Chapter 47

Persephone

I was more than a little disappointed when the council members at the front of the room didn’t even acknowledge us as we walked into the room. We had a shirtless fallen angel—a former Greek god—with us, and they didn’t even bat an eye. Even if they’d expected Hades at the meeting, they could have at least looked shocked at his attire. The witches in the audience were definitely paying attention to us.

We took our seats, clearing out an entire row in the process. It seemed no one wanted to sit close to Hades. My lips twitched at their reaction, but my amusement quickly faded as the meeting began. It was so incredibly boring!

“The new robes are not the traditional color,” the warlock at the front of the room said with an exasperated sigh. He’d been complaining about the new batch of robes his family had received from the council’s approved provider for the last thirty minutes.

“They look the same to me,” another warlock said in a bored tone.

“I think they’re pinker than the older robes,” a witch argued.

“Who fucking cares?” Hades grumbled. “The robes are orange.”

“There are several shades of orange in the hierarchy,” I explained. “None quite that pink. I suppose he’s afraid they’ll be mistaken for another level.” Even understanding his reasoning, I didn’t see how this needed to be brought before the council, but the color comparison still continued for another thirty minutes.

“New robes will be made,” the warlock running the meeting announced. When the robemaker looked like he was going to argue, the warlock in charge glared at him. “I’m tired of looking at orange robes. It’s not the same color. Fix it or we’ll find someone else to handle this contract.”

“Of course,” the robemaker assured him with a strained smile. “We always want our customers to be happy.”

“If that was the case, they wouldn’t have spent nearly an hour arguing about the color of the damn robes,” Hades muttered. “This must be how witches torture people.”

“And on to the matter of Persephone Mortem,” the warlock in charge announced, “Would you come up here, please?”

I made my way to the front with Hades by my side.

The warlock had long black hair and eyes that reminded me of Lucifer’s whiskey. He looked young, but it was hard to guess age with witches. When I made it to the front, he smiled. “I’m Zen Rathmore, and I have the displeasure of running this meeting tonight. You look like you don’t recognize any of us.”

“I know Evie,” I told him, giving Evie a quick smile before my attention returned to Zen. Evie looked uneasy, likely due to Rainer’s presence.

I’d heard of Zen Rathmore. He and his twin sister, Bryn, were well known among the witch community. Their father was a powerful warlock, and their mother was a werewolf.

“Did anyone tell you why you’re here?” he asked.

I shook my head. “I just got the annoying summons.”

Zen laughed at my response. “They are annoying. I hate it when I get summoned. It’s like being called to the office for doing something wrong. Fucking annoying.”

“Zen,” the witch beside him hissed.

“Sorry, Norlina.” His apology lacked sincerity. Returning his attention to me, he continued. “I don’t usually get asked to fill in for my father. Thank goddess for that. When I’m here, I tend to piss everyone off.”

“Why did the council demand Persephone attend this meeting?” Hades asked. “Was it simply to see an inane discussion on orange robes?”

Zen grinned. “I’d tell you they’d never do that, but I’m sure that’s why I’m here tonight. This is punishment for something, possibly turning into a wolf in a restricted area. Who knows how it happened?”

I definitely wanted to hear that story later, but for now, I wanted to know why I was at the meeting and get out of the building as quickly as possible.

“You’re here because someone sent a message to the council notifying them that you have angel blood,” Zen explained. “Failing to disclose that on your witch licensing paperwork was a violation of licensing regulations. Is there any truth to this? Are you at least part angel?”

“Yes, but I didn’t know about my angelic heritage when I filled out my application,” I insisted.

“When did you find out?” Evie asked. “I already told them you didn’t know the last time we spoke.”

“In the last week,” I replied. “I didn’t even think to notify the council. There’s been a lot going on, and it was a shock finding out that Azrael is my great-grandfather.”

There were gasps throughout the room. Apparently, they hadn’t heard which angel I was related to.

“The angel of death is your great-grandfather?” Evie asked, continuing when I nodded. “Like everyone else, I spent a lot of time speculating about who you could be related to. Azrael never even entered my mind. This is really surprising.”

“It came as a shock to all of us,” I admitted, deciding to skip mentioning how my mom had already known.

Zen regarded me for a moment before speaking again. “You are a very interesting witch, Persephone.”

“She’s mine,” Hades growled.

When I turned to look at him, his eyes were glowing red. I placed a hand on his chest. “He’s not flirting with me.” My voice was calm and soothing.

Zen could have made matters easier by confirming what I’d said. Instead, he said, “You haven’t claimed her. There’s no bond of any sort.” He inhaled deeply before meeting Hades’s eyes. “She’s not yours yet.”

“I’ve had enough of werewolves doing that today,” I told Zen. “You’re supposed to be wearing your warlock hat tonight, not your werewolf hat.”

“She’s right,” Norlina told him. “We have a lot of business to attend to tonight. Can we please move this along? If you want to pick a fight with Hades, you can do it another time.”

“Another time,” Hades agreed quietly.

Zen looked delighted by the prospect. “Yes, we can do this another time. Have you noticed any traits that could have tipped you off to your mixed heritage? Was there a reason to believe you might be part angel?”

I shook my head. “I still don’t think I have any angel traits, but I’ve spent a lot of time away from the preternatural community, so I’m not always good at recognizing these things.”

“Can you think of anything unusual about your magic?” Evie asked.

“Nothing is strange with my magic, but I was never able to bond with a familiar,” I replied. “I’m not sure if that has anything to do with my mixed heritage.”

Zen looked to the other council members to see if they had any ideas.

“It could be,” Norlina replied. “Those with mixed blood usually have no problem bonding with a familiar, but angel blood is stronger. I don’t know of any other witches with angel blood, so I can’t tell you if they would be able to bond with familiars or not.”

“My mom wasn’t able to either,” I told them.

“That’s probably it then,” Zen concluded. “Still, I’m not sure that would have been enough for you to guess you’re anything other than a witch. There’s not enough information to make that call.”

“Did you seriously make me come here to ask if I knew about this when I filled out my application?” I asked. “Why not call me?”

Evie looked angry when she replied. “If you’d lied on your application, they might have tried to detain you.”

“They would not have detained her,” Hades said with quiet authority. When I looked behind me, I found his eyes glowing red again. If we didn’t get out of the room soon, he was going to be a problem.

Zen grinned. “Hades looks pissed.”

“Try to control your wolf side,” Norlina scolded softly.

Zen’s smile slipped. “Why the hell would I want to do that? I’m not ashamed of my werewolf side.”

My attention returned to Hades. The red was leaving his eyes. Rainer had moved forward and had his hand on Hades’s shoulder, possibly to stop Hades if he decided to attack anyone.

“Are all council meetings filled with this much drama?” Hades asked.

I shook my head. “Not from what I can tell. Most are just as exciting as the orange robe discussion.”

“Zen always brings some excitement when he attends in his father’s place,” Evie explained. She sounded nervous and was doing her best to look anywhere but at Rainer.

“My sister, Bryn, is more fun,” Zen added.

“Can we cease with the side chatter?” Norlina asked. “As entertaining as this is for the crowd, we have several other matters on the agenda, and many of us would like to get home before dawn.”

“Is there anything else you need from Persephone?” Rainer asked.

“That’s all we needed,” Zen replied.

“Not so fast,” Norlina interrupted. “Persephone, you are under the protection of this council, angel blood or not. What is the nature of your relationship with Hades?”

“That is a very personal question.” I wasn’t sure how to explain my relationship with Hades. It was complex, and we were still working out the details. I also wasn’t about to tell the council I loved Hades before I told him.

“The council has every right to demand an answer to that question,” Norlina argued. “Your blood has been diluted enough without adding fallen angel blood into the mix.”

When I looked at Hades, his lips were twitching. I was surprised he seemed so amused by Norlina’s ignorance. Zen and Evie both looked angry. The others at the front of the room were either nodding their agreement or watching with wide eyes as they awaited Hades’s reaction.

Turning my attention back to Norlina, I reminded myself of the importance of diplomacy when dealing with the council. I also reminded myself that I didn’t need to stoop to her level. There was no reason to react to her horrible words. In the end, I decided against diplomacy. “You are an ignorant bitch.”

There were several gasps around the room before Norlina sputtered out a reply. “You can’t talk to me that way.”

“I just did,” was my response. “I don’t like using unpleasant words, but you are a very unpleasant witch. When I first moved to this area, I was excited about being a part of your council. I thought it would be like having another family who cared about my well-being, but you only care about image.”

“We are looking out for your best interests,” a warlock argued.

I shook my head. “That’s a lie. If you were looking out for my best interests, you would be asking if I want to stay in the demon realm with Hades or if I’m being forced to stay there. You would ask if I’m happy. If you cared about me, you would ask if I love Hades. None of that matters to you. You’d rather see me miserable with a warlock I don’t love than risk diluting my witch blood.”

“We’re not all like that,” Zen said quietly. “There are many witches who truly do care that you are happy and safe. Try not to judge everyone by Norlina’s words.”

“I’m not,” I assured him. “Unlike her, I’m not filled with hate.”

Zen nodded before saying, “For the record. I didn’t ask if you love Hades because I already know the answer.”

“What difference does it make?” Norlina asked with a huff.

I really didn’t like that witch.