Elicia's Ice-A Descendants Novel BOOK 1

Dad's Revenge---Though A Little Late.

"A YEAR?" Everyone yells except Maira and Hades. Brit winces. 

"Yes. Maybe more, depending on where Ares went." She brushes a tear from her cheek before it can fall.

"But---there's a way to wake them up, isn't there?" I ask desperately. "There's got to be something."

Brit starts shaking her head before I'm even done talking. "We---"

"CARLOS!" someone yells, then a ball of fur flings it's way into Carlos' arms. Carlos catches Dude in surprise and then laughs at Dude's desperate attempts to lick every inch of exposed skin.

"Hey, Dude!" Carlos says. "Where were you?"

"Where were you?" Dude demands, hopping back down. "I was runnin' around Auradon, being annoying to all those ruffians, and I couldn't find you guys anywhere! All I could find was the seafood girl!"

Brit's mouth twitches. "I love this dog."

Hades looks at Dude with interest. "Why does he talk?"

"Oh, because---" Evie starts, but Carlos' eyes widen behind Hades and he waves his hands in alarm. 

"Um, because..." Evie trails off. 

"Because I ate the truth gummy that Carlos wanted to use to ask Ellie out!" Dude says proudly.

Everyone stares at him, except Carlos, who groans and puts his face in his hands. 

"When was this?" Hades asks. Suddenly my mother appears in a flurry of snowflakes and brushes her hair aside. 

"Am I too late? I only just heard about---" she goes dead silent, her eyes bulging from her head when she sees Hades. "Hade?" she squeaks. 

My dad flushes blue. Weird. "Elsa. Erm. Hello?"

Everyone starts to back away as silently as possible. But I want to see my mom's reaction when she realize I had to get two strangers to tell me who my father was. 

She sees me and her eyes pop out more. "Ellie!"

"Hi."

"Uh, I'm gonna..." Carlos tears down the lawn away from me and my parents. Traitor. 

"So..." Hades runs a hand through his hair. "I didn't expect this... to happen now."

Mom glances at him, some of the pop-eye fading. "How'd you get here?"

"Lissa found me when she went to Scotland to get Merida. She already knew then."

"Mahina and Kalia told me." I break in, crossing my arms over my chest, not bothering to soften my anger at her. She winces and laces her pale fingers together. 

"Ellie, I..."

"No excuses. Why would you not tell me who my father was?" I demand. "You said he was dead!"

Hades coughs. "Can't really deny that one, since I'm the god of, you know..."

"Yes, but you're not dead, are you?" I snap. 

His gaze turns skyward for a moment. "Point taken."

"See?"

"Elsa, I do believe she gets this snappish tone from you."

My mom's eyebrows jump up and she puts a hand on her hip. "Excuse me? Who's the one who spends all his free time conversing with dead people?"

"Says the girl who grew up alone in her room wearing gloves."

"I had an excuse!"

"So do I."

"Yours is a job. Mine is a curse!"