Page 95 of Leashed

Chapter Thirty-Four

Bo unhooked his arms from Dio’s and Ryan’s shoulders, refusing to allow Lachesis’s last view of him to be one of weakness. Standing under his own power, he looked up at her from the terrace, the stench of rotting dragon permeating his nose and coating his tongue. Lach stared at him from the balcony, her eyes narrowed.

Giving her a smile, he waited for the shimmer of Dio’s transport to begin and flipped her off.

“Petty, Bo,” Ryan murmured as they hit the dark marble of the underworld and his legs gave out.

He held out his good hand for help, biting back a curse when his brother hefted him up and began dragging him along the Styx toward the reception hall.

Dio took up the other side, ensuring he wouldn’t have to crawl his way to Hades. “Tonight, we celebrate,” Dio announced, supporting Bo’s weight. “After we get those bones looked at.”

Allowing the god and his brother to assist him along the banks, he shook his head. “I’m gonna be straight with you, Dio,” he rasped, clearing his throat and frowning when it didn’t help. “I’m going on fumes right now. Fumes and adrenaline. And both of those are wearing off real fast.”

Every part of him hurt.

And not in that “what a workout” kind of way.

More like the “should’ve let the dragon eat me” kind of way.

But he knew his only chance of getting topside anytime soon was to put up a good front for Hades and Seph.

Seph, more so.

Hades wouldn’t give a damn if Bo were bleeding from the eyes, as long as he bowed when he needed to and allowed Hades’s wife to scratch him under the chin.

Approaching the entrance, he tugged out of their hold and held his arms out while Ryan jogged ahead. “How do I look?”

Wincing, Dio shook his head. “Seph’s going to lose it.”

“I figured.” He knelt at the river’s edge turning his head from side to side and wincing at the pain that shot through his shoulders at the simple movement. “Nah, it’ll be good. The face is okay.” Accepting the god’s help, he got to his feet and limped into the reception hall with as much dignity as he could muster.

Which, when Seph let out a piercing scream, was quickly eliminated.

“Hades!” Persephone screeched, coming to a halt just out of his reach. She gathered her skirts to keep them from accidentally brushing his filthy, bloodied clothes. “She damaged him!”

He looked to Hades for help and was met with a hard glare.

“I’m fine,” he reassured his mistress, stilling as she gingerly poked at him. “Nothing a long shower and a meal won’t fix.”

Hades crossed the floor, looking him over with a hint of concern that sent a wave of worry over him.

If the god of the underworld was concerned about what he was seeing, he wasn’t sure he wanted a full-length mirror anytime soon.

“I suppose you’ve done me a favor, Boreus,” Hades opened, glancing over at Ryan as he padded up to his side. “I lost one hound to a woman. Might be losing another. But your little deal has secured Orion for eternity, so well done.”

Well done.

He looked at his brother, who sat stoically at his master’s hip. The dog chuffed and winked at him, easing a small piece of the immense guilt he was carrying over Ryan’s sacrifice.

A sacrifice that could have damn well been for naught.

Her death would have been imminent.

He needed to get to Sage.

Needed to know she was okay.

Needed to see for himself.

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