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“You want to put the mortal in my bedroom?“ The dark-haired stranger spluttered in shock. “Absolutely not. We’ve an entire motel of guest bedrooms for her to stay in.”
“You’d have the mortal sleep with the spiders and the cobwebs? Heavens no!” Misty puffed out her impressive cleavage and fixed Shadow with a stern look. “In case you hadn’t noticed, our guest rooms have seen better days. And you’re the only one around here with a sprung mattress and fitted sheets…”
“But it’s my room. It’s my bed. My sheets.”
“But you’re a ghost! You don’t even sleep! No, no, no. You might be the King around here, but I know best when it comes to hospitality.” Misty clapped her hands, as if the matter was decided, and turned to Zoe warmly. “We’ll get you settled in and shown to your new room, sugar. And don’t let Shadow’s mood dampen your spirits.”
Shadow. So that was the dark-haired stranger’s name. Zoe glanced from his obsidian silk shirt that seemed to flutter in an invisible breeze, to his onyx eyes that radiated with an otherworldly power. And from his glowering look, he certainly didn’t seem thrilled at the prospect of sharing his quarters with her.
“I could find somewhere else to sleep, if it’s a problem…”
Shadow’s eyes narrowed. But as Cerberus barked in admonishment, he groaned in defeat.
“Fine. The mortal can stay in my chambers. But you’re not to touch anything, not to interfere with anything. And under no circumstances are you to take anything from this kingdom.” He fixed Zoe with a cold glare, before he clicked his fingers. “Now come, Cerberus.”
Zoe watched as the giant dog trotted obediently beside his master, and the pair retreated into the shadows. But as they began to disappear into the gloom, she drew a breath, and asked the one question that lingered in her mind.
“If this is your kingdom, then who exactly are you?”
“Isn’t it obvious? I run this establishment.” Shadow kept his back to her, while his voice reverberated through the darkness. “I’m the King of the Underworld.”
Zoe’s chest tightened as realization dawned on her.
“Hades?”
A shiver of fear crept down Zoe’s spine. But despite her alarm, the stranger laughed cooly, and shook his head.
“Relax, mortal. I’m not Hades.” Zoe sighed in relief as the stranger turned and held her gaze. “I’m his grandson.”
A flicker of a smile crept across the man’s lips, before he disappeared into the shadows. Zoe gulped as an empty space remained where he had once stood, and ran a hand through her hair in bewilderment. So much for tonight going as planned. She was lost in a ghost town in the middle of nowhere. And she was about to spend the night in the bed of the King of the Underworld.
5
If there was anything duller than spending the day working in a dreary office cubicle, it was dreaming about doing so. And Zoe knew that better than anyone. For years, her dreams had picked up on where she’d left the office; of filing reports and meeting deadlines; of epic battles with the office printer; of giving presentations to the board, only to find she was wearing nothing but her underwear. But as she slept in the Underworld Motel, she left behind her dreams of work, and, for the first time, dreamed of something quite different. She dreamed of shadows imbued with the essence of frosty winter air. Of dark eyes that burned with an inner power. Of hands that held her for the briefest moment, before she slipped into the darkness, where he awaited…
A series of shrill beeps blasted through the bedroom, pulling Zoe from her dreams. She rubbed her bleary eyes, surprised to find herself in an ornate bedchamber. She glanced at the Gothic baroque wallpaper, and to the elaborate silk sheets of the four-poster bed, until last night’s events drifted back to her. But as the beeps continued to disturb the peace of the room, she pulled her laptop to her in surprise.
“That’s odd. I don’t remember there being Wi-Fi here…” She watched curiously as a tiny flicker of golden light rested on her laptop, its body no bigger than a firefly. “Hey, you’re that creature from last night…”
But Zoe groaned as her laptop continued to beep shrilly, knowing it could only mean one thing. She smoothed out her hair, before she forced a smile and opened the video call.
“Mr. Gravesend?”
An elderly figure with hooded eyes peered through her laptop screen. His suit of muted grays and blacks hung from his skeletal frame, while his skin was paper-thin, sustained only by the blood-red pomegranate juice diet he seemed to survive on. He looked, thought Zoe, like a reanimated skeleton. Only far more terrifying.
“Zoe! Why haven’t I been able to contact you?” The man barked crossly, before he peered closer at the screen. “And where on earth are you?”
“Sorry Mr. Gravesend. You wouldn’t believe me if I told you…” Zoe gulped as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes, and was greeted with the view of a giant bison skull mounted on the wall. “Trust me. And my internet connection isn’t exactly stable around here…”
“And is there a reason why you’re not in Spring Valley?”
“Let’s just say cars and bramble patches don’t mix.” Zoe peered out of the window, to see Spooks juggle parts of her car engine. “And the local mechanic wasn’t much help either…”
“I don’t need your excuses, Zoe. What I need are results!”
“And I’ll get you results, Mr. Gravesend. I’m sure there’s a car rental place near here. Or perhaps I could find a way to reassemble my car…” Zoe forced a smile of confidence, ignoring Mr. Gravesend’s incredulous look. “Leave it with me. By the end of today, the deeds to Spring Valley will be yours!”
“Well, that’s why I was calling, Zoe. The deeds to Spring Valley were sent to me this morning.”
