Page 47 of Seeking Hades' Ember

Chapter 24

Hades

Do I want sweet and tangy BBQ sauce or savor the meat as is? Toasted? Roasted?

I could smell the fear on the other side of the door; it was Loukas. He should be scared. He ruined a moment I had been craving since I met Jillian, and something tells me he is doing it on purpose. The large dark wooden door slung open as I gripped the handle. Loukas's head was bowed and cowering in fear. Good, he should be.

Gripping his neck, he let out a gulp as I closed the door behind me, so my mate didn't have to witness such violence. She didn't deserve that. Slamming Loukas on the other side of the wall, a few pictures of demonic entities fell to the floor with a thump. "What do you want, Loukas?" I spat out as I tightened my grip.

"My Lord, there is news about Selene-" he tried to breathe "-H-Hermes is back!" There was a loud thump on the floor of my room; dropping Loukas to the floor, I opened the door to find Jillian tangled up in the blankets. She was rolling around on the floor, looking completely helpless.

"Please don't hurt him; he didn't know. When the door is shut, don't knock on it, OK Loukas?" Jillian's lip sat out in a pout that made me groan internally. Her wide eyes looked up and gave a confused look.

Fuck, does she know that works too well on me? I wanted to kiss her senselessly when it was out because it was too damn adorable. Loukas looked distant as he stared at her; too many thoughts were running through his mind, and I didn't like it. Not one damn bit.

"I'm pretty tired," she yawned, and I scooped her up and put her in the bathroom. Once more, she begged me not to hurt Loukas, but I really fucking wanted to. I wanted to see the light leave his eyes so he could no longer glance at my angel. She was mine, and no one could take her from me.

However, I would keep my word, just for her.

I motioned for Loukas to leave the room, and we walked in silence down to my office. The halls were dimly lit, and only a few servants were about the palace. Ares was waiting by the door with his arms crossed as he nodded for us to come in. Hermes stood in the corner near my desk; his eyes were looking out in the Demon Forest. The moon cast a dark red glow across the land as I sat in my chair, ready to hear news from the Celestial World.

"Give me what you can, Hermes." Hermes rubbed his chin as he sat beside Ares on the couch. Vulcan just walked in with a tray that held numerous cups of coffee. Vulcan sat across the other two and flexed his hands several times before leaning back into the black leather couch.

"Do you want the bad news or the worst news?" he scoffed. He looked towards the door. We left the office door open with Loukas standing by, listening so we would be aware of any unwanted ears.

"Just give it to me," I spat as I slapped my hand on the table. I still had a raging set of blue balls that were killing me, so no matter what, my night would get worse.

"Selene was indeed kidnapped; I saw her wrecked home myself." Hermes let out a sigh. "There were angels there and a lot of them. They were checking the place for magic, curses, wards, and barriers, but they have found nothing, not even a trace of hair." Hermes scoffed as he picked up his mug. "Selene was taken along with her Sphere of Souls, this could be bad news. If someone tries to control her pairing, it could end up disastrous. Supernaturals and even deities will be paired with the wrong soul, almost causing an involuntary rejection and possible death. Millions could die."

Vulcan took a breath from the news. If anyone deserved a mate, it was him, and I've said it too many times I lost count. "What is the plan then, Hermes?" I said, breaking the silence.

"Right now, there is none because some other shit has hit the fan…" We all waited for his dramatic pause before glancing back at me. "Hecate has gone missing too."

"The fuck? Who can kidnap her? She is the goddess of all witchcraft; she would see anyone coming a mile away!" Ares stood up from the couch and started throwing his hands in the air. He's always had a thing for her, but she never did budge on any of his advances. She played cat and mouse with Ares for a long time until Selene announced the paring of souls; now, she waits for her soul mate to appear.

"I just spoke with her a few days ago about Jillian; how long has she been missing?"

"Around thirty-six hours, it hasn't been released yet to the other gods. Zeus is trying to keep this under wraps before he has more information." I stood up and started pacing. So far, Malachi had no connection to Selene other than taking Persephone as a mate; it had to be a coincidence he was there that day when I came to retrieve Jillian.

The room fell silent again as I paced to the window. Phantom tails were running around the forest edge. An animal must be lost but coming this far into the palace grounds was a bit of a stretch.

I needed to get back to Jillian; I wanted to go to Tartarus, but now that I have had a taste of Jillian, which sounded more appealing. Having her in my arms would be better.

"There's one more thing," Hermes spoke quietly. All of our attention adverted to him as he faced one of the many bookshelves cluttering the room. “Malachi is not Persephone's mate."

"What?" Vulcan stood up. "I saw it with my own eyes while Hades was being distracted." Hell, I was worried. I didn't see who came for Persephone; I just knew she was gone. "Malachi was the one who came down for Persephone!" Vulcan's voice stressed.

"Gabriel is her mate," Hermes spoke with conviction. "All of the supernatural world says this to be so. However, when you talk to any gods and demi-gods, we all say it is Malachi. Now, there is something fishy with that, don't you think?" I scoffed while Hermes put his lips to a thin line.

"Humans get our history wrong all the time; what makes you think the supernatural world is any better?" I went to the liquor cabinet for a scotch and poured it over ice. "I had to correct numerous things Jillian has asked me; humans have it almost completely wrong."

Hermes pulled a large book from the library shelf. It was dusty, old, and ragged, and he placed it on the coffee table in the middle of the room. Hermes took a big breath in and blew. Years of dust and dried bugs fell to the floor. Vulcan's eyes scowled as he looked at the dirt littering the floor.

He always was a clean freak.

"The Muse of History," Hermes read aloud. "The God of the Sky and the God of the Underworld have been given this book by Clio, and you have yet to open it," Hermes teased as he flipped the pages.

"And what would I do with it? It is just a book of the history of our kind, more like a gossip column. Why would I want to read…“?

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