Page 140 of A Touch of Chaos

“Do you not trust us to protect her?” Aphrodite asked.

“Forgive me, but you all pointed out how Theseus is just as much of a threat to you as he is to everyone,” Ariadne said. “So no.”

“Yet you have no trouble leeching off our kindness and accepting our protection.”

“Aphrodite,” Dionysus warned as Hephaestus loomed behind the Goddess of Love.

“I don’t recall you having anything to do with this,” Ariadne returned.

“Stop,” Persephone commanded. Her voice was like a whip and struck them all silent. “If Theseus does not kill us first, then infighting will. Kindness and protection should not have to be repaid. If Phaedra wishes to make a statement, she can, but it should be her decision and no one else’s.”

Persephone’s eyes grew brighter as she spoke, and she glared at Aphrodite and then Ariadne. Hades straightened, his slacks suddenly too tight.

Fuck, his wife was hot.

“There are other ways to discredit Theseus,” said Hades. “We must choose something that will force him to show his true nature publicly.”

“I can investigate his background,” Sybil suggested. “Perhaps there is something in his past that will—”

“You won’t find anything,” said Ariadne.

“No man is without secrets,” Aphrodite countered.

“Do you not think I have tried to dig up dirt on this man?” Ariadne snapped.

“I imagine you have put in the effort, but you are only a mortal after all.”

“I might be mortal, but I know this man,” she said. “If he has secrets, they die with the people he told.”

“You’re still alive,” Aphrodite countered.

“I’m alive because I can weave his fucking nets.”

“Youwove the nets?” Dionysus asked, just as surprised as everyone else—except Persephone, apparently, because when Hades looked at her to gauge her reaction, her face had turned rosy with guilt.

“Why do you think he wants me so badly?” Ariadne asked.

There was a beat of silence.

“I could hold funeral games,” said Aphrodite. “For Adonis, Tyche, Hypnos, and those who died during the attack at Talaria Stadium. It would force the world to see and acknowledge what the Impious and Triad have done and take a side.”

Funeral games were almost always held in the aftermath of great loss and were a series of athletic competitions. While they were meant to distract from grief, these would likely only encourage a deeper divide between the Faithful and the Impious.

At the mention of the stadium, Persephone placed a hand over her shoulder. She had been shot during the scuffle, and while she had healed, Hades would never forget the sight of her blood.

“No,” Hephaestus said immediately.

There was a finality to his tone that told Hades therewould likely be consequences to contradicting him. He was about to suggest that he could host when Aphrodite turned to glare at her husband.

“You are only saying that because I mentioned Adonis.”

Hephaestus did not flinch. His large arms were crossed over his chest.

“You have already been targeted by Triad,” said Hephaestus. “If you host the games, you will only draw more attention to yourself, and you are powerless.”

“The point is to force them to act publicly,” said Aphrodite. “They wanted my attention, and now they have it.”

“You will not,” he said. “I will not let you.”

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