Chapter 1|

It was official.

The balcony loveseat had become my top misery spot. I could watch the nightsky from here. The stars were always radiant. Likely the only common thing with Earth. The only reminder of my life back home.

I have always loved the stars. I've always thought of them as wishes that had yet to be made true.

The universe must have had a brain fart; giving Hades control over my everything. Screw that, the universe was mocking my existence altogether. It had to be. A half goddess with vampyr blood in her veins that wholly served the Devil as one of his Sins ... sounded like some sick joke.

On top of that, I was a mate to a werewolf. I haven't heard a thing from Alec and it was driving me crazy. Our connection was dormant. Like it was not even there. I didn't know what that meant, but it expected it to feel more lively. Not that I felt lively myself. Some days, I was colder than the dead. Other days, I could crack a painful smile at the dinner table. Underworld was a place of dark calm, just like it's ruler. Who I rarely saw these days. The truth was, I avoided Hades. The possibility of seeing those smitten pair of eyes brought a glare to my face. I frowned harder when I saw my reflection on the surface of the river just below my balcony.

The nameless river was still, it seemed to have no flow as if it were a puddle but the river stretched over the grounds like it was endless.

A shadow fell over the dark water. A figure that scarily resembled a goddess that I knew of appeared in the reflection.

"Someone is not too happy to see me?" Aphrodite was a beauty even in the waters of Hell. Her blonde hair was shining as if she was a saint. But the cunning blue eyes, a shade too wicked would make you a fool to even consider her as such.

"You!" I threw a rock at her face and it went right through. "You promised that once I become the moon Goddess I will be free!"

"Well for starters, you are not a moon Goddess yet. You have not been crowned." She taunted, and I raised another stone. "And I do believe there is another way to set you free."

"What are you talking about?" I paused my arm still in the air. The Goddess of beauty frowned."You must kill the Devil if you ever want to be free of your debts. Bring Gaia his heart and regain your rightful throne."

"This again?" I spat, recalling our first encounter. Aphrodite was bold then, demanding Hades' death yet again meant she was desperate. "What makes you think that bastard even has one?"

"You are the very proof of its existence. " She acknowledged my silence and continued. "Gaia wants his heart. She cannot physically take it herself so you bringing it to her on a platter...She won't be able to resist."

"She has no idea that you lived or that we conspired together. You have nothing to lose but to gain. There is a throne waiting for you-"

"What do you get from this?" Aphrodite clamped her mouth shut, but then spoke in the softest voice. "His heart will grant her compassion, kindness, maybe love. She has no heart to feel such things and I want her to. I wish to be free from her cruel rule, once and for all." The goddess broke into a whisper and her gaze filled with sorrow.

"In the end, we both want freedom." I whirled to face her. "This is irrational. Feelings have nothing to do with a beating heart!"

"But who are we to say that it doesn't?"

"It is logic. Having a heart does not instantly make you a kinder person. Every living human has a heart and most of them are a bunch of assholes anyway. Heart or no heart. It does not make who you are."

"Gods are no humans." Aphrodite seemed offended, well to me her declaration was even more absurd than some of the other things I have heard recently.

"Alright, let's say I carved his heart out but then what?" As soon as the words left my mouth a piece of torn paper sprang at me. I caught the sheet with both hands and scanned it.

"I have to cook it?"

"Use spices of fine quality and do not go overboard with thyme!"

I stared at the paper. "This is ridiculous. Do you really think I believe this?"

"Well that all comes down to just how badly you want to be free, does it not?"

Not much was spoken the last I had seen of him. It's been ... I wasn't sure how long it's been. A month? A week?

But I knew he was around. Yesterday, when I was laying on the loveseat I saw a candle light up the room in the building opposite mine. I wasn't quite sure who actually resided in the Palace if that even justified the whole complex. Yet the curtain swept away and he emerged onto his own balcony. Lost in thought, he failed to see me. I sat curled in a bundle of woolen blankets and stared after him in distance.

I sat in the loveseat for hours before dozing off to sleep.

***

Before I could get a decent shut-eye, it was morning. Again. It was breakfast time. Again.

The Sins said I dressed in the most random combo of clothes. But I honestly just threw on whatever I grabbed first.

A black vest with cargo pants drew more comments than usual when I joined the Devil's crew. Who cares if the pants that I wore were hot pink?

"I truly love what you did there with pants." Eros grinned from ear to ear. "I didn't think the bubble gum from yesterday would serve you as inspiration-"

"Shut your face, Eros, before I sew it shut myself." I didn't look up from my plate as Lyssa dropped into the seat next to me. It was strange for her to budge in like that. To say anything at all. She'd usually add something snarky to complete their brutality. At least she did yesterday, when Eros threw his pink gum into my hair.

"He's joining us today." Lyssa mumbled under her breath to end Eros' curses. The rest have entered shortly. Nemesis smiled at me kindly before sitting down right opposite. Boreas and Pthonus came in together arguing about a topic I couldn't understand. Gluttony was the first at the dinner table. Always. Sloth on the other hand, rarely showed up. Usually because she overslept every meal. But today Sloth stumbled in with wide eyes.

"He's coming!" Then she rushed for the free seat next to Boreas who greeted her with a glare.

I slowly crept at the hooded and worried glances of the seven sins. The servants of Hell who were to fear pretty much nothing... but their Master.

"Didn't he ever eat with you?" Everyone whipped their heads to me. Shocked at the question or that I've spoken, I couldn't be sure.

"Shut up, Bubble Gum." Eros snorted from the other side of the table. "If he's coming here then we're in trouble."

Boreas made a show to point a finger to every one of us then stopped at me. "All of us, including you." Eros barked a laugh, when I swallowed a knot in my throat.

"You don't know that! He might have some news to deliver." Nemesis exclaimed over the two sins.

"Bad news." Sloth sighed and pressed her face into the table.

"Lyssa was the one to say he was coming, you can't possibly believe such ill witted-"

"Excuse me!?"

"You're excused!"

"But Saddy came in with the same announcement." Pthonus offered with a shrug, and Eros rolled his eyes.

"Sleepy here, never shows up anyway.
Who knows what she dreamt about in her sleep."

There was no warning, no footsteps or sound that could possibly prepare us for his entrance.

The two skeleton guards stepped apart and Hades causally strolled in. His silk black robes twirled after him and he silently sat on the provided throne-like seat. He didn't say a word, or looked at anyone in particular.
The unsettling silence intimidated frightened even the servants who quickly set the plates, foods and drinks and rushed out the room. The Sins were stiff like mannequins with no one daring enough to take first bite. Now even Eros looked like a scaredy cat with his gaze zeroed on me as I began to eat too.

"Is something the matter, your Darkness?" Eros' question was stupidly bold. But if the Devil was in a bad mood he showed no signs of it.

"Eros." Lyssa warned.

"No." Hades returned.

Lyssa released a breath I had no idea she was holding. Pthonus eased off the deadly grip on the cutlery he was holding and colour flooded back into his pale hands. But Gluttony was just pale all over, as if he could vomit in any given moment.

"Although..." His fork stilled over the plate and Hades looked up from the half-eaten meat.

"A guard at the gates reported of unregistered travel." He watched us intently, his fork folded in half as he next said. "Amongst us is a fluke that reports to Olympus."

"Find this traitor and bring them to me." Hades stood up from the table and wiped his mouth with a napkin.

There was nothing human about the God of the Underworld. His features melted into the upper abyss. A pitch-black haired Devil with zero horns but a witty personality for sure. He was a handsome sight to look at, I couldn't deny that. Dangerous too. Such thoughts drowned somewhere deep within my mind. Nothing could drown out the images, the events of damage Hades has caused.

And maybe the taste of his blood in my mouth has faded, but the Mark of Hades marring my left palm seemed permanent.

A promise that wherever I went, I was doomed.

I'll make him pay for this. For all of it.

A/N: HELLO! HAPPY 2020! I hope this new year brings everyone love, happiness and lots of good chocolate! This is an official first chapter of the Last Ceo! I HAVE A PLAN PEOPLE! I HAVE A PLAN! The plot of this book has been written in stone. Well, okay...not in stone but in my notebook! So we are off to a good start!

Did you enjoy this chapter? Anything you would like to see more of?

I am feeling a bit rusty on my writing at the moment as I haven't written anything for ages but we will see how this all goes!

Happy holidays people!

Yours,

EM