Drag Me Up Read online

  We formally welcome you to Khaos Falls…

  Contents

  1. Hades

  2. Persephone

  3. Hades

  4. Persephone

  5. Hades

  6. Persephone

  7. Hades

  8. Persephone

  9. Hades

  10. Persephone

  11. Hades

  12. Persephone

  13. Hades

  14. Persephone

  15. Persephone

  16. Hades

  17. Persephone

  18. Hades

  19. Persephone

  20. Hades

  21. Persephone

  22. Hades

  23. Persephone

  24. Hades

  25. Persephone

  26. Hades

  27. Hades

  28. Persephone

  29. Hades

  30. Persephone

  31. Hades

  32. Persephone

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  1

  Hades

  Hades grips the railing before him and brings the radio to his lips. His dark brown eyes narrow on the man that has just walked through the doors of Casino Asphodel. There is nothing particularly interesting about him. Young, slender, and adorned in a worn grey suit that hangs off of him awkwardly, his dark hair is slicked back and his shoe is untied. No, he doesn’t stand out at all, which makes him stand out to Hades.

  “The guy that just walked in, east entrance,” Hades says into the radio.

  “You just gonna have security question every stranger that walks through the door?”

  That voice doesn’t come from the radio. Sly and sultry, it washes over his back like warm water. In his peripheral, Hades catches the reflection of fiery red glancing off of the glass that encases his office. He smirks as Hecate comes to stand next to him.

  “I’m gonna try,” he responds.

  His gaze remains fixed on the man in question, who is now being spoken to by two members of Hades’ security team. They soon send him on his way, waving their hands in Hades’ general direction. No threat.

  Hecate turns to him, her eyes keen to inspect his current state. He can feel them snag on the pronounced circles around his own and the thickening stubble that burdens his chin. She tsks. Then she begins to pick him apart. He is written in a dead language. She is the only one left who can read it fluently.

  “Who do you think is gonna walk in here and start trouble, sweetheart?” she asks, her voice softer now.

  She may be a foot shorter than him, but her presence could fill the room twice over. While it tends to overwhelm and intimidate others, it surrounds Hades like a comfortable coat. It always has, ever since they were children, and she is one of the very few people he can stand to be around for an extended period of time. And one of the few he doesn’t hold at twice an arm’s length. As if she would let him.

  Pale, porcelain fingers move over his jaw, a stark contrast to his dark brown skin. Her gaze trails up to meet his. She holds it there, expectant. Then he sighs and rubs his eyes, a signal that his walls are down, at least low enough for her to climb. She waits.

  He clears his throat. “Zeus cut Coeus out of the deal with Medusa. During the deal.”

  Hecate stalls. The softness of her touch only makes the shift in her expression feel worse. “Are you fucking kidding me? Hades, lead with that.”

  “I didn’t think it would be beneficial to have us both worrying,” he huffs.

  “That’s how this works. You worry for the sake of worrying, and I worry with a purpose.” She looks over the railing and down at the floor. “Have you seen Coeus since?”

  Hades purses his lips. “No, I haven’t. None of Erebus’s children actually.”

  “Not even Tethys?”

  “Especially not Tethys.”

  Their jaws clench in unison. Tethys tends to clean out a poker table at least twice a week at Asphodel. It had been so for the past two years. If they aren’t seeing her, it is a clear sign that something is extremely wrong.

  “Coeus was making the deal on her behalf,” Hades continues.

  “For the port.”

  “Yes, and I told Zeus to give it to them as a show of good faith. They’re the only ones who use it, and he’s taxing the hell out of them.”

  “But it’s partly in Medusa’s territory, isn’t it?”

  “Yes, but Medusa had no problem with it. She’d agreed to it with me, and I got it in writing before I allowed the deal to move forward. All Zeus needed to do was follow through, but apparently that was too difficult a task for him.”

  “Did he talk to you about it?”

  He gives her a dark look. She pinches the bridge of her nose. Of course Zeus had not talked to him about it. In fact, Zeus hadn’t said anything about it at all. It was Hephaestus who had warned Hades of this most recent act of sheer idiocy. Zeus himself had told Hades nothing, simply leaving town as he had been scheduled to do and leaving the chips to fall where they may, even if it meant they fell atop his brother’s shoulders. There is only one viable reason too. Zeus had been afraid.

  If Khaos Falls belongs to anyone, it belongs to Zeus in the Olympus District, but if Khaos Falls has a heart, it can be found at Casino Asphodel. The River Styx District is a place you don’t go unless you absolutely have to, and if you absolutely have to, it usually isn’t good. That’s why they call it the Underworld. But the exception has always been Asphodel. Every notable figure in the city and beyond has an unofficial seat at one of the endless card tables. High rollers come in and try their luck at card games they’ve only ever seen on TV. Then, with their last several dollars, they descend into Club Elysium for a drink and one last chance to get lucky. Even when they succeed in either of these endeavors, the outcome is the same. The house always wins. This is what keeps them coming back of course — vengeance.

  Independent of Asphodel’s reputation is that of Hades. Most people respect him or fear him, but few have ever actually laid eyes on him much less had a conversation with him. He is a shadow among them, a myth, an echo of his father’s death. Any distrust or dislike of him simply stems from a lack of interaction. Zeus makes his stepbrother out to be one of his own nightmares made flesh, and Hades’ scarcity does nothing to challenge that or any other stories that stem from it. Paired with the fact that Hades seems to be some all-knowing entity who can sell your secrets back to you at a higher rate, fear isn’t hard to come by. What is more terrifying than someone who can be everywhere and nowhere all at once?

  They call it a tactic. Hades calls it a comfort.

  He finds solace in this glass box above the casino floor. He can still recognize the cards on the tables with no one else the wiser, and the sound of the slots still reach his ears in a soothing symphony. He keeps to himself and keeps a small circle, which is necessary when he’s running back and forth between tending to his own district and tending to his stepbrother. Zeus may run the city, but Hades is what keeps him from running it into the ground. He never gets any of the credit, but he always gets things done, and if it weren’t for Hades and his impeccable resilience, Zeus wouldn’t be breathing much less leading Khaos Falls.

  Though he may have failed this time. Considering he’s usually cleaning up multiple messes a week, Zeus’s silence over the past few had indeed worried Hades but not the point where he could have foreseen this level of foolishness. Double-crossing the Tartarus District is no small mistake that can be passed off as a misunderstanding. It is a betrayal of immeasurable proportions, and by the city leader no less. It could get someone killed. It could end in war. Just ask the last leader who did such a thing. It’s how Zeus had come to power in the first place. Or at least how Hades had gotten him there.

  P
lacing a hand against his chest, Hecate pushes Hades back and slips between his body and the railing. Looking up at him with those vibrant eyes, she clicks her tongue.

  “We’ll handle this,” she assures him.

  “Do we have a choice?”

  “Well…”

  “Forget I asked.”

  Both of her hands now run up along his front until they reach his tie. She takes hold of it attentively, her eyes fixed on the knot, and her fingers move in that familiar way which always keeps him guessing whether she’s going to straighten it or remove it. She’s certainly done both in equal measure.

  She straightens it this time.

  “We’ll keep an eye out, see what Charon can gather from the informants, but I need you to remember this.” She grasps his chin before he can look away, holding his gaze. “What you’re feeling right now? That worry? It isn’t yours. You keep letting Zeus drop it in your pocket so he can go on playing Fate, and it isn’t fair to you. It isn’t fair to any of us. This city isn’t a board game, Hades. You can’t change the rules every time he fucks up. I know you hate hearing it, but I will tell it to you every chance I get because you deserve better. We all do.”

  Hades inhales as if to retaliate, but the look in her eyes stops him cold. Instead, he nods, pressing his lips to her forehead before glancing over at the casino before them. Of course, her reprimand isn’t new because the pattern isn’t new. He has spent most of his life watching over Zeus, wiping his nose and keeping his hands clean. Hecate, as well as Charon and Thanatos, have warned him against the lack of limitations that come with his fealty to Zeus, but what can he do? He’d promised his mother that he would protect his brothers, take care of them, and while Zeus needs far more support than Poseidon ever has, the point stands. Hades is only trying to keep that promise.

  Hecate seems to read his mind. “Rhea said to look out for your brothers. She never said to kill yourself doing it.”

  She pats his chest now before she reaches into the inner pocket of her suit jacket and extracts a small envelope.

  “But tonight is not for worrying,” she concludes, handing it to him.

  “What is this?” he asks, opening it.

  “Tickets.”

  He looks at her. “Tickets?”

  She gives him a disappointed look. “Ferocity debuts downstairs tonight.” He only blinks. “Ferocity? The Le Cirque des Coeurs show Dionysos has been reminding you about for the past four months? Come on, Hades.”

  “Shit, that’s tonight?” He opens the envelope, inspecting the two cardstock strips. “And - I need tickets to get into my own theatre?”

  “Dio wanted to commemorate the event. And I promised him I would get you there. He’s very excited. He even had his tickets laminated.”

  Hades hisses. “I don’t know if I can-”

  “No, you can. I’ve already told Thana to hold down the fort, and I advised the security team to contact him in case of an emergency because you are not going to stand up here all night screening people. You are coming with me.”

  “Hecate, I—”

  “He really wants you there, Hades. He will be crushed if you break your promise to him. He doesn’t ask you for much, but he asked you for this, didn’t he?”

  And Hecate knows that even if he can deny her every now and again, he’s never been able to deny Dionysos. He’s been raising Dio and Hermes both since they were children, rejected by Zeus and left on their own. There is very little Hades wouldn’t do for those boys, if anything at all. That includes attending events in his own casino that he would much rather avoid.

  “Alright, but let’s go upstairs first,” he huffs, moving around her and snapping his fingers. Cerberus, the large black hound laying beside his desk, immediately comes to his side. “I wanna change.”

  “Of course you do,” she smirks. “From your good black suit to your other good black suit.”

  He matches the expression. “To my best black suit.”

  Dionysos is at the doors of the vast theatre when Hades and Hecate finally make it downstairs. The younger man quickly rushes towards them before he flings himself at his uncle, wrapping his arms around Hades’ middle. It draws enough attention from others that Hades feels a chill run down his spine, but he reminds himself that he is feared, not fearful. This is his casino.

  “Very professional, my big boy,” he chuckles, embracing him nonetheless.

  Dio pulls back, reaching up to pat his uncle’s cheeks. “We did it, Uncle. This is the biggest show in the Aegean, and we brought it here. No one else in the city has a showing!”

  “I am proud of you,” Hades tells him, cupping Dio’s face around his boyish grin. “Are your brothers here?”

  Dio nods fervently. “All of them, and Uncle Poseidon and Aunt Amphi. We brought Heph through the back, so he wouldn’t have to walk up and down the stairs. Ares is with him now, and Hermes is helping backstage.”

  Hades releases him. “Of course he is. And it looks like you’ve certainly filled the house.”

  “Oh, we sold out the first three showings already. Just make sure you sit in your seats, okay? It’s the best seat in the house, even for the acrobatics, so no hiding in the skybox.”

  Hades gives him a pointed look. “Even for the acrobatics?”

  Dio shrugs. “—Yes?”

  “Don’t worry. I’ll handcuff him to the seat if I have to,” Hecate assures him with a wink.

  Hades rolls his eyes. “You have my word.”

  “Oh!” Dio claps his hands. “And do you mind hanging around for a bit after, Uncle? I want to introduce you to our star.”

  “Your star? And who would that be?”

  Dio grins. “You’ll see. She’s gonna be huge, I’m telling you. And she’s going to make you a fortune, but that’s just a bonus really. You have to meet her.”

  “Alright, son, I’ll hang back.” Hades truly can’t endanger his happiness in any way, and he ignores the sight of Hecate’s smug look in the corner of his eye. “Now get in there. We’re right behind you.”

  Dio hugs him once more before turning and leading them all into the theatre, and Hades follows with much more interest than he’d possessed upstairs. He glances around as they enter, and he cannot remember the last time he’d been in this particular room. Despite living right upstairs, he doesn’t come down much at all, certainly not for grandiose engagements such as this. He feels - exposed, especially when he seems to tower above everyone around him. He makes the trek down towards the front rows, his eyes on the back of Hecate’s head, but he feels every single glance and gawk that comes his way. Some of them are simply out of curiosity. Others come from assumption. Either way, he knows they will all be wondering if it was in fact the leader of the Underworld that they had spotted tonight long after the show ends.

  He only exhales once they reach their seats.

  There is still a decent amount of space between them and the stage, and their seats are elevated well enough that he can see the entire expanse of the platform. He greets Athena and his nephews, happy to see them all together, before shaking his youngest brother’s hand and kissing his sister-in-law’s cheek. Of course, the only one missing is Zeus, but Hades knows that even if he weren’t out of town on business, he still wouldn’t be here.

  “It’s good to see you, brother,” Poseidon hisses as Hades settles in between him and Hecate. “Figured you’d be up in the luxury box.”

  “Dio wanted us all up here,” he surrenders with a wry smile, patting Poseidon’s shoulder. “I’m surprised you’re here. You hate coming down to my district.”

  “Hate is a strong word.” Still, he winces. “Atlantis keeps me busy.”

  It goes unspoken. It always does. The truth is that Poseidon keeps his distance from both of his brothers, and not because he doesn’t love them. It’s because he fears for them. He could never handle Zeus’s chaotic recklessness, and he hates to watch Hades break himself over their middle brother’s mistakes again and again. Ever since Rhea passed, he
’d been even more withdrawn, which was to be expected, but that doesn’t make it any easier for Hades. The good thing is he rarely has to worry about Poseidon. He may not be as ruthless as Zeus or as calculating as Hades, but he has something far more valuable working for him. He’s a good man.

  “And you?” Hades addresses Amphitrite now. “How has the seaside been treating you, sister?”

  “Like a queen,” Amphitrite returns with the sweetest smile.

  A good woman for a good man, Hades thinks. “As it should. He better be as well.”

  “Always,” Poseidon scoffs.

  “Yeah? Is answering for her part of that working strategy?”

  Amphitrite grins at them both before slipping her hand into Poseidon’s. Hades smiles too and turns back to the stage just as lights around the theatre begin to dim. Only then does he realize how excited he is to see the show. He’s never seen a circus production before, at least not like the one Dio had tried to illustrate for him when he’d first brought up the idea. It wasn’t simply dancing animals and juggling clowns. Written by Orpheus and directed by Calliope herself, it sounded more like a play, and Dio had really sold it. Not that Hades is at all surprised. It’s what his nephew does. Between running the Market District with Hermes, running Elysium with Hecate, and running his vineyards, Dio is a jack of all trades. Hades may have raised him, but his skills are something his uncle could never take credit for. He was simply made to entertain, to make people happy. The difference is that he never sacrifices parts of himself to do so. Hecate always points it out, saying that Hades might learn a thing or two. Hades wishes he knew how.