Hades' Daughter (Sample)

Chapter 2

A Day in the Life of Hades

When I enter the dining room the next morning, I find my dad already sitting there waiting for me.

"What's for breakfast?" I ask, sliding into one of the many chairs.

"Waffles sound good to you?" he asks, amusement shining in his blue eyes as he looks up from his writing.

"Of course," I respond. He knows I would never turn down waffles.

Curious as to what he's doing, I pull the papers away from him and turn them to me. I look down at them and chuckle. They were all contracts. I push the papers back to him.

He produces his pen that he uses to sign all the contracts, making them unbreakable, as the servants walk in with plates piled high with waffles and a jug full of blood from the souls. Once the jug and waffles are placed in the middle of the table, the servants bow their heads and walk out of the room.

I reach for the jug and pour myself a glass as my dad spears a couple of waffles from the plate in the middle, having signed the contracts.

"So, what do you have planned for today?" he asks, making conversation, as I reach for my own waffles.

"I'm thinking about repainting the message," I joke but quickly amend my statement when I see his furious look. "I actually don't have a lot planned. I was going to start packing, as I've decided that I want to go up to Earth in the next couple of days." I cut a triangle of the waffles topped with cream and chocolate sauce and shove it eagerly into my mouth.

"I'll sort that out when I'm up there today, distributing these. Where do you want to go?" he asks.

There are so many places on Earth that I can go to. I think back to the servant working in the stable.

"Miami, Florida, USA," I tell him. Whenever I visited with my dad, America was my favorite destination.

"Okay, as I'm not here, I need you to go to the Styx Lake and supervise," he requests.

I swallow my mouthful before groaning playfully.

"Ugh. Fine, if I have to. But you have to get me a car and motorbike when I go up," I negotiate.

He ponders it for a moment and then adds onto my clause.

"Yes, but you also have to help at the lake tomorrow."

I grin, extending my hand to him. "Deal, but only if they are both day shifts."

He takes my hand in his and gives it a firm shake.

We finish the rest of our breakfast in silence, and while the plates are being cleared, I go back upstairs to get dressed. I open the door to my room and look around this familiar room that I love. My big comfy bed sits against the wall to the right of the door.

I walk into my walk-in closet and flick the switch. Fire lights up in niches in the closet's walls. I decide to wear all black to look more intimidating, so I walk to one of the many drawers, pick out a pair of black ripped jeans, and throw them onto the cushioned stool behind me.

I walk further into the closet, past another door, hunting down a black vest. Once I find it and my leather jacket, I move to my shoe collection and grab a pair of black boots.

After finding all my clothes, I step out of my closet, turning the fire off as I go, and step into my bathroom. I am instantly met with hundreds of reflections of myself looking back at me from all angles. I move past the sunken bath and put my clothes on the counter next to the sink. I then take my pajamas off as I walk to the shower.