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Hades closes the door, a deep frown on his face. “I did, yes. But?— “
He stops himself mid-sentence, poking out his cheek with his tongue. He doesn’t say anything for a moment, so I walk the couple of steps closer, taking his arm. The gesture feels cozy, intimate. My ribs are aching at this point, but I stifle a sigh.
Hades darts a glance at me, licking his lower lip. “My father was a very violent man.”
My eyes widen. I can’t think of anything cleverer to say than, “oh?”
His body language has gone rather stiff. He nods and looks away, off toward the wall. He doesn’t add anything, so after a few seconds I suck in a breath.
“Where are we walking?” I ask.
“Ach.” Hades starts walking down the circular driveway, toward the wall. “If ye feel up to it, we should walk around the house’s walls.”
“Okay,” I agree. I give him a quick smile. “But you may end up carrying me back up this hill.”
He glances at me, a flicker of warmth in his eyes. “It’s a deal.”
We head down the steep embankment and pass through the arched gateway. It’s beautiful out here, coastal and windy, sunny yet cool. There are long grasses and heather everywhere I look, the gray-green color blending in with the oatmeal color of the distant beach. Past that is the stark near-black stripe of the ocean, white peaks here and there, penned in by the endless gray blue sky. It makes quite a beautiful landscape.
I turn my face up to Hades, about to remark on it. But his expression is heavy, bleak. His eyes have a faraway look, like he’s remembering unpleasant things.
“Hades,” I say, tugging at his arm.
“Hm?” He looks at me, his eyes refocusing. “I was just…” He pauses, sighing. “I was thinking of my mother.”
I squeeze his arm gently. “Tell me about her.”
“She was… complicated.” He sighs again, a forlorn sound. “My father was in politics. He inherited most of this island from his father and ran every single business with an eye to the profit margins. He didn’t care about people. He was only interested in amassing more power.” He licks his bottom lip and looks off into the distance. “He was known for being… intense, I guess.”
“You said he was violent,” I push, being as gentle as I know how to be. “Did he… did he have something to do with the scars on your back?”
A bleat of unexpected laughter bursts from his lips. “Every single day that I lived under this roof, my father found something to be angry about. First, he’d go for my mother. Then when he’d beaten her into submission, he’d come after me.” A tiny wince puckers his face. “My mother could never stand up to him when he got angry.”
I run my fingers down his arm and pick up his hand. Hades looks at me, a brow arching.
“I’m sorry,” I say, pinning him with my gaze. “That must have been scary for all of you.”
“It was a long time ago.” He shrugs as if he doesn’t care, but I can see the misery in his eyes.
“Has your mom… passed away?” I guess.
“I wouldn’t know.” He snorts and starts walking again. “She left when I was young. My father found out that she planned to go. She had been putting money aside, I guess, and had us pack bags.” His expression blanks into a mask. “As ye can imagine, my father absolutely lost his mind. He couldn’t let people know that he beat his wife and children so badly that they ran away! So…” He stops, his tongue darting out to wet his lips. “He gave her a choice. She could leave without us… or stay with us. Obviously, she chose to leave.”
“Oh, Hades.” I tug at his hand, pulling him to a stop. I look up at him for a long moment, biting my lower lip. Then I slip my arms around his shoulders, bringing my head to his chest. My ribs ache as I lift my arms, but I ignore it.
For his part, he doesn’t move. His body doesn’t soften in any way. But he doesn’t actively resist my attention or try to pull away.
“Shit happens,” Hades rumbles. “People had it worse. A lot of people.”
I hug him harder, holding onto him. After half a minute, his hands gently come up to wrap around my waist. I add a little consoling rocking motion into my embrace.
And in exchange, I feel his lips graze the crown of my head.
In this moment, I can see him for what he really is. He’s a strong man, yes. But he’s also so violent and reactive to anything he perceives as bullying.
I can easily imagine him as a small child, dreaming of being exactly like this. Of needing no one, of making men tremble at the mention of his name.
It breaks my fucking heart. I close my eyes, pushing all of my care and all of my tenderness into a tight ball of energy. I feed that ball directly into Hades through my hug, my closeness.
