Styx & Stoned (The Grim Reality Series Book 2) (10 page)

A behemoth of a man stood at the
entrance of the lounge. When he saw Charon, he unhitched the red velvet
barrier, allowing us to pass. Getting used to this kind of treatment would have
been easy. Once inside, a super-model grade hostess showed us to a seating area
near the back, and then disappeared.

“Please, sit.” Charon claimed an
oversized leather chair at the end, forcing the four of us to sit on a curved
sectional, facing him. When we were settled, he crossed his legs and eased his
arm across the back of the chair. “Now, let’s talk about why I’m never going
back to Styx, shall we?”

Charon’s announcement that he’d
never return to the ferry caught me off guard, and from the glances exchanged
between the others, they were just as surprised.

“You can’t mean that,” I said.

His humorless smile wavered between
determined and angry. “I’ve never meant anything more in my life.”

“You’ve seen what’s happening,”
Nate said. He waved his hand in the direction of the casino. “Already the
spirits are spilling back to the physical plane.”

“Fun, isn’t it?” His smile morphed
to extremely satisfied status. “I bet Tabris is having an angelic cow right
about now.” He shrugged. “But, it’s not my problem. I’m retired.”

“Are you?” I asked. “Tabris said
you haven’t officially signed off on that.”

Charon shrugged. “A minor detail.
I’ll get around to it. Really though—” He held up his hands. “What’s the hurry?
It’s not like there’s anybody who can ferry?”

My gaze cut to Mara, and hers to me.
Then she tilted her head and smiled at him. “So, what’s your plan—live at the
casinos and party it up?”

“For a while.” He gave a nonchalant
shrug. “Then I think I’ll travel. Maybe buy one of those RVs and hit the road.
I’ve always wanted to visit Hershey, Pennsylvania. I heard it smells like
chocolate.”

I recognized the glint in his eye.
Bronte, my fifteen-year-old daughter, got that same look when she was trying to
get a rise out of me. He was bluffing, and I was pretty sure he’d pulled
Hershey, Pennsylvania and the RV trip out of his butt. I doubted Charon
harbored any desire to see any historical sites in America. Having three kids
made me an expert on sniffing out shenanigans and lies. Charon put on a good
show, but I knew ulterior motives when I heard them.

“I’ve never been to Pennsylvania,”
I said. “But, I did get to meet someone exciting today.” I pointed at him.
“Your mother.”

“That’s funny.” Charon’s smile
faltered. “I highly doubt you’d meet my mother—and live to tell about it.”

“Hmm, I could have sworn it was
her.” I tapped my chin and narrowed my gaze. “Beautiful, dark, all smoke and
ash with a touch of terrifying?”

“That definitely describes her.”
The strained smile remained fixed, but he straightened, uncrossing his legs and
signaling to the waitress. “So tell me, if you really met dear old Mom, what
did you talk about?”

“Thanatos.” I used Hal’s real name
in case he didn’t know about his brother’s stage name. “Nyx insisted he
transport you back to Styx.”

Three waiters placed a bucket of
ice and champagne, a bowl of strawberries, and a tray of glasses on the center
table. Charon pulled the bottle from the ice and poured himself a glass,
downing it in one gulp. Fixing his eyes on me, he stabbed me with a humorless
smile. “And did my brother agree?” Before I could answer, Charon waved a
dismissive hand. “Of course he did. Whenever my mother snaps her fingers, he
jumps.”

More mommy issues with big dash of
sibling rivalry. The more Charon talked, the more I understood him. Though I
hadn’t puzzled out his motivation for quitting, I did think I’d be able to get
the story out of him with the right kind of persuasion.

“You don’t jump at your mother’s
command?” I asked.

“I was wondering the same thing.”
Mara gave an exaggerated grimace. “I met Nyx, too. She’s seriously
intimidating.”

“You met Nyx?” Cam asked. “Why
didn’t you tell me?”

“I forgot.” The look she gave her
partner screamed ‘
Not the time, Cam’.
She turned back to Charon. “You
were saying?”

“Nyx and I have an…” He hesitated,
flipping the gold coin between his fingers. “Understanding.”

“What kind of understanding?” I
asked as nonchalantly as possible. To hide my interest, I grabbed a glass from
the tray and held it toward Mara, silently asking. She nodded vigorously. “An
understanding like
you do your job, she’ll stay out of your business
understanding?”
I poured a glass and handed it to her, and then handed another glass to Cam.
“Or a,
you’re not speaking to each other
understanding?” I sat back,
giving Nate one of the two glasses I held and turned my attention to Charon.
“If I’m not being too nosy.”

“Let’s just say she owes me a big
favor.” Charon filled his glass and reclined. “So, if you were hoping she’d be
able to order me back to the ferry, you’re going to be disappointed.”

That was exactly what I’d thought
would happen. From the way Nyx had ordered Hal, around and he hadn’t even
peeped in protest, I’d figured she’d put her dark deity mom thing down and
Charon would jump, too. What kind of favor could Nxy possibly owe her son? The
only thing I could think of was Charon taking over running the ferry.

I took a big gulp of champagne and
swallowed. Bubbles rushed up my nose, causing my left eye to squeeze shut
against the burn.

“That’s too bad.” Cam set his glass
on the table and gave Charon a sad, but tolerant, smile. “With the riverbanks
full, spirits are appearing back here, this problem has gotten the attention
from top levels, and they’re not happy.”

Instead of the information
intimidating Charon, the comment seemed to please him. This time his smile was
genuine, and his attitude eased back to indifferent and in control. “Let them
scramble for a solution. They won’t find one. Do you know why?” We shook our
heads in unison. “Because I am the
only
one qualified to ferry the
dead.”

“What about Thanatos?” Mara asked.

“I guarantee that idiot will never
be allowed to set foot in Styx, let alone claim the ferry again.”

My gaze darted to Mara again, and
then back to Charon. He was wrong on two accounts. He wasn’t the only one
qualified to ferry the dead—somehow I’d made the grade. And it was true Hal
wasn’t allowed past the arch, but today he’d stood on the grounds of Styx.
Though we’d been sworn to secrecy about our task of ferrying the dead, my gut
also told me to keep any information, no matter how big or seemingly
insignificant, quiet. There might come a time when letting him know would come
in handy, but for now I wanted to play my cards close to my chest.

“What about your other siblings?”
Cam asked. “Wouldn’t they be able to run the ferry?”

“Ker, possibly, but he’s too
violent. He destroys first and asks questions later. If they haven’t offered
him the job yet, they won’t—wisely so. The guy has issues.” He held up his
fingers, effectively rattling off his slew of brothers’ and sisters’ names, and
the reasons why they couldn’t be the ferryman. “And lastly, Hypnos. He’s such a
bore. Puts everybody to sleep—literally. He’d have the entire ferry in a coma
before it ever arrived. Not only could the souls not get to their appointed
destination, they couldn’t reincarnate.” He fisted his hand. “So you see?
There’s nobody but me.”

I did see, and his reasoning was
solid. But I didn’t think we were beaten yet. My mom radar continued to ping
loudly. I’d bet my new boots that this had nothing to do with him truly wanting
to retire.

“Well, I guess you’re holding all
the cards.” Setting my glass on the table, I looked at Cam, Mara, and Nate. “We
tried.” The three stared at me, and by their identical furrowed brows, were
equally confused about why I’d given up so easily. I turned back to Charon. “So
what’s this I hear about a party?”

“Yes, my party. You’ve got to
come.” He unfolded from the seat and produced a keycard. “Thirty-seventh floor,
leave your morals and inhibitions at the door.”

“I thought the hotel only had thirty-six
floors,” Nate said.

“Does it?” Charon held the card out
to me. “Eight o’clock.”

I took the keycard, not wanting to
miss my chance to work some child or reverse psychology on him. “We’ll be
there.”

“Until then.” He skirted the table.
“Please stay and relax. Order anything you want—on me. I can afford it.”

He laughed at his joke, which
wasn’t really a joke at all, because the guy was loaded. Nor was it all that
funny. As he strode to the exit, Charon hummed and twirled the walking stick he
carried, the silver tip glinting under the low lighting. It was the departure
of a man who believed he had everybody over a barrel. Maybe he did. Maybe I was
naively optimistic that we’d be able to fix this situation.

“That was rather unproductive,”
Mara said.

“If what he says is true, he’s
holding all the cards.” Nate stopped the passing waitress. “Could we get a
couple of menus, please?” When she was gone, he leaned forward, resting his
arms across his thighs. “There’s got to be some way to convince him to go back.”

“I can’t believe they didn’t plan
for this.” Cam gestured toward Mara. “We’ve been around a long time. There’s
always a contingency plan.”

“Always,” Mara said, nodding her
head. “But so far the higher-ups have chosen not to grace us with their
infinite wisdom on the matter.” She drained her glass. “I need more of this.”

“Here’s my two cents, for what it’s
worth.” I smiled and held up a finger. “I think we should go to the party.” I
lifted a second finger. “Butter him up, and try to get on his good side.” Already
this was turning into a long night. “Something tells me we’re not getting the
whole story from him.”

“Is that your reaper intuition at
work?” Mara asked.

“I’ve got three kids. I know bull
crap when I hear it.”

Mara looked at Nate and Cam. “Do
you boys have a better plan?”

Cam shook his head. “I’ve got
nothing.”

“Me, either.” Nate rubbed his hands
over his face and released a growly sigh. “This is so frustrating.”

“We have to keep the faith that
this will all work out.” Mara picked up a menu. “But first I’m going to order a
bunch of expensive food and drinks. I know it won’t put a dent in Charon’s
wallet, but I’ll feel a lot better trying.”

After several rounds of lobster
dip, stuffed mushrooms, and nachos with the works for me, we waddled out of the
lounge and headed to the elevator. We had to wait a few minutes before snagging
the empty elevator we needed, the one with twenty-six through thirty-six on the
gold panel.

“There’s no thirty-seventh floor.”
Nate turned to me. “Where’s the keycard?”

I pulled it out of my back pocket
and handed it to him. When he shoved it in the slot, another lit button
appeared on the panel. All of us bent and stared at it, as if that would make
something happen. I reached out and jabbed the button. The elevator lurched to
life and when it stopped a minute later, the doors opened onto the expansive
foyer.

We stepped out, but none of us
moved forward.

“I’m pretty sure this isn’t one of
the hotel’s luxury suites,” Nate said.

“Or even its penthouse suite,” Mara
added.

I glanced up and gasped. The domed
glass ceiling revealed the night sky, but instead of twinkling stars, spiral
galaxies, distant suns, and billowing clouds of colorful space dust churned and
rotated across the blackness of space. It looked like a picture the Hubble
Spacecraft sent back to earth.

“I don’t think we’re in Kansas
anymore,” I muttered.

A loud trumpeting echoed through
the foyer seconds before a full-sized elephant stomped across the entrance of
the suite. The four of us stood riveted, watching as the animal disappeared
behind a gold column.

“Please tell me you guys just saw
an elephant,” I said. If they hadn’t, I seriously needed psychiatric help and
heavy medication.

“Yep,” Nate said, resting his hand
on my shoulder. “And it was wearing a yellow and black tutu.”

“Okay, good.” I inhaled. “You don’t
think he’s got other wild animals roaming around in there…” I swallowed hard.
“Do you?”

“Let’s hope not.” Mara stepped
behind Cam, gripping his upper arms. “But just in case, you go first.”

“This job keeps getting better and
better,” Nate muttered.

We crept forward, but stopped at
the entrance and poked our heads out. For my part, if this was a designated
elephant crossing, I wanted to stop, look, and listen before charging into the
room. With no pachyderms in sight, we inched forward. 

My mind knew I was in the Venetian
hotel, but my eyes could have sworn we’d been transported to a sultan’s palace.
Gleaming, white marble floors stretched down arched corridors—corridors that
physically couldn’t fit at the top of a hotel. White stone pillars soared
upward, and disappeared into the cosmic ceiling.

“This is a lot bigger than my
room,” I said. “However, I did get a nice bar of soap.”

Mara’s laugh came out as a snort.

“It sounds like the party is this
direction.” Cam pointed toward the arched hall to the left. “I hear music.”

We skirted a peacock that had
wandered into our path, and followed the music. The din increased, the sound of
voices blending with the heavy beat of techno dance music. At the end of the
walkway stretched a massive room. Already dozens of corporeal people and even
more ghosts were there, mixing and mingling, as if the living and the dead
socializing was the most natural thing in the world. A section of the room had
been claimed as a dance floor. Bodies, both solid and translucent, bobbed up
and down to the beat.