‘Stop calling me that,’ I snap. It’s not the real issue, I know that, but it’s what comes out of my mouth anyway.
‘What?’ He frowns. ‘It’s your name.’
‘Only technically,’ I say. ‘Now get out of my way.’
‘Will you just wait one moment, please?’
‘Have I not waited enough moments, Hades?’
He takes a breath. ‘Look, I didn’t mean for things to get out of hand like that. I just have some questions – I really do want to help.’
‘I can answer them afterwards.’
‘It will take you hours to reach them using this door. There’s a quicker way,’ he says.
That makes me stop. I’m suspicious but nothing in his face is a tell and the promise of saved time is too tempting to dismiss.
‘Two minutes,’ Hades says. ‘And then I’ll take you to the other exits.’
‘How is it possible to have doors that shorten distances?’
Hades shrugs and his lips twitch with a smile. ‘It’s my realm. The laws of physics do whatever I want them to.’
‘Fine, two minutes,’ I reluctantly agree.
Hades gestures to a side room. This place has so many needless rooms. It’s one of the Olympian duplicates that seems to exist only to fill space: a few chairs, a few tapestries, a few holes in the walls for scrolls to sit. Incense burns in a holder and I gag on the sickly sweet scent of it.
Hades’ nose wrinkles and I get the feeling he regrets choosing this room, but he’s either too awkward to suggest moving or he doesn’t want to risk my ire.
‘Listen,’ he says, ducking his head. ‘I wasn’t entirely honest earlier.’
‘I’m shocked.’
‘I do care about the humans – or I did. When I got here, I tried to do things for them but their spirits decayed so quickly that nothing I tried worked. I put my energy into making this place better for the gods of the court instead. But if you see an opportunity then I want to help you. On top of that, asyoukeep saying, you don’t exactly have the time to do this alone. Days, at most. You will need all the power and help you can get.’
I think of what Styx said, about how Hades must know a thing or two about this realm, and I hate that she’s right. Of course she is. It’s his world to command, no matter how little he deserves it. One or two pages of reading is hardly going to give me the expertise he has. Besides, what’s the worst he could do? Lie about what he’s found out? Fact-checking his research would still be quicker than trying to do it all myself.
‘Fine. Help me if you want to. Can we go now?’
‘No. Because you haven’t told me why you’re doing this.’
‘For the sake of the Styx.’ A weird phrase, actually, now that I know her. ‘Is this the new “why are you here”? How many times must I tell you I’m doing this to help people who are suffering before you’ll believe me?’
‘I do believe you – but, like with “why are you here”, I think there’s more to it. You didn’t come here begging for my help to escape a marriage at first – you came here offering me an opportunity to spite Zeus.’
‘Yes, because I thought it might convince you to help me. ButI’mnot here to spite Zeus.’
‘Aren’t you? Just a little bit?’
I freeze.
‘It might not be precisely why you came here. But I’ve seen you – the real you, hiding behind that ridiculous facade – so don’t tell me a part of you doesn’t love the fact that he’ll be furious about his plans being foiled.’
The worst part isn’t that he’s right but the fact he says it all so confidently, with a hint of admiration.
Despite a thousand lies, I’ve been seen. And I don’t like it.
‘Power,’ I say, which is part confession, part a need to see how he reacts. ‘I’m doing this for power.’
