“You look uncomfortable.” With a commanding wave of his hand, a majestic bed appeared, taking up most of the room. “Make yourself at home. You’ll be here until I hear your apology.”
“Then leave me in peace. You want revenge, you got it. You don’t have to stand here and gloat.”
“Your wish is my command.” Angered sparks flew from his eyes. “Every day you remain stubborn, your desire will increase tenfold. I’ll see you soon.”
She was left with his mocking smile as he disappeared from her sight.
Zerina managed to rise from her knees and stumble to the bed, sinking down on the cool covering. Dry-eyed, she thought of anything and everything to cool the fire in her body, thirstily licking her lips.
A bottle of water landed by her side. She looked up at the opening of the pit. All she could see was darkness. Had Hades dropped the bottle of water down to her, or had someone else taken pity on her?
The hours passing seemed interminable. Without her window, she had no sense of time. It was only when the ache in her groin increased did she realize she had been there for twenty-four hours.
Writhing on the bed, her body throbbed, needing release. She was soaked in sweat at the battle she was going through, not giving herself relief. Hades expected her to, and she was determined not to give him that satisfaction.
She made herself get off the bed and walk around the small area available, hoping to give her a small respite from the torture. She realized her mistake when her thighs brushed together as she walked. It was a match to the fuse that Hades had started the moment she had seen him.
When she returned to the bed, she moaned when sitting down. Tremors rolled through her core, sending pulses that she instinctively knew was her first orgasm.
She cried at the brief respite she had been given, but before she could manage to lie down, the ache was already beginning again.
Zerina lay still, curling her hands into the soft sheets, afraid to move again and bring another release.
She started counting the souls’ births she had witnessed, one by one, trying to remove herself from the turmoil that was taking place in her body. It didn’t help, but it did make the time pass.
When she turned on the mattress, she saw a small table had appeared with a candle, showing food and a pitcher of water. To reach the tempting food and water, though, would involve her having to get off the bed. She had made that mistake before. Then her stomach growled, adding insult to the humiliation she was suffering.
As a Moirai, she could go without food and water. They ate and drank to give themselves pleasure, but human bodies needed it to survive.
By the third day, she stopped counting souls, switching to cursing Morgana and Hades. She cursed the fiery depths she was suffering and cursed Hades with her mother’s and father’s wraths. Her insults filled the pit, mingling with the other moans and cries of Hades’ other prisoners.
“You’ll never know a woman’s loving touch again. My father will make sure the only women who want you are the sluts and whores that have no choice but to let you have them! Persephone is lucky you divorced her! I bet she isn’t missing your tiny dick in Zeus’ bed!”
Chapter 4
Grimm withdrew from the shadows above, walking through the underground chambers that led toward the palace above.
He nodded toward Tartarus, who opened the door to Hades’ office. The god was sitting behind his desk with serious eyes, watching six television screens that were suspended in mid-air.
Grimm sat down on the edge of his desk, studying the screens in front of them. “Why do you watch these?”
“So I can watch the human’s reactions.” Hades pointed to one lanky young man sitting without remorse as a victim’s relative cried about how her death had changed their lives. “If the families are forgiving, sometimes it will ease my punishments. Usually it doesn’t, but it makes more fun when they don’t.”
Grimm picked up a glass ball, seeing the transparent glass swirl with a mist that parted to reveal a man trapped inside. His face was a mask of horror when he saw him staring down at him. Grimm couldn’t hear his yells of help, but he could read his lips as he begged to be released. “Are you having fun watching Zerina?”
Hades took the ball away from him. “No.”
“You don’t think you’re making a mistake by punishing her?”
“I am king in my domain; I don’t make mistakes.”
Hades aloofly regarded his servant, who he also considered a friend. His presumptuous attitude could be excused because of Grimm’s responsibility for Zerina being brought to his domain.
“I brought her so you could help her.”
“Don’t lie,” Hades said. “You brought her here because you were pissed off, because Cara and Jericho angered you.”
“I was,” Grimm admitted. “But I thought you would return her home, not keep her.”
“Then you underestimated me. I’m not ready to let her go.”
“You have many beautiful women down here at your disposal. Persephone would come back if you will her to.”
“I do not want her back. I warned her when she left to visit her mother again that, if she fucked Zeus again, I was done. Like you said, I can have any whore down here as my concubine; why should I cater to her whims and desires when she prefers to share Zeus’ bed?”
“Because he can give her what you cannot.”
“Children.”
Having a confidant had its disadvantages. One was having them pry into matters that didn’t concern them.
“A heart.” Grimm shook his head pointing at one of the screens that showed a man crying about his wife’s tragic death. “You watch these, not to decide on punishments, but to watch the emotions you no longer have.”
Hades’ face grew impassive. “Don’t believe that our friendship allows you to disrespect me. If you’re here to make me feel guilty about Zerina’s punishment, you can leave.”
Grimm bowed his head respectfully, getting off the desk to bow to the god. “I did not mean to offend you. My apologies. Her screams are getting to me.”
“Do you think I cannot hear them?” Hades’ jaw clenched. “I hear every sound my prisoners make … even in my sleep. Hers have kept me awake, but I won’t relent until she apologizes. She’s too stubborn to find the relief that she could give herself. She’s been cursing me for the last four hours.
“Zerina’s family and Mother have spoiled her. She would already have been home if she had given me the respect I deserved. She threw my hospitality in my face. What do you think Zeus would have done if she had struck him? Even Poseidon would have fed her to his pet sharks.”
“She’s a little higher strung than I anticipated,” Grimm agreed.
“You think? What was the first clue? When you tried to explain that you were trying to help her? Or when she bit me?”
“I should have explained before I took her life. She was frightened.”
“Do not excuse her!” Hades crashed his hand down on his desk, making the glass balls roll. He waved his hand, settling them back into place. “Fate should have taught her the protocol for meeting a god. She will apologize to me, or she can stay in the pit,” he snarled unrepentantly.
Wisely, Grimm decided to leave. “I’ll go check if Morgana is ready to confess who helped her.”
“I’ll handle Morgana. I want you to make sure Cerberus doesn’t let anyone get by him. I don’t trust Jinx or Zerina’s aunt Destiny. Both are rebellious enough to try to sneak inside if they can find the entrance.”
“They are both near. Would you like me to distract them?”
“No, if Jinx manages to get inside, no one will be upset when she becomes my prisoner, and she’ll keep Zerina company.”
“How about Destiny?”
“Rocque has claimed her. Everyone knows, but Destiny and Fate refuse to acknowledge it. I don’t want to start a war with the lord, but I have faith Rocque will prevent her from interfering between me and Zerina.”
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nbsp; Hades stared at the television screens as his friend made his leave. When the door shut, he lowered his head into his hands. The ceaseless screams in his mind forced him to suffer along with his prisoners. Usually, he could turn down the volume of their screams like a human could turn down the volume on their television sets, though he could never entirely mute them, nor did he want to. As warden of the souls that inhabited his prison, he could even identify who was crying out. None gave him satisfaction.
They had reaped what they had sowed. It was pure and simple justice. His justice. Sometimes he would let the judges he had appointed take care of the mundane punishments. The more grave the offense, he dealt with them.
He swung his chair to stare out the window, seeing the fake bright sunlight slip into darkness, hearing Zerina’s screams escalate. He wanted to transport himself to her side and spank her ass for suffering needlessly.
Remaining in his chair, he picked up one of the balls and shook it. The man inside was so tiny that the moustache on his lip was barely visible.
Hades shook the ball again. Adolf was one of his prisoners he didn’t mind tormenting.
He was about to toss it in the air again when her heard Zerina’s apology.
“Hades, I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”
The apology wasn’t heartfelt. Taking what he could get, though, he transported himself to her bedroom, appearing at the same time she did.
She stood in front of him, fully clothed, running a hand over the gossamer thin gown the Moirai preferred, giving tantalizing glimpses of her breasts and the V between her thighs.
“You have something to say to me?” He expected her to recant her apology, watching as she struggled to compose her expression. It failed. He could easily see the hatred shining from her eyes.
“I’m sorry that I struck out at you.” Her regal pride had taken a hit, but the proud beauty had finally managed to sound sincere.