Suddenly, Dionysus realized Hades wasn’t trying to insult his instincts.
“Motherfucker,” he muttered.
“They have wasted no time wreaking havoc,” said Hades, grimacing. “And the night isn’t over yet.”
“I thought they only stole children,” Dionysus said.
“Apparently not,” he said. “Though perhaps we should be grateful they have only taken trinkets.”
That was true. He would rather one minor inconvenience over the terror of losing Acamus. Still, he wanted his fucking ring back.
“Does Hecate know if they keep the things they steal?” Dionysus asked.
Hades stared at the god. “You think they have a horde of some kind?”
“Why else are they stealing things?”
“They are mischief spirits. It is in their nature.” Hades paused and then added, “Little bastards.”
Just then, they heard a metallic thump followed by the strained mewl of a cat.
Dionysus and Hades exchanged a look before Dionysus crept along the sidewalk and peered down the nearest alleyway. From where he stood, he could see two pairs of glowing eyes. One set was green, the other red.
Dionysus’s brows lowered as he realized what he was witnessing. A Kallikantzaros riding a cat as though it were a horse. The gremlin itself looked as though it had been rummaging through the trash and was decked out in Christmas scraps, wearing tinsel garland like a scarf.
“What the fuck,” Dionysus muttered. Then several things seemed to happen at once. Hades manifested in the alleyway and snatched the strange duo. The cat and gremlin screeched so loud, Dionysus thought his ears were bleeding.
“Ouch! Motherfucker!” Hades bellowed and dropped the cat who bolted down the alleyway with the Kallikantzaros.
Dionysus attempted to block the creatures from exiting, but they slipped between his legs and darted into the night.
He whirled and followed.
“You know, you could have just snatched the Kallikantzaros not the fucking cat,” said Dionysus as Hades caught up with him, boots pounding the crisp pavement as they went.
“Then you come up with a plan,” Hades snapped. Dionysus focused on the creature as it bounced atop the fluffy, white cat, his gaze shifting to the street name which was highlighted in reflective green on the stoplight.
“We’ll herd them toward Hephaestus’s net,” said Dionysus. “Once they’re trapped, we can force the Kallikantzaros to tell us where they’re keeping their treasure.”
He glanced at Hades in time to see him nod, and then the God of the Underworld vanished, appearing opposite the cat and Kallikantzaros so that they would make a right.
They continued chasing, forcing them in the direction of Hephaestus’s net, knowing they were near when they turned onto the darkened street and found it littered with sweet treats.
Dionysus just hoped the trap hadn’t already been tripped.
“Head them off,” Hades instructed.
Dionysus teleported, racing toward the duo from the front. A second later, he crashed into something hard and fell back.
He knew instantly that he’d run right into Hades.
“Motherfucker! Are you made of lead?” he groaned as he sat up, facing Hades who had also fallen to the ground.
A second later, Dionysus felt something heavy blanket him. He tried to lift his arms and throw it off but found he couldn’t move.
That was when he realized they hadn’t trapped the cat or the gremlin.
They’d trapped themselves beneath Hephaestus’s net.
