skin, that was when she closed her eyes and tilted her head back. Regret that she’d left a place like this behind, that was evident when she clutched her fingers at her waist. Hope that she could come back here whenever she wanted, that was when she opened her eyes wide and met his gaze.
“Happy?” he asked.
“I didn’t know it was like this.”
No one ever did. Everyone thought the Underworld was the gloomy darkness of the in-between place, where they made the mortals wait as long as they needed to. But the afterlife?
This was the place mortals desired to go.
Hades held his arm out for her to take. “No one ever does.”
“Why is it so...” She clearly struggled for the words. Eventually, she gave up trying to describe this place. She just threw up her hand, then rested it on his forearm.
“The afterlife isn’t a punishment for most people,” he replied. “Would you like to meet the judges? Since you were so interested in good or bad earlier today.”
“Judges?” she asked. Curiosity lifted her voice into a high-pitched squeak. “So there are people here who decide where the mortal souls go? And it isn’t you?”
Hades was so excited to show her this part. She was going to love it, he knew that deep in his gut. “Ah, goddess. The mortals who live here are born from the soil of the earth, not from the gods. Who am I to judge them when I have never lived as they live?”
He waited for her to respond, holding his breath. What would she think of this? Would she understand what he was trying to tell her? Or would she, like all the other gods and goddesses, try to think up any other possibility?
Kore blinked up at him a few times, frowned, and then very slowly asked, “Are the mortals judged by other mortals?”
He grinned. “Precisely.”
She floundered for words before all the questions came racing out of her. “Why would you let mortals judge the other's lives? Who are they? How did you decide which mortals would make the best judges? How do they weigh their souls?”
There were too many questions for him to answer. Laughing, Hades lifted his hands to force her to stop. “Their names are Rhadamanthus, Minos, and Aeacus. They were all mortal kings, and half sons of Zeus. They come from both worlds, but were good men in their time. They have accepted the position of judge, and they look at each choice in the mortal life and what happened because of it. There are many things they weigh, but mostly they just make sure that the impact of the mortal life was good or bad.”
Kore touched a finger to her chin, tapping a few times before she finally asked, “Can I meet these men?”
Exactly what he’d hoped she would say. “Yes, my queen. You can meet them.”
Together, they strode through the golden afterlife and for the first time since he’d taken this position, Hades felt like he wasn’t alone in the Underworld.
Chapter 22
For the next few weeks, Kore woke up every morning with Hades knocking on her door. Sometimes it made her feel guilty knowing that she was taking him away from his work. But Hades assured her this was more important than whatever paperwork awaited him.
Besides, Hecate could do the paperwork. Apparently.
At least Kore got to explore. And Hades seemed to enjoy these stolen moments with her almost as much as she did.
Together, they looked through every portion of the Underworld. Everything but Tartarus, of course, though Hades claimed that was impossible for any god to explore. He warned her time and time again about the dangers of seeing the Titans.
She supposed he was right. The Titans had been thrown into the pit for a reason. They were monsters. Beasts. Terrifying creatures who could tear her limb from limb in the blink of an eye. She shouldn’t want to see them.
But she did.
Rolling over in bed, she tugged the sheets up and over her shoulders. Hades hadn’t knocked as early as he normally did, and the stolen hours of sleep felt wonderful. Or maybe it was just the extra time snuggled up to the warm, furry body next to her.
Opening her eyes, groggy and far more sleepy than she thought she’d be, Kore flipped the blanket back from where Cerberus had pulled it over his heads. The dog grumbled, snapping one of his jaws before snuggling closer.
“Good morning, boy,” she said, her voice hoarse with sleep. “You slept