Dark Goddess (14 page)

My sheer wrath forced Hera a step back, her eyes wide with surprise.  The other gods in the room shifted awkwardly, a mixture of shock and apprehension staining the atmosphere.  Zeke appeared through one of the hallways, hurrying toward me, his brow deeply furrowed and jaw clenched.

“Hartley.”  He stopped a foot away, his dark blonde hair and tan skin gleaming under the golden lights of Olympus.

His appearance was the exact opposite of Hayden’s shades of black and silver.  Simply picturing his image forced a lump in my throat and a tightness in my chest that made it hard to breathe.  “H-Hayden…”  I took a deep breath and blinked back the fury of tears my eyes wanted to unleash.  I went for a different approach.  “Ixion stole Hayden’s powers.”

A gasp echoed through the room.  “That’s not possible,” Hera said.  “He’s only a demigod.”

I shook my head.  “It is possible.  I’ve seen it.”  The memory of his control over me was still fresh in my mind.  “Hayden’s gone too.”

Hermes stepped forward and put a hand on my shoulder, his cherubic face void of its usual boyish humor.  “What do you mean Hartley?”

My lips quivered.  “Ixion did something with him and won’t tell me where he is.”  I brought my attention back to Zeke.  “That’s what’s been happening to his powers.  It didn’t have anything to do with Hayden being away from the Underworld.  It was Ixion slowly stealing them.”

Zeke took another step forward and reached out to touch my cheek, letting his drop back to his side at the last second.  “I’m so sorry Hartley.  I never thought Ixion was capable of something like this.”

“What does he want exactly?”  Hermes slipped his hand off my shoulder, but remained close.  “Why the Underworld?”

I shrugged, at a loss. 

“I always assumed he’d come after us,” Hera mumbled more to herself than anyone.  “I guess we got lucky.”

My head snapped in her direction, anger coiling in my chest.  “Yeah, you did get lucky.”  My gaze flickered to Zeke.  “You two seem to always get lucky.”

Zeke’s brows met.  “What do you mean?”

“You two get through everything unscathed.”

Hera tilted her head.  “Now Hartley…”

“No,” I hissed.  “It’s true.  Ever since the gods have entered my life you two have been the cause of so much shit and you always walk away clean.”

“That’s not exactly true.”  Zeke was referring to him losing me to Hayden. 

I ignored him and the hurt flashing in his blue eyes.  “Everything falls all over me and Hayden.  We are always the ones that fix your mistakes and take the brunt of consequences from whatever game you’re playing.”  I gripped my chest.  “Hayden and me.  And once again we are in the path of the storm because of something you did.”

“Hartley, we will fix this.  I promise.”  Zeke reached toward me, but I slapped his hand away.

“This is all your fault!”  I shouted and thrust my finger into his chest.  “Hayden is gone because you were jealous and overreacted.”

Hera tried to mask her smirk with a concerned expression.  “This wouldn’t be happening if you hadn’t tossed Ixion into Tartarus.”

“Oh shut up Hera.  You’re as much to blame as Zeke is.”

Her mouth hung open, forming a little ‘O’ of surprise.

“Both of you did this!”  I shoved Zeke away so that he knocked into Hera.  “And now Hayden and I are suffering.  Hayden is gone and I’m all alone because of you.  I’m stuck with Ixion as ruler of the Underworld, my home, and neither of you can fix it!”  My breath was ragged and I could feel the unshed tears burning my eyes.  I gritted my teeth and pointed between them.  “I’ll never forgive you if I can’t get Hayden back.”  My voice cracked with emotion, shattering the dam to release the flood of tears free flowing down my face.

A thick, warm arm smelling faintly of gunpowder wrapped around my shoulders and pulled me back.  “Take us to the Underworld Hermes.”  Reese drew me into his body and surprisingly I let him.  Anything to get away from the two people who continued to ruin my life.  “I’ll try to talk some sense into my son.”

I glanced up, Reese’s face distorted by tears.  “You think it’ll work?”

A ghost of a smile appeared.  “If not I’ll beat some sense into him.  I
am
the god of war and he’s only been the god of the Underworld a few hours.”

I clung to Reese with the hope he was right, that he could get Ixion to release Hayden.  If not I feared my world would be swallowed up by the icy darkness within me.

The moment we crossed the threshold into the cavernous room where Ixion was perched in Hayden’s throne Reese released a battle cry and rushed him. 

I should have known the god of war would skip the talking and get straight to business.   

“Now, give this up,” Reese snarled, delivering a punch to Ixion’s jaw.

Ixion caught the brunt of the hit, but his head snapped back around so fast it surprised Reese.  He sent his father flying into the chaise, shattering it with a loud clatter.

A memory of Hayden and me on that chaise from earlier burned through my mind, forcing agony into my heart. 

Reese scrambled up, clotheslining his son him and bringing him to the marble with a resonated smack.  He pressed a knee against Ixion’s chest, holding him down while he tried to pry Hayden’s onyx ring off his index finger.

Peals of manic laughter spilled from Ixion’s mouth.  “You know it doesn’t work that way,” he said.  “You can’t just pull it off my finger.  You either weaken my powers or I give it to you.”

With a growl Reese released him and sat on his haunches.  “Well, give it to me then.”

A sliver of panic sliced my heart, remembering Reese had wanted the Underworld for himself only a few months ago.  What if he decided to take it?

Hermes must have known where my mind was going because he squeezed my hand and shook his head.  “He won’t.”

Ixion sat up, pushing dark curls from his face.  “Now why would I do that dear ole dad?”  He straightened his green shirt.

“Do it or I’ll beat the shit out of you.”

A knowing smile lit Ixion’s face as he shook his finger.  “Tsk, tsk.  You don’t want to be doing that.”

“Oh really?”

He nodded and snapped his fingers.  A blaze of crimson appeared in the center of the room.  Within that blaze stood a perplexed and disheveled Hayden.

A gasp escaped my mouth and I ran toward him until Ixion caught me and held me in place using Underworld power.  “Hayden!” I yelled, tears raining down my cheeks.  I was so close I could almost touch him.  The urge to reach him was unbearable, my muscles straining unsuccessfully against Ixion’s power.  It was pure and utter torture.  So close and yet not close enough. 

A snarl ripped from Hayden and he tried in vain to escape the flames to get to me, a storm of rage brewing in his gray eyes that would normally be blazing crimson at this point.

Ixion stood and dusted off his clothes.  “I already told you Hartley not to try this crap with me.”

“Why!” I shouted, my voice thick with emotion.  “Why do you want the Underworld? Hayden didn’t do this to you.”

He shrugged.  “Hera needs a king to love.  She needs a man with power and authority, not some lowly demigod.  It was easier to take the Underworld than Mt. Olympus.”  He admired the onyx ring.  “Plus, who knows?  Once I have Hera, maybe we’ll both overthrow Zeus.”

Fuming, I pulled on my own Underworld power to shatter Ixion’s hold, every muscle in my body taut and burning until my head felt close to exploding from pressure. 

“Hartley!  I’ll get back to you!  I will,” Hayden called, noticing my futile attempts.

My body slumped from exhaustion, my heart cracking into a million pieces.

Ixion’s dark eyes met all of ours.  “If
anyone
opposes me I will kill Hades.”

A rush of fear and anxiety hemorrhaged into my bloodstream, forcing tremors through my entire system. 

“You piece of shit,” Hermes muttered while Reese glared, helpless.

Ixion rocked happily on his feet.  “Well, now that all this is settled…”

“Ixion!” Hayden growled.  “If you fucking touch Hartley I will rip you limb from limb.  Nothing you’ve experienced in Tartarus will compare to what I will do to you!”  His nostrils flared like a wild animal on the verge of a vicious attack, his eyes pure anger within the chilling shade of silvery gray.

Even without the Underworld powers or throne Hayden could still be terrifying.  Only Ixion didn’t seem fazed by it.  He smiled joyfully as if winning a game and snapped his fingers, Hayden disappearing along with the fire that held him captive. 

A strangled cry left my mouth at his departure.  Ixion finally released me and I would have fallen if not for Reese’s arms unexpectedly encircling me. 

He waved us on.  “All right.  You can all get out of my castle now.”

“Hartley lives here too.”  Hermes’ face was uncharacteristically flushed with anger as he made his way toward us. 

Ixion’s dark eyes surveyed me.  “Fine.  You can stay Hartley, but only because Hera’s your mother.”

Never did I think I would be thankful to be her daughter. 

I stood straight and tried to pull away from Reese, but my knees trembled, threatening to buckle so I held on.  “Stay out of mine and Hayden’s bedroom.”  My voice was less threatening than I hoped. 

The corners of his lips twitched.  “You’re so cute, like a little kitten.”

I scowled. 

“As you wish princess.”  Ixion bowed dramatically.  He winked and then tapped his chin in thought.  “You know, you do look like Hera.”

My skin crawled at his underlying meaning while foreboding flowed through my veins.  Not only had I lost Hayden, but I now had to live with the manic god who ripped him from me.

I listlessly pushed salad around on my plate, not bothering to even feign eating.  Everything was tasteless anyways.  The fluorescent bulbs in the cafeteria were bright, washing the room in harsh, stark light.  Conversations were unfolding around me, their words only low buzzing to my ears. 

Hayden’s been gone a week.  A whole week.  And everything we tried has been in vain.  Si’s visit to the oracle was useless.  She had no prophecies about this.  Reese and I went to three seers and they all saw the same thing—Hayden lost in darkness and Ixion ruling the Underworld.  I even begged Zeke to pull rank, but he was afraid Ixion would kill Hayden in retaliation.

Of course he was right.  Didn’t make it any less painful.  The one person I hadn’t asked for help was Hera.  She wouldn’t anyways.  She probably didn’t want to piss Ixion off in case he decided to exact revenge on her instead of wanting her love.

That bitch wasn’t capable of love.

“Hartley, did you hear me?” 

I glanced up to see Laurie sitting across the table from me, blinking her green eyes expectantly.

“No.”  I couldn’t even pretend.  The ice inside me was diamond hard and just as sharp without Hayden.  I wasn’t capable of donning that happy, queen bee persona anymore.  I felt lost and cold, the absence of part of my soul so present it hurt.

It was with Hayden, wherever he was.

My dreams were filled with the last memories of him, us making love and falling asleep in his arms.  The heat he brought then was a distant memory, a mere shadow. 

“Hartley, I was talking about a massive after graduation party…”  Laurie’s voice trailed off, her face squishing in worry.  “Are you crying?”  Her gaze traveled to Callie and Jake who were beside me and then to Will who was beside her.

I reached up and felt a single tear running down my cold cheek.  Sometimes I wasn’t sure I was capable of crying anymore and then suddenly tears would spring up without warning.

Callie’s hand found mine.  “Hartley, what’s wrong?  You can’t be this upset over Hayden going out of town.  He’s in Australia, visiting his parents.  He’ll be back.”

“Um… I know,” I whispered.  I couldn’t bear to look at her so I focused on Laurie, but she was chewing so relentlessly on her bottom lip it made me anxious.  I found myself looking at Will whose baby blues were eyeing me with a mixture of concern and suspicion.  “I’m just…”  Damn.  I didn’t even have the strength to come up with a good lie, a lie at all and Will could read it all over my face.

A hand found my knee on the other side and squeezed.  “Let’s get out of here Hartley.”  Reese’s warm breath blew against my ear.  He’d been stuck to my side for the last few days.  I would have complained, but that would have meant I had feeling in my body.  That normally only occurred in the Underworld and then it was mostly sadness and anger.

I broke eye contact with Will and stood.  “I’ll see you guys later.”

Callie latched onto my wrist with her tiny fingers, her blue eyes pleading.  “Hartley, talk to us.”

“I’m fine,” I said flatly.  I’d repeated that phrase more this past week than in my entire life.  Her lips started to tremble and even though I could hardly feel it, I hated myself for making Callie upset.

I sighed.  “I’ll be fine.”  That’s all I could give her.

She nodded and slipped her fingers off.

Reese grabbed my uneaten salad and tossed it on his tray.  He gripped my hand and pulled me away as if my feet wouldn’t work if he didn’t.  Maybe they wouldn’t.

He dumped his tray.

“Where are we going?” I asked.  It was odd putting my trust in someone who once tried to kill me—and yet Reese wasn’t the same manic god who wanted to steal the Underworld.  Right now he was one of the only people I could stand to be around.

Reese wrapped his thick arm around me, pulling me into his body.  “Outside.”  He rubbed my shoulder.  “You’re freezing.”

“I know.”  I pressed my face into his chest as he led me out, his warmth not even enough to penetrate the ice inside me. 

I stalked into the kitchen to get a soda while Reese dumped my books on the vanilla colored breakfast bar.  I would have forgotten them if he hadn’t grabbed them out my last class. 

Footsteps resonated from the basement and the door swung open to reveal my dad, his smile quickly fading as he took in my appearance.  I was wearing ratty jeans and an old hoodie with a sports team on the front.  I thought it was Will’s from middle school or maybe Jake’s.  Honestly, it didn’t matter.  I found it in a drawer this morning and tossed it on over my t-shirt.  It was almost summer in the south, but I couldn’t have been colder.

My dad’s amber eyes flitted over to Reese.  I ignored the worried glances between them and popped the tab on my soda, taking a tasteless sip.

My dad awkwardly cleared his throat and walked into the kitchen, jamming his hands into his jean pockets.  “Are you hungry?  Do you want something to eat?”

I shook my head.

A frown creased his face.  “Hartley, you have to eat.  You can’t starve yourself.”

I rolled my eyes.  I’d be annoyed if I wasn’t so numb from the cold.  “I’m not hungry.”

“Hayden wouldn’t want you to hurt yourself…”  His words trailed off as Reese sucked his teeth.

“Not a good tactic,” he mumbled under his breath.

My gaze narrowed on them.  “Why don’t the two of you see if you can find any more information on Ixion or Hayden’s whereabouts?”

“I don’t think you should be alone.”  My dad crossed his arms against his chest, a stern expression deepening the lines on his face.

“I’ll be fine.”  I grabbed my soda and headed for the stairs.

“What if the Underworld yanks on your chain?” Reese asked.

I slipped my phone from my pocket and wiggled it.  “I got you and Hermes on speed dial.  I’ll be fine.”

In my room I plopped on my bed, laying back to stare at the white matte ceiling.

We’d had it too good over the past few months.  It was bound to come crashing down. I just didn’t think it would be in the form of a psycho demigod stealing Hayden’s powers and imprisoning him.

I swallowed hard as a lump rose in my throat.  Were Hayden and I simply doomed to be ripped apart? 

A coolness drifted through the air, prickling my flesh and forcing a shiver down my spine.  I glanced around my room and found a ghost staring at pictures tapped to the mirror above my dresser.  I’d seen the same delicate strawberry blonde teenager in my room before, admiring my things without ever noticing me.  A blank expression rested on her gossamer appearance. 

That was exactly how I felt—blank, incorporeal, and empty.  Hayden had brought warmth back into my life and it disappeared the moment he was taken.

I leaned up on my elbows.  “Hey.  Can you hear me?”

The girl didn’t break her attention from the sparkling jewelry hanging from the metal tree on my dresser. 

What if she could help me find Hayden or knew where he was?  She was dead.  Didn’t the dead
know
thing?

I waved my hand, trying to get her attention.  “Hey.  Look over here.”  Still nothing.  “You-who…”

Nothing.

“HEY!” I yelled.  “Look at me!”

She didn’t even flinch.

A biting edge of anger was slowly uncoiling through me.  I jumped off my bed and stood less than an inch from her, her icy presence making me shiver.  “HELLO!”  I frantically waved my hands in the air, careful not to actually go through her.  I hated that feeling.

After yelling for another few minutes I gave up and collapsed back on my bed.

“Well that was stupid,” I said out loud. 

A flash of lightning lit my room and Zeke appeared at the foot of my bed, his dark blonde hair disheveled while dark blonde stubble coated his chin.  He wore a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt that brought out his tan.  It was very un-Zeke.  When I first met him he typically stuck to slacks and button down collared shirts.  He also never sported stubble.

“Ugh,” I groaned and rolled over on my side.  “Go away.”

“I heard you yelling.  What’s wrong?”

My brows knit.  “You heard me yelling all the way in Mt. Olympus or were you across the street in Hayden’s house, spying on me?”

His footsteps sounded and I was suddenly faced with a pair of jean clad legs.  “I wasn’t spying.”

I rolled over to face the other side of my room.  “Yeah right.”

“I was just keeping an eye out for you.”  He came around the other side of the bed.

My jaw clenched and I rolled on my back, looking up at the ceiling in an attempt to ignore him.  “Go keep an eye out for someone else Zeke.”

“Who were you yelling at?” he asked, ignoring my cold, prickly attitude.

I glanced up and noticed she was gone.  “A ghost.”

“Hartley, will you please look at me.”  His deep, usually silky voice was strained with desperation.

It wasn’t enough to make me forget Ixion was a psycho angry demigod because
Zeke
threw him in Tartarus.  “No.”

“I’m sorry Hartley.”  The edge of the bed bent under his weight.  “I’m really sorry.  How was I supposed to know this would come back to hurt me after all this time?”

I finally met his sky blue eyes that were darkened by the shadows beneath them.  “That’s just it Zeke,” I snapped.  “This isn’t hurting you.  It’s hurting Hayden and me while you get off scot-free.”

His face hardened.  “That’s where you’re wrong Hartley.  This is affecting me too.  He’s my brother.  Do you think I like the idea of him missing or Ixion ruling the Underworld?” 

I opened my mouth the refute him, but he pressed his index finger against my lips, shushing me.  I shot him a narrowed glare and moved his hand.

“And it hurts me that you’re hurting.”  He gripped his chest.  “I don’t like seeing you upset even if it is about my brother.  I worry about you constantly.”

I swallowed the emotions he was dredging up.  “Worry about Hayden.  Not me.”

Zeke tossed his hands in the air.  “I can’t help it.  And I know you care about me.”

I scoffed.  “Nope.”  The lie tasted sour on my tongue.

He shot me an incredulous look and held his index finger and thumb together, pinching.  “Not even the tiniest bit?”

I shook my head, but the smile twitching his lips told me he suspected the lie.

Hayden

I dodged another punch to my face and rammed the soul with my shoulder, sending him crashing to the desiccated dirt.  Another soul clipped my chin, but I kicked him in the chest and he landed in a crimson flame, screaming in agony as he scrambled out.

My body was bruised and battered, my clothes ripped.  The dark souls continued to pummel me, attempting to break me and force me to my knees.  But I fought back.  It wasn’t in my nature to give in to those lesser than myself.  And they were beneath me.  They were scum on the bottom of my boot after I’d crossed a fetid wasteland.  I’d been reduced to a mere demigod after Ixion stole my powers yet I was still stronger than the darks souls.  And saner.

My last glimpse of Hartley seemed like eons ago.  Ixion had brought my image into my throne room to taunt and threaten her and Reese for compliance.  I hated it.  And I especially hated he used
my
powers to hold her against her will.

A deep growl resonated out my mouth, catching the soul off guard.  My anger wasn’t for him, but I harnessed it anyway, crushing his ribcage and sending him flying across the burning plains.  Even though they were already dead, I could still incapacitate them for a while.  I’d do just that to every single one in Tartarus to get to Hartley.

A male with shaggy blood red hair, a crooked nose as if it had been broken several times, and bottomless dark eyes strolled forward, his slight appearance masking the strength within.  He killed many in his life and used his small, unassuming demeanor to trick his victims.  This particular soul was very familiar to me.  This had been the very one Hercules sicked on Hartley in her house.  He had clawed his way inside her, forcing his foul, rotten essence into her body.

Anger surged through me, churning my blood into fire and darkening my mood.  I wanted to wrap my hands around his scrawny neck until his eyes bulged from their sockets and every blood vessel and capillary popped.

“I see you remember me Hades.”  His voice was dry and raspy like sandpaper against wood.

“How could I forget?  You hurt Hartley.”  We began circling each other, my eyes never leaving his.  “I don’t think you’ve been punished enough.  I don’t think you’ll ever be punished enough for
that
.”

His long tongue snaked out, slowly licking his parched, cracked lips while his lids fluttered, savoring a memory.  “It was well worth it.  Mmm.  She was tasty.  All sweet and sour with a hint of darkness.”

A snarl slithered out my mouth.  “Watch what you say.”

He laughed.  “What are you going to do?  You’re not the god of the Underworld anymore.”  He spread his arms wide.  “You’re the same as us Hades.  You’re stuck here in Tartarus without your powers and without your succulent girl.”