His expression remained impassive. So he’d expected this. Perhaps even hoped for it. “If that is what you wish, then we will not stop you.”

It would be so easy to return to my mother. To remain with her and leave the council behind. It would be a good existence void of this pain, and in that moment, I was tempted. So very tempted.

Hera. Hades’s voice whispered to me. Be strong. Do not give up. Remember who you are and what you are capable of. Today is only one day. It is not forever.

I swallowed, the first sign of emotion I’d allowed. Did you fight for me?

I did. As did Demeter.

Will you still be there for me?

A pause, and then, with conviction, Always.

I straightened in my throne, holding my head as high as I could. “I will accept your terms,” I said. “This council matters more to me than you could ever understand, Zeus, and I will not give up on it. We are united for eternity whether or not we all share the same love for one another, and I will not abandon you. Any of you.”

A flicker of disappointment crossed Zeus’s face, but he nodded. “So be it.” With a wave of his hand, my bonds disappeared, and I stood. I may not have had any power in rank, but I was still the most powerful of them all. I was still the daughter of a Titan, and no matter what Zeus did, I always would be.

In that moment, all of my anger crystallized into bitterness and revenge. It was a cold fury now, tucked deep away inside me, waiting for the day I could finally release it once more. And I would. I had made Zeus a promise, and I would keep it.

But as I turned and looked at Hades, he gave me a secret smile, and a sense of calm washed over me. He was my ally. My partner. My friend. I would be there for him every moment of every day. I would prove my loyalty to him as he had proven his to me. I would not lose him.

And he was right. Today wasn’t forever, and neither was a millennium. Time would pass, convictions would fade and soon this moment would be nothing more than a memory. One day, I would set things right. I would be a queen again. And no matter what it took, Hades would be my king.

* * * * *

The Lovestruck Goddess

I like secrets. Daddy’s a walking cliché and says that the eyes are the windows to the soul, but I think the secrets people keep are the real way to see who they are.

See, secrets mean someone wants to keep something hidden, and the things people keep hidden are usually the most interesting parts of who they are. Afraid of the ocean? Totally telling. Six toes? All kinds of brilliant. Lusting after your niece? Majorly creepy.

Here’s a secret—I failed my test.

I’ve never told anyone. Daddy knows—he’s the one who caught me in a compromising position with a shepherd’s son—but he’s never said a word about it, either. Technically all the members of the council who aren’t the original six siblings have to pass this ridiculous trial that tests our virtues, else we can’t be a member of the council, but I think that’s crap. Who wants to be ruled over by a bunch of self-important gods who think they’re better than everyone just because they could bottle up their natural impulses for a little while?

And why are virtues so important anyway? I mean, I get not being greedy or selfish or too proud, but practically every member of the council’s like that anyway, especially the six siblings. And I’ve never seen a more envious group of people in my life. Someone gets something, and suddenly they all hate that person because they got lucky or worked hard or whatever. Why can’t everyone just love everyone else? That’s what a ruler should do. Rule with love, not fear or intimidation. I love Daddy, but he’d have a lot easier time of it if he bothered to care about other people every once in a while.

He loves me though, so I can’t complain too much.

Speaking of love and virtues, why is lust such a bad thing? Everyone acts like doing what our bodies are designed to do is such a horrible thing. Well, no, not everyone. Mostly just Hera. And she’s the root of everything, really—she’s the reason everyone’s so miserable all the time, she’s the reason we keep secrets and she’s the reason I failed my test. Most important, she’s the one who made up these ridiculous virtues we’re all tested on in the first place, as if she’s followed every single one of them herself (hello, pride), and she’s the reason Daddy had to lie to get me a seat on the council.

That takes me to my second secret. My biggest secret. Who is currently trying to force-feed me grapes.

“No!” I bat Ares’s hand away and giggle. We’re curled up in a nest of silk pillows on my bedroom floor, and the sunlight that pours in from the balcony gives everything a golden glow. I love the way the sunset swirls around my feet, but I love the way Ares traces invisible patterns on my back even more.

“You need to keep your energy up,” he says. I brush a lock of dark hair from his eyes. He’s beautiful, muscles rippling underneath every square inch of skin, and he looks at me with such intensity that I think his fire will burn me. I’m not so sure I would mind.

“Mmm, but we don’t have much longer, and I don’t want to waste any more time eating,” I murmur. Every place he touches me seems to sizzle, as if just being near each other is enough to spark a blaze. I’ve never loved someone so much in my life.

No, love isn’t the right word. I mean, it is, but it’s more than that. He consumes me. I’m constantly aware of him when he’s nearby, even when I’m trying to focus on something else, and he has no problem exploiting it. That’s how we wound up in my bedroom in the middle of the day, minutes before Daddy’s supposed to come home.