He gazed down at me, his dark eyes reflecting the fire of the river, his jaw clenched with pain.
“You care, then?” he asked softly. “If I live or die?”
“Of course I care!” I replied angrily. “How could you even ask that? I’m angry with you, but I’ll never stop loving you.”
He reached up with a bloody hand and stroked the side of my cheek. As he moved, the rusty scent of blood filled my nose and my cheek was sticky where he had touched. My heart raced. I couldn’t let him die.
“Zeus,” I breathed. “We must find Zeus- he can heal Cadmus.”
“We must also find our daughter before Hades does,” Cadmus replied huskily. “I’m sure he will want to use her against us now, Harmonia. He must surely know that we are gone by now.”
Realization settled upon me like a wet blanket. They were probably pursuing us even as we spoke.
“Yes,” I agreed quickly. “I’m sure they are on their way. What do you suggest we do, Ares?”
My father pondered that, his forehead wrinkled as he kept his hands pressed to Cadmus’ wound.
“We should continue our course,” he finally said. “And let us begin with Tartara since we are already here.”
“But what about Zeus?” I demanded. “We must find him to save Cadmus.”
Ares shifted his gaze to me and his dark eyes were calm.
“Harmonia, we don’t know where to begin. We are already here, so this is where we should start. And there is one thing that you are forgetting. Zeus’ sword. It can take away life, but it can also give it back.”
I stared into his serious face. He thought Cadmus was going to die before we could even reach Zeus. I put a hand to my chest and took a deep breath.
Ares continued quietly. “We’re as mortals right now, daughter. No mortal could survive that. He’s losing too much blood.”
I looked at my husband. Ortrera and Aphrodite had helped him to the ground and his eyes were closed. His bronzed skin was turning pale already from loss of blood.
I dropped to my knees next to him, clasping his hand.
“Cadmus,” I murmured. “Open your eyes.”
His chocolate eyes fluttered open, framed in a fringe of long lashes. By the gods, he was beautiful, even now. I brushed his hair out of his eyes and he leaned into my hand.
“Don’t die,” I instructed. “Stay awake, Cadmus. We’ll find Zeus. He’ll save you, but you must fight until we find him. Do you hear me?”
“Do you forgive me?” he whispered. “Can you forgive me for keeping the truth from you so long ago? If I could take it back and re-do it I would, I promise you.” He coughed and I saw blood on the corner of his mouth. I swallowed hard as I wiped it away. “I can’t die thinking that you can’t forgive me, Harmonia.”
“You can’t die at all!” I cried. “Cadmus, please. I’m sorry. I know you didn’t mean to hurt me. I forgive you- I do. But you cannot die.”
He nodded weakly. “I’ll try not to.” He closed his eyes again and rested his head against my lap.
“It’s alright, my sweet,” I whispered, leaning down to kiss his forehead. “Rest now.”
“We need to move,” Ares said as he stared down at me.
“I know,” I answered. “Why does this keep happening, Ares? Why? I’ve lost him in every life that I ever lived and even now, with the Fates gone, I’m going to lose him again.”
“It’s your bloodstone,” he answered softly. “You know that it is cursed, Harmonia. Until the day that you no longer own it, misfortune will continue to follow you.”
Anger exploded inside of me and I could barely think.
“Why in the hell did Zeus allow Hephaestus to curse it?” I demanded. “I understand the fact that he needed me to have it, that it has his blood in it…and I’m the Chosen One and all of that crap. But did he have to allow it to be cursed?”
Ares shrugged. “I know not, daughter. You know Zeus.”
And that said everything right there. Zeus was not constrained or influenced by what might happen to others. He saw the big picture and he saw how things affected him and him alone. And suddenly, all of my anger that I had directed at my parents and Cadmus shifted to Zeus, where it belonged.
“You know, “I pondered angrily. “I have always held the Fates’ responsible for my tragic lives, but perhaps it was Zeus all along. I’m sure the Fates enjoyed my tribulations and certainly, they deceived me into making your lives hell, too, but my own life—it would have been miserable no matter what. Because of Zeus!”
I spun around and stared at my mother. She looked at me helplessly.
“I don’t know what you wish me to say,” she answered. “You are probably right. But do not let the Fates off so easily. They used that very thing to their advantage and they did trick you for thousands of years.”
“I know that,” I muttered as I gently extracted myself from Cadmus’ grip and stood up. “I do not need reminded. We should move now. There is no time to waste.”
Ortrera was quietly instructing her warriors and they hurried to my side, kneeling around Cadmus. Making a make-shift gurney from their shields, they carefully lifted him to shoulder height.
He was shivering and I realized it was probably from blood-loss. I cringed at the realization and quickly dug through my knapsack for a wrap. I tucked it around my husband’s body and kissed his soft lips before speaking to the group.
“Let’s go to Hell,” I said wryly, pushing forward without looking back. I felt the others follow me as I circled around the dead dragon and I paused only slightly in the entryway of Tartara.
I couldn’t believe I was here. But I most certainly was and there was only one thing to do in order to get out. I had to enter. I took a step and then another and walked into Hell.
Chapter Nine
Hell was dark.
As I picked my way over sharp rocks and through dry brambles and descended into the bowels of the Underworld, that was the thing that stuck out at me most. The absence of light. There were random fires here and there, which cast frightening shadows, but there was no other light here. It was black as pitch and freezing cold.
Ares strode forward to walk by my side at the front, his protective nature revealing itself. As we passed a small patch of brambles that were alight, he bent to pick up a long branch and lit it ablaze before holding it in front of us as a torch.