Page 36 of Hades

Pack land isn’t hard to find if you know what you’re looking for, and lucky for me, I do. Most packs live in a tight community with plenty of room to run. This one is no different. I may not have ever been here, but Reaver has talked about Timber Cove and the demon issue they had in the past. So, even without knowing the exact location, it’s easy to find.

The town of Timber Cove, while all pack land, isn’t where I’ll find their Alpha. But it is where I can get some information, at least, I hope. Pushing open the door to the Timber Cove Police Department, I stare up at the camera before addressing the young officer behind the glass.

“I need to speak with Acheron,” I inform the shifter behind the partition, who looks at me as if I have three heads. “This is Timber Cove, is it not?” The kid stands there looking up at me, and I can’t tell if he’s scared or just stupid.

The rage that has been building inside me starts to penetrate the very ground I’m standing on, causing the building to tremble and shake. My anger is further fueled by the lack of time I have to gather an army and storm the heavens. And this shifter, who is barely out of his training pants, is sitting there speechless. With no other option, I tap the center of the plexiglass, causing it to crack. “Is there anybody in there?”

“Ss…sorry, sir. He isn’t here,” the young deputy sputters.

“Can you inform him that Hades is looking for him?” The kid gives me a nod.

“Do you have a last name?” he manages to ask, and I stifle a laugh at his absurd question.

“No, I don’t. Just let him know I have some information he’ll need, and I’ll be in touch.”

I don’t bother with leaving through the front door. I’d rather give them something to remember me by. So, before the kid can ask me another stupid question, I vanish, leaving behind the smell of brimstone and smoke, just for show.

When I return to The Inferno, Reaver is nowhere to be found. I pace my office like a caged animal and occasionally peer into the seeing basin, but the waters remain dark. The basin requires a conduit, something that the powers of the Underworld can easily manipulate. The heavens have no such thing, so I can’t even see her to ensure she is all right or that she’s there.

I’m about to break out a bottle of Ambrosia and drown my sorrows when Reaver waltzes in like he owns the place.

“Where the fuck have you been?” I snap. “Do you have any idea what’s been going on?”

“What the hell is your problem? I want down to Treachery to see if I could recruit a few more fighters. Good ones, the kind that won’t die in the pits. You’re the one who’s been gone for four days!” Reaver exclaims as he flops down on one of the leather chairs.

“I’ve been…” I contemplate my words. Not because I don’t trust Reaver. I don’t need anyone to know my one weakness. “I’ve been protecting Aradia.”

“Themis’ daughter? Why?” Reaver’s statement shocks me, and for a full minute, I stand with my mouth agape, trying to understand how he, too, remembers her.

“How do you know her?” I ask, because if he suddenly woke with memories, then that’s just further reassurance that Themis’ curse is crumbling apart. Reaver stares back at me with a look that says he’s not understanding my question. But again, he’s been imprisoned for so long, he may have limited understanding of the last thousand years or so.

“What do you mean, how do I remember her? She’s the only Aradia I’ve ever known,” he says as if the answer should be clear.

My head begins to pound as I try to get the simplest of answers from Reaver. “When did you start to remember her?” I ask again, posing the questionslightlydifferently in hopes he’ll understand.

He furrows his brows. “Just now,” he replies slowly, as if I’m having difficulty understanding. “You asked how I knew her. I hadn’t thought about her in… forever.”

I run my fingers through my hair in frustration. “So, you didn’tjustremember her?”

“Am I missing something?” Reaver blurts out. “Because I’m not understanding what you’re asking. Do I know who she is? Yes. Do I know her? No.” He pauses for a moment, perhaps waiting for me to elaborate further. But honestly, I’m a bit confused. “Oh, she’s the chick in the Jeep. I thought she looked familiar,” he adds, as if that explains everything. “So what’s the problem?”

There isn’t much known about Treachery Prison, only that most who are there deserve to be. Reaver wasn’t one of those, he was placed there, ironically enough, by Themis. My mind starts to process and wonder if her curse had ever reached Treachery. Themis is a powerful goddess, but even the most powerful have limitations. And Treachery is a place for the damned, blocked and protected by the darkest of powers.

“The problem is, I need someone who can walk in the Heavens and help lead my army through Themis’ front door.”

“Count me in. I have no love for that bitch. But I’ll need your help with Kennedy,” Reaver adds.

“You can walk in the Heavens?”

Reaver gives me a snort. “I’m fucked, not fallen. So, yeah, I can. But you’re going to have to explain to me why. If we go up against Themis, we better have a damn good plan.”

Uncorking the bottle of Ambrosia, I take the seat next to him. “Have you had that swill, Skull Wine? That shit is vile,” I state, trying to make light conversation before I spill my guts about Aradia for the first time.

Reaver gives me a sideways glare. “I was in prison for a thousand years. The food we got wasn’t exactly fresh, so I didn’t think the vile swill was all that bad,” he says as he grabs the decanter from my hand. “But this… this is a taste of home,” he adds before taking a deep sip directly from the bottle. “So tell me about why we need to storm the Heavens.”

It takes me a moment to gather my thoughts. I’ve never divulged what happened between Aradia and me, and why Themis cursed us. Mainly because no one remembers Themis ever having a daughter, and my personal life is no one’s fucking business.

Grabbing the bottle, I take a swig. “Aradia and I were in love.” I start with the most obvious reason to storm a castle. “Themis found us together and felt that the best possible punishment for both of us would be banishment. But, because she likes to do shit with a flare, she wiped any memory of Aradia from everyone who knew her, including Alastor, Aradia’s brother. Everyone except for me. I’ve had to watch her through thousands of lifetimes. She’s fallen in love, lived, and died more times than I can count.”

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