Page 21 of Seeking Hades' Ember

Chapter 11

Hades

“All right, men, let’s get down to business,” I spoke as I poured myself a glass of scotch. The dinner went well, and Jillian wasn’t as terrified of me as she was the past few days. I felt relaxed and was able to enjoy the company of others rather than wallow in self-loathing.

“Right,” Loukas spoke rubbing his brow. He had been staying away from Jillian as per my request, hell, demand is more like it, but I still didn’t trust the little bastard. She saw him as a friend, and I had to respect that eventually. Once she was officially mine and bonded to me then she could have him as a friend. Maybe. “As far as I could tell from the torture demons, Teddy Johnson never used the Helm. After some research I realized no human can wear the Helm without becoming completely dark and eventually dying by suicide due to the magical qualities of the metal. He just always kept it in his desk, per request of the man who used it.”

I rubbed my chin while Hermes jumped his leg up and down on the chair. “What about Malachi?” His eyes went to the window. “Malachi is an angel. What the Tartarus was he doing there at the strip club trying to buy Jillian? That isn’t his jurisdiction.” Hermes shook his head.

“Maybe he was trying to rescue her, saw us as a threat. You know Angels don’t trust demons and, sorry no offence, the God of the Underworld,” Vulcan added.

“Then why didn’t he save any of the other girls?” Ares flexed his muscles as he played with his dagger. “It doesn’t make sense; he was going after Jillian for a reason.”

“We should check into Malachi then first,” I quipped. “He is our prime suspect. The Helm and Jillian are linked, and I want to know why.”

Loukas clicked his pen then wrote a few notes on the paper. “I’ll get on that, my Lord. I will have to go back to Earth and get permission to question a few angels.”

“Do what you must, Loukas. Be discreet, I don’t want people knowing what we are doing right now. She’s still in danger being here.” Loukas nodded and left the room.

Hermes, Ares, and Vulcan fell into casual conversation, speaking of any demons they took a liking to as they had officially returned to the Underworld since my unbearable attitude has changed. We had all been great friends before Persephone and during the time I tried to court her, but once she was gone, my life was meaningless. To fill the void, I worked out in a gym that Ares frequented but he became too scared of me to even work out with me. Vulcan, the calmer of us, moved to Earth along with Hermes to deal with our interactions with demi-gods that get out of line.

“Master,” I heard through the link that Cerberus and I share.

“Is Jillian all right?” I panicked.

“Oh, she is great all right,” Cerberus chuckled. “She just came out of the shower in a damn towel, holy shit.”

“Cerberus,” I growled. “You do not look at her.”

“She’s gonna drop it, holy Kronos. She’s changing in front of me. Those milky legs, that round ass, Zeus all mighty,” he sang.

“CEREBRUS!” I couldn’t take it anymore. I willed myself into Cerberus’ body to find that Jillian was asleep with her arm around him.

“Master, that was too easy.” I let out a heavy sigh.

“If she didn’t like you so much, I’d make you stand at the gates of the Underworld again.”

“But you won’t, because she loves me,” Cerberus snickered. “That’s not all she said though.” I nudged him while he paused, and he chuckled at me. “She thinks you are devilishly handsome and has warm feelings toward you even though she thinks she shouldn’t.” My smile widened. She thought I was handsome. Thank Kronos because I was getting worried. Women would bow at my feet, but she never did.

“What else did she say?” I mused. I needed to feed my pride right now.

“That she’s scared. She doesn’t understand her purpose here. I think she is worried what everyone’s intentions are.” I sighed heavily. I knew she would think that. More time, time that I don’t have.

“Thank you, Cerberus. I’m quite jealous of you right now.” Jillian held onto Cerberus tighter, and he purred into her touch.

“You’ll have your time, I’m sure of it Master.”

Cerberus would be the perfect companion for her until we had the thief who stole the Helm. It makes me wonder if he or she knew all along that Jillian was my mate and made sure that I would never find her. Mates make you stronger; once intertwined during a bonding, you are considered one. I may be a selfish bastard and didn’t want a mate at first but after seeing her I realized I was a fool.

Fool to believe I didn’t need her, and now I had to deal with the guilt from almost rejecting her and putting her through hell. She doesn’t know her own birth parents; this horrible life was all that she knew. I was going to have to ask Hecate for her help in finding out if she had an enchantment put on her. Writing down a note on my desk to send to my assistant in the morning, I carried myself to my room and left my friends to bicker and drink.

They would be staying here permanently, and it only made me smile that after all these years they would willingly come back. However, I don’t think it was just for me they were staying; they had taken a little interest in my mate. Not in a romantic way but a protective way. She was a light that this darkness needed, and I was going to continue to make sure her soul continued to shine.

Jillian

My head was resting on a beautiful silk pillow. My arm held a large stuffed calico cat and I nuzzled into it deeper as I tried to sleep. The thunder outside rolled through the room as I shuffled under the sheets more. I was going to be a big girl and not get my parents. I told them just today how big I’ve grown, and I wasn’t scared of anything. What a bad impression it would be if I ran to them now.

The window blew open with a force. The rain started to pour in as I rushed to the large windows and I shut it tight, being sure to set the latch so it wouldn’t happen again. Several of my drawings scattered across the floor. The paint was now smudged and ruined. I was going to give it to Mom for her birthday tomorrow. I sighed and tried to flatten out the crumpled wet paper. Maybe I could fix it later.

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