Page 83 of Dead End

My gut chose left.

The ground quaked, throwing me off balance. I managed to stay upright thanks to a large rock to my right. Straightening, my gaze swept the landscape for the source.

Brilliant orange flames flickered in the darkness between two enormous boulders. There was something familiar about this place, but try as I might, I couldn’t remember.

I passed between the boulders, drawn toward the light. A mere ten feet from the fire was a monstrous, six-armed giant in adamantine chains. The creature was the size of a city bus. His name slammed into me.

“Enceladus.” Giant. Storm demon. The most powerful of his giant siblings and the offspring of Gaea and the blood of Uranus. Multiple accounts ascribed him one hundred arms, but I knew better.

At least I knew better now that I was standing in front of him. I didn’t recall the creature from my prior life here.

The giant observed me through dark slits. “You know me?”

“I think so. I’m Melinoe.”

The slits tightened. “Don’t look much like the Melinoe I know. Hmm. You smell like her, though. Why is that?”

“It’s a long story.”

“The most interesting ones are. Last I saw you, you were hiding here. Guess someone found you.”

His comment stunned me. “I’ve been in Tartarus before?”

“Only the once, as far as I know.”

“Was I alone?”

“Seemed to be.”

“How long ago was this?”

The giant snorted. “I’ve been here for more centuries thanyou’ve been alive. I have neither the capacity nor the desire to keep track of time.”

“And I came to you?”

“Only because you saw the fire. I think you’d been wandering for a bit.”

My heart thumped. “Did I say why?”

“Not to me. You and I aren’t exactly on the best terms.” He raised his chains. “The oppressed and their oppressors don’t typically swap secrets.”

The giant tried to make a simple gesture, but the chains yanked his arms back into an uncomfortable position. That was when I noticed the red, raw sores on his wrists and ankles. “How have those chains not rubbed you to the bone by now?”

“You don’t remember? They’re enchanted.” He hesitated. “We both are. The sores heal and start anew. Part of the punishment.”

I let his words sink in. “I have the power to remove your chains.”

“If you sit the throne you do. Otherwise, the power lies with your parents.”

“Not my parents,” I said, without offering an explanation.

He considered me. “Are you the queen?”

“Soon. Hestia has been ruling in my parents’ stead.” The giant didn’t even know who sat the throne. Despite what I’d been told by others, I didn’t realize the extent of the neglect.

“Hestia? Why is the goddess of the hearth ruling the underworld?” His massive mouth stretched into a smile. “Let me guess. Long story.”

“Tell me, Enceladus. Do you remember the reason for your eternal punishment?”

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