Page 48 of Hades' Shadow
What the fuck is he doing here? Did he follow us?
I spin around on Dax, but Jayden is already in front of me as if he’s protecting me. “None of your business.”
“Jayden,” I whisper, and he shoots me a glare.
There he is and it only took an hour.
“You are going on another mission, aren’t you?” He eyes the bags that Adrian and Raven are carrying with disdain.
“I said it’s none of your fucking business, Dax,” Jayden growls, taking a menacing step forward.
“I need to go on this one with you,” Dax demands, stepping into Jayden’s space this time.
“No,” Jayden barks. “No fucking way are you going.”
“Why the fuck is Raven going, then? I am tougher than she is.” He eyes me hopefully and I shake my head.
Raven scoffs. “You are a dude; of course you are physically tougher than me, but you are not stronger than me magically.”
“So what?” he says.
He doesn’t get it at all. Raven is important to the mission. I eye Adrian, asking with my eyes for a little help but he just shrugs. He’s no help at all.
I step forward but Jayden’s arm comes out, stopping me from moving forward. “You can’t come with us, Dax.”
“Why not? I can help. What if something happens? I can protect you.” His eyes plead with me and I have had enough.
Lightning crackles on my fingertips in my agitation. Jayden scoffs.
“If I remember correctly, it was Beth who rescued your ass during the battle at the wards.”
Oh gods, he is so not helping this situation.
Dax’s eyes light with rage as he turns to Jayden. “It was a fucking Gorgon. I didn’t even know it was there.”
“We are facing much more than Medusa’s whacked-out sisters where we are going. You will just be a liability,” Jayden says mockingly.
His voice is calm, but his eyes are turning black again and his shadows are swarming down his arms to the floor of the hallway. He’s about to lose it and any control he has.
Dax steps forward again so the tips of their shoes are touching and they are almost nose to nose. “You think you’re better than me because you can play in the dark and command demons?”
“Dax, back off,” I say, not because he needs to let it go but because the liquid shadows are slithering to the floor right by his feet.
“Why? I’m not afraid of the dark,” he says.
“I remember you screaming bloody murder when my hellfire hit you. How has that healed for you?” Jayden smirks.
I seriously want to smack him. This is not the time to goad each other.
I peek over at Raven, and she rolls her eyes. “Why is it always a dick measuring contest with you guys?”
“Shut up, Raven.” Dax snaps his gaze to hers, but she doesn’t back down.
“You gonna make me, brother?” She steps up next to Jayden. “You aren’t going.”
“And it’s up to you, right? None of this even started until Beth got here.”
I flinch at the words thick with derision. Is this all tied to me somehow? Is that why I have to fix it all the time?
