Bright Fire (Bright Fire Series Book 1) (13 page)

Chapter

32

Persephone is back in my dream again. She looks the same, but there is something different about her eyes. They are cold, not as welcoming as usual.

"Persephone, what is it?"

"Stop looking for me." She looks angry.

"What?" She’s not making any sense; this is my destiny.

"I said stop looking for me. Do you think I want to be saved? Did you think to ask me how I felt?"

"But you said before—"

"No, I didn’t. You must have been dreaming, or maybe your guardian got into your mind, but I did not say anything. Stop looking for me. I don't want or need your help. You are a child. Do childish things. If you continue to look for me, as Queen of the Underworld, I will have to take action against you. We wouldn't want anything to happen to your sweet Cass or Lyla, now would we?"

My legs feel like pudding. I don't want to move, but I reach my arm out to her. Craving the same warmth and affection of our previous meetings. She steps out of reach. I look at my feet fighting back tears.

"Look at me and listen closely, do not come to me or someone you love will pay the price for your disobedience." Her eyes flash, a flicker of a flame maybe?

"O…OK.." I stammer through my thoughts. One word is coming at a time. "I will not look for you. If that is what you want."

She nods curtly and then she’s gone. Unlike before, I am left standing there in the half dead garden that was once a lush and beautiful place. This makes no sense, but what do I know? She may actually be this kind of person. Who knows what centuries with Hades can do to a person?

~~~~

I
wake covered in sweat and shaking. I’m confused and hurt by her complete detachment. What if my previous visions of her were only dreams? Or is this one just a dream that ties into my fears and wants to run and hide? What did this mean? More than anything, I want to put my head in my pillow and scream, but I don’t want to draw the attention of Cass or Alec right now. I get up and tiptoe to my bathroom. A shower will do some good. 

Out of the shower, I decide it’s time to face everyone until I look at the clock and see it is 4:30 in the morning. I stand here staring out the window trying to decide what do. My stomach growls and I figure food is probably next on my list. When was the last time I ate? I feel as though I’m slowly losing my mind. I can’t remember things, and it is almost like chunks of time are missing. Everything is disjointed. I’m pretty sure it is all the ups and downs lately. One minute Alec and I are battling centaurs or sirens, the next we are kicking back in the bookstore. 

I unlock the door and slowly open it; hoping to creep downstairs. My heart tightens as I see Cass laying on a cot on right outside my door. She’s softly snoring. I work my way around her slowly, silently praying I don’t wake her. 

I make it downstairs and see Lyla at the table passed out with her head on an open book. I wonder if her mom has called the police and started a manhunt yet. I head to the kitchen and stop dead in my tracks. Alec is standing in the doorway holding a cup of coffee out to me. "How did you know?" 

"I know you, Dell." 

He looks so tired. "Did you sleep?" 

"A little." 

"Liar." the bags under his eyes give him away. "You need to learn to rest or you are going to burn out or kill yourself." 

"Immortal, remember." He smiles, but it is so weak it’s bordering on pathetic. 

"You know what I mean." I take a seat at one of the bar stools, and he follows. "After Cass and Lyla wake up I need to talk to you guys. I’m still sorting through some stuff, so I’m not ready to talk about it yet." 

He nods. Of course, he knows something’s up. "Are you hungry?" 

"Starving, you want to go to the diner?" I realize it is becoming our place. 

He nods and grabs our coats.

~~~~

As
I sit at our usual table in the diner, I start to relax. There is something about the atmosphere that puts me at ease. Alec orders for both of us. Even though I know he knows what I want, it still kind of irks me that he ordered for me. It’s so archaic, but I keep my mouth shut. He looks at me from across the booth with a strange expression. "What?" 

"I’m not sure, but something about you is different." He furrows his eyebrows, which makes him look ten years older. 

"Don’t do that, you’ll get wrinkles.” I try to ease the tension. "As for any difference, I have no idea what it could be. Maybe you see something that’s not there because you’re so tired."

"Maybe.” He’s not convinced. 

The waitress brings our food and asks us if we need anything else. We shake our heads and start eating. 

With a mouthful of eggs, he asks, "so are you going to tell me what’s going on?" Sometimes his etiquette is seriously lacking. 

"Not yet, I haven’t sorted it out." 

"Then what do you want to talk about?" 

I have to think about that one for a second. I have so much on my mind and the thoughts are all a disconnected jumble. Maybe talking about it will help sort them out. "Honestly, it’s so hard to think straight with everything that’s going on. The prophecy in general, this thing with Lyla, the situation with us, and the fear we will fail is a lot of weight to carry." I’m speaking as if we are still going through with our plan; maybe we are. I'm not quite sure what I want to do yet, but I don’t want to tip him off. 

“Let’s, work through one problem at a time. Start with Lyla since it is a smaller issue." 

I raise my eyebrows. I don’t see it as a smaller issue, but whatever. "I just don’t see how she expects me to let her endanger her life and be ok with it. I mean did she stop to think about the aftermath if anything were to happen to her?" 

"I understand where you are coming from and I disagree with her choice." 

"I sense a but coming." 

Sure enough. "However, she is our best option right now. You need to understand that you cannot control her or her decisions. She’s feisty; I’ll giver her that. And as for the aftermath, you don’t know if anything will happen to her."

"I can’t take that risk." 

"Can’t or won’t?" 

"Both." 

"Unless you can come up with an alternative, we have no other choice." 

"Maybe we can go get that siren and use her as bait." Though I'm not hopeful at this prospect. 

"They can’t last long out of water and she would be impossible to control." 

Dang, his logic is working me. It was worth a shot. "Yeah, I guess you are right." Although I know now, I don’t have to worry about it. My mind is made up. I will not be going to the Underworld, and neither is Lyla. Not just for her safety, but everyone’s. 

He smiles at his victory, and I feel a little guilty for lying to him. Just a little. "Next, your fear to fail. You can’t go into it with that attitude or we are doomed to fail for sure." 

"If you give me some power of positive thinking speech, I may be tempted to slap you again." 

"I’m not, but you have to keep a healthy level of optimism if you want us to have any hope of succeeding." 

"But, what if we do fail?" 

"What if we do?" 

"We could die, Alec, like dead forever die." 

"Then we wouldn’t have to feel anything, so problem solved." 

"Not quite, but I see your point. I will try to just assume we won’t fail." Since we aren’t going, we have no way of failing, but I don’t say it out loud. 

"OK, what’s your issue with the prophecy?" 

I don’t miss that he’s saving the situation with us for last. "It’s hard to explain. Why me? Why after millennia am I supposed to take down Hades? And how do I do that? Kill him? Trap him?" 

"Woah, slow down. That’s a lot of questions to answer at one time. I guess the prophecy chose you because you are his daughter. I have no idea why you are supposed to take him down now after all this time. Maybe he has apocalyptic plans for the future or something. Who knows? What matters is that you are chosen, and it is necessary. I sincerely doubt you can kill him, no offense, but many gods and demigods have tried and failed. Taking him down may mean trapping him or taking away what he holds closest to him. You will know when the time comes." 

His adamant faith in things just falling into place baffles me. I blow out a long breath. "I hope you are right." It’s getting easier to lie and agree with him, which makes me worry about my integrity. 

"As for us…" I see a hint of hurt in his eyes, and I instantly wish I didn’t say anything. 

"Don’t get me wrong. I like you, and I'm glad I met you, but it’s hard to wrap my head around the universe picking the person I'm supposed to spend eternity with." This is coming out all wrong. 

"Am I really a bad choice for spending eternity with?" 

"No, ugh I can't explain it. I’m just afraid that if anything were to happen and it didn’t work out that I would be destined to spend eternity alone." 

"Think of it this way, the Fates, so to speak, would not have chosen a soulmate that you would not get along with. It would be pointless." 

That makes sense I guess. It is hard to imagine being paired with someone I hate. I reach across the table and grab his hand. He rubs his thumb along the back of my hand. It’s so strange to have someone care about me the way he does and not really know the real me. This sparks a thought. "What if you don’t like the way I chew my food or if I snore? You don’t know me." 

"That’s the joy of it though, getting to know each other. The honeymoon phase and all that.” 

"I have to say seeing this side of you when you are supposed to be all warrior macho is weird." 

He looks a little sad at that comment, and I think I hit a nerve. "It’s weird for me too you know. Out of all my peers, I can feel the most. I always felt out of place because of it. I just choose to believe that it is because I was preparing for you." 

I flush. No one has ever talked to me like this, and I’m not sure what to think. "I get that." I look up at the Elvis clock on the wall. "We should get back. If I know Cass, she is having a heart attack right about now." 

He snorts. "You’re probably right."

Chapter

33

As I predict, Cass is freaking out as I walk through the door to the bookstore. "Seriously? No note, no idea where you are? You need to learn that there are people who worry." She slowly loses steam as she lets it out. 

"Cass, I’m sorry. I was starving and wasn’t thinking. Next time I’ll leave a note I promise. I need to talk to all of you; it’s important." 

Lyla closes the book she is hovering over in the corner and comes to the table in the center of the store. She eyes me warily. "I know that look. What is it?" 

I don’t know where to start at first. I realize I haven’t told them about my dreams yet, so I start there. "Um… So I’ve been having these dreams. I know it sounds crazy, but I think they are real." I hesitate for a moment to summon the courage to finish. “And um… jeez.. you have to promise not to laugh." 

Lyla’s impatience shows through. “Just spit it out already, obviously we can take the crazy." 

"Persephone has been visiting me in my dreams." 

They stare at me for a long moment, and I feel like a science experiment. Alec speaks first, "I’m sorry Dell, but that’s impossible." I am instantly hurt at his lack of faith in me, so I don’t respond. 

“Actually," Cass chimes in, "it's not all that impossible. Persephone is linked to her through blood. Who’s to say she can't astral project into her dreams." She turns to me. “What has she said to you?" 

I’m grateful she believes me, but I’m hesitant to answer. The dreams are my special little secret, something that is all mine that I don’t have to share. I spill it anyways, "the first few dreams were about my destiny and that I could fulfill it. She also said she loved me and was proud." 

"What did she look like?" Cass’s eyes are boring into me. 

"She was beautiful in a long flowing white dress, brown hair, and blue eyes. She looked a lot like me, actually. Why?" 

"None of the representations of her created thus far, resemble her very much. The woman you described does, which means it wasn’t a dream." 

“How do you know?" Alec’s lack of support is grating on my nerves. 

“Easy, she has never met Persephone and she didn’t pull her description out of a book." She has him there.

Lyla, being as observant as usual, asks, "you said the first few dreams. What about the others?" 

Dang
, now the hard part, "I dunno it was very strange. Like I said the first few dreams she told me I could do this, and she was affectionate and supportive. Last night was different. She was cold and detached." 

“And…" She’s like a dog with a bone. 

“She told me not to rescue her. She said she didn’t want or need my help. That I am a child, and I should do childish things." Though I'm not sure I should I decide to tell them the rest. “She also threatened to harm one of you if I ‘disobeyed’." 

Cass stares at me with a questioning look. She's obviously trying to decide if she believes that last part or if I am making it up to keep from going. I hold her gaze, trying to force the honesty to show in my eyes. It works because she relaxes. “Obviously she is trying to protect you." 

"Or maybe it's Hades trying to scare you," Lyla suggests. 

"No, I don’t think Hades can project to her in her dreams like Persephone can" 

"Why not? Cerberus and Cela can glamour into someone else." 

"No, they can glamour into something else to blend in up here. They can't just mimic another human." 

That’s useful information, so I file it away for future review. "Why would she tell me not to come though? You say she is doing it to protect me. If that’s the case, then she believes we will fail." 

She looks at me with soft eyes. “A mother will always protect her child even if there is no danger. She must think her life is not worth risking yours for. Although I have to say, I don’t understand why she would tell you that she wants you to fulfill your destiny and then change her mind. She was never the wishy-washy type. It's possible Hades threatened you, but we can't know for sure." 

Lyla asks the obvious question, "Why can't you just see into the future and find out if it’s Hades or if they will succeed?” 

That is the wrong thing to say. Cass’s response is unusually terse, "I'm not some dime store psychic who peers into crystal balls. I told you, It doesn’t work that way. I see what I see, and I don’t get to see everything. Do you think that I haven’t tried to see the outcome to all of this?" 

I can hear the helplessness in her voice, and I feel sorry for her. It can't be easy to have a gift that you can't use when you most need it. "Cass it’s not your fault. It is what it is." I place my hand on hers to try to give her some comfort. 

"Yeah, Cass, I didn’t mean it like that. We are all just frustrated that’s all." Lyla’s cheeks turn a little pink. 

“What are we going to do about the situation at hand?" Alec is trying to take the focus off Cass. 

All of them turn to me. It is very difficult to think under the pressure of their stares. “What do you think we should do?" I address all three of them. 

"I think we should go anyway." Of course, Alec wants to walk straight into danger. 

"I agree." Lyla looks away quickly to avoid my glare. 

"I think only you can decide. I'll support you either way, but the prophecy
is
about you. Therefore, you must make the choice to follow through with it." Cass could totally pass for a diplomat. 

Even though I’ve already decided what I want to do, I keep that to myself. "I need time to think about it. Obviously Persephone wants to keep me away, for whatever reason. I need to consider that." 

"Dell, I really don’t think we have time for that." 

Cass puts her hand on Alec’s shoulder. "She needs time to think, Alec. After everything, she’s been through; she deserves that much." 

"Thanks for your support, Cass." I give Lyla and Alec pointed looks. "I’m gonna lie down. I have a headache." Alec stands to follow me, “Alone. Besides you’re not allowed in my bed remember." The crestfallen look on his face twists knots in my stomach. 

“Sure, OK." He isn’t happy about it, but he doesn’t push.