Page 76 of Queen of Darkness
Hades goggled at me. “You never cease to amaze me with your demands, mortal,” he said, shaking his head. “An army? You intend to invade?”
“Yes,” I said bluntly. “The army will draw her forces away from Madrigal. It has to. Otherwise, you’ll slaughter her troops if she attacks piecemeal. When the bulk of them come to fight, my team and I will slip away, enter the palace, and put an end to her once and for all.”
“Ambitious,” Hades said. “And if you fail?”
“Then she’s going to be really angry with you,” I said. “But what else is she going to do? She doesn’t have the strength to invade the Underworld. It would ruin her to do so.”
“And you would be dead,” Hades said grimly. “Therefore, I would get my revenge on you.”
My chest tightened. I hadn’t thought aboutthatparticular angle yet. Torture in the afterlife did not sound particularly enjoyable.
“Having Elenia off the thronewouldbe good, yes,” Hades mumbled half to himself. His eyes traveled from me to Aaron and then back. “Though, I wonder if you’re ready for all that would come with it.”
“I am,” I said as strongly as I could muster.
Hades chuckled. “We shall see. If I am to give you command of my army, then I will require …assurancesof your sincerity.”
I licked my lips. “Such as?”
Chapter Thirty-Seven
“If this goes badly, it will leave me wide open for attack,” Hades stated. “Elenia may not be able to kill me or conquer the Underworld, but there are many other things she can do to severely hurt or hamper me while the heart of my realm is undefended.”
“How would she do that?” I asked. “Wouldn’t she be too busy defending her own?”
Hades snorted. “Not if she sees the attack coming and plans for it.”
“How could she possibly do that? The only people who know the plan are right here.” I neglected to add Dani and Vir to that list because I knew they would never go to Elenia and tell. I trusted them with my life.
“It’s the people here that I don’t trust,” Hades growled. “Not for this task, at least.”
I turned to look at the team. Who could he mean? “Fred …?” I had no real idea.
“Is that what you’re calling yourself?” Hades chuckled. “No, I dislike him, but I trust him.”
“He means me,” Aaron said, stepping forward. “He doesn’t trust me.”
“Your arrival here is still suspicious,” Hades said. “It was almost too perfect. If I am to give you command of my army and lend you the strength you need, I must know that he isn’t a double agent.”
“He’s not,” I said, rolling my eyes. This was ridiculous. Aaron wasnota double agent!
“Do you know that he’s the one who got Elenia to where she is now? That he put her on the throne?”
“Yes, yes,” I said. “They were in love, and together, they ascended the ranks until she was on the throne.”
“No,” Hades said. “I mean it literally.Heis the reason she is on the throne. The previous queen died by his hand. Not hers.”
I looked at Aaron. He nodded slowly, confirming the story.
“Okay, so?”
“You said it yourself. They were in love.”
“Right, and?”
“And people do things for love,” Hades said pointedly. “Like betray those they pretend to care about.”
I stared at the god. “They haven’t been together forcenturies.Are you telling me you truly think he’s been apart from her for this long, all because the two of them somehow knew this moment would come to be?”
