Chapter 51 The devil in the window

Chapter 51 The devil in the window

Hades
“I will say…she has adjusted well,” comes Michael’s wispy, optimistic face. His pale face gleams in the sun.
“Or, she’s trying to pretend she is. This isn’t the first time she’s pretended to be happy here,” I reply him curtly.
“Oh, she’s been through this a million times. I think her systems adjusted to it even though each time the cycle’s a little different. It’s like muscle memory for her now,” Michael returns.
We are standing on a small hill overlooking Dalia’s temple, watching as the women conduct their afternoon business. My eyes are transfixed on Daphne. The love of my life. She is wearing a white flowy gown with flowers in her hair. She is the prettiest woman in the temple. I can’t stop looking at her, at her hair flowing down her back, her thin brows, her soft lips. She throws her hair back when she’s laughing, and when no one’s looking, I can sense the sadness in her eyes.
“Why can’t I just march down there and take her back to Hell with me?” I ask.
“Because…you can’t. Because you’ll have to answer to Alex. You’ve already stopped death from taking her soul. Do you think he forgot that? He’ll make you pay for that, especially if it distorts the balance between Hell and Heaven,” Michael, ever-the-wise one, says.
“I don’t give a fuck about the balance of the universe. Nothing is real unless I’m with her. I’m gonna talk to her.”
“You can’t. You’ve already had your chance to convince her and she turned you down. That’s it.”
Glancing over to the temple, I see Dalia join the host of women. She sits in the center, the women, her servants, turn all their attention to her. She’s gripping Daphne’s hand tight.
My eyes narrow in anger. “You know what a fucking psycho Dalia is. I have to get her out of there before it’s too late. She’s going to be so disappointed when she finds out her ‘mother’ is not who she thinks she is.”
Michael catches my hand before I can storm out. “It is not your place to do that.”
I snatch my hand away from him. “Get the fuck away from me! Do you have any idea how difficult this has been for me? Have you ever been in love, Michael? Do you know what it means to be so close to the woman I want and yet so far away? It’s killing me. I’m dying here, Michael. My heart is breaking into pieces and I don’t know how to heal myself. I don’t know what to do,” I hiss in rage. The anger building inside me is almost at its tipping point. It could boil over and swallow Olympus in it.
Michael is not pissed at me for what I did to him. His facial expression mellows. “I understand how difficult it is, Hades. Believe me. I do. But we’ve been over this a million times. Your anger has not helped you keep her all those other times. What are you going to do? Kidnap her and drag her back to Hell? We’ve seen how that plays out. If you don’t want to accept your fate, why don’t you try something else? Why don’t you give her time to adjust to this new reality. She’ll make up her mind on her own. You don’t have to compel her.”
My chest rises and falls in irregular intervals as my brother delivers his speech. Deep inside, I know that he is right. I’ve tried so many times to drag her back to Hell and none of my plans have worked. Maybe, it is time to try a different plan. I am not necessarily happy with it but it’s the only thing I can do so far.
Later that night, I head down to Dalia’s temple. The closer I get, the stronger her presence and scent feels to me. I walk around outside the temple, searching for her room. I let her presence guide her until I find it. I stand by her window, watching her as she prepares for the night.
She’s sitting by the vanity mirror, brushing her long hair. I watch her in the mirror, wondering if she can sense me too. Our bond is stronger than ever. It’s always stronger when she rejects me.
After a few minutes, she stops, agitated. She spins around to glance out of the window, I freeze, hiding in the darkness. She examines the windows patiently and returns to combing her hair, a little skeptically. She can feel me.
When my feet rustle some leaves, she turns again. “Who’s there?”
I keep quiet, hoping she wouldn’t pursue it. But then, she stands and walks over to the windows. She opens it, letting in the fresh breeze and ---me.
“Hades!” she gasps.
Quickly, I cover my mouth and climb in the window into her suite. “Shh, don’t make a sound.”
Her room is enormous. A canopy bed is pushed against the wall. It’s all frilly pink and white. I copied this room when I designed her room in Hell.
“You can’t be in here,” Daphne says when I finally release her mouth. She whispers it in low tone so no one would hear us.
“I had to see you. I was going crazy waiting for you.”
She steps away from me. “You can’t be in here. Dalia hates you. I don’t know what she would do if she finds you here.”
I pull her back close to me. My hand traces her naked thighs. slowly, I make the upward journey past her nightie gown to her panties. She stifles her moans.
I smile mischievously. “Then, let’s make sure she doesn’t hear us.”
She tries to fight me spinelessly. “We can’t do this.”
I lift her into my arms, carry her over to the bed and deposit her there. I push her legs wide open. She is soaking wet for me. “Let’s see if I can change your mind.”