were both too deflated to discuss what’d happened. Not
only had we possibly blown our one chance at escape but
Taylah had paid the price for it.
I tossed and turned after Tucker left. Soon my pil ow was
damp with tears as I recal ed the sound of the hel hounds
tearing at my friend before dragging her into the abyss. To
make matters worse, we’d been so close to home. Gabriel
had been just on the other side of the portal and I could stil
remember the feel of Phantom’s spongy nose in my hand.
Maybe I should have cal ed out—maybe Gabe could have
done something. But there was no use wondering about
what might have been. The words I’d heard from the
charismatic presenter in the boardroom kept replaying over
and over in my head:
People have never been more in
doubt of their faith
. I cried harder then and not just for
Taylah. I wept because I knew it was true. Humanity had
never been more vulnerable and there wasn’t a thing I could
do about it from down here. Final y my tears dried up and I
fel into a deep and dreamless sleep.
I woke to the sound of urgent whispering. I blinked
groggily, refusing to believe it could be morning already. It
seemed like only minutes ago that my head had hit the
pil ow. Hanna’s wide brown eyes came slowly into focus.
She was peering at me in her usual fretful manner and
shaking my shoulder to rouse me. Hanna’s honey-colored
hair had been wound into a loose bun at the nape of her
neck, but I noticed that a few strands had escaped and
fal en loose. They shone like threads of gold in the
lamplight. Hanna could hardly be cal ed optimistic, but
somehow her presence always had a positive effect on me.
Her affection was genuine and amid al the darkness
surrounding me I knew her loyalty was something I could
rely on. I sat up and tried to look more alert than I felt.
“You must get up, miss!” Hanna said, trying to tug back
the covers. I resisted her efforts, pul ing the duvet up around
my shoulders. “Mr. Thorn is waiting for you downstairs. He
wants you to get ready for an important outing.”
“I’m not interested in any of his outings,” I grumbled. “You
can tel him I’m not going anywhere. Say I’m sick or
something.” Hanna shook her head vigorously.
“He was very explicit, miss. He even gave instructions as
to what you should wear.”
Hanna lifted a shiny, flat white box sitting on the floor
beside the bed and placed it on my lap. I tore off the gold
bow and waded impatiently through the layers of tissue
paper before lifting out a garment unlike any I had hanging
in my closet. Hanna gasped in admiration when she saw it.
It was a vivid cherry-colored gown made of the softest
crushed velvet. With its dramatic bel sleeves and brocade
armbands, it was something you might imagine the Lady of
Shalott wearing. With it came a delicate belt made of rings
of beaten brass.
“It’s beautiful,” breathed Hanna, momentarily forgetting
where it had come from. I wasn’t so easily seduced.
“What’s Jake up to now?”
“It’s for the parade,” Hanna said. She dropped her gaze
and I had the distinct feeling she was holding out on me. I
folded my arms and gave her a questioning look.
“The prince wishes to present you to the people today,”
she final y revealed.
“What people?” I rol ed my eyes. “This isn’t some
medieval kingdom.”
“
His
people,” Hanna explained quietly.
“Why didn’t you tel me about this before?”
“Because I knew you would get upset. This is an
important event; you cannot refuse.”
I hunkered down determinedly under the covers. “We’l
see about that.”
“Don’t be foolish, miss.” Hanna leaned toward me
earnestly.
“If you don’t go wil ingly he wil drag you there himself.
Today means a lot to him.”
I looked at Hanna and saw how fearful she was of Jake’s
wishes being defied. She’d be horrified if she knew about
the trip to the Wasteland. As always it made me wonder
what the consequence of my noncompliance might be. No
doubt Hanna would be held accountable. My resolve
faltered and I threw off the covers, climbed out of bed, and
dragged myself into the shower. When I emerged, I saw
that Hanna had made up the bed and careful y laid out the
gown along with the black satin shoes that went with it.
“He doesn’t real y expect me to wear that?” I asked. “It’s
not a costume party, is it?”
Hanna ignored me. Her eyes were stil darting nervously
toward the door as she hastily helped me into the dress
and hooked it up at the back. Despite being made of velvet
it felt as delicate and weightless as a second skin. Hanna
made me sit while she tugged at my hair to create
elaborate side braids, deftly weaving satin ribbons through
them, before lightly dusting powder on my face and
midnight blue eye shadow on my lids.
“I look ridiculous,” I said irritably, examining myself in the
cheval mirror.
“Nonsense,” Hanna replied briskly. “You look like a
queen.” I didn’t want to leave my hotel suite to participate in
what promised to be another one of Jake’s garish events.
My room was the only place where I felt halfway comfortable
and secure, but a jittery Hanna took me by the arm and
ushered me out the door.
In the lobby there was a smal party waiting for us, most
of whom I recognized from the night of the banquet. When I
stepped out of the glass elevator, the cluster of people
waiting fel suddenly silent as they examined me. I looked
around for Tucker but couldn’t find him. Jake, who had been
pacing agitatedly up and down the lobby, came toward me
looking relieved and approving at the same time. He shot
Hanna a vicious look, no doubt blaming her for our delayed
arrival.
Jake took my hands and held them up in order to take in
my appearance. A smile of appreciation lightened the usual
surliness of his face.
“Perfect,” he murmured. I made no move to acknowledge
his compliment. Jake himself was dressed so formal y in
his gloves and tailcoat he could have belonged to an
eighteenth century portrait. His hair was immaculately tied
back and his coal black eyes were alight.
“No biker jacket today?” I asked drily.
“We must choose our fashion to match the occasion,” he
replied amicably. He was relaxed again now that I’d made
my appearance. “You forget how much of the world I’ve
seen. I can pick and choose my fashion choices from the
last two thousand years, but I find anything preceding the
last century to be a little dated.”
I spotted Asia in the lobby throwing me toxic looks. She
was wearing a slinky copper gown with a plunging neckline
and slits that reached the tops of her toned thighs. Her
pearly lips shone like mirrors as she sidled up to Jake
wearing a sulky pout.
“It’s time we got going,” she said. “You ready, Princess?”
I knew she wouldn’t rat us out to Jake for fear of exposing
herself, but it stil made my skin prickle uncomfortably when
she addressed me directly.
A pink convertible limo was waiting for us outside. The
driver got out and robotical y opened the doors for us.
When we were seated, Jake said something to him in a
language I didn’t understand and he started the engine.
We drove until we came out onto an open road. It was the
first time Jake had voluntarily let me venture outside the
underground tunnels. At first al I saw was a scarlet sky, lit
by ferocious reams of fire. A seething mass crawled across
it, marring the horizon. It seemed almost alive, twitching and
writhing, until I realized it wasn’t a shadow like I thought, but
a swarm of locusts. I’d never seen anything like it before.
We drove as if in slow motion, steam rising from the
pavement. After what seemed an eternity the car final y
turned onto a road, flanked by the charred ruins of various
vehicles. It was a desolate landscape that cal ed to mind
the setting of a sci-fi movie, where the hero finds himself
forced to survive the aftermath of a nuclear war.
I couldn’t say for certain where we were. Other than my
brief and botched excursion into the Wasteland, I had never
been beyond the tunnels. I was puzzling over our location
when through the haze I started to make out bedraggled
figures lining the road. Then I saw the crowd—hundreds,
thousands of them—waiting for us, enveloped in smoke
and ash. A sea of faces turned expectantly toward us,
searching for something. They stared with vacant eyes and
waited. What were they waiting for, I wondered. Some kind
of sign or signal, but of what? I noticed they must have been
wearing the exact same clothes they’d died in. Some wore
hospital gowns or shirts smattered with blood and dirt.
Others were wel dressed in business suits or evening
gowns, but they al shared that withered, vacant look of the
walking dead.
Within seconds the crowd came to life and began jostling
one another for a better vantage point. Their sunken eyes
watched me with a burning curiosity. As if in response to an
unseen cue, they began cheering and clapping, reaching
out to us with skeletal limbs. I shrank back in fear, for once
thankful that Jake was with me. Though I resented him and
knew this hideous parade was his doing, I found myself
drawing closer to him. Ironical y, he was the closest thing I
had to a security blanket in this place and right then his
presence was the only thing keeping me sane.
As the limo crawled along the road the crowd swarmed
around it. I had no idea where we were headed or what
event these souls had gathered to witness, but I did know
that Jake was parading me through the streets like some
kind of trophy. I knew I represented a triumph over the
forces of Heaven. My capture was a coup for Jake and I
could see in his face that he was enjoying every moment.
Suddenly Jake was on his feet in the limo, pul ing me up
to join him. I tried to wrestle free, but his grip was so tight
that when he took his hands away he left two red welts
behind. The crowd seemed to go wild now, clambering
over one another to scramble onto the hoods of cars or
hang out of the charred windows.
“You should wave,” Jake said. “Get some practice in.”
“At least tel me where you’re taking me?” I said.
Jake gave me one of his trademark looks, half smile and
half sneer. “And spoil the surprise?”
The driver made a left off the main road and pul ed up in
front of what appeared to be a junkyard with pylons of
twisted metal. An area had been cleared to erect a
makeshift stage complete with microphones and speakers.
Jake’s bodyguards, wired so they could communicate with
one another, patroled the area. Jake offered me his arm
and I was so overwhelmed by the commotion happening
around me that I actual y took it. He looked smug but I was
too nervous to care. Together we climbed the red-carpeted
steps as if we were A-listers at some Hol ywood party.
Waiting for us onstage beneath a canopy of twisted black
roses were two silver thrones, draped with black mink.
Perhaps in a different setting they might have been striking,
but today they seemed like dead weights, iron manacles
binding me to this subterranean world. I wasn’t feeling too
steady on my feet so when Jake escorted me to my seat,
with a great show of gal antry, I sank into it with relief. A
hush now fel over the amorphous crowd as they waited for
Jake’s address. Even the bats I’d seen flying soundlessly
overhead stopped mid-flight.
“Welcome, everyone,” Jake began. He didn’t seem to
need a microphone. His powerful voice reverberated
through the crowd. “Today marks a momentous occasion,
not only for me but for the entire kingdom of Hades.”
The cheering rose in volume and only died down once
Jake raised his hands to cal for silence. Below us I noticed
the elite of Hades seated in order of rank. Each wore the
same condescending and somewhat sadistic expression
but at the same time managed to be utterly mesmerizing.
The souls seemed terrified and yet unable to tear their
gazes away. I felt a burning hot wind against my cheeks