” I said, knowing he’d be a few hours yet, despite it being nearly midnight. The guy was a machine and he pushed himself harder than anyone I knew. Bast and I certainly weren’t strangers to the gym, but Nate took it to a whole new level of masochism.
I stood, turning to follow him out of the office.
”See you at home,” Bast said, as I closed the door behind me. Nate and I headed out into the woods, and with a silent nod to me, he turned and headed off along another path, towards the university gym. We had our own in our house, but the university’s was bigger and they had the pool too which was usually deserted at this time of night. Nate wasn’t exactly the most social person in the world.
I made my way down the opposite path that would eventually take me past the cheaper dorm rooms and along the streets of the more elite student houses. The one the three of us lived in was the biggest and most luxurious on campus, and was always assigned to the Hades and his DeathKnights…and their Persephone, of course. I thought back to Paige’s tiny bedroom. I’d had a good look around while installing our cameras, and it was certainly not fit for our girl. Because she was our girl. I knew it, and so did Nate, and Bast would come around eventually. Her golden beauty and innocence would be irresistible to his own dark desires.
I’d met her two weeks earlier, though she’d never remember. She’d been lying on her stomach on the green in the university quad, sketching something. It had been late afternoon, and it had been before the weather had turned. There had been quite a few students out there sunbathing and enjoying the last of the summer sun, but she had caught my eye immediately. The sun hair turned her hair to spun gold and her innocent concentration on her sketching was captivating. I”d watched her for a while, the soft curve of her cheeks, her long eyelashes fluttering as she looked down at her sketchbook. And then, when she stood to leave, somehow tripping over nothing and giggling to herself in embarrassment, I was completely smitten.
That day, I had decided that she would be mine, even if I had to break every rule in the Deadmen’s Club to get her. I needed her. That golden sunshine for my eternal darkness. I had installed the cameras the following day, not this evening as Bast had been told, and I had spent every free moment watching her, studying her every move. When I had seen her name on the list of Persephone applicants, my heart had raced as I’d been filled with both the need to protect her from my friends’ dark proclivities, and excitement and lust at the thought of what I would be able to do to her if she got the position.
My phone vibrated in my pocket, alerting me to the time. I pulled it out, swiping to find the live feed of Paige’s room and I paused, watching. Paige was ready for bed now, her damp hair a thick gold braid down her back. She wore pale pink fleecy pyjamas as she sat on her bed reading, and I shook my head. A goddess like her should be clad in lace and silk. When she became ours, it would be all she wore. If she was permitted to wear anything at all. Bast would control what she wore, I already knew that he was very particular in his tastes, and while it wasn’t that important to me what she started off wearing, I was intrigued to see what he would make her wear in our service.
Her head snapped up as a knock sounded at the door. Sadly, there was no sound to the feed, but I smiled as she moved hesitantly towards the door, pulling it open a crack before opening it fully. My messenger stood there, his arms full of black roses. I couldn’t see his face, but I remembered his terror earlier at being singled out by a DeathKnight. The money I’d paid him to deliver the roses specifically at midnight had gone a long way to easing his fears though.
She closed the door and moved back towards her desk, setting the roses down, and leaning in to breathe in their scent. My fingers itch with the need to wind that golden braid around my hand, to pull her back against me, feel her heart race beneath my touch, to slide my hand below her waistband.
“Patience,” I reminded myself. ”All in good time.”
I slipped my hand into the pocket of my leather jacket, the fabric brushing against my fingers as I found the soft treasure. A pair of Paige”s panties—white, delicate. My prize from earlier when I”d been pretending to plant the cameras in her room. Slowly, I pulled them out and brought them to my face, inhaling deeply, taking in the faint musky scent of her. It”s intoxicating. My body responded instantly, a primal urge below, stirring me to full attention. I savoured the forbidden pleasure, feeling like a man starved for a taste of something sweet.
”Soon,” I whispered, the word barely a breath. Soon she”ll be ours, wrapped up in this game of power and desire. The thought sends a jolt through me, a dark thrill at what”s to come. Soon, Paige Matthews. Soon you”ll be the sun that brightens our shadowed world, whether you know it yet or not.