Chapter 22
HADES
An inferno of rage boiled through my flesh. Apollo's perfect, mournful face filled the television screen as he discussed the hundreds that had died in the past day because of Underworld’s Delirium. The blight I supposedly caused.
I threw the remote at the screen. It buried into the surface and stuck out like a knife's hilt.
The screen flickered shades of green and red, then sputtered and went black.
I was a fucking fool. Thane had drawn me in with that silver tongue, as though he actually cared for me.
No, he had taken the first chance he had to run.
He was likely nearby, feeding off my energy to avoid turning to dust, but he had left my side.
I had known better, but that toxic sliver of hope had made me act against my own best interests. It would never happen again.
My eyes stung with tears that I refused to let fall. Betrayal was nothing new, and I would get through it the same way I always had. I choked back a sob and instead focused my attention on my trembling fists. Flames licked across my skin in a purple inferno that threatened death and salvation.
The first time I had lit myself on fire, I had screamed and crumpled in horror.
It had taken several minutes for me to realize there was no pain.
I was fireproof, unlike my siblings. Fire had taken a liking to me in the same way the wraiths loyally followed me.
I found comfort in its warmth now, and the protection it afforded me.
No one could touch me without being burned themselves.
Somehow, it didn't matter though. They hurt me regardless.
In a few days, I would hunt Thane down like the dog he was and bury him so deep in the pits of Tartarus he would never see the sun again.
The thought was soothing, but I couldn't bear to carry out such plans when I was like this.
No, I needed to bathe in this pain for a while—let it seep into my very bones so that I never did something this foolish again.
The purple glow from my bedroom windows dimmed as the day turned into dusk.
I couldn't find the will to move from my seat at my tea table.
Part of me hoped my flames would fuse me to the seat, leaving me to be an undead and unfeeling relic.
It would be fitting for the land of the dead.
But even that comfort wouldn't be afforded me, as a shadow cast across the window and my room filled with the soft ruffle of feathers.
Hermes appeared in the room in a flurry of cream-colored feathers and shimmering fabric.
My eyes followed one downy feather that trickled to the floor, then dragged my gaze to his.
His face was plastered with his typical screen-worthy smile, but I saw the soft bags under his eyes, covered with makeup but still visible. I scowled at him.
"Oh darling, you look horrible," he boomed.
My lip curled. "I could say the same about you. Is my brother working you into the ground?"
Though stride faltered, he shrugged off my comment and swept into the seat across from me. "Don't tease me, darling. You're going to like why I'm here."
His manicured hand tucked into the liner pocket of his jacket and pulled out a manila envelope that he then passed to me.
Inside was a single photograph of a street bird’s-eye view.
Cameras were illegal amongst the general populace of Olympiara, so either Hermes had spies, or a human had kept one hidden away from the marshals.
Within the faded colors… my lips parted before I remembered myself and snapped them shut.
"What is this, Hermes?"
Despite the photo's grain, the form being dragged through the street was unmistakably Thane. His body was held up by two guards flanked by Apollo and a black-haired woman.
"There was an attempt on Apollo's life, according to my little birds. We believe they captured the man during the attempt. I recognized him to be your pet, of course." Hermes tucked the photo into its envelope and returned it to his hidden pocket.
My heart dropped into my stomach. Thane didn’t betray me.
The thought clanged within my mind until it finally digested.
He hadn’t tricked me. Tears stung the corners of my eyes, and I had to internally berate myself to stop them from surfacing in front of Hermes.
I could only imagine how he would use my tears to his advantage.
We may have been civil, but he was not a true friend.
He didn't betray me. That truth settled in my stomach and soured with the reality of what it meant.
He was captured. It had been days since he was due to arrive in Zone 3, and that meant days of unimaginable torture from the immortal of disease.
Not to mention the wear on his soul being so far from me.
He wouldn't have long before he turned to dust and left this world entirely.
My rage reignited within my chest, and the flames of my flesh roared to life.
Glowing purple embers flickered from my skin and caused Hermes to take a few steps back.
"How fucking dare he!" I shrieked. I wasn't sure if I meant Apollo, or Thane for being foolish enough to get captured. It didn’t matter.
"To be fair, you put out the hit on Apollo's life—" Hermes was cut off by a fireball narrowly missing his head.
"I don't give a fuck what I did!" I snarled. I stood, leaving a bed of fire licking at the surface of my chair. The stone warped under the heat of my footsteps. "You should leave, Hermes."
His eyes widened, and he disappeared in a flurry of feathers that ignited in my embers.
With him out of my way, I prowled forward. The only sound was the roar of my inferno and the screaming of my own thoughts. It was time to collect my man and burn down anyone in my way.