Page 51 of As Darkness Fall
“Right. Okay. Which one?”
Aaron looked over at me, his gaze as cold as stone. “Mine.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
We were going to rob Hades. It was madness.
Of course, everything seemed a little mad lately. My entire world was spinning and expanding. Vampires were real, magic was real, the ancient gods, shifterandhuman, they were allreal. Tangible things.
At one point during the drive back, I reached out and poked Vir in the leg. Just to verify he existed and I wasn’t imagining it. I’d ignored his confused look at my action. Maybe someone else could spend some time being lost and confused, because I was getting pretty sick of being the only one who didn’t seem to know everything that was going on.
I almost envied Jo’s ignorance. She’d slept the entire way back, thanks to Vir. When she awoke, she would still be blissfully in the dark about everything. Maybe I would tell her in time; maybe not. She’d already been through a lot, thanks to Lars. She didn’t need more dumped on her just because I felt like I needed someone to talk to.
Because whowasI supposed to talk this over with? We were planning to enter the Underworld before heading to the pits of Tartarus to steal from a god. Not only that, but we had to go throughanotherrealm to even get there. How many different realms were there? Who did they all belong to? Why did nobody on Earth seem to know about this anymore?
I had so many questions, and neither Aaron nor Vir had been particularly forthcoming during the rest of the trip. So, I’d sat in silence, my world spinning. The pause at Vir’s temple had healed my body, but my mind was another story entirely. At least I had the advantage of already having been a shifter and knowing that we existed outside of human knowledge. Sure, I’d been naïve and thought we were alone, but I could only imagine how a human would have reacted to everything that had happened in the past week.
I truly was blind and naïve. I probably still am. I thought of Jo. And my parents.And unfortunately, people are paying the price for it. I’m growing up quickly, but I’ve still got some catching up to do, it seems.
“We’re here.”
Jolting back to reality, I looked around. True to Aaron's word, we were parked in the basement of his apartment building. The other truck pulled in behind us, and the other team members began to pour out of it.
I looked back at Vir. “Wake her.”
He nodded, pressing a hand to Jo’s temple. A moment later, she stirred and yawned.
“Are we there yet?” she asked blearily.
I smiled. Tired though she was, I could already hear more strength in her voice. The two hours of peaceful sleep must have done her good, though she would still need to eat and sleep some more to fully recover from her ordeal. Once she went through her Soulshift, that would happen faster, but she wasn’t there, not yet.
“We’re here,” I said, sliding out of the truck and opening her door. “Come on, sleepyhead. I’ll help you upstairs.”
I took Jo by the arm and guided her toward the elevator.
“Where are we?” she asked.
“Kellar,” I said. “One of the friends I brought to rescue you has a place here. You can sleep, eat, and recover. You’ll be safe here.”
“That sounds nice,” Jo said sleepily, letting herself be led into the elevator with Aaron, Vir, and Fred.
The others waited behind to give us some space. I didn’t want to overwhelm Jo, and I smiled at them, thankful for their awareness. We shot upward, and I once again wondered what it would be like to have the money for things such as condos with private penthouse elevators. It surely wasn’t anything I would ever be able to afford.
With a chime, the doors opened.
“Whoa, this place isnice,” Jo said, pulling free from my arm as she walked into the two-story loft penthouse. “You’ve got someloadedfriends, Dan.”
I grinned. That was my Jo. I knew then that she would be okay.
A door opened from our left, and from one of the guest bedrooms on the lower level, Johnathan emerged, likely eager for an update. I nodded to him and opened my mouth to explain when Jo hissed and ran across the floor, throwing herself at him.
“You asshole!” she screamed, launching herself at Johnathan, fist cocked to smack him.
Johnathan frowned and reached out, grabbing Jo in mid-air and bringing her to an abrupt halt, leaning his head back at the same time, so her fist hit nothing but air.
“Your family kidnapped me! You took me, you piece of shit!” Jo snapped, and her foot connected solidly between Johnathan’s legs.
He groaned, bending at the waist as he tossed Jo across the floor. I lunged forward and caught her before she hit, bending my arms.
