Monster Song (My Beautiful Monsters #2) - J.B. Trepagnier Page 0,46

sent here to be slaughtered. Demeter was dead, and if they had called Artemis, she hadn’t come to help.

Hades walked to the center of the battlefield, stepping over dead bodies and through the blood.

“It’s over! I’m not sure how many of you bothered to check on my wife while she was being held hostage, but if you had spoken to her before she was drugged with Moonflower, she could have told you herself she’s happy in the Underworld, and it’s when she has to leave with Demeter that she hates. We have lost enough lives. You held my wife hostage, and you are responsible for sending several loyal monsters to the pits of Tartarus. You can continue to fight and die, or you can give up and come quietly to my jail. Who speaks for you?”

A fierce woman stepped forward and eyed Hades.

“We were following orders. We demand to be sent back home. If we had disobeyed Demeter, she would have killed us. If she sent word to Artemis, it would have been the same.”

Solron stepped forward and was playing with her knife again.

“I know about Sura. I know she tried to contact Artemis to bring you all home, and Demeter turned her into a monster and stuck a collar on her. You could have mutinied and come to Hades for protection.”

The woman just threw up her hands.

“Every single option for us was a bad one!”

“And I realize this,” Hades said. “It still doesn’t change the fact that when you realized you were outnumbered and Demeter was willing to risk your life, you still fought against me and killed several of the allies I brought to rescue my wife. So, what is your decision? Do you want to keep fighting, or will you come quietly?”

“Will there be a possibility of a pardon?”

“I’ll consider it when I’m less pissed off.”

That was Hades speak for it would never cross his mind unless Persephone had an opinion about it and talked him into it. Thankfully, they agreed to go quietly because my shoulder was killing me.

Chapter 22

River

I

hadn’t processed Demeter was dead. I didn’t know what was going on with the soldiers still on the field. I wanted to be there with Pavlina after watching her almost die, and I never once spotted Hephaestus on the battlefield. Where was my God? I couldn’t worry about any of that right now. I couldn’t save anyone who went down on the battlefield, and I was useless when Pavlina went over that cliff. But I could try to save one life. I could help Lis.

The vet clinics in the Underworld were top of the line, and no one was trying to step on my toes. I was worried Lis might have a skull fracture, but luckily, she didn’t. She had several cracked ribs and some internal bleeding.

I usually brought animals with injuries like this to the back room while I treated them, but I checked in with their owners often. Hades had already sent Cerberus here, and I couldn’t convince him to leave the room. Have you ever tried to explain to a three-headed dog every little process you are doing to treat a Hellhound? Cerberus was pretty much worse than any concerned pet parent I’d ever dealt with.

“Can you save her?” he asked me for the ten millionth time.

“If I could do more and explain less, this would go faster.”

It was a little sweet, but it was also annoying. The guard of the Underworld was in love, and he desperately wanted me to save Lis. I was trying as hard as I could.

A portal opened up in my operating room. My father and Charley walked through.

“Hades said he brought you here with Lis. I brought you help.”

That was fine, but what about Pavlina? What about all the injured on the battlefield? I was in my element here with a dog, but there was an entire army of wounded people, including those I cared about who could use Charley’s help.

“How is Pavlina?” I asked.

“I healed her. The rest of my coven is here treating the rest of the injured. Barbatos asked me to take a break to help Lis.”

“Let her!” Cerberus said.

“It’ll get you back to the others faster,” Charley said. “I’ve heard you’re a great vet, and I’m sure you’ll have no issue saving Lis, but if you let me use magic, you can be with your mates faster.”

I stepped back and let Charley take over. She placed her hands over Lis and started chanting. I