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“Thank you, Arawn.” He gave her a two-fingered salute before her Glass darkened, the Celtic Otherworld fading from view. She pressed her lips together, remembering the first time Émilien had heard the handsome god call her ‘my dear’ in his native tongue. Jealousy had reared its ugly head, and the only way she could get him to back down from killing her friend had been to kiss him senseless. It was that kiss that led to her pregnancy. It had been the beginning of everything wonderful.
Pulling in a deep breath, she turned the Glass to the Greek Underworld where she would find Hades. After a quick calculation, she realized luck might be with her. It was late winter there, and Persephone might still be spending the last of her allotted months with her husband, making Hel’s task of convincing the normally dour king to leave a bit easier.
The scene in the center of the disc was almost as dark as her own throne room. The gray stone fireplace was unlit, the only light coming from a giant metal-worked chandelier hanging from the high ceiling at the center of the room. Somewhere nearby, a soft chuckle sounded, and a sensation of dismay filled her. Hades would throw her out without letting her say a word if she was interrupting them. Scrunching her face, she glanced away and loudly cleared her throat.
“Umm, Hades? I hate to interrupt if you’re in the middle of something, but I need your help.”
“Hel, is that you?”
Her eyebrows rose when the handsome tattooed face of Osiris popped into the Glass. “Osiris? What in the world are you doing in Hades’ realm?”
He smiled, his black eyes glistening. “I’m here to pick Hades’ brain, as small as that may be, to see why my dead are disappearing.”
“You too? That’s why I’m calling. I’m enacting a conclave to discuss it. Do you think you and Hades can attend? I’m not asking every pantheon, so it will just be you, me, Hades, and Arawn.” She glanced at the clock next to her bed. “He should already be here—well, in my throne room.”
Hades stepped into view, standing almost a half head taller than the Egyptian god, his black hair pulled back in a ponytail. It was his black eyes, though, that gave her pause. While her eyes and Osiris’s were also black, something she’d always thought was a result of ruling death realms, Hades’ eyes were more than that. The familiar shiver pulsed through her as she stared into their depths. They were pools of actual death.
“You caught me on a good day,mikros. I will also be there.”
Hel smiled at the familiar pet name he had given her when she first took over her kingdom. He had called her “little one”, which had angered her enough to shake off her nerves and step into her role of queen with a much-needed bolster of confidence. She would owe him forever. Over the years, they had had their differences, of course, but when she needed help, Hades was always the first one to give her aid.
She smiled. “Thank you both.” The God’s Glass darkened then faded back to its shiny copper surface. Exhaling, she turned and headed back to her throne room, where the three foreign gods were waiting for her.
Baldr stepped forward and a long wooden table appeared, laden with food and drink. He then moved back into his statuesque position by the door.
She met his gaze.Thank you.He gave her a subtle nod then turned his gaze to the window. Taking a seat, she motioned for the men to follow her lead and poured the fruity-smelling liquid into her goblet. She held out the pitcher to Osiris, who took it and poured his own drink before passing it to Hades.
With their plates piled with the mouth-watering food, she took a long sip of Idunn’s special concoction she had sent over that morning. The Goddess of Immortality was one of only a few who didn’t ostracize her and had always treated her like a friend. Hel could almost count on one hand those who regarded her as such, and they were all in the room with her, minus Freyja and Idunn, of course.
She turned to the Celtic god. “Arawn, I called this conclave to find out if other death realms were losing their souls. Has your realm been affected?” He nodded. “Hades and Osiris have the same problem as we do then. Their charges are also disappearing. Here, the village is all but empty, and the warriors’ never-ending battle has stopped. Baldr noticed this morning that the River Sliðr’s churning of weapons has gone silent as well.”
Hades downed his drink and poured another. “That doesn’t bode well. In my realm, the souls in the Elysian Fields decrease each day, but, so far, Tartarus has remained untouched. There are levels of malevolent gods and even worse creatures honeycombed throughout the deepest parts of my kingdom. If they were to go free...” He shuddered and stuffed a tart in his mouth, chewing while staring at the goblet still gripped between his long, slender fingers.
Arawn nodded. “I noticed the souls disappearing two days ago but haven’t been able to pinpoint why or where they are going. At first, I thought a more-than-usual number of souls had decided to reincarnate, but that’s not the case. There are too many missing.” He turned his gray gaze to the other two men sitting across from him. “I take it, Osiris, you’re having the same problem in your kingdom?”
The Egyptian god set what was left of his sandwich back on his plate and wiped the crumbs from his hands before dropping them into his lap. “Unfortunately, it is. Egyptians are one of the longest-living cultures on Earth today, so I have millions of souls to guard over. Almost half are gone.”
Hel shook her head, unable to fathom the numbers of missing souls these men were reporting. “How is this even possible? No one is allowed into this realm, much less to leave it, without my approval. Who has this kind of power?”
Hades gave her a droll stare. “What about your father? This kind of thing is right up his alley.”
“He was the first person I thought of, but after hearing this... I just don’t know if even Loki has that kind of power.” Hel stared at Baldr. His arms bulged as he leaned on the rock window ledge, his defined back muscles taut as he stared out the window. Knowing the god as well as she did, it wasn’t a good sign. His worry all but beat at her from across the room. The churning in her gut told her time was running out. They needed to figure out who was stealing the souls from their kingdoms.
A golden ball of light drew her attention. It appeared in the center of the table, growing in intensity and size until it was the size of a shield. Its middle turned hazy then cleared, showing her Freyja’s lovely face looking quite pinched and worried.
“Freyja, what’s wrong?”
“I’m so sorry, Hel, but I just received a message from Shalendra. Émilien never returned home from the Shadow Lands. She’s worried about him. He has never failed to return home before.”
An icy sensation filled Hel’s heart. Émilien would never leave Shalendra unprotected. Not even death would stop him from watching over their daughter. Hel met Baldr’s worried gaze.
“Go, my lady. Unless whoever has the souls now has his, he is not here and is not dead. I will finish up the conclave and will let you know what plan we come up with. She needs you now. Go.”
Before she drew her next breath, she transported to the front entrance to Émilien's chateau. A strong sense of foreboding held her as she stared at the massive wooden door in front of her. She reached for the wrought-iron knocker. Pulling it up, she let it fall with a resounding, deepclangas it hit the solid wood, and waited for her daughter to open door.
6
Hel closed her eyes as equal amounts of worry and fear battled inside her. She had agonized over this moment for centuries. Would her daughter accept her? What would Loki do when he discovered he had a grandchild? How could she and Émilien keep Shalendra safe from his clutches? Would her ex-husband hate her for being part of their only child’s life? Would he hate her for going behind his back?
