Night fell, as it always did, and the beast woke. Hunting his prey had not come easy. The city was large, loud, and leading him into dark corners at every turn. But tonight he would find her. The girl, whose blood smelled like warm spice on the wind.
He rose from his spot beneath an old bridge. Cars sped along above, their roar irritating. The sooner he accomplished his duty, the sooner he could leave this vile place.
Navigating such a heavily populated area was easy. Under the veil of night, mortal eyes saw the world in shades of black. Their neon lights did not reveal truth but masked it. Beasts such as he could walk the streets in all their glory, eyes full of malignant longing, and go unnoticed. Still, it would not do to hunt in plain sight. He wanted the element of surprise. To see the shock and fear in her eyes when he pounced from the shadows.
Through side streets and alleyways, he searched for her scent. It was always just out of reach, faded like a memory, but it was still evidence that she was here. Somewhere in this maze of concrete and glass.
It was nearing morning when he found it. Cinnamon and vanilla. The beach was rife with it. Following her trail led him back into the depths of the city, but on its eastern side, where urban melted into rural. There were apartment buildings everywhere, towering above the beast like mighty gods. And still, he knew gods mightier.
The sky was paling, and soon he would not be a beast among many lurking in the night, but a monster lost in the day. He wanted to tear through every building until he found her; until his tongue knew the taste of her blood, but patience always reaped the best reward.
Sunshine spilled over the horizon as the beast stalked through an abandoned lot a few blocks away. Tall grass and weeds overtook the ruins of what was once a small movie theater. He hunkered down in the shade of a broken chunk of concrete and waited.
For the last time. He waited.
. . .
Hades woke to the sounds of idle chatter coming from the living room of Ramona's apartment. Exhaustion lingered behind his eyes, forewarning yet another headache. In all his existence, he'd never felt this way. Tired, pained, empty. Something was growing inside of him, hungry and destructive. If it got any bigger, he was afraid it would swallow him whole.
He rolled out of bed, Ramona's bed, and made quick work of straightening the blankets. He wondered if Ramona had even slept. When they'd gotten back from the beach, she'd taken to the internet to try and contact someone that could help them. She hadn't said more than that, and told Hades to take her bed for the night. She wouldn't need it.
Lingering by the bedroom door, he listened. Ramona was mumbling under her breath, something about who she could and couldn't trust.
"No, not him," said someone else. Danai, perhaps. He couldn't quite remember what she sounded like, but her wild hair and wilder freckles stood out in his mind. "Zeus doesn't care about anyone but himself. Hera might listen to you, though. Didn't your mom meet her once?"
"A long time ago, when she was young," Ramona said. "But Hera has enough on her plate."
"So does everyone else. Besides, this fight won't be isolated. It will bleed into the lives of every god and goddess under the sun. And once they're involved, all of us will be involved. We can't be picky with who we ally."
There was a short sigh. "I know, I just...This is all too much too fast. I still don't understand why Hades came to me. I guess he technically came for my mom, but still."
Hades pushed open the door. "Deirdre wasn't an ordinary siren," he began. Danai grinned brightly and waved. He respectfully nodded in her direction. "But you already know that, right? Deirdre was incredibly powerful, near godlike. It was the reason Persephone took to her all those centuries ago. Seph wanted someone with the power of persuasion on her side when dealing with unruly souls. I had disagreed at first but I was awed by what Deirdre could accomplish just by singing. I saw her soothe the angry, calm the wild, and force the reluctant to concede."
