Page 32 of Until Death
I stay where I am for a moment longer, the very thought of having to spend another second in this man’s presence annoying me more than it should.
But it appears that I do not really have a choice.
Doing my best to swallow my irritation, I hasten to follow after Cerberus.
To find Death, and to rescue the mortal’s soul.
Hopefully, before it is too late.
12
Hazel
In my absence, someone must have been sent up to my room as there is now a simple nightgown laying out on the bed. I quickly check the rest of the room, but there is no one else here with me.
I pace back and forth for a while in thought before eventually changing and slipping beneath the silk covers of the bed. Sleep evades me as I try to come up with some way of getting word to Persephone, but the more I think, the more impossible it seems.
The guards are already unwilling to glance my way, let alone speak to me ... I don't even have any paper to write a note on.
My mind stills at this, suddenly remembering the package I’d found on Death that I’d managed to tuck into my skirt earlier.
Praying that it survived everything that’s happened since last night, I throw off the covers and scramble out of bed. As I hurry toward the bathroom, the door to the bedroom is thrown open with a startling bang.
I spin around, stumbling back against the nearest wall as two guards walk into the room.
“What is the meaning of this?” I demand, wrapping my arms around myself. Of course, they remain silent as they step forward to grab me.
My heart pounds as I do my best to struggle against their iron grips, but I’m unable to get away from them as they grab my arms. The men drag me from the room and down the stairs, my bare feet barely able to keep up as they slip over the dark stone. I can’t even make sense of where they’re taking me thanks to the dim light of the hallways.
Terrified, we finally stop before a set of large doors made of dark wood that almost seem to swallow me up as they open. The guards shove me inside, and I stumble forward into a cavernous, softly-lit room.
Straightening, I find myself greeted by the blinking faces of the other women Hades has taken prisoner, each one looking just as lost and confused as I feel.
Before I can turn to try to question the guards, they've already retreated, the doors pulled tightly shut behind them.
Thankfully, the women quickly lose interest in me, and I am left to explore the room on my own.
It's cavernous, most of it still shrouded in shadows, and overgrown with wild vines and flowers. It's as if a small indoor jungle has simply sprung to life within Hades’ walls.
My steps carry me toward the back of the room where I discover an elegant set of chairs and a lounge, and hope rises in my chest as I pray this room belongs to the goddess that I think it does.
But, as time ticks by, I grow more nervous and uncertain that it does.
“Hazel?”
I glance up to find the red-haired woman who spoke to me at dinner approaching me tentatively.
"How do you know my name?" I ask, inwardly kicking myself for not thinking to seek her out earlier.
Her eyes fill with worry as she glances around the room before drawing closer.
"My name is Lilia, I am of Eros' court," she answers.
"Oh," I gasp, “do you have any news from outside? From Eros?”
She shakes her head.
“No, I am afraid not. I was taken from my home and husband early this morning, and we have not been allowed communication with anyone beyond these walls.”
