Chapter 91

Hades

Persephone hadn’t responded to my message about meeting for lunch, and despite Rainer’s assurances, I couldn’t shake the feeling something was wrong.

“Are you listening to me?” Lucifer demanded from behind his desk in the detention area.

“No,” I admitted. “This thing with Persephone is really bothering me. I need to go to Bliss and check on her.”

Lucifer nodded his understanding. “You’re right. It’s the only way you’ll be able to get any work done.”

“Really?” I asked.

“Why do you look so surprised?” Lucifer asked.

“I just expected you to tell me I’ll look crazy if I show up to check on her,” I replied.

“You are crazy,” he told me. “Persephone knows this about you.”

Rainer entered the office without knocking and announced, “You have a visitor, Hades.”

“Persephone?” I asked, immediately standing.

“No,” he replied. “Ares is here. I told him you were busy, but he says it’s urgent.”

“Great,” I muttered. “Just what I need when I’m already stressed out. My nephew has impeccable timing.”

“At least, this will give you someone to take your frustrations out on before you check on your witch,” Lucifer pointed out.

He had a good point.

“Where is he?” I asked Rainer.

“I left him in the interrogation room two doors to the left,” Rainer replied. “I don’t trust that asshole wandering around down here, no matter how nice he dressed for his visit today.”

I quirked an eyebrow in question.

Rainer laughed and shook his head. “You’ve gotta see this for yourself.”

I nodded and made my way to the interrogation room where I found Ares standing with his back to the door.

“Careless,” I accused. “What if I’d come in here armed?”

Ares turned toward me. “You know how much I want that fight, so you won’t just give it to me. You’ll make me work for it.”

“Why are you here?” I demanded, leaning against the wall with my arms crossed in front of my chest. Rainer was right about Ares’s appearance. He looked more like a businessman than a god of war.

“I saw Persephone,” was all he said. His eyes remained on me as he waited for my reaction.

“Are you threatening her again?” I growled.

Ares’s eyes glowed. He wanted the fight, craved it like a drug. I saw his struggle to rein in that desire. His restraint shocked me.

He ended our staring contest first and looked up at the ceiling. “I want to tell you yes so you’ll attack. It’s been so long since I’ve had a good fight.”

“Then why are you holding back?” I asked.

He met my gaze. “Something is wrong with her.”

I frowned when he voiced my concerns. “What do you mean?”

“She seemed off,” he replied after a pause.

“You don’t know her,” I argued. “How would you know if something is off with her?”

“From the time I’ve spent with her, I know she’s kind and tries hard to avoid offending others,” he explained. “She was rude and irritable.”

“Everyone has a bad day,” I pointed out.

“Did you have a fight?” he asked.

“No,” I replied. “Not that it’s any of your business.”

“She seemed angry with you,” he explained. “That anger seemed to confuse her. Maybe the anger was caused by her confusion. I don’t know exactly what’s going on, but I think a spell was used on her.”

My wings tore through the back of my shirt as anger pulsed through my veins. “Who the fuck would dare to put a spell on her?” Not only was I angry with the person who’d messed with Persephone, but I was also angry with myself. I should have insisted on completing the bonding between us. I could have protected her. If our magic was bound, I would have felt the effects of the spell immediately.

“I’m not completely sure, but I’d be shocked if it’s not someone from Olympus,” he replied.

“Like you?” I asked.

“Why would I warn you if I was the one who spelled her?” he asked.

“Because you’re an asshole who likes to play games,” was my reply. No matter how convincing Ares sounded, he was still on my list of suspects. He could be telling me about the spell to throw me off his trail or to fuck with someone else he was pissed at. He could also be trying to start a fight with Azrael and hoping I’d let the angel know what was going on with Persephone.

“I’m on your side this time,” he ground out.

“Since when, nephew?” I asked with a bitter laugh. “No one from Olympus has ever been on my side, and despite what you seem to think, I’m not pining for your approval and acceptance.”

Ares let out a sigh and nodded. “I understand why you don’t trust me. What I’m telling you is still the truth. I’ve been doing a lot of work with spells. It’s how I ran into Persephone. I had an appointment with an attorney in Oakland. Since I’ve been focusing so much on fallen angel spells, I was able to pick up on the clues. At first, I thought it might be one of Eros’s lead-tipped arrows, but that would make her indifferent. I suppose it may have been used in a spell, but I don’t know for sure. If I was placing bets, I’d say Aphrodite was involved since the spell involves love.”

“I doubt Aphrodite has the sense to cast a spell these days,” I argued. “Besides, why would she want to? I haven’t pissed her off in centuries, and the bitch doesn’t even remember cursing me.”

“You’ve been away from the others for too long,” he replied. “No one needs an excuse to fuck with someone else. We’re all assholes who fuck with people when we’re bored. It’s always been that way. As for Aphrodite, it takes nothing to piss her off. She’ll smile to your face while having one of her sons plunge a knife into your back. You can’t trust what you see. Not everyone is as crazy as they’d like others to believe. I’m not the only one hiding behind a mask of insanity.”

I said nothing as I mulled over what he’d said. Since Ares had admitted to being knowledgeable about spells, he could be responsible for whatever was going on with Persephone.

“If I find out you’re involved in any of this, I’ll make you wish you were dead,” I warned.

The madness in Ares peeked out, and he regarded me with a deranged hunger. He quickly reined in the insanity. “It’s not me this time,” he replied. “I’ll let you know if I find out who’s involved. In the meantime, I suggest you get someone to your witch. I don’t know why someone is trying to turn her against you, but I’m certain there’s more to it than meets the eye.”

I nodded. When I unlocked the door to the interrogation room, Ares stepped out and walked toward the portal, looking like he didn’t have a care in the world.

“What did he want?” Lucifer asked as he approached with Rainer by his side.

“To tell me that someone used a spell on Persephone,” I replied in a distracted tone. “He insists he’s not involved and simply trying to warn me so I can help Persephone.”

“Do you believe him?” Lucifer asked.

“I don’t know,” I admitted. “He’s a good suspect in some ways, but this isn’t his style. I could see Ares wanted to take credit for this to fight me, but he didn’t.”

“Ares recently threatened Persephone,” Rainer reminded me.

I nodded. “I know, but it still doesn’t seem like his style.” I filled them in on my conversation with Ares and his suspicions.

“I wouldn’t put this past Aphrodite,” Lucifer remarked.

Lucifer’s own hatred for Aphrodite was likely clouding his judgment.

“What’s her motivation?” I asked.

“Nothing that I can think of,” Lucifer admitted.

If Aphrodite had cared about power, she would have stuck around after Lucy’s birth. Lucifer would have given her the power of a queen.

“We can try to figure out who’s responsible later. For now, I need to get to Persephone.”

Lucifer shook his head.

“She’s in trouble,” I reminded him.

“Not likely,” Rainer argued. “That doesn’t mean I don’t think we should send someone to watch her, but I think the goal is to hurt you. Whatever spell they’ve used on Persephone is causing her to distance herself from you, or so it would seem. Since you haven’t actually talked to her, it’s possible that’s not the case. Ares might be lying.”

“There’s only one way to find out,” I reminded him. “I’ll go to her. Then I can keep her safe.”

“I’m going to send Rainer,” Lucifer told me. When I started to argue, he held up a hand to stop me. “If the spell is affecting her perception of you, she may be resistant to you helping her. We’ve managed to avoid an abduction up to this point, and I’d like to keep it that way.”

I wanted to argue with him. The idea of letting someone else help the woman I loved didn’t sit well with me.

“So, you expect me to do nothing?” I demanded.

“I think we should make a trip to Olympus,” Lucifer replied. “We need to find a way to break the spell on Persephone, and the only way to do that is to find the person who cast it.”

He was right.

“When I find the person who did this to Persephone, I’ll make them wish they were dead,” I growled.