My mouth dropped open. “Sorry, did you just ask me to pet the three-headed hell beast that guards the entrance to the underworld?” I knew I was treading in dangerous waters, but I couldn’t help myself.
The goddess narrowed her eyes. “Are you mocking me, Mixed-Blood?”
I waved a hand. “Never mind. Fine. I accept your terms.”
She held out a hand for the amulets. My fingers found the chain of Maisie’s necklace. I looked down at the Hekatian symbols and ran a finger over the moonstone. I slowly raised it to my lips. “I’m sorry, sister.”
I pulled off the necklace. The instant it left my skin, I felt hollow. I knew the tests ahead would be worse, harder to handle emotionally. But the guilt weighing on me then felt like an anvil on my shoulders. I knew it was just a necklace. A stupid hunk of gold and stone, a symbol. The love I had for my sister still existed whether I wore her symbol or not. But I had a real sense that Hekate—for all her might and power—didn’t deserve to own it.
Still, what choice did I have?
I handed it over. The goddess took both necklaces with a smile. I braced myself to watch her put them on, but instead she put it between her teeth and bit down. I wasn’t sure whether to be annoyed or offended she thought I’d give her a fake bauble. Satisfied I hadn’t, she slid them around her neck and looked down to admire them. “Do you really want to do this?”
I knew she wasn’t asking about the exchange. She was asking if I was sure about entering Irkalla. I blew out a big breath. “Yes.”
She looked up, met my eyes. “Once I open the gate, you will proceed through four more. I warn you, your journey will not be easy. Sacrifices larger than these”—she fingered the necklaces—“will be required.”
I raised my chin. “I’m ready.”
She tilted her head. “Are you? We shall see.” With that cryptic remark, she turned. “Sophis, open the portal.”
The owl rose, shook itself. Spittle flew from its beak and where the drops landed they sizzled like acid. It stilled, raised its head, and sang.
The sound wasn’t unpleasant. Sort of a melodic hooting. I frowned at it, wondering what this had to do with opening the gates to Irkalla. But then, just behind Hekate, where the three torches still burned, the air started to shimmer. Instead of turning to watch, the goddess kept her eyes on me. I focused on the opening portal, but I felt her gaze weighing me. What did she see—a heroine or a fool?
Regardless, once the portal had fully opened, she stepped aside and held out a hand. “A word of advice before you go.” I dragged my eyes from the portal to look at her. “Your enemies will know the instant you cross this threshold.”
My stomach clenched. “Asclepius?”
She nodded. “And he’s inviting an unwelcome guest to the party.”
Ice chilled my skin. “Cain?” I whispered. Godsdammit! “Where is Asclepius’s entrance?”
“I can’t tell you that, but Cain will have to go through the same gates you do. You will have to stay on the move or he will catch up with you.”
My heart thumped like a drum of war.
“Remember, Mixed-Blood,” Hekate continued, “if he succeeds in kidnapping Lilith, the dark races are doomed.”
I swallowed hard. “I understand.”
“Gods speed.”
I nodded and blew out a breath. She’d said if I moved fast enough I could stay ahead of Cain. That meant I didn’t have time to panic or to worry. The time had come to grab fate by the throat. “Will it stay open? So we can get back out?”
“Your optimism is charming.” She smiled ruefully. “But, yes, it will remain open until you leave or…” She trailed off, waving a hand.
I appreciated her not vocalizing the “you die.”
“Sophis will guide you to the first gate.”
“Got it. Thanks.” I turned and yelled over my shoulder, “We’re in!”
When I turned back around, Hekate was gone. But before I had a chance to regret not asking her more questions, Sophis zoomed through the portal. I didn’t have time to wait for the others, although I could hear their boots pounding against stone. I didn’t want to chance losing the owl’s trail and get lost in the underworld.“And so it begins,” I breathed. I stepped through the threshold from the mortal realm into the Infernal Lands.
Chapter 32
Passing through the portal into Irkalla felt a lot like jumping from a hot tub into an arctic ocean. Goose bumps exploded on my skin and my teeth chattered. My eyelashes clung together from the frost. I rubbed at my eyes with a shaking hand and tried to keep a visual on Sophis.
The owl flew ahead, a pale blur in the dense gray air. I squinted and saw the silhouette of something large and dark in the distance.
I stumbled forward. The fog created a buffer that insulated me from sound. In fact, the only thing I could hear was my harsh breaths and my boots crunching on the ground. I looked down and realized I wasn’t stepping on rocks but millions of bones. The grisly sight was all the encouragement I needed to pick up the pace.
I broke into a jog. Soon, the fog dispersed and gave way to a riverbank. A black metal bridge spanned the silver waters. The closer I got to the river, the more I felt it tugging at me, like it had its own gravitational force. My eyes teared and a deep sense of melancholy filled me. Each step took a Herculean effort. I realized then where I was: Acheron, the river of woe.
As I pushed myself across the bridge, I noticed a boat bobbing in the water. A bent and gnarled male in tattered gray robes stood on the prow—Charon? He caught me looking and nodded as if to say, I’ve been expecting you. Then he threw back his head and cackled.
Spider legs crawled up my spine. I pulled my eyes from him and focused on reaching the end of the bridge. I had to get away from the river before its depressing energy wore me down.
At the end of the bridge, the bone ground cover started again. On either side of the makeshift pathway, skeletal trees contorted over the path to form an archway of sorts. At the end of this tunnel, the red sky opened up above. And just beyond, the Adamantine Gate loomed like a sentinel.
Based on the myths I’d heard about the infamous gate into the underworld, I’d expected it to be forged from black metal with deadly spikes and perhaps a few bloodstains. However, this towering structure was actually… pretty. Large columns rose high above me and were made from a clear crystal or perhaps diamonds. The light was dull and flat so there was no spectacular prismatic show. Instead, the clear panes of the columns reflected back like mirrors. My face refracted back at me from a million angles.
Sophis landed on top of the gate and screeched. A trio of low growls responded.
Cerberus.
The dog was as large as a grizzly, and its three heads bore three sets of razor-sharp teeth. Six pairs of black eyes promised despair. Three long tongues lolled out of three gaping maws. Its one butt slammed onto a pile of skulls at the base of the gate’s columns.
My mouth went dry. Giguhl had told me once that Cerberus was a bitch—literally and metaphorically. “Good girl,” I said, my voice shaking. She stood and bared her teeth. Hackles stiffened on her back like porcupine quills. Her snake tail rattled ominously. “Easy.”
I moved forward with halting steps. My hands were extended in front of me in what I hoped was a calming gesture. The three muzzles sniffed the air. The beast moved forward for more. Three cold noses dripping with snot snuffled my palms. I held my breath and prayed that the hell beast would find my scent acceptable, but not appetizing.
The heads pulled away with a snort. I braced myself for the mauling I expected. Instead, Cerberus lumbered to the ground and, with a sigh, exposed her belly to me.
My heart slowed to a mildly panicked pace. Hekate wasn’t kidding when she told me I’d have to rub Cerberus’s belly. Only the goddess hadn’t mentioned the three rows of grayish green teats. I threw up a little in my mouth. But Hekate made me promise to do this if I wanted to gain entrance to Irkalla. Plus, I figured the hell beast wouldn’t take too kindly to rejection.
I took a deep breath and knelt next to the dog. Her three faces watched me expectantly and her legs lolled back like a whore at a gangbang. I decided to just suck it up and get the petting over with. As quickly as I could, I ran my hands over Cerberus’s stomach.
Never had I been so close to vomiting as when I touched the cold, clammy teats of the hell beast.
Luckily, the whole thing was over quickly. I wiped my palms on my jeans and stood. The sets of obsidians eyes shot me bitch-please looks at my lackluster petting skills. I crossed my arms. “You want more?” I nodded toward Charon across the way. “Ask Ichabod Crane over there to help you.”
The dog sniffed and padded on its lion’s paws toward the gate. It stood there expectantly, as if to say, Be gone with you.
“That’s it?” I said. “I just walk through?”
The three heads yipped back in the affirmative. I glanced through the columns, trying to see what waited for me on the other side. But I couldn’t see past the reflections from the mirrored surface. From what Valva had told us, just beyond these gates was the Hekatian Fields. The closest thing to allied territory I’d find down in the underworld.
I took a deep breath. Raised my foot to take the first step—
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”
I froze and turned to look over my shoulder. Charon stood right behind me. I hadn’t heard him approach and finding him so close unnerved me. Well, that and the gruesome face peeking out from the folds on his hood. He looked like the love child of Iggy Pop and Marty Feldman, complete with bulging eyes and heroin cheekbones.
I stepped back, careful not to cross the invisible plane created by the columns. “Why?”
“You have to pay the toll.”
I frowned. “Hekate didn’t mention a toll.”
He shrugged and pointed a gnarled finger back across the bridge. Adam, Tristan, and the others all stood on the other side. They were yelling and jumping up and down, but I couldn’t hear them. “Your friends cannot enter unless you pay the toll.”