“Only around you,” I snapped. “I never have control issues otherwise. Now tell me, what were saying before you so rudely accosted me?”
He templed his fingers and stared thoughtfully at me around them. “I was asking you what you would be willing to do to save Apollo’s son?”
I returned his gaze unflinchingly. “I would do anything.”
“Anything?” Hades raised one dark eyebrow.
I shuddered at the thought of what “anything” might mean to him. But I answered clearly. “Anything.”
I had visions of becoming an enslaved bride to Hades, of living in the same house with he and his wife. So his next words truly surprised me.
“So you will help me with Brennan, then?”
“Help you do what with Brennan?” I asked. “I will never allow you to harm him.”
“I don’t want to harm him,” Hades answered, impatience showing for the first time. “I just want to restrain him so that he cannot turn himself over to Zeus. If he can’t get to Olympus, he can’t surrender.”
“You’re not taking him to the Underworld,” I snapped as soon as I understood what he was saying. “No way. I don’t trust you enough.”
“And well you shouldn’t,” Hades nodded. “I don’t blame you. I wouldn’t trust me, either. I will restrain him here, with your help. We can keep him in the sacred circle, if you’d like. I would just need your permission to breach the circle. Your mother has enchanted it to keep everyone at bay. But with your permission, we can keep Brennan here. He won’t have the ability to turn himself over to Zeus. He won’t die.”
Those three words were really all that mattered. He won’t die.
Even though I had been running from Hades for eons, even though I didn’t trust him at all, I found myself considering the unthinkable. I was nodding before I’d even thought it through, because Brennan’s life was all that mattered.
“You grant me permission?” Hades asked.
“Yes,” I said quietly. “But you cannot hurt him.” But I looked up and found that Hades was gone. I had no idea if he had heard that last part of my statement or not. Shaking my head, I rushed to find him. I knew right where to begin looking.
All I had to do was find Brennan.
It wasn’t hard.
I made my way to the sacred clearing with inhuman velocity. I could smell them both before I even broke through the ring of trees. As I burst through, I found Brennan and Hades circling each other, each watching the other with wary suspicion.
“I’m fairly sure you are breaking a rule by being in this ring,” Brennan called out. He was crouched low and balanced evenly on the balls of each foot, prepared to spring in either direction. I found myself admiring his skill. He’d never had to fight for his life before- and he thought that was what he was doing now.
“That would be true,” Hades acknowledged from a similar position, “Except that Empusa granted me permission.”
Brennan didn’t break concentration. “I don’t believe you,” he said firmly.
“You should,” Hades answered, a slight smile curving his lips. “She told me that I could be here. She wants me to imprison you.”
I could see the rage building on Brennan’s face and before I could even say a word, he did.
“You lie!” he snarled as he uncoiled and sprung toward the god of the underworld. Hades grinned and leaped and they collided in midair above the altar. Grappling, they fell to the stone beneath them and rolled, each trying to best the other and come out on top. I bit my lip. I wanted to interfere, to protect Brennan from harm, but this is what I had wanted. I had wanted Hades to restrain Brennan. If he didn’t, Brennan would die. He would die because of his own stubbornness and sense of right.
I bit my lip harder as Hades slammed his elbow into Brennan’s face. Blood exploded from Brennan’s nose, splattering Hades’ crisp white shirt. I cried out.
“You cannot harm him!” I snapped. I blurred into motion and stood at their side. They both froze while Brennan stood with his mouth agape.
“It can’t be true,” he murmured, his eyes flooded with confusion. “You wouldn’t…”
“I had no choice,” I answered pleadingly. “You have to believe me Brennan. I don’t trust Hades. I want nothing to do with him. But he’s the only person in this entire universe who has as much reason as I do to keep you from surrendering to Zeus.”
Brennan returned my gaze in alarm. “Because Hades wants the mortal world to end! You can’t help him accomplish that, Empusa. Has your life hardened you so much that you don’t care what happens to anyone else?”
“I care what happens to you,” I answered softly, trying to swallow my pain at the look on Brennan’s face. He was appalled at my lack of humanity. It was the first time I’d seen that look on his face. I didn’t like it. “That’s all that matters.”
“It’s not all that matters,” Brennan answered. He looked away from me to Hades, but Hades had straightened from his defensive crouch and was watching us with interest. He would much rather watch us implode than engage in personal physical violence. He smiled slightly at my thought and shrugged.
“It’s true. I’m a lover, not a fighter.”
I glared at him. “You were doing just fine a moment ago when you broke Brennan’s nose.”
“I didn’t say that I couldn’t fight,” he clarified. “I just prefer not to. You wanted me to do this, Empusa. You cannot blame me for my methods.”
“I want you do this, yes. But I do not want you to harm Brennan. Keep him here in the clearing. I’ll try to finish this game by myself.”
“Oh, yes… the game,” Hades said. “I may have forgotten to mention one small thing. I am here, in part, as a challenge to your little game. But let us finish this small detail first, shall we?”
With his words, he pointed at Brennan and Brennan flew backward onto the stone altar with such force that his head slammed hard against it. He shook his head once, but then closed his eyes and didn’t reopen them. He was limp against the altar.