CHAPTER TWENTY #3
As the others continue planning logistics and arguing about the best approach vectors, I slip away to a quiet corner of the bar. Salem finds me there a few minutes later.
“You okay?” she asks, sliding onto the seat next to me as I gaze out over the river Styx.
“Define okay.”
“Fair point.” She’s quiet for a moment, then, “You know this is insane, right? Everything we’re about to do?”
“I’m aware,” I agree, sipping on my blue fruity drink.
“And you’re still willing to do it?”
I think about the note Reaver left on my refrigerator.
You will always be my sunny day and the light that shines in the darkness.
I think about the way he looked at me the first day we met, like I was something precious and terrifying all at once.
I think about all the conversations we had, the walls he slowly let down, the glimpses I got of the man beneath the scars and trauma.
“Yeah,” I say finally. “I am, because he came for me. The least I can do is return the favor.”
“That’s the spirit.” Salem squeezes my hand. “We’re going to get him back, Kennie. All of us together.”
I squeeze back, drawing strength from my oldest friend. “Getting the band back together, right?”
“Getting the girl band back together,” she corrects. “And Hades, but personally I think he counts.”
We rejoin the group, where Hades is in the middle of what appears to be a very elaborate explanation, complete with hand gestures and dramatic reenactments.
“—and that’s when I told Zeus, ‘If you’re going to throw lightning bolts, at least have the decency to aim!
’ But did he listen? No, of course not, because gods never listen, and that’s why—” He stops when he sees me approaching.
“Ah, our fearless leader returns. Tell me, Kennedy, are you prepared to storm the gates of Heaven and rescue your brooding angel?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” I reply.
“Excellent. I do love a woman with conviction.” He raises his bottle again. “To Kennedy, who is either the bravest or the stupidest human I’ve ever met. Possibly both!”
“Definitely both,” I mutter, but I can’t help smiling.
As the planning session winds down, and people start to leave to make their various preparations, Hades pulls me aside.
“There’s something you need to know. About Reaver,” he says quietly, all theatrics gone.
My heart clenches. “What is it?”
“He’s… damaged,” he states, and I nod my head.
“I know.”
“No, you don’t. It’s more than you probably realize. The things he endured in Treachery Prison, the centuries of torture and isolation…they changed him. Made him believe he doesn’t deserve happiness. Doesn’t deserve love.”
“I know he’s been through hell—”
“No,” Hades interrupts gently. “You know the facts, but you don’t know the depth of it.
I do, because I’ve been there too. And I’m telling you this because when you find him, he’s going to try to push you away.
He’s going to tell you that you’re better off without him, that being with him will only bring you pain. He’ll try to make you leave.”
“I won’t.”
“I know. That’s why I’m telling you this. When he pushes, you need to push back harder. Make him see that he’s worth saving. Make him believe that he deserves to be loved.” Hades’ eyes are intense, almost pleading. “Can you do that?”
I think about every patient I’ve ever worked with, every person I’ve helped navigate their trauma and find their way back to themselves.
I think about the years I spent studying human behavior, learning how to reach people who have built walls around their hearts.
And then I think about Reaver—not as a patient, but as a man.
A man who left me a note calling me his sunny day.
A man who sacrificed himself to keep me safe.
“Yes,” I say firmly. “I can do that.”
Hades nods, satisfied. “Good. Because I didn’t spend the last several hours planning a dramatic rescue mission for you to come back empty-handed.”
“Your confidence is overwhelming.”
He laughs. “You remind me of someone I used to know.”
“Oh, yeah? What happened to them?”
His expression darkens. “She became one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. So maybe let’s make sure history doesn’t repeat itself.”
Before I can respond to that cryptic statement, Jenna appears at my elbow.
“We need to talk,” she says quietly. “Alone.”
Hades takes the hint and melts back into the crowd, leaving me alone with the mysterious woman who helped me escape the Underworld.
“What is it?” I ask.
Jenna looks around, making sure no one is paying attention to us. When she speaks, her voice is barely above a whisper. “When we get to Heaven and find Reaver, you need to be prepared for what Pestilence might have done to him.”
The truth is, I hadn’t really thought about what Pestilence may do to coerce him into doing her bidding. Especially, since in his mind, it’s a debt he owes her. “What do you mean?”
“I mean…” She hesitates, clearly struggling with something.
“I know what it’s like to be Pesta’s prisoner.
The things she does—it’s not just physical torture.
She gets inside your head and makes you believe things that aren’t true.
Makes you want things you shouldn’t want. You just need to be prepared.”