Chapter Twenty-Five

"And that, ladies, gentlemen, and assorted beings, is how you clear a house."

"He's fucking cheating."

"He's playing people who've never played poker," Wren told me dryly, arching his brow in amusement as Niko gathered the chips towards him on the bed. He gave Wren a cheeky grin and Three scowled at him from his armchair across the bed.

"Also, one of us is doped up on morphine," he pointed out, thrusting a thumb at me. I just grinned because how could I deny that?

Hades had me drugged consistently since the injury.

"It's not an injury," Hades repeatedly told me with the tight strained tone of someone confronting a toddler, "Your whole left arm is gone. Incinerated. Your heart rate is irregular and that concerns me about what else she managed to take out." I couldn't find it in me to be mad, or understand, so I just nodded and waited for him to stop talking every time he lectured me.

"He's perfectly rational," Niko said with a confident nod as he picked up a few stray chips from the floor.

"Let's play again," I said, reaching for the cards instinctively only to remember my arm wasn't there to do that anymore. I scowled, then looked up to see Niko staring at me before his eyes went to Wren and Three.

"Nevermind. Have Hades give him one of those do you wanna kill yourself today papers to fill out while you're at it," Niko added, getting an eyeroll from Wren and Three. I scoffed.

"I am not so drugged I can't count."

"Ohhh," Niko drawled, "So you're the one cheating."

"Counting cards is cheating?"

"Yes."

"Alright, then I lied."

"What?" Niko barked a laugh, clearly amused. His laugh put me at ease as I watched him take out his phone to shoot River a text that we'd finished playing cards. I looked over where Three was shaking his head, scowling at his poor hand while Six gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

"It's a sign you shouldn't gamble," Six told him and Three looked annoyed.

"Okay, but I want to at least visit a casino. Their ads are neat."

"It's literally a commercial about gambling with a warning about gambling on the bottom of the screen," Kali deadpanned from her place beside me on the bed, "It seems silly to keep playing until you have no more credits."

"That's the best part about being royalty," Three replied, making her arch a brow, "We have unlimited funds."

"We do," Kali asked, turning to look at me and I just shrugged. Wren made a sorta gesture with his hand.

"We technically have limited funds," he answered, glancing at Three, who shrugged, "Some of us still have parents willing to buy us whatever we want."

"Some," Niko echoed, "I see Stanton literally just giving you his credit card, Three."

"Yeah."

"Don't you have a job technically?" Niko asked. I looked at Three.

"A job? Like, a real person job?" I asked. Three flushed a little and Six looked surprisingly proud of Three, giving him a little bump in the shoulder with his own.

"Yes, actually. He keeps getting modeling gigs in Elysium because of the one shoot he did for Demonic Fashion. He even has an official agent now," Six added while Three just rolled his eyes, like he really didn't want Six to be gushing about this, but Six was on a roll and I wanted to hear more, "He makes at least ten thousand creds per shoot right now, but once the company sees him taking on more aggressive techniques, they've offered him a full-time contract. That would be like over a hundred thousand creds per shoot."

"You're gonna be famous," I pointed out. Three was definitely not comfortable with the attention. I could tell because he wasn't looking at anyone's faces. It was odd, because he wasn't the type to hide from the spotlight. Three had always been a loudmouth, always curious and being nosy, but having us know about this particular thing seemed to make him uncomfortable.

"He's already got two interviews under his belt," Hadrian spoke up from where he was seated on the sofa with his phone in hand. Three blushed.

"I'm not a baby, quit acting like it," he said, making Six roll his eyes and Hadrian just seemed to have some kind of secret smile on his face while he was texting his agent, "Are we gonna play another round or are we gonna sit around gossiping like a bunch of little girls?"

Kali hit him in the face with a pillow.

"Excuse me, I've never seen a group of people talk more shit than a bunch of boys, so shut up," she said, making Three grunt as he took the pillow and just tucked it under his arms. Three dealt out the cards and Niko went back to completely destroying us at poker, a game that still didn't quite make sense to me, but apparently you weren't allowed to count cards. And given how drugged up I was, there was no mind-reading tonight.

Not that it mattered.

I hadn't felt the urge to do so, and my magic was still running on fumes from fighting Bethany.

No, maybe it wasn't even that. Oddly enough, it felt like the moment Milo revealed himself, I had felt oddly depleted of every bit of energy inside me. It had been just two days since I woke up, and four days since the fight, but I felt... weak. It wasn't just the drugs either.

"Fuck," I cursed later that night when I dropped the water Wren had given me. It splashed on the floor and without a word, Wren had it cleaned up and another cup of water on the nightstand that I didn't bother to pick up. It was hard to find strength in my muscles, in my fingers.

I glanced at where my other arm used to be, once again fingering the bandages on my shoulder because I just couldn't wrap my head around the fact that it was gone.

Hades said he was going to give me a new one, but I'd told him to focus on Polly first.

He had completely disagreed, but thankfully Wren had talked him into just stabilizing Polly long enough to get to work on my arm. Again, I didn't give a shit about that as I was anxiously waiting for Polly to get better.

I wanted her to play poker. I could totally see her kicking the shit out of me, and maybe even Niko. She'd absolutely love hanging out with the other artificials, because she already loved Kali, Elias, and I.

I paused when I thought of Elias, my stomach sinking.

He hadn't come out of the room he'd been given.

According to Kali, he refused to talk to anyone from the Hades family, including Hades himself. He let Hades run tests and do what he needed to do, but otherwise, as soon as Hades was gone, Elias crawled back into bed and hid there.

"He refuses to come out," Kali told me softly as she sat beside me while Wren did our usual bedtime routine of cleaning up the room after the other artificials left, "He barely eats. Hades said all the trays are untouched, except for the water, and even that doesn't get finished."

"I knew he was going to have trouble adjusting," I murmured, fiddling with a loose thread on the blanket. Kali put her hand over mine to reassure me, touching her head to my shoulder.

"It's okay, Jasper. He'll adjust eventually. It's not going to be that easy," she answered softly, "For any of us, especially the longer we've been there." She was talking about me, not Elias. I looked at her with a confused smile.

"Have I come off as not adjusting?" I asked. Kali gave me a sad little smile.

"You haven't spoken to either Rowan or Yiuwa since that mission. You asked about Rowan a few times, Yiuwa a couple, but that's it."

"I don't see what they have to do with adjusting."

"They're your genetic carriers," she replied, then paused and wrinkled her nose, "Ah, parents? I think that's what we're supposed to call them." I smiled.

"I'm too old for that shit, Kali," I told her and she gave me a pointed look, "Really. I don't need parents. As long as you guys are happy and healthy, that's all that matters to me. Maybe when Polly gets better things will be easier. But I just want to make sure everyone is settled before I think about myself." Kali pressed her lips in a firm line, clearly not agreeing with me, but she knew arguing was futile so she just sighed and leaned in to kiss me on the cheek.

"Get some rest, Jasper. Stay hydrated, and you better come to the lounge for breakfast. We can't keep having a buffet spread on your bed," she added, glancing at the blanket that Wren was switching out, "Ah, thank you, Wren. I really appreciate you cleaning up after everyone." Wren gave her a warm smile.

"It's no problem. Anything to get Jasper socializing. If he had it his way, we'd be trapped in the bed in the dark all day," he said, taking the blanket to the laundry chute. Kali laughed and I scoffed.

"Okay, but it's not like we're not active or anything," I pointed out, making Wren groan aloud. Kali almost whacked me in the shoulder, caught herself, then settled for just pinching my cheek and I grinned.

"Lesson number one on dating etiquette since you're so rusty," Kali drawled, "Keep the bedroom action out of normal conversation." I scowled.

"How come Niko gets to talk about it?"

"Niko as a whole is socially inappropriate. He has an excuse."

"Wow. How come I don't get an excuse?"

"Didn't you say you were the oldest?" Kali mused. I grinned at that and Kali gave me another amused smile, a kiss on the cheek, then slid off the bed to go thank Wren again. He smiled and assured her he had no problem with it, though he looked a little surprised when Kali leaned in and gave him a kiss on the cheek. She patted his arm, thanked him again, and left the room so it was just Wren and I.

"Kali loves you very much," Wren said as he came to put a new blanket on the bed. I looked up as he smoothed the blanket out.

"She's basically my sister... My aunt? I don't fucking know anymore."

"The more you try to sort it, the more confusing it gets. Just accept that Otherworld families are insane," Wren assured, making me smirk and shrug. I watched Wren move around the room, returning the games and cards back to their respective cupboards, cleaning up the plates and utensils leftover from our dinner to put on a cart to leave outside the door for the servants.

Servants, my mind echoed. There were very few for such a large palace, and yet they moved quickly and quietly and for the most part stayed out of the way, especially when it came to Hades. The only servant who had no problem revealing his presence and making sure you knew he was there was Niki, Hades's personal BFF.

I really couldn't call Niki a servant for that reason.

While the other servants would duck out of Hades's way, Niki had no problem facing Hades head on.

It was kind of insane to see that tiny imp-fae hybrid get feisty with Hades, who had a good two and a half feet on the little guy. Niki didn't seem to care, though. He also seemed to have a mouth on him and when I asked Wren about it, he said Niki learned from the best; meaning Hades.

"Did you grow up in the palace?" I asked Wren as he finally got settled for the night and was helping me get a new pajama shirt on.

"No," Wren replied as he adjusted the loose sleeve over my left shoulder, "I grew up at home with my parents. It's a little bungalow kinda house in a neighborhood just between Portius and where the old palace in Hell used to be."

"Did you have pets?"

"We always have dogs. My dad has a problem."

"Dogs are a problem?"

"No, two dogs are fine. Three dogs is fine. Four dogs is pushing it. Five dogs is a problem."

"Your dad has five dogs?"

"He did until Martin passed away last year. I think he's gonna slow down for a bit," Wren said, lifting the blankets so he could tuck himself in next to me and I sank down below the covers with him, "It's really sad when they die. Like, they lived good long lives, but he still cries every time, even though he knows where their souls go."

"Where do their souls go?"

"He releases them in the meadows of Hell, so they can relive their greatest memories for the rest of their eternities, or until they get reincarnated," Wren explained.

"So even dogs can get reincarnated, huh?" I asked. Wren smiled.

"Anyone can."

"Like you?" I asked. Wren paused and I looked at him curiously. He was frowning as he swept his hand over my chest and I knew he was listening to my heart. I took his hand off my chest so I could kiss his fingers and he peered up at me warily.

"I'm fine," I assured him, "It's probably just Darling trying to heal everything."

"Has he said anything lately?" He asked. I paused to consider. Darling had been pretty quiet since the fight. Not quiet in a bad way, but quiet in a way that said he was strangely calm for once. I didn't have moments where my skin itched and crawled with his agitation. In fact... The more I thought about it, the more I realized I didn't hear Darling wailing and crying in the night. I had slept every single night since the fight. Darling usually just purred himself to sleep.

So he was still there, still conscious.

Just weirdly content.

"I think we're okay," I said at last. Wren stared up at me, like he was trying to figure that out for sure. I offered him a smile and he just sighed, resting his head against my shoulder and gently twirling his finger around one of my nipples where the tattoo spread from my right arm to my pec.

We were quiet for a while, simply enjoying each other's company.

And I loved it.

I loved being able to hold Wren like this, to feel his body spooned up against mine, his hand on my chest, his heart beating next to mine. It had been so long since I felt this comfortable beside someone. It reminded me of all those times I'd laid on the sofa with Milo, just to hang out.

"Kali's got a point," Wren said at last and I sighed, wishing he'd just go back to snuggling or teasing my nipple. It was a lot better than talking about depressing bullshit. I tilted my head back against the pillow, drawing my hand up through Wren's hair, feeling the soft strands slide between my fingers.

"She's worrying for nothing," I assured him and he scoffed, then shivered a little as I teased his ear, "I'm fine, Wren. I'm just tired of dealing with people claiming to be my parents. I don't need that. I need Polly to be okay. I need Elias to be okay. I need everyone to be okay before I think about doing anything else." Wren pressed his lips into a firm line, clearly disagreeing with me. I smiled at that, sliding my hand under his chin so I could tilt his head back so he was looking up at me.

"Besides, I think you're way more important than getting to know my daddies," I replied, leaning down to press my lips to his forehead. He blinked, flushed a little, then wiggled so he got comfortable beside me. I felt his groin against my thigh, felt the heat, and I glanced at him, but he was closing his eyes as he got cozy under my arm and against my chest.

"Yeah, well, we'll work on that later then," Wren mumbled as I raised an eyebrow, "Just get some rest."

"You sure?"

"Mmhm."

"Are you... really sure? Cuz your dick is hard as a fucking rock."

Wren blushed to the tips of his ears. He thumped me in the chest and I grunted, making him wince and pause to look at my chest. I gave him a cheeky grin and he rolled his eyes.

"I'm fine."

"Are you, though? You sure you're not hungry?" I murmured, shifting my arm so it was going up under his shirt. He breathed out a long sigh as I swept my hand up across his chest, brushing my thumb back and forth over his nipple teasingly. His hand went up like he was going to stop me, but he just ended up holding my hand through his shirt, his eyes fluttering closed.

"You need rest," came his breathy reply.

"I am resting," I murmured, dipping my head down now and using it to nudge his face so I could start nibbling down his throat. He moaned softly, his other hand reaching up to sink into my hair.

"Not..." His voice trailed. I smiled against his skin, pausing with my lips at the mark on his throat. It looked just like the mating mark on my throat. Black and harsh, like a tattoo, yet soft and sweet with its swirling center, its little speckles spreading out like it was just a little image of the universe bursting apart.

I clamped my lips down around it and Wren cried out, twisting his fingers in my hair as I suckled hard, scraping his tender skin with my fangs. He arched his back and I felt his hips buck against my thigh. I hiked his leg up so he could turn in against my side, his body moving on its own as he started to hump against my thigh.

"Jasper." His voice was so raw and hoarse, his gasps coming in desperate pleas as I chewed at his neck, laving the bruising that began to swell under the mark.

"You still need to feed," I murmured against his ear, blowing softly and making him shudder, grabbing onto me tightly, "Let me feed you."

"But..." He couldn't form words. I was delighted I managed to bring him to peak like that. He could only manage helpless whimpers and gasps as he ground his cock against my thigh, his knee coming up a little too high and nearly nailing me between the legs. I caught his leg against me to keep him from accidentally crushing my balls.

"You trying to torment me?" I murmured against him. He just whimpered, drawing his other hand up now to pull me against him.

He was so hungry.

I could feel it. Not just in the way he was grinding up against me like a sentient dildo, but in the way his fangs descended a smidge when he parted his lips. He seemed to almost be begging for a kiss, so I obliged. He nipped me the first chance he got and I groaned as he tugged at my bottom lip for a second before taking over the kiss.

His tongue was nothing more than a clumsy scramble, but he seemed to just want to taste me. He explored my mouth, his hands wandered very gently over my torso, because as far gone as he was, he wasn't so gone that he was willing to hurt me.

I felt a smile touch my lips at that.

He was so sweet.

Wren came with a soft cry, pressing his face against my cheek as his hips jacked up against my thigh and I felt something wet as he came. He clutched me to him tightly, breathing hard as his body absorbed the magic simmering on the surface. He slumped against me in relief, then peered up at me tiredly.

"Jasper, you didn't have to do that."

"No, but I wanted to," I murmured, making him glance at me as I stroked the hair back from his face, "I love seeing you cum. I love feeding you. I love holding you." Wren blushed, lowering his eyes for a moment until he noticed that I hadn't gotten off. He frowned, reaching for my groin, but I took his hand and laid it over my chest, making him scowl at me.

"I'm good, Wrenny."

"But—"

"Honest. I'm actually kind of tired," I admitted. Wren studied me for a moment, then slowly sank down on the bed.

"Okay." He didn't argue, thankfully, and the problem went away on its own as we both finally drifted off to sleep.

Strangely I didn't dream, but I woke up so I had to have slept.

I laid in bed the next morning, frowning at the ceiling as I heard Wren in the shower. I debated just spending the rest of the day in bed, but I recalled Kali scolding me for not having breakfast with everyone else in the lounge. I sighed and eventually got myself up and ready.

It was hard getting ready with one arm, but I managed to get a shirt and a pair of pants on before Wren came out of the bathroom, towel-drying his hair.

"I could've helped you," Wren said when he saw me adjusting my shirt to get the sleeve over where my missing arm was. I shrugged, pausing to let him make the adjustment himself.

"I'm a big boy," I assured him. Wren shrugged.

"Yeah, and what does that have to do anything?"

"Means big confidence."

"Is that what they call it," Wren asked dryly as I grinned and he shook his head before he went to the closet to get himself a t-shirt and sweatpants. There was a knock at the door, not that it mattered because a second later, Hades was walking in like he owned the place.

Which he did, but still, dude was gonna regret walking in one day if Wren and I were in bed together.

"Here to do another blood test," Hades said when I scowled at him.

"You just like stabbing me with needles," I accused. Hades didn't answer that, but the look on his face said that was probably the main reason he was here. I just sighed and took a seat on the bed reluctantly as he set up his equipment while Wren changed in the closet.

"How did you sleep?" Hades asked. I raised an eyebrow at the casually asked question. I looked at him, but he was concentrating on the needle as he slid it into my arm.

"Like a baby," I deadpanned. Hades glanced at me, like he wasn't sure if he trusted that answer.

"He slept through the night," Wren told him as he came out and Hades nodded, making a note on his tablet. I rolled my eyes, watching him slide the needle out and cap the vial. My blood was looking a little darker than usual.

"I'm not infected, am I?" I asked dryly, referring to the shadow illness that could turn one's blood black. Hades shook his head, giving the vial a little swirl as he studied its contents.

"No, but it is abnormally dark. I'll see what comes up when we run it through the system," he said, placing the vial in a little lock box that he tucked into his bag.

"How's the arm coming along?" Wren asked Hades.

"Fine," Hades replied, "It's still processing, so it might take a couple more days. The last thing I need is to attach a dysfunctional arm onto a dysfunctional person." I scowled, because who the hell was he calling a dysfunctional person?

"What is it, a robo arm?" I asked dryly. I could imagine something out of a comic book, full of wires and gears and weird whirring sounds. Hades shook his head to dispel that image.

"No," he answered, "It's a functional lab grown arm. The bones are bionic because they didn't stabilize, but the rest of it should be relatively normal. You'll need to have it adjusted every so often to make sure nothing comes loose, but otherwise, it's a normal arm."

"Great," I deadpanned, "What about Polly?" Hades glanced at Wren, who held his hands up in surrender as if to say he wasn't going to join that particular conversation.

"She's still in a medically induced coma," Hades said at last, making me frown, "She's got a lot of damage she needs to recover from."

"So she's recovering?" I asked hopefully. Hades was avoiding eye contact with me, which meant he didn't want me to know something. However, if I dove into his mind to see what he was hiding, chances were he was just gonna blow it back in my face and give me a headache. It took everything I had not to take the risk.

Why was he hiding something from me?

"We're doing our best," Hades said at last and that was not what I wanted to hear, but he wasn't going to let me tear into him as he continued talking, "Right now, I am mainly concerned about Elias. He hasn't eaten since he got here. He drinks a little, but not enough. I'm pretty sure he isn't sleeping, just hiding in bed all day." I grimaced, glancing at Wren, who frowned.

"Does he let you run your tests?" I asked. Hades nodded.

"He's well-behaved, which is more than I can say for everyone else," he drawled, making me roll my eyes, "But he doesn't talk or answer my questions. He just sits and stares. Sounds like he isn't happy to be here. I mentioned if bringing you or Kali in would help make him more comfortable and he didn't answer with anything more than hiding under his blankets."

I sighed in frustration.

"Is he in his room right now?"

"Where the fuck else would he be?" Hades asked as he packed up his stuff. I rolled my eyes, sitting up and Wren came to my side as Hades left the room.

"Do you want to check on him?" Wren asked. I nodded and he led the way out of the room. Luckily, Elias's room was just two doors down and across the hall, so it was a quick trip and when I knocked on the door, I got no response. I glanced at Wren, who gave me a nod that I could open the door and peek in.

When I did, I realized how fucking dark his room was.

The curtains were drawn shut across the way and any electronics in the room with a glowing light had been shut off. It was complete darkness within, and luckily, my night vision crackled on after a second, bathing everything in soft blue hues. A quick scan revealed nothing in the room was touched. Everything had a light layer of dust on it. Even the TV was untouched, and on a little tray on the nightstand was an untouched plate of eggs, toast, and crispy bacon. A glass of orange juice and a glass of water that seemed to only be missing a few sips.

I glanced at Wren.

"Do you mind if I talk to him before I go to breakfast?" I asked. Wren blinked.

"Of course," he said slowly, "Take all the time you need. I'll make you a plate, though." I nodded and he started to leave, then doubled back to give me a kiss before he left. I watched him go, trying not to let the dreamy dumb look on my face show, but I had a feeling it did anyway, judging from that little smile he gave me as he left.

I turned back to Elias's room and stepped inside.

I turned on the lights first. It took a moment to adjust and the instant lighting threw me off for a second, blinding me. I blinked a few times as everything came into focus. The bed was clearly slept in with blankets tousled and pillows on the floor, but Elias wasn't there. I did a quick scan of the room, listening for any sign of him.

I felt his presence, so he was definitely in the room, but he was hiding.

I casually walked over to the balcony doors, opening the curtains to let more nature light in. I felt someone behind me moving around, judging from the muffled shifting... Elias was under the bed. I stood quietly at the doors, staring out across a beautiful mountain range littered with towering redwoods.

It was a pretty way to wake up, I noted. The sun rising up over the mountains, highlighting the intense green foliage of the trees against a clear blue sky rimmed in shades of orange and pink from the rising sun. Birds were flying around, chirping and singing as they went about their daily business.

"It's pretty outside, Elias," I said, scanning the foliage, "Don't you want to see what's outside?" I didn't get a response. I turned and walked over to the bed, pausing as I heard a soft shift as he ducked away from the edges of the bed. I sat down carefully.

"Hey, you should probably eat some breakfast. Kali will be upset if she finds out you didn't eat anything," I said. Once again, I was only met with silence. I tried not to let it show on my face, but it made my heart sink that Elias wasn't happy to be here. Or at the very least, relieved. He certainly didn't feel safe if he was hiding under the bed either.

"I know this isn't easy," I murmured after a while, hoping he was at least listening, "I know it's hard to make changes, especially if they're scary. This is a very strange place with new rules and new stuff. Half of the stuff around this palace you've probably never seen before. It's going to take some getting used to." He didn't respond, but I could feel his presence pretty close. It felt like he was right underneath me, but I didn't move, afraid of spooking him.

"If you have questions or you want to say something, Elias, that's okay," I said, leaning forward to rest my arm on my knee, pausing when I realized I couldn't do it with my other arm considering it was fucking gone. That was going to be uncomfortable until I got it back.

Elias had trouble adjusting from one compound to another. The thought of trying to get him to adjust to this new outside world was a little daunting. He clearly didn't want to absorb or accept any of it. He wasn't used to it. Change, especially so abrupt and so intense, would seem more like a threat to him than something good. He was just trying to get used to compound life and now real life was at his door and he wasn't ready for it.

"Has Hades talked to you about... maybe meeting your parents?" I asked after a moment. I waited to see if he would say anything to that, but he didn't. If anything, I felt him sinking further back under the bed.

"They're very nice," I said, thinking about what I knew about his genetic carriers, "I think they'll like you, Elias. Theo is funny, and he's so very smart. He created all the orphanages in Styx, did you know that? An animal shelter too, because he loves animals. Have you seen an animal before, Elias?" I waited. I almost gave up, because it felt like I was just talking to a wall.

"No," Elias whispered. I blinked, trying not to get too excited that he finally answered me. I didn't want to spook him.

"Theo has a pet cat, from what I hear. And Adonis is very nice too," I continued, trying to recall from what I'd seen both while spying and while at the palace, "He loves watching movies, all kinds of movies. I bet he'd love to sit and watch a movie with you. Maybe you guys can make popcorn, the crunchy butter stuff that Kali used to make? Eat that and watch movies and pet cats. That's what normal people do." There was a moment of silence and I wondered if he just went nonverbal again, but then I heard him shift and I knew he was underneath me again.

"We're not normal." Elias's tone was... dark. I pretended it didn't feel like a barb in my chest as I cleared my throat.

"No," I said quietly, "But... it would be nice, wouldn't it? To be able to just watch movies whenever you want. To see all kinds of animals."

"It doesn't matter," Elias answered, making me frown, "None of it matters."

"Why not?"

"Because it's not gonna stay," Elias whispered and I was glad he was under the bed and couldn't see me flinch at his words, "It's gonna go away, just like everything else. Just like April and Polly." I clenched my teeth, balling up my fist to keep from getting upset. It wasn't Elias's fault. He was just too young, and too brainwashed, to understand the situation.

In the end, I could talk all day about the wonderful things that lay in the outside world ahead of him, and he would see it all as a nightmare. It was too different, too uncertain, and he'd already had the rug pulled out from under him repeatedly. How could I ask him to trust me when things had just gotten worse since I rescued him?

"Polly didn't go away," I started.

"Yes, she did," Elias barked suddenly and I went quiet as I watched Elias scramble out from underneath the bed and he was glaring at me now, his eyes welled up with tears of frustration, "She's gone and dead just like April, and it's your fault!"

I froze as Elias glared at me, breathing hard. He was definitely worked up and the tears were running down his face now. My heart hurt, my whole chest hurt, and I wanted to cry with him. I wanted to cry at making him cry, at forcing him into uncomfortable situations. I wanted to cry because I couldn't explain to him why this was the better way.

And I wanted to cry, because his words fucking burned.

It felt like someone had taken a white hot iron to my chest.

Darling was starting to get worked up too. I could feel him crawling under my skin in distress.

"Why do you always have to ruin everything," Elias sobbed now, "Why couldn't you just leave me alone? I was supposed to die in that place! I was supposed to be dead and then you took me away and brought me to another place and you told me it was safer and it was okay and now suddenly it's not? Why did you lie to me?"

"Elias—"

"No! I'm tired of listening to you act like you know what's best! You're not my guardian and you are not my brother! You don't know anything! You're just a coward that keeps running away from everything!"

"I'm so—"

"I hate you," Elias wailed, fat tears rolling down his cheeks as he sobbed now, "I hate you for taking me away! I hate you for lying to me! I hate you for killing April and I hate you for killing Polly now too! I hope Hades kills you!" Without another word, Elias went to the bathroom and slammed the door shut behind him, his sobs carrying under the door.

I sat stiffly on the bed as Darling growled somewhere in my chest. I rubbed the space there anxiously to calm him down. He didn't understand why Elias was upset, and he didn't understand that Elias was absolutely right.

I had just been pretending everything was going to be okay. It was why I just played along with this weird normal routine that Hades and his people had put up for us. Just play the game long enough until everyone was safe, except we'd been playing for a while and not only was I not allowed to see Polly, no one was telling me anything concrete about her.

And judging from Hades's avoidance, something was wrong.

I felt a lump forming in my throat.

She's gone and dead, just like April!

Nausea swirled in my stomach and I could feel a migraine spiking in my temples. I slowly got to my feet and left Elias's room. He wasn't going to talk to me anymore and I had upset him enough.

For a moment, I wasn't sure where I was going until I realized my legs were carrying me to Kali's room just a short ways down the hallway. I knocked on the door, but didn't really listen for approval to enter. I just opened the door, and luckily Kali was already dressed and ready for breakfast, sitting in one of her armchairs to pull on a pair of socks. She looked up when I came in, her face brightening for a moment before it fell when she realized I wasn't particularly happy.

"Jasper?"

"Kali, that thing you said you would tell me," I said hollowly and Kali's eyes widened slightly when she realized what I was talking about, "You said you found something." When we'd rescued her from the compound, she informed me there was something we needed to discuss.

"Yes," she answered in a whisper.

"Did it have anything to do with Polly?" I asked. Kali stared at me. Her eyes were slowly welling up with tears. I stared at her, wishing like hell she wasn't about to give me shit news.

"Kali, what's wrong with Polly?" I asked as calmly as I could. Darling was panicking. He didn't understand where the pain was coming from.

"Jasper, it could be different with Hades," Kali started instead of answering me, "Hades is the original creator of artificials, surely he can save her— he's saved artificials before, he—"

"Answer the fucking question, Kali," I seethed. Kali blinked and her tears fell as she sat up nervously.

"It's... It can't be the end for her," she managed and my heart sank, "It can't be, Jasper. You've worked so hard to keep her alive; there has to be a way to save her, you said yourself—"

"She was doomed from the start?" I whispered as a wave of newfound agony washed over me. Kali's tears were rolling down her face now as she shot to her feet, reaching for me, but I immediately dodged her touch.

"Jasper, please—"

"How long has she been dying, Kali?"

"Dying— Jasper, she—"

"How long were you going to hide the fact that she was dying," I managed in realization and Kali shut her eyes, lowering her face now, like she was too ashamed to look at me, "You knew from the beginning that she was dying. You knew I couldn't save her."

"That's not true," Kali gasped abruptly, looking at me and reaching for me again, but I moved away as Darling began to squirm and crawl under my skin, "Jasper, please, don't. It's not like that! I-I thought there was more we could do too! I thought if we just kept working with her we'd be able to find a place to stabilize her, we could—"

"Mother knew too, didn't she," I murmured and Kali just shut her eyes, which was all the confirmation I needed, "That's why she agreed to let me have Polly. Because she knew Polly was going to die."

"Jasper—"

"Elias was right."

"What—"

She's dead and gone, just like April! And it's your fault!

"Jasper—"

I hate you... and I hate you for killing Polly now too!

It's your fault!