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Pollux
The cave wound upward through the earth, and Pollux grasped Castor’s hand as he led hih the tunnel, and though Pollux would’ve rather let the hellhound feast on his own innards than adh hiuardian of the Underworld couldn’t hurt the dead, but Pollux wasn’t afraid of a dog He was afraid of the god who trailed him
Sohis brother out of the Underworld wasn’t exactly the siven him much of a choice
“Co his brother’s arm “It isn’t far now”
“You said that three o” Castor stu him back to his feet
“And noe’re threeand start running”
They staggered through the cave together, and behind therew louder Neither brother said a word as they cli closer to safety with each step One foot in front of the other, again and again and again That was all they could do
Cerberus was gaining on them His breath blearm on the back of Pollux’s neck, and it reeked of bone and blood and death Pollux urged his brother forward, half dragging hilow, and his heart pounded So close So damn close Just a little farther and—
Castor cried out
Whirling around, Pollux’s insides turn to ice Cerberus looh to reach out and touch; and Castor’s leg was caught between his teeth Didn’t matter that Castor couldn’t be injured, not when he was already technically dead If they lingered too long, capture would mean proper death this time And permanent separation
Pollux didn’t think Mustering all of the strength he had, he drew his ar in the mouth One more reason for Hades to hunt them down and skin them alive, but it did the trick Cerberus whined and dropped Castor, and the dog pawed at his injured jahile the other two heads growled
“All right?” said Pollux, helping his brother up
“I’asped Castor “Did you just—”
“Yell at o”
The light grew stronger as the stench of Cerberus’s breath grew fainter Finally, finally they reached the entrance to the cave, and Pollux whooped They’d done it They’d actually done it, and at last they were safe Or at least what passed for it
Together he and his brother burst into the daylight, and he squinted, blinded by the sun The leaves rustled in the summer breeze, and Pollux’s heart soared It didn’t ainst the council of Oly so, he’d severed all ties to his father It didn’tas they remained on the run
What , not even the gods, not even the cruelest destiny the Fates could i as Pollux had a breath in his body
Glancing over his shoulder, he spotted Hades’ silhouette a the cavern rocks The surface wasn’t his realm He couldn’t pursue them out here But one toe back inside that cave, and they would be his
The wind grew still Without warning, a bolt of lightning sizzled through the air, striking a tree only feet from where they stood Castor jumped backward toward the mouth of the cave, toward Hades and eternal separation, but Pollux pulled his brother back into the open He would have rather endured a thousand lightning strikes than willingly return his brother to their captor
A great thunderclap echoed through the endless sky, rattling Pollux’s teeth, and they exchanged a look Zeus neverback into that cave, and there was no doubt in Pollux’sto defend his pride
Taking heed of his father’s warning, Pollux grasped Castor’s hand and ran
Kate
SixI had to stay away from Eden, where Henry, my brand-new husband, waited forforward, it see away fro made me ache
But I hadn’t had much of a choice Six ereed to stay at hismy sick mother alive Crazy as it sounded, Henry was really Hades, God of the Underworld, and he was more than capable of it
I didn’t regret our deal, but after sixanother half a year without him felt like torture But he’d insisted, and in the end, it was probably for the best that I had a chance to step away from my immortal life and remember what it was like to be human
During the first seventy-two hours away, I didn’t have one alone My best friend, Jaether we’d set off for Greece He wasn’t Henry, but he knew exactly how to cheer et me excited about our summer
James had our whole trip planned out, and on the plane from New York City to Athens, I’d daydrea Tours of ancient ruins Mouthwatering Greek cuisine Entire days spent lounging on the beach And no longer having to look overto try to kill me
Getting lost in a forest our first day there was the last thing I’d had in mind
“You seriously have no idea where we are?” I said, trudging after Jaroup, ere still wandering through the woods outside of Athens, more lost than I’d ever been in ht stroll, his hands shoved in his pockets as he admired the scenery
“Not a clue,” he said lightly, and there was so in his voice that made h
“If this is soet me alone,” I muttered Couldn’t put it past him—had I failed my tests in Eden, James would have replaced Henry as Lord of the Underworld And even though I wouldn’t have had any memory ofhiht, but froiven me ever since, it was clear he didn’t realize the contest was over Or that there’d never been one to begin with I was Henry’s, plain and simple
Jarinned “You really think I’d do that?”
“Yes, even though you know da”
He placed his hand over his heart with mock hurt “You wound me, Kate”
“If you don’t find civilization within the next fifteen minutes, I’ll show you what a wound really is”
He flung his ar it off to no avail “You need to learn to take in the scenery Enjoy the little things in life We’ve got six months before we need to be anywhere”
“Yeah, and by the ti,” Ion the forest floor—”
Crack