The Underworld Crown (Series)

Chapter 8

"The entertainment she wants to provide will be my death," I muttered.

Hades was silent, but from the glint in his eyes, I knew he was imagining Cleo succeeding in her mission.

It wasn't long before the second city arrived. Unlike the representatives from Greed, the goddess and demigods from Sloth City presented a less-than-unified front. Each person seemed to have their own carriage, making the precession line a long one. The Goddess Aergia led the precession, but she was followed immediately by her first-hand servant, Raven. The person I'd betrayed in escaping from Aergia's castle.

A conversation I'd had with Raven brushed my mind.

"Why isn't Aergia on good terms with her children?" I asked lightly, playing with the material of the bed sheets while watching Raven out of the corner of my eyes.

"They had a difference of opinion on how to rule the city," she answered. "Artemis led the so-called rebellion – she wanted to succeed Aergia as ruler of Sloth City. But as soon as she suggested the idea, all of her siblings demanded the same thing for themselves."

"So, she just ostracised all of them from the castle?"

Raven nodded in reply.

I stood tall as they approached, my anxiety and guilt tugging at me.

Aergia didn't bother hiding her distaste as she caught my gaze and scowled. The dark set of her eyes told me she wasn't too excited about being here, or potentially having to undergo a family reunion. Behind her, Raven dipped her head demurely as if something on the ground had caught her attention, but I could see the tight set of her lips. She was on edge too, possibly wondering if Aergia was about to do or say something out of line. But as Aergia approached, I realised she was hardly saying anything at all. Her lips were pursed as she strode up the stairs, each step making the slit in her floor-length gown part to reveal her legs. Aergia paused for a brief introduction to Hades and Persephone, hardly even glancing my way.

"Allow me to present my children–Artemis, Amar, Anthony and Ariane," she said, rushing over the introductions.

One by one, they each exited their carriages and came to stand before us, keeping a safe distance from Aergia. I couldn't take my gaze off Artemis as she trailed up the stairs, looking considerably more like a kicked puppy than the last time I'd seen her. In her club empire in Sloth City, Artemis had been the picture of intimidation with her sharp features and broad gait. Now, her eyes flickered back and forth between Hades and Aergia, very much aware of her mother's higher standing. Finally, her calculated gaze landed on me, and she gave me a nod in greeting. I swallowed the lump in my throat and nodded back. If I played my cards right, perhaps I wouldn't make an enemy out of everyone.

Unlike Artemis' slick, straight hair, her siblings appeared to inherit their mother's curls.

Ariane, appearing to be the shortest and youngest of the group, tucked a long curl behind her shoulder. Her heart-shaped face framed a large set of doe eyes and small lips, giving her the appearance of a child. When she directed her gaze at me, however, she shot me a look so cold and calculating that I knew she was anything but.

Behind her, a man with wild and untamed curls, giving his hair a full, bushy shape, introduced himself as Amar. From the way he acted, Amar appeared to the most vivacious out of them all. He stood the tallest but also made the point of bowing the deepest of the four. When we made eye contact, his dark eyes sent a coolness running through my body. A strange calm took over me. It was only then I realised I had been fisting my hands and loosed them at my sides.

Finally, the last demigod who I presumed to be Anthony, had a more closed off approach and preferred to stand at the outer edge of the introductions. His hair was shorter and pushed back into a ponytail only long enough to graze his neck. Unlike the others, however, he refused to look at me and instead focused his unseeing gaze on the floor between us.