Page 31 of Spring's Descent

“Sarcasm isn’t your strong suit, little witch. It sounds far too close to flattery.”

“You wish,” I scoffed, but I was realistic enough to be grateful that Aidoneus had brought me here. I doubted he needed much in the way of clothes or even food for that matter. No… this—whatever this was—had all been for me.

I’d expected the cave to be pitch black, but the obsidian walls were mixed with vibrant reds. The cave was more of a cavern, stretching far overhead with spots opened to the skies beyond. It allowed for faint traces of light to filter down, still dim but I was able to make out a worn path.

I was about to start down it when the fine hairs on the back of my neck rose. Aidoneus stepped behind me, the warmth of his chest heating my back as he closed the distance between us. My spine stiffened, my lungs hardly daring to breathe as he leaned down, his lips pressing the whisper of a kiss to the soft spot beneath my ear.

“Mywishesinvolve you stripped bare on your knees before me, little witch.”

“You’re disgusting.” I meant to sound repulsed, but my words were more breath than bite. Aidoneus’s lips tilted into a smile as he no doubt scented what his words did to me.

“That wicked mouth of yours would be wrapped around my cock, tears spilling across your cheeks. Your lips would be pinkand swollen, sore from my abuse, but you would hollow your cheeks, taking all of me as I used you.”

I stopped breathing, my thighs clenching as I fought to remain standing. He pressed another, deceptively soft kiss further down my neck. I tilted my head, allowing him better access.

“And when I’m done fucking your mouth, I would have you on your back, legs spread wide as I licked you from ass to that sweet pussy of yours, feasting until you screamed my name.”

I whimpered as his fingers brushed against my hip. It was only a whisper of what his touch could be, but it blazed through me.

“Only then, once your body was limp with pleasure, your thighs slick with desire, would I sink my cock into your sweet heat. And you’d enjoy every second of it, Persephone.”

Persephone.

My gaze snapped to him, my chest tightening at the sound of that name, joining the warmth coiling between my thighs. “Why do you keep calling me that? My name is Korae.”

“No, little witch. It’s not.”

20

PERSEPHONE

Aidoneus’s gentlenesswas worse than anything else. I could hear the sincerity ringing through his words, see the adamant clarity shining through his eyes that what he said was the truth.

“Your true name is Persephone, The Destroyer. You’re not a meek, naive maiden as your mother’s chosen name suggests, nor were you ever meant to be. Your destiny is written by the fates, woven together with the Lord of The Underworld’s to establish a lasting balance between life and death.”

“Restore balance? With what power?”

Aidoneus lifted a brow as if waiting for me to answer my own question.

“Even if I did, even if what you said was true and the fates designated my name, why would my mother change it?”

“To keep you hidden,” Aidoneus answered, holding me. He shook his head a moment later against something he saw in my eyes and turned down the path.

“Hidden from what?” I asked as I chased after him, the two of us coming to a fork in the road. One tunnel was nearly black, smelling of sulfur and something rotting, but the other had a faint shimmer along the cave walls, a reflection of water with the promise of fresh springs in the distance.

Aidoneus continued down the bright path, the sounds of bubbling water growing the further we went.

“Aidoneus,” I grumbled, reaching for his arm as the path opened to a wide chamber.

Steam swirled up from simmering pools of waters, dancing with the flashing light of Tartarus reflected in the dark clouds.. I blinked up, seeing the small opening far above. Portions of the springs were covered in vast columns of rock crafted from the steady drip of water from the ceiling overhead. They connected in places, forming towering structures, while others were left still climbing toward each other. It was beautiful in a harsh sort of way, though I supposed all things in The Underworld were like that.

Pulling my gaze from the marvels around me, I focused on Aidoneus, needing an answer. We weren’t allowed to delve into what being part of The Dark Faction actually meant, but every witch in my coven knew to fear them.

“Earth witches are taught only to hide from your kind. From The Dark Faction. Mother wouldn’t need to change my name to justify that.”

“Yes,” Aidoneus mused, slipping the remains of his tunic down his shoulders.

My eyes widened despite myself, taking in the sculpted chest and torso decorated in tattoos.Now was not the time to get distracted, Rae—or was it Persephone?I drew in a deep breath, forcing myself to focus as he spoke.

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