The Curse of Betrayal (42 page)

“I’ve been waiting forever. And guess what, Eury…” He touches my chin. I shudder from the loving touch as a bout of lighting strikes nearby. I tear my gaze from Ari as the sky darkens faster than I’ve ever seen. His voice pulls me back to him. “I still will, because the day this is all over is the day I can finally relax. I can finally have
my
happy ending. So keep looking,” he dares me.
 

“I will,” I whisper, his closeness to me rendering me speechless. I don’t want to break our stare; it’s too intense, too heated. I can’t move; I can hardly breathe. Even the thunder doesn’t break us.
 

“You know what? Screw this. I didn’t do anything wrong.” He reaches forward, grabbing my shoulders. He clings on to me hard and pulls me in towards him so only a pocket of air separates us. He looks down at me. His eyes are passion-filled and deep with a predatory glare. I don’t know whether he’s going to attack me or make out with me. But I stand before him, ready to take whatever he’ll give.
 

He bends down to me and locks his lips onto mine. He pushes against me. My back presses against the tree trunk, the bark piercing my shoulder. But the pain is nothing compared to the overwhelming love that pours out of Ari—and me. His hands rise up into my hair and tug at me with speed. I melt into his kiss, knowing it will be the last one we ever share.

And I know I have to stop it.
 

I should stop it.

I can’t kiss him.

I need to stop.

My brain convinces me to stop, while my heart urges me to go further. I pull back, gasping for air. I open my eyes, which are distracted by my love, but it’s not that, it can’t be. It’s just lust. My face is wet and I’m not sure if it’s from the rain that’s beginning to fall in heavy drops or my tears.
 

I pull my arm back and slap Ari across the face. An echoing smack vibrates through the air between us like the thunder that continues to rumble through the sky. My hand stings. He looks down at me in question, but I can’t. I can’t look at him again. My resolve will die.
 

So I turn and walk back towards the funeral.

And in my place near the coffin is Ollie.
 

My white knight.
 

My soul mate.
 

Epilogue

It’s weird being back here. I don’t even know how to react. When I heard the news that DGA was reopening, I didn’t know what to think.

After all the causalities, I thought it would just shut down and turn into some decrepit haunted place that teenagers would visit on All Hallow’s Eve.

But I got the call two days ago—April 13
^th
. The person said that I was requested back for the remainder of the semester, so today’s the day I move back in. My dad convinced me that I needed to move on with my life. Since I found out that he knows about powers, we’ve been able to connect on a level I never knew possible.

He’s been amazing. He’s so much smarter than I ever gave him credit for, and for that, I regret it. He knows me more than I know myself. In the month I’ve had off, I’ve been unhinging. My mother is still missing and my life has fallen to shambles.

But my dad made me promise him that I wouldn’t go into anything alone. “If I ever lost you, I would die, Eurydice. Promise if you ever go on a suicide mission, at least bring me along. I’ll always be here for you,” he told me.
 

So I’ve been reconnecting with my father, learning about my mother, and researching my curse. I’m done sitting around, waiting for someone else to do my work.
 

This is
my
curse, and it’s
my
job to finish it. And I will finish it.

My dad pulls the car up to the main building; Junior’s in the back and some of my stuff is in the truck. An odd sense of de ja vu washes over me to when this whole thing started just a few short months ago. It’s weird, but I was so happy then. I was starting a new chapter of my life, and now look at me. Look what my new life has done.

It’s caused irrevocable damage. People have died because of me. I’ve been hurt because of the curse. My mother is still lost in Hell because of Hades and Ari. And I’ve made no progress in my plans.

I’m told to meet in Professor Onassis’ office first before checking into my dorm, so I instruct my dad to pull up to the administration building. He parks the car on the stone pathway and kills the ignition.

“You guys can wait if you want,” I tell them as I open the car door. But before I even finish the sentence my dad jumps out, and I hear Junior’s door slam shut behind me.

“I want to meet the famous, Professor Onassis,” Dad laughs to himself. I nod because I’m not going to force them to sit in the car. It’s like old times as I walk up the stairs to her office.

But at the same time, it’s not. Junior and I have had a rough time reconnecting. His relationship with Kara has jumped to romance, so to say his mind is one tracked would be an understatement. Kara was my best friend, and now I barely know her or what’s going on in her life.

Junior’s been focusing on Kara so much lately that I’ve fallen to the back burner. He’s been traveling to Virginia almost every weekend to see her at home, and although that’s awesome for them, it sucks for me. Thus, why it’s just been me and my dad planning an attack.

And sometimes Ollie. But he’s been trying to find my mother. His father, Apollo, has been needing Ollie pretty often, and Ollie’s been tightlipped about it.

I suspect something strange is going on between them, because Ollie never talks about his family. But I’m not going to push him to talk to me when he’s my only true friend—other than my dad, but I don’t think that counts.

The secretary isn’t at the desk, and oddly, I’m thankful for that. She really used to push my buttons, and I know that she hated me even though I never did a thing to her. I knock on Professor Onassis’ door, and before I can even get a second knock, the door swings open to a nearly full room of familiar faces.

“What’s going on?” I ask and immediately put up my defenses. I take a step backwards to flee from the room, but my dad places his large hand on my back and holds me in place, refusing to let me leave.

“Ryder, please come sit. This is important, and I’ve invited all of your friends and family so we can all be open and up front with each other,” Professor Onassis says. She’s using her therapist voice that’s reassuring, but the gravity of the people in here is scary. I don’t think anything would calm my nerves right now.
 

Before I move, I look from face to face, trying to gauge what people are thinking. Mikey and Shane are sitting together in the corner. Shane’s eyes are red-rimmed, but he smiles over at me. Mikey winks and smiles too, waving.

I look at Lisa, who’s standing in front of the boy’s, hand-in-hand with Carter. She nods at me, as if giving me reassurance and comfort.
 

I don’t know what I did to deserve these people’s presence, but it touches me. It almost brings my emotions back, but I shove them down when my dad takes my hand.

Junior takes my other hand and laces his fingers with mine. I stand between them as they walk me to the front of the room, past Kara and Ollie, and have me sit in Professor Onassis’ usual chair behind the desk. It feels weird being in the front of the room, all eyes on me.

My hands tremble on my lap as they start to sweat. I try to calm my nerves, but it’s nearly impossible with so many eyes on me. I try to swallow, but the lump is too big to pass. So I shut my mouth and start breathing through my nose.

“So, why am I here?” I say quickly before I lose whatever is in my stomach.

“We need to discuss the problem at hand,” Professor Onassis says.

“Which is?” I really have no idea what they’re talking about.
 

“Your mother is still stuck in the Underworld, and I’ve discovered why. I know the whole situation, and you have to fix this,” Professor Onassis tells me.

“Why me?” I ask her, hating how I’m always this
special
one.

“Because of your own curse.” My dad fills in the blank. I still can’t believe that he knew about this intervention-like meeting.

“What are you talking about?” I direct my question at Professor Onassis since it seems like this whole scheme is her idea.

“Your curse and Hades’ curse go hand-in-hand. To finish one, you must finish the other. He needs you to choose to enact his plan.”
 

“What’s his plan?”
 

“To gain entrance to earth. He’s already fulfilled his end; he’s just waiting on you,” Kara says sullenly, making my eyes turn towards her. I think it’s pretty clear they all know what’s going on. Like usual, I feel like I’m in the dark, the dummy in the room.

“So what am I supposed to do?” I ask them, knowing I will do whatever it takes to end the curse. I would do whatever it takes to free my mom, avenge Megan, and make sure nobody else gets hurt.
 

“Kill me, right? She made her choice.” Ari stumbles in from the doorway. He looks me dead in the eyes with a vacant expression. His eyes are bloodshot and puffy. All eyes turn to Ari and hold onto his disheveled state in shock.
 

He looks like he hasn’t showered in days. His hair lays stringy down the front of his face. His eyes are so red it makes the green look neon against the red contrast. He’s wearing faded jeans with smudges down the front like he wiped his hands on them after playing in dirt. A loose tee shirt is baggy around his waist, making him look too skinny.
 

“So kill me.” He throws his hands up to his sides in defeat. He shuts his eyes and waits for me to make a move. He just stands there, like he’s prepared to die right this very second. I stare at him, not sure what to do.
 

“It can’t be done here, anyway, so stop making a spectacle, Aristeus. It needs to be done at Hades’ altar in the Underworld. Only then, when the blood has been spilled with the blood of the Originals, will Hades’ curse release.”

“Blood of the Originals?” Kara asks Professor Onassis.

“The reason Ryder’s mother, along with the other twelve, have been kidnapped. Hades needs each of their blood to void his curse,” Professor Onassis explains.

“So what are we supposed to do?”
 

“Either create an army to take down Hades and use the Original’s blood to void your own curse with your soul mates blood, or travel into the Underworld with whoever isn’t your soulmate and kill him on the altar. It’s the only way your curse gets voided along with his.”

The end…for now!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read The Curse of Betrayal! If you have a spare moment, please rate, review or share this book. If you have any questions, comments or concerns, feel free to email the author at [email protected]

For more information on The Curse Books or author, Taylor Lavati, check out her website,
www.taylorlavati.com
. The next in the series will be out THIS SUMMER, so be sure to visit Taylor’s blog for updates and teasers.

Special thanks again to Laura Gordon, who designed the cover, and Danielle Rose from Prose and Cons Editing for her amazing editing skills.
 

Playlist

Trying Not To Love You- Nickelback

The Story of Us- Taylor Swift

Going Through Changes- Army of Me

Wherever You Go- Ron Pope

Stronger- Kelly Clarkson

TroubleMaker- Olly Murs

Show Me What I’m Looking For- Carolina Liar

Grenade- Bruno Mars

I Hate That I Love You- Neyo feat Rihanna

Say Something- A Great Big World

A Little Bit Stronger- Sara Evans

Wounded Heart- Jude Johnstone

Your Guardian Angel- Red Jumpsuit Apparatus

Safe and Sound- Taylor Swift

Break Even- the script

Broken- Seether

Fighter- Christina Aguilera

Freewill- Rush

(Note: None of these artists have given permissions to the author.)