Аполлион

“I do.” Luke flashed a grin. “Stull Cemetery is a freaky place with a lot of unexplained things happening, just like other places labeled ‘gates to hell’. I think that the gates to hell are actually gates to the Underworld.”

“You’re correct.” A ball of golden light appeared above Apollo’s hand and he started tossing it up in the air, over and over, reminding me of Seth. “The gateway was actually inside a church there, but Hades came through one night on Halloween and everyone thought the idiot was the devil. Kind of blew our cover—we tore the church down.”

“Nice,” I said, watching the ball. He was inches from smacking it into the light fixture.

“But the gateway is still where the church stood.” Up went the ball of golden light. “And we’ve taken some precautions, after a few mortals accidentally stumbled upon it.”

My brows rose.

“So, what happens to mortals when they find one of the gates?” Aiden asked.

Apollo caught the ball of light. “Oh, you know. They tend to become one of Hades’ dogs’ chew toys. Anyway, the gates only show now to someone of godly descent.”

“Pures?” Marcus asked.

“Ah… no.” The ball vanished and Apollo looked straight at me. “They’ll appear to gods, original demigods, those created by taking ambrosia, or the Apollyon.”

I elbowed Aiden. “I feel so special.”

“That you are.” He grinned when I shot him a look. “So, we find the gate and go through it. Sounds easy.”

Apollo laughed. “It’s not that easy. The gate is guarded now, even to those it appears to.”

My stomach sank. “Do I even want to know?”

He flashed a smile, and my tummy hit my toes. I so did not like when Apollo smiled like that. “There are hellhounds and guards.”

“Oh, goodie.”

“And then there are spirits—most don’t get past the spirits.” Apollo stepped back. “But if you do, the gate appears and you’re in the Underworld, but going into the Underworld without a guide is not only dangerous, but stupid.”

So I needed to play with some dogs, beat up a company of guards, andcall the Ghostbusters? And I needed a guide? Okay. This didn’t sound too bad.

I smiled. “I know just the person.”

CHAPTER 18

“Caleb,” Olivia whispered, speaking for the first time. When I nodded, she shot to her feet. “I want to go.”

Apollo arched a brow. “Two people sneaking into the Underworld trying to find one soul among millions is insane and dangerous. No one else can go.”

Olivia turned her wide, pleading eyes on me. “I have to go then. It has to be me. I need to—”

“And that’s why it cannot be you,” Apollo said before I could respond. “You will be focused on finding Caleb instead of the mission at hand.”

Her hands curled into fists at her side. “How is that any different than Aiden? He’ll be focused on Alex!”

I slid the person in question a look, but Aiden had the same expression that Apollo did. There might be a lot of tears and pleading, but there would be no debate.

“And that’s what we need,” Apollo said, almost gently. For a moment, I was almost convinced that he pitied her. Not in a bad way, but like he could sympathize with her, which would be amazing since gods were really lacking in the empathy department. “There’s no guarantee that they will even find Caleb, but either way, we need Alex to come back out of the Underworld with the information we need. Alive.”

Some of the other gods probably didn’t feel that way.

Apollo’s gaze settled on Aiden again. “You would give your life for her?”

I didn’t like that question at all and I opened my mouth, but Aiden answered without hesitation. “Yes.”

The god nodded. “I know you would too, Marcus, but Aiden would…”

Marcus looked less-than-pleased but nodded. “I know what you mean.”

A bitter taste crawled up my throat as my heart turned over heavily. Going into the Underworld would be insanely dangerous, and the idea of Aiden risking his life scared the crap out of me, but as my gaze fell over the room, I knew that out of everyone there he was the most skilled.

Realizing that she wouldn’t be able to change anyone’s mind, Olivia said nothing as she walked out of the room, head high. Sorrow panged in my chest, as potent as the fear. It wasn’t fair. I wished that Caleb and Olivia could have had one more moment together before all their future moments were stolen from them.

After Olivia’s exit, plans were quickly made for our departure. The group would stay behind, as was safest for them, and Aiden and I would leave in the morning for… Kansas. Other than an apparent Underworld gate, I had no idea what was in Kansas. Hay bales? Dorothy?

“There’s something else,” I said to Apollo after the group scattered. Aiden remained behind, closing the door, seeming to know what I intended to tell Apollo.

“I can’t wait to hear,” Apollo said dryly.

I took a deep breath. “I saw Seth yesterday.”

Apollo’s brows slammed down as he opened his mouth, but no words came out. Maybe I should have clarified. “What I mean is,” I said quickly, “kind of.”

“Kind of?”