He chuckled. “It wasn’t me.”
That was an odd thing for him to say, but I let it go. It was a happy time. David was here and my Keir was smiling.
Keir was reluctant to let go of his father.
It will be okay, Dash, though it might not seem like it right now.
A knot formed in my gut I was sure wouldn’t go away anytime soon. When Michael said I could hear the thoughts of the living and the dead, he hadn’t included the others. I was stunned at hearing David’s thoughts.
“How long can you stay, Dad?”
“Not long, son. I’m here for a reason.”
Suddenly, David touched my chest and the room began to spin. Sometime later, I opened my eyes and was on a fucking boat, gliding across the river of fire once again.
I sat up, my head still spinning. David was nowhere to be seen, but the small being wearing a black robe operating the rudder was there. It took a minute to clear my head, and then I heard his thoughts.
Nyx isn’t here. I don’t know why you’re here. I was told to bring you to Hades.
The ferryman glanced over his shoulder as though he knew I could hear him.
When we pulled up to the dock on the other side, the ferryman got out of the boat and tied it off. He moved the gangplank and motioned for me to get off.
I stopped in front of him. “Where do I go?”
He pointed toward the street where Brok and Er’on were waiting, and I nodded before turning to him. “Thank you.”
He lifted his hand to wave before he shoved the plank into the boat, untied it from the dock, and jumped aboard before pushing off with a long oar. I turned and took the stairs two at a time until I got to the top where Brok was waiting for me with a huge grin. Er’on hurried over to me and bowed. “The prince is waiting. This way, please.”
I shook Brok’s hand, trying to hear his thoughts about what the fuck was going on. I heard nothing, but he did grin at the confused expression I was sure had appeared on my face.
We walked down the street by a park, stopping in front of what used to be Beelzebub’s favorite pizza place. It was now a Mediterranean restaurant, and the prince himself was holding court.
Across from Beelz, another Brokorol—the real one, maybe? The hellhounds could replicate themselves into as many guards as was needed—nibbled like a chipmunk on the massive lamb shank, while the prince of Hell gnawed on the bone like a rabid jackal having its last meal.
In a measure of time—I had no idea how long because I wasn’t in the Human Realm, and I knew time passed at a different rate downstairs—the Brokorol tossed his napkin on the plate in defeat and the crowd cheered as Beelz stood and held up the huge meatless bone in victory. The personification of gluttony had once again persevered.
After the crowd dispersed, a server brought Beelz a steaming towel and cleared the table in front of him. The opponent, another Brokorol, bowed to the prince of Hell before disappearing just as Er’on brought a chair for me, placing it at Beelz’s right.
I could have done without the demon prince picking his teeth with what looked like a needle-sharp bone, but it gave me a moment to gather my thoughts—and listen to his.
Welcome to my new favorite restaurant, Shish Kabob Grill. Are you in need of sustenance?
I chuckled. “I’m good, thanks. Why am I here? And why can’t I hear Brok’s thoughts?” The Brokorol who escorted me from the dock was standing guard in front of the table with Er’on by his side.
He has no thoughts unless I give them to him, so his head is empty and silent. You’re here for pointers, my friend. Dear Old Dad has mandated that we princes do not join the fight because of his bet with Nyx, but nothing was said about giving our representative some insider information.He continued to pick his teeth before he scooped up the large chalice of wine and downed it, the liquid running out of the corners of his mouth and onto the red and green tracksuit he was wearing.
“You, uh, you got a little something—” I pointed to the front of his tracksuit. “Why are you wearing Christmas colors? That seems odd for a prince of Hell.”
Beelzebub laughed. “I like to keep up with what’s trending upstairs. Besides, Pagans celebrated Yuletide long before Christians co-opted it for their religious celebrations. Contrary to popular beliefs, we’re not only about fire and brimstone. We like to have some fun too, like wiping out entire civilizations. Anyway, my tracksuit is fire. Let’s take a walk.”
Beelz grabbed a red beanie from his back pocket and situated it on his head so it saggedjust sobefore he picked up a walkingstick that had a huge ruby on the end. He waved to the servers in the restaurant, and we were off, walking down the street decorated with a mix of Halloween and Christmas. They were unlike anything I’d ever seen.
“Look, I don’t mean to be disrespectful, but I’ve got questions. Am I dead? Did I just leave a husband and unborn child to come to Hell to cruise the hood?” My voice was sharp because I was pissed, now that the enormity of the situation had landed on me and sunk in.
The giant demon laughed. “Of course not. You’re just on loan for a bit, so we can help you save the Human Realm. I hope you didn’t have your heart set on being at that wedding, though. Oh, here comes my shiny, new brother.”
I glanced behind me, seeing Jay—Prince Jameson—with a hellhound of his own. They stopped in front of us, and Jay embraced me. “Dash, this is Appollin, my guard. Appollo, this is my friend, Dash. He’s the Key to Keir’s Gatekeeper.”
