Page 84 of Queen of Tempests and Sin

‘Cordelia is fine,’ he said too quickly.

My hackles rose instantly. ‘What do you mean, fine?’

‘Well, she, Persephone, and Bronte went on some sort of mission. But she’s safe. She’s with Persephone now. Everything is fine.’

That word again. Fine. My temper flared. ‘She is not supposed to leave your wards! Ixion is still out there, Hades. Do you have any idea what could’ve happened?’

Hades arched a brow, shadows curling lazily at his feet. ‘Stop behaving like an overbearing mother, Poseidon. As I said, she’s back. Safely.’

I dragged both hands through my hair, fury and fear twisting tight in my chest until I could barely breathe. ‘She is not supposed to leave this sanctuary.’ My blood boiled, hot and poisonous, coiling like a noxious weed in my veins.

‘Don’t blow a gasket,’ Hades drawled, infuriatingly calm. ‘I can’t control Persephone, nor would I try. Maybe you could learn something from that. Let women have their own minds, or you’ll strangle what you’re trying to hold onto.’ His gaze sharpened, cutting through me. ‘And when Bronte’s involved? Well, you know as well as I do… all hell breaks loose.’

He shrugged, casual as drifting ash, as if he hadn’t just planted the knife and twisted it.

My fists clenched, power coiling hot and violent. The air thickened with salt and storm, the promise of a deluge trembling in the stillness. One more word—just one—and I’d bring the entire palace down around us.

‘Careful, brother.’ Hades’ tone cut through my rage, low and edged with steel. The shadows at his feet stirred, answering him like an army. ‘Lose your temper here, and it won’t be the walls that crumble, it’ll be her. Cordelia will not bow to chains. She is as headstrong as she is fierce, and if you press too hard, you’ll break the very thing you’re desperate to keep.’

I ground my teeth, fighting the instinct to unleash the sea itself, but he was right, damn him.

Hades leaned forward, gaze hard as stone. ‘You love her, don’t you?’ My silence was his answer, and he carried on unbidden. ‘Then don’t smother her. Don’t cage her. Because if you do… you will lose her. And when that day comes, Poseidon, you’ll rue it more than any battle you’ve ever fought.’

His words hung between us like smoke, bitter and undeniable. The storm inside me raged against the truth, but in the hollow of my chest, I felt the cold sting of it.

I forced a breath past clenched teeth, dragging the storm back inside me, wave by wave. Hades’ words lingered, sharp as coral lodged beneath the skin. I hated him for being right. I hated myself more for needing the reminder.

Cordelia was alive. Safe. That was what mattered.

I dropped heavily into the chair opposite him, the fight bleeding out of me, leaving only the ache of restraint. ‘You’re infuriating when you start sounding wise,’ I muttered.

Hades’ mouth curved, humourless. ‘One of us has to be.’

I scrubbed a hand through my hair, forcing myself back to the reason I’d come. ‘That’s not the only reason I returned from Genesion. I came because the rumours are true. There’s an auction coming, and it isn’t just trinkets or curiosities. They’re selling the last remaining dragon’s teeth of the Spartoi.’

The shadows at Hades’ feet stirred in warning. His expression didn’t change, but I saw the flicker of unease.

‘Theseus and Guinn have been trawling the dark web for scraps. Whoever’s behind this is damn clever… hiding their tracks, burying their chatter. But no matter how deep they bury it, they keep finding pieces. The auction’s coming.’

Hades leaned back in his chair, eyes hard as obsidian. ‘Then it will be soon.’

‘Yes,’ I confirmed, my jaw tight. ‘And we can’t let the Ixion bastards get there first.’

‘Then we’d better make damn sure we’re the ones who claim the teeth. If Ixion get hold of them, they won’t just have mercenaries at their back, they’ll have an army of the dead. Spartoi don’t stop, don’t break… and once they’re unleashed, not even Olympus will be safe.’

The silence between us was heavy as stone, the weight of what was coming pressing down.

‘We’ll need Zeus,’ he said.

My lips pressed into a thin line. I hated when he was right. Again.

CHAPTER 29

CORDELIA

Sephy had healed my hand, we’d demolished a feast of avocado and sweet potato tacos with Mediterranean falafel and hummus, and I’d showered before wriggling into my comfiest lounge wear, thoroughly done with the world.

Guinn was off with Theseus, and I’d made it very clear I was not to be disturbed—because my bed, a glass of wine, and a swoony romance novel wait for no man.