Persephone by Kaitlin Bevis Read Free Book Online Page A

exhaled, and I sank lifelessly into his arms.
    Through a haze, I felt myself being lifted and carried away. I tried to open my eyes, but they were too heavy.
    “You handled that well, Hades,” a woman’s sarcastic voice intruded on the fog of my thoughts. “You know what might have made it a bit easier?”
    “I’m sure you’re going to tell me.”
    Hades? I struggled harder against the heaviness of my eyes. The Hades? Lord of the Underworld, Hades?
    Crap!
    “A simple ‘I’m the good guy’ might have—”
    “You think I’m the good guy, Cassandra?” He laughed.
    “How about ‘I’m here to rescue you’?”
    “I didn’t say that?” He placed me on a soft surface. “I need to talk to Demeter, tell her what almost transpired here. Could you—”
    “You’re not going to return her home.” It was a statement, not a question.
    “Gods help me, Cassandra, I thought you were kidding.”
    “You know I don’t joke about my…”
    I tried to listen, but their conversation wasn’t making any sense and my mind wasn’t up to decoding their nonsense. I thought of my picnic blanket, poppy, and pomegranate seeds. What had happened? Had that freak ice storm been a consequence of using my powers? Something nudged the back of my brain, calling ancient myths and legends forward, but my mind banished those thoughts and surrendered to blissful darkness.

Chapter VII
    I felt like I was lying on a cloud made of silk. I frowned, eyes fluttering open. My bed was not this comfortable, and my sheets were not made of silk, satin, or whatever this shiny slippery stuff was. I sat up, looking around the room, disoriented. It looked like my room but richer somehow.
    I climbed off the loft bed. The moment my feet touched the cool wooden floor, memories rushed through me. I gasped as I recalled the earth freezing and the chariot exploding from the ground. I traced my tingling lips with my fingertip. He’d kissed me! Well, sort of.
    I felt different, lighter somehow. For the first time in my life I’d woken up without any pressing needs. I wasn’t hungry or thirsty, nothing ached; I felt exhilarated.
    It was unnerving. My hands shook and my heart raced so fast I thought it would beat out of my chest. I gulped, remembering the man who’d taken me. I unclipped my phone from my waistband. It was four-forty-four. I’d been out for over six hours? I tried to call 9-1-1, but couldn’t get a signal. I walked through the room, keeping an eye on my phone. No luck.
    I studied my reflection in the full-length mirror hanging on the door. The fabric of my white dress was somehow unmarred by my struggle in the park. The scratches on my legs from the ice were gone; I didn’t have any bruises from the fall or so much as a hair on my head out of place. I checked my nails, expecting them to be torn, ragged, and bloody. They were perfect. I frowned, studying them closer. My clear polish had even been restored.
    Only my lips were different. They were as red as a pomegranate and tender to the touch.
    “What the hell?”
    I was surprised to find the door wasn’t locked. I opened it and stepped into a huge hall that looked as if it was carved from ebony. Not a single fingerprint marred the gleaming surface or silver trim. The floors were a checkerboard of black and white marble. I glanced up, curious if the ceiling was made of marble as well, but couldn’t tell because it was so far above my head.
    I memorized every detail, searching for something that would help me identify this place to the cops. I couldn’t think of a single building in Athens this tall. Had he taken me to another city? How long had I been out? I checked the time on my phone again: four-forty-four.
    Must be broken. It would be more surprising if it had made it through the entire ordeal unharmed, but as I scrolled through the screen everything seemed responsive.
    I took slow, careful steps, knowing in a cavernous hall like this my footsteps would be amplified. I didn’t see