I reached for the handle, but Janine stopped me with an uncharacteristic touch. “Boss? I’m sorry about the changes. I didn’t know what else to do. There’s just so many of ’em.”
“No apology needed. You did what I asked you to do. What Itrustyou to do.”
She gave a little sniff, the only indication that my words affected her. “All right, well, if that’s everything, I have work to do.”
I winked at her. “Best get to it.”
“Yeah, my boss is a real pain in the drain.” Her laughter chased her down the hallway as she tossed me a finger wave over her shoulder. “Make sure to say bye before you go.”
“Why? So you know when you can slack off?” I called after her.
“So I can release the strippers. A whole truckload of them just came in from Vegas. I’m considering putting in a theater just so they have somewhere to use their skills.”
The sad part was, I couldn’t tell whether or not she was joking.
With a shake of my head, I turned my attention back to the matter at hand. I hadn’t interrogated a soul in a long time. I had people who did that sort of thing for me now, but every once in a while, I found cause to dust the old skill set off.
“It’s just like riding a bike,” I told myself as I opened the door and stepped inside what could only be the French countryside.
I found him sitting under the shade of a tree. He didn’t hear me approach, which was common for the newly dead. They weren’t aware of much aside from their inner turmoil as they processed their demise. Especially if it was sudden or traumatic.
Settling in the grass next to him, I stared out at the gently flowing creek as it glistened in the perpetual late afternoon sun.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” I asked, never looking away from the water.
“Oui.”
“It’s designed to set you at ease. This realm. It adjusts to fit your memories, recreating your favorite place.”
The man finally looked at me, brows furrowed as he assessed me. “I’m sorry, but who are you?”
“My name is Hades, and this is my world. Well, yours now too.”
Eyes widening, he scooted away as if he might try to run from me.
“Easy, I’m not going to hurt you.”
“Then why are you here?” he asked, still giving me a wide berth.
“The manner of your death left me with more than a few questions.”
He huffed out a laugh. “You and me both.”
“Yeah, I imagine so. What’d you do to piss Famine off?”
Shaking his head, he glanced down at the grass between his bent knees and began plucking at the blades. “I have no clue. One moment I was making myself a coffee, the next she had overtaken me and made me a prisoner in my own body.”
She.Well, that was one question answered.
“What did she want with you?”
“I think it was proximity. She wanted access to my master and his friends.”
“And who was he?”
“Monsieur Laurent. He wasn’t who I thought he was, though I only know that thanks to her. He was like her. A horseman. They all were.”
A frisson of excitement raced down my spine, causing me to straighten and turn toward him. I’d come to the underworld tofind the horsemen, but what were the odds information about them would fall so easily into my lap?
