“Really? Letting me suffer through centuries of sleepless nights is protecting me? It’s funny how parenting works.”
“You want to know the truth, don’t you? I’m about to tell you,” she says, sternly. “Now sit.”
I huff and sit down next to her. The soft mattress dips down and coils squeak. I don’t face her. I drop my head and the planks of the hardwood floors fill my gaze. “Tell me, then.”
Either way, I’m going to get something out of this conversation—some answers.
I lift my head, stealing a glimpse at mom out of the corner of my eyes. Mom adjusts herself scooting farther back on my bed. “Oh goodness, where do I begin?”
“Gee, I don’t know,” I say sarcastically. “How about the beginning?”
Mom gives me a hard look. “Lose the attitude.”
A gust of wind leaves my lungs as the heat evaporates from my cheeks and I start to calm down. “Fine.”
“Before you were born, Hades came to your father and asked him for a queen. He’d spent centuries in the underworld alone and his loneliness was finally getting to him. He longed for companionship. He longed to have someone to share a life with. So, even though your father shouldn’t have agreed to this deal, he did, agreeing to give you to Hades—to be his queen. And just days before your seventeenth birthday, Hades came for you. But Hades did not expect your father to go back on the deal. You see, after watching you grow up, Zeus had become attached to you and his love for you was greater than his word to Hades.”
Guilt seizes my insides and grips onto my heart. I feel terrible. “Zeus went back on his word for me?”
Mom nods. “He did.”
One thing I know about my dad is that he’s always been a God of his word. If he made a deal with someone he kept it. “I know he hates doing that.”
“He does.” Mom places her hand on my shoulder. “But that didn’t matter. It matter what your father said. Hades had already seen you. He’d been watching you from afar and was taken with you.” Mom lowers her voice and there’s a hint of sadness in her tone. “Your father tried to bargain with him. He tried to offer him another woman in place of you, but it was no use. Hades could not be bargained with. In his eyes, you were already his. Your father is a very powerful God, but, he has never been able to control Hades. Hades is the type of God who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. He doesn’t take no for an answer. In the end, their debate over you ended in an explosive argument. Hades made it perfectly clear, that if your father didn’t hand you over, he would simply just take you. That night, your father came to me, informing me of what happened. Then he told me to take you and flee. So that’s exactly what I did.”
Even after listening to her explanation I still feel like a part of the story is missing. Most of all, I feel like Atlas. I’m holding the weight of the world on my shoulders. I hope I’m strong enough to keep the world up. I hope I don’t let it fall. Mom and Zeus have sacrificed so much to keep me safe. All of my anger dwindles away and now I’m not sure what to do. “What can we do to prevent him from taking me?”
Mom stares ahead, a blank expression on her face. “It’s harder for him to track us if we keep moving. He has so many tasks in the underworld that sometimes it takes him a while to find us. But eventually he does. He always finds us.”
“Why can’t we stand our ground? Are we going to have to do this for the rest of our immortal lives?”
“I’m afraid so.”
“Mom,” I say softly. “I’ll just tell him I don’t want to go.”
Mom sighs. “It doesn’t matter if you want to go. He’ll find a way to take you. He’s always got something up his sleeve.”
“Like what he tried with the pomegranates?” Mom purses her lips and nods. “Have there been other times?”
Mom glances at me solemnly. “So many times over the years, that I’ve lost count.” She grips my hand and squeezes. “Do you remember our trip to Catalina Island?”
I smile, recalling one of my most favorite birthdays of all time. Even though it was two birthdays ago, I can still remember the way the sand on the beach squished, tickling the skin between my toes. I can still remember the smell of clean air mixed with salt. The way the cool breeze felt as it whipped through my hair. Sunshine on my skin. “That was a great day.”
“Maybe for you,” mom says. “Not for me.” Mom shifts in her spot and I shift in mine facing her. “Do you remember how badly you wanted to ride on the ferry? And how I wouldn’t let you because I thought it was odd that there were no other passengers?”
“I was so mad at you for that.”
“You see my love, I knew Hades sent Charon, his ferryman, and disguised him as the captain on that ferry. I also knew that if I let you on it, the minute you placed a foot on that boat, it would sink into the sea and you’d be well on your way to crossing the river Styx. Hades is very cunning and very smart, but he doesn’t have the instincts a mother has when it comes to her child. Any time he’s tried anything, I’ve always had this gut feeling that something wasn’t right. I’ve been there to stop him. I will always prevent him from taking you.”
After listening to everything, I realize this is a lot to digest. But there is one thing I know for sure; I can’t fear the voice anymore. The deep, throaty whisper won’t pull me from my slumber. Now that I knew who was behind it, I make a mental note to be a step ahead of Hades as well. Now I know what he wants—me. I put on a brave face and look at mom. “I’m sorry for snapping, mom.” I know mom and Zeus had good intentions in doing what they did. But they don’t need to protect me anymore because I will not give Hades the satisfaction of pulling me under. To walk amongst death and darkness. I will be fierce and brave. I refuse to let him take me—I will not let him take me.
Yawning, a sudden wave of exhaustion washes over me. My cat-nap during lunch wasn’t enough. I throw my arms up and stretch. “I think I need a nap,” I tell her. She stands as I lie back in my bed and cover myself with my down comforter.
Mom walks to my door and glances over her shoulder. “I’ll wake you up in an hour.”
“Why?”
“Today is still your birthday. I’ve invited a few people over for a party.” I think about protesting, but after my insane day, I’m emotionally and physically drained.