Hades picked her up and put her in the boat. The rest of us piled in and sat down on the benches. All but Persephone.
Sephy put Princess in the carriage and climbed in to settle on a seat. “I'll wait here.”
“Bye, Mommy!” Deme called.
“Bye, baby!”
“She doesn't like the Lethe,” Hades said. “Gives her the creeps.”
“The Lethe gives the Goddess of the Underworld the creeps?” Re chuckled.
Hades set his fiery stare on Re. “I was talking about Princess.”
I giggled as Re rolled his golden eyes. But then we were gliding across the river, Charon pushing us across with his staff.
“If you can control the water, why do you need to push the boat?” Viper asked.
Charon lifted the staff out and set the base on the boat's floor. “I don't have to, but the ladies dig it. It's become a habit.”
“All right, you do you.” Viper leaned on the boat's edge and peered into the water.
“Don't get too close.” Kirill pulled Viper upright by the back of his shirt.
“Yeah, you're dumb enough as it is,” Re drawled.
“Re!” I got up and moved away from Re to sit between Kirill and Viper. There was plenty of space on the bench. As I said, it was a big boat.
Viper leaned forward to smirk at Re. “Who's dumb now?”
“Both of you.” Kirill stood up. “Pay attention! Ve are here.”
The boat shushed onto the sandy shore, taking us well beyond the water's edge so we could disembark safely. Viper jumped over the side and then reached in to help me out. I stared out across the empty shore to the Gates of the Sun in the distance. The shimmering arches ran in a line between us and Persephone's grove. Past the grove were the shores of Hades, circled six times by the River Styx. Was Hades an island? Maybe a continent. I wasn't sure.
“It's a ghost town.” Viper followed my gaze.
“Normally, yes. But now it's just empty.” Hades joined us, glancing back at Charon, who had put Deme on his shoulders and was running around the beach with her, making horse sounds.
“Oh, yeah. I get it.” Viper chuckled. “Ghost town. Ghosts. Souls. Sure.”
I stepped past everyone, letting my dragon take over my senses. She could see a broader spectrum, smell more intensely, and hear things whispered across a river.
“Shh!” Hades hissed at Charon and Deme.
It went silent. I stretched my senses further, but they weren’t meant for tracking souls. And this wasn't my realm.
I turned to look at Hades. “I can't sense anything. What about you? Don't you feel when a soul arrives?”
“I've learned to dampen the sensation over the years. It was too distracting.” He stepped up beside me. “But I can try.”
Hades closed his eyes.
I stepped back, giving him room. The rest of us watched him solemnly; even Deme didn't make a sound. Hades went tense. His head moved as if tracking something. He started to turn around and then stopped abruptly. His hand lifted. Reached out.
“Son of a bitch!” Hades shouted as his eyes flew open.
Deme shrank back, and Charon picked her up.
“I felt a soul.” Hades spun to look at us. “I felt it approach. It was mine! Mine!”
