The Underworld Crown (Series)

Chapter 10

"There has to be some kind of way they can be helped," I repeated for the umpteenth time, sprawled out on my bed. "Even those on Earth who believe in Hell have no idea there are living people here – or that Hell's even habitable."

It had now been four days since I arrived in the Underworld, with every day involving the same ritual; I'd wake up, put on whatever plain outfit Raven had set for me, eat breakfast with Aergia, walk around the castle with Raven, get served lunch, have Raven teach me more about the Underworld, then dine with Aergia for dinner. It was a ritual set in stone.

I was convinced Aergia only forced me to eat with her because she wanted to know what it was about me that interested Hades' so much. Every time she took a sip of her wine or plunged another forkful of meat into her mouth, I could feel her eyes burning into mine.

Yeah, well she needs to get in line, I thought to myself. She wasn't the only one with unanswered questions.

I, on the other hand, found it incredibly difficult to eat. All I could think about was the boy, and countless others, who were being forced to work as slaves in the underground. Whenever Aergia wasn't looking at me during breakfast and dinner, I found myself scrutinising her. Scrutinising her dark features and, as much as I hated to admit it, her immaculate skin. She appeared completely unfazed by anything but the misconduct of her servants. How could Aergia, someone with so much power, want to pass it off to Marnix?

Someone who's renowned for their laziness, my mind scolded.

My nerves were also put on edge as time ticked on. Hades' Guard were only getting closer to reaching us. Aergia was leaving me in the dark about when that day would be. I could tell she was growing impatient about not understanding why Hades could want me. Chillingly, I understood this growing impatience meant the Guard would be here sooner rather than later.

I kept stumbling over my words and fidgeting with my outfits. After dinner every night, when Aergia bid good night, I fell asleep feeling numb and paranoid that someone was always watching me. Even now, I wrung the bed sheets through my hands nervously.

Raven sighed from the other side of the room. She was standing on top of a ladder, cleaning non-existent dust off the dresser. I didn't bother telling her to take a break, since I knew she wouldn't listen to me anyway. Besides, cleaning seemed to be her form of therapy.

She pointed her feather duster at me. "Serena, I think you should try to stop thinking about the boy. There's nothing that we can do about it. No one will dare challenge Marnix, and Aergia isn't exactly open for ideas when it means she can eat her dinner on a gold platter."

"Does the public ever...rebel?" I asked, thinking back to life on Earth. Yes, we definitely rebelled on Earth. But the only similarity between the dictatorship in Hell and the democracy on Earth was that both forms of leadership started with the letter 'd'.

"The public is too scared," Raven replied simply. "And I don't exactly blame them when the Goddess ruling the city can control their will with just a thought. It's a miracle she hasn't done that, actually. I guess using her power must tire her out or something."

"Or she's just too lazy to," I sniped. "Does Aergia ever do anything that's not for herself?"

Raven paused to consider, which was a red flag in itself. "I can't say she has in my lifetime. She even expelled her own children from this castle when they didn't abide by her rules."

My jaw dropped. "Aergia has children?"

Raven chuckled. "Oh, she has children alright. Quite a few of them, too – not that any of them are on good terms.