The Power of Hades (The Hades Trials, #1)

by Eliza Raine

'In my experience, the prettiest men are the best ones to avoid,' I told her. 'Now, what can I get you?'

'No. He swore after his first wife that he would never remarry, but he upset Zeus in a pretty big way recently. And the big man's punishments cut deep.'

'Hades is the Lord of the Dead. He's the most fearsome of all the Olympians, although not the strongest, and his rage would cause any human to see death.

'Harm a single hair on her body and we'll find out once and for all which king is strongest,' hissed a voice, at the same time as my skin felt like it was being covered in ice. A smoky form shimmered into existence beside Zeus and tension literally crackled through the air. Then Zeus slowly began to shrink, the tension easing as his size decreased.

'Right,' I said, flexing my fingers. 'Well, in that case, I would like to take this opportunity to inform you that you are a colossal prick.'

I had no idea what I thought was funny, but the longer I held the boring feather, the more amused I felt.

'I doubt that. He just told me never to talk to him again.' 'Which is angry-man-god-speak for: I'd very much like to have sex with you.'

'People only see smoke,' I said. 'He wasn't always like that,' she answered quietly. Something in my stomach tightened. 'What happened?' I asked, but deep in my gut, I already knew the answer. 'You.'

Did I tell you about the time Dionysus tricked Poseidon into having sex with a tree?'

He loved me. I could see it in his face, hear it in his broken voice, feel it in his electrifying touch. All this time, all those years alone in New York, and someone, somewhere, loved me this much. And I never knew.