Tempting the Fates

Chapter 37

That night, I fell asleep in his arms. I knew he didn't sleep, but I just wanted to hold him as long as possible. If I could stay close to him, it felt like maybe our problems would wait for us. After we'd gotten word from Hermes that my dad was hidden away at one of Hades' safe houses, the exhaustion that replaced my worry was quick and quiet.

It was the first time in a while that the monsters in my dreams were kept at bay. I dreamt only of the blue skies and the rainbow of colors I'd seen on the island. It was bliss for my weary mind.

I awoke sometime around four o'clock to Hades slipping out of the bed he had conjured for us earlier. He was wearing only some black pajama pants, which hung low on his hips. His favorite chair had returned, tucked in a far corner of the room as not to disturb me. He flopped down into it, running a hand through his messy hair. He laced his fingers together and rested his forehead down on them. He looked worried.

My heart ached for him. I was just starting to learn all the dangers and responsibility that went along with ruling a kingdom, but my sweet husband had been dealing with them for millennia. And now he wasn't just protecting his lands, he was trying to protect the entire universe. I couldn't imagine the weight he felt on his shoulders.

I watched him in silence for a few minutes as he sat there, unmoving. I was sure he was lost in thought, drowning in what ifs and concern.

I didn't want to leave the warmth of the bed, where it felt like my responsibilities couldn't find me. I wished I could just go back to sleep and wake up when it was all over, but it was up to the two of us to fix everything, and he needed me.

I sat up, conjuring a black nightgown onto my naked body. I moved silent as air over to him and ran a hand through his hair to comfort him. He looked up, the tension on his face melting away.

"What are you thinking about?" I asked, taking a seat on the armrest beside him.

"A lot of things." He sighed, resting a weary hand on my thigh. "But there's something important we need to discuss. Callie, I need you to promise me this: if my life is taken, if I'm trapped, if my life is threatened... do what you have to do to keep the balance. I mean it. Do anything you have to. Even if it kills me."

I gripped his forearm in shock. "Hades, you can't-"

"Promise me." His voice was firm.

I wanted to say no and refuse to discuss it further. But I knew that if Hades was bringing it up, he was really worried about it. So I nodded. "I don't like it. But if you're serious about this... I promise."

"Thank you." He sighed, visibly relieved. "I hope it never comes to that. But for now, we need to think about what our next move needs to be."

We needed someone strong on our side. "Well... Zeus was kind of a bust. Maybe we can talk to Poseidon?"

"I'm not sure he will see us, but... we have to try." He nodded.

"When can we go?"

"Let me go talk to Than. He kept an eye on everything yesterday when we were gone, and he might be fine to do it again." He stood, planted a deep kiss on my lips, and vanished. Sometimes his heart was so big and he acted so human that I forgot how powerful he was.

After our eventful evening, my powers were quiet inside me. Even though the relief from the constant jitters was welcomed, I was worried it wouldn't return. The more I pushed my limits, the more draining and addicting it became. It would be easy to use my power for anything I desired, but I remembered that awful feeling and what it had done to me once upon a time.

I hadn't mentioned it to Hades, or even thought about it in days.

That short period of time where I'd gone power crazy.

Before I ever knew that myth was truth or who my mother was, I was just a high school kid. My senior year had just begun, and my popularity was rising faster than I could comprehend. Teenage politics, I'd always attributed it to. If you were pretty, you were popular. And I'd certainly come into my own the summer before.

But with that popularity came an incredible gift. With a single look, guys would be begging me to love them. If I snapped my fingers, someone was there in a moment to ask what I needed. Many wanted me, and just as many wanted to be me. I was the Queen Bitch, and no one dared get in my way.

But something inside me felt wrong. I was feeding off the power, feeling like I needed it to survive. The desire, the physical intimacy fueled me. I crushed hearts and made people do terrible things. What I had assumed then was just the hormonal trials and tribulations of high school at last seemed to me like the first bits of power I ever had. Inherited from Mom, of course. It had taken Dad's threats to kick me out to pull me from that nightmare.

Instead of shuttering myself back to my room, I decided to walk all the way back. It took a few minutes, but I gave myself a mental pat on the back. I needed to retain my humanity, even if I was going to be a powerful demigoddess. 

When I opened the door to my room, I stopped in my tracks at the sight before me.

Thalia was standing in the open window, looking down at the solid earth below. Her brown eyes were clouded and totally void of emotion, and her face was expressionless. She looked a bit like a zombie, mindless and stoic. She raised a single leg from under her gray cotton gown and began to lean forward.

She was going to jump.

"No!" I screamed, lurching forward. I ran as fast as I could, praying that I could reach her in time.