that delved deeper and deeper into my body and soul. Jace! Jace! Gods, I need you, baby! Please hurry!
He still didn’t respond, even after fifteen minutes of attempts. It depressed and
angered me that everything we experienced was only going to intensify with time, and
that we would be brought to the brink of death, only to be tortured until we found
one another.
The tears still streamed down my cheeks when Hades walked in. As he got closer, I
could see the furious expression on his face when he appraised the dead Cyclops on
the floor. His eyes glared into mine as he seethed, “What did you do?”
“How could I have done anything? Look at me!” I said as I motioned my head down, gesturing
to my body.
“I know you are responsible. I don’t know how, but you are. And now, you will be punished.”
Pain exploded behind my eyes and radiated down my body. I felt the blood seeping from
my orifices as my consciousness slipped away. Before I succumbed to the darkness,
I managed to spit out, “This again? Is that the best you’ve got?”
I awakened to the same pain from earlier, but it didn’t last long. Even still, I was
engulfed by fury at the notion that Hades was torturing Brielle again. I grabbed the
lamp and threw it against the wall, where it shattered on impact. I was going to slaughter
Hades for hurting my Brielle. He would beg for my mercy before I was through with
him.
I looked at the time on my phone, which read 4:57 A.M. I’d been tossing and turning
for most of the night, including rushing to the bathroom several times to throw up.
I couldn’t believe that I had fallen asleep at all while Brielle was in the Underworld,
even if it was brief and restless.
How could I be so selfish? I should have left straight from the High Council instead
of wasting time listening to that damn Oracle. I tried to remind myself that I had rested so that I could be at my best when I rescued
her, but it didn’t make me feel much better. The longer that I took to save her, the
longer she suffered, plain and simple.
I didn’t bother showering, but I did change my bloody clothes from the day before.
As I grabbed my phone, a pain shot up my spine and forced me to brace myself on the
bed. It reverberated up and down my body as I clenched the sheets tightly in my fists.
I feared I wouldn’t be able to rescue Brielle if I was suffering from withdrawals.
We hadn’t even been apart for a day yet, and we would experience worse effects soon.
The ceaseless ache was enough to deal with, but I had a feeling that the sporadic
bursts of intense pain would be more frequent, if not constant.
Nausea swarmed my intestines, causing me to bolt for the bathroom, only making it
to the sink before I vomited. Not much came up, but I was sure that I threw up what
little was left in my stomach. I rinsed the sink out and brushed my teeth before heading
downstairs.
Zane and Kimber slept on the cramped couch. I hadn’t even noticed that they had stayed
the night. The Oracle hovered near the dining room table, holding a tattered scroll
in her hand.
“Please tell me that’s the map,” I said.
“It is,” she replied.
I walked to the couch where Kimber and Zane cuddled together, and I softly shook Zane
on the shoulder. He swatted my hand away roughly before bolting upright and grabbing
me tightly by the arm. “Zane, it’s just me. Calm down.”
Zane fiercely clutched Kimber to him with one arm as her eyes darted around in the
room in confusion. Once recognition clicked in, he let go of me and apologized, “Sorry,
bro. With everything as crazy as it’s been, I’ve been a little overprotective.”
“No worries. I totally understand. The Oracle has a map of the Underworld for us to
look at. I’m going to wake up Kiera, and then we can all sit down together and come
up with a plan,” I replied before turning and walking to Kiera’s room.
I knocked on her