The Gatekeeper's Promise: Gatekeeper's Saga, Book Six (The Gatekeeper's Saga 6) (6 page)

Uncomfortable with
the silence, Jen said to Bobby, “Mom and I are going to take a walk with Tizzie after dinner, but we’ll be right back.”

“Bobby can come, too, if he’d like,” Tizzie said.

“What?” Jen couldn’t believe it. “Are you sure?”

“Of course
,” the Fury said. “As long as he knows how to keep a secret.”

“No one would believe him anyway,” Jen said
, chuckling. Surreal was the only word she could think of to describe this whole evening.

“What are you talking about?” Bobby asked.
“A walk where?”

Jen glanced at Tizzie, not sure how to break the news. “Mom, remember what I told you the other day, about going to see Pete?”

Bobby dropped his fork, and it clattered against his plate.

“
Not now,” Mrs. Holt said. “Let’s not talk that way in front of our guest.”

“It’s okay to talk about Pete in front of me, Mrs. Holt,” Ti
zzie said kindly. “I’m in love with him, and I’ve come to tell you he and I plan to be married.”

Jen was so shocked that she almost d
idn’t catch her mother when Mrs. Holt fainted. Bobby turned white.

Jen said, “Don’t you faint, too.”

“Do you think your mother doesn’t like me?” Tizzie asked as snakes rose from her head. “I really want her to like me.”

Jen could think of nothing
to say as she stared dumbly back at Tizzie and her wild, snaky hair. Jen fanned her mother, trying to bring her back to consciousness.

***

Hip and Pasithea flew above the clouds and back to the gates of Mount Olympus, where t
hey ran into Thanatos.

“What brings you here, bro’?” Hip asked
, as he slid an arm around his beautiful companion.

Hip could tell Than was su
rprised to see him with his old fiancé after so many centuries had passed since he had last held her in his arms.

“Hip?” he asked. “What’s going on?”

“Pasithea and I are a couple again,” Hip said.

“We’re going to be married,” Pasithia added.

What about Jen
, Than prayed.

Hip shrugged and said out loud, “What about her? Things change.”
Hip couldn’t be blamed if his amazing good looks made women fall in love with him.

I don’t know what you’re up to, but w
e’ll talk more about that later
, Than prayed.
For now you should know that I’m here to spy on Zeus and Hera. Poseidon’s wife and trident have been stolen, and Poseidon suspects they’re behind it.

Hip frowned.
“But why?”

Let’s not discuss it in front of others.

“You can trust Pasithea,” Hip said. “Before you go inside to spy on Zeus and Hera, tell me everything you know.”

“That
is
everything I know,” Than said before turning to the gates with a frown. “Winter, Summer, Spring, and Fall, open the gates so that I…”

Before Than finished the request, Hip felt a crushing blow to his back. He fell to his knees as Pasithea’s scream rose sharply above him. His skin felt tight, his muscles stiff, and his heart heavy.

When he could finally speak, he turned to Pasithea and asked, “What’s happening?” His voice sounded funny—more like a bray.

Pasithea shed tears as she gazed down at him. “You’re an ass!”

Hip blinked. Why would she say such a thing after their glorious afternoon together? He looked down at his hands and nearly fell over. His hands and feet had become hooves. Gray fur covered his body. He was, indeed, quite literally, an ass!

“Thanatos,” Hip said
, though it came out like a bray. “Help me!”

Than’s eyes were fixed on the clouds.
“Therese?”

Hip followed his brother’s gaze in time to see an arrow heading straight for him. In his donkey body, he lacked the grace to dodge the blow, and the arrow struck him, full in the heart. As soon as it did, the gravity of his situation also struck him. He looked at Pasithea in horror. He had just spent the past few days loving her with all his heart, but
it hadn’t been real. Sure, he had old feelings for her and had always loved her to some extent, but his heart really and truly belonged to Jen Holt. His throat tightened as he recalled how Jen had looked at him and Pasithea through the dream globe. He now tried to reach out to Jen through the globe, but found only emptiness.

“Where’s Jen?”
he brayed, feeling panic coming on.

“She’
s with Tizzie in Tartarus,” Therese replied.

“What?”
Hip bucked his back legs in the air instinctively. He hadn’t meant to do it. This donkey body seemed to have a mind of its own. “Why? What happened?”

“She and Bobby and her mother are
visiting Pete,” Therese explained.

Relief swept over Hip like a warm wav
e of sunshine. For a moment, he had thought she was dead and he was too late. He
hee-hawed
his relief, though a visit by mortals was still pretty weird.

Therese struck him with another arrow, and pressure gripped him all over as he transformed back into his natural form.

Than clapped a hand on Hip’s shoulder. “So you were pierced by Cupid. That explains a lot.”

“Oh, hell,”
Hip said, combing his fingers through his dark blonde hair. It was a relief to have it back again.

Therese flew closer to him and said, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“Hypnos?” Pasithea squeaked. “Are you alright?”

“Oh, boy,” he muttered. Was he in a real mess now, or what?

Chapter Five: Over and Under

As soon as Than entered the court on Mount Olympus, his mother flew at him, demanding to know what had happened to Therese.

“She never explained,” Persephone said. “I’ve been worried sick.”

Than told his mother through prayer what had happened, so others wouldn’t overhear. This did him no good, however, because not long after he and his mother joined Demeter and Hecate, Pasithea rushed through the room, pointing her finger at him, squealing, “Spy! Spy!”

All eyes turned on Thanatos.

Zeus stood up from his throne. “Now, Pasithea. Be careful of false accusations.”

Pasithia
stopped in the center of the room, tears flowing down her face like a fountain. She trembled and sought out Aphrodite, who returned her gaze with a frown.

“What is the meaning of this?” Aphrodite asked her.

“I heard Thanatos and Hypnos talking outside the gates,” the Grace began. “Hypnos asked Thanatos why he had come to spy on Zeus and Hera.”

“Apollo?” Zeus turned to the god of light. “Does this Grace speak the truth?”

“I’m afraid so,” Apollo said, before asking Than through prayer what was going on.

Than knew he couldn’
t lie to Apollo, so he prayed back with what had transpired between the monsters of the sea and Poseidon and his wife. He also explained why he had come to Mount Olympus.
Poseidon said it felt like a lightning bolt.

“Where is Hypnos now?”
Zeus asked, unaware of the conversation between Than and Apollo.

Pasithea covered her face and was wracked with sobs, barely managing to utter, “He flew off to find Jen Holt!”

“But he was struck with the arrow of Eros!” Zeus bellowed. “How is this possible? He should never wish to leave your side! Did you do something to offend him?”

Pasithea fell on her knees, shaking her head, completely at a loss. Aphrodite went to her and helped her back to her feet and comforted her by stroking her hair.

“Hermes! Bring me Cupid!” Zeus commanded.

Ares strolled to the center of the court near Pa
sithea and Aphrodite. “I’ve seen an arrow of Eros neutralized one other time,” Ares said haughtily. “And it was done by the goddess of animal companions when she transformed Pete Holt into a dog.”

Hermes and Cupid appeared, but Zeus had turned his attention
to Than. “Where’s your wife?”

“The Underworld,” Than replied.

“Did she do this?” the lord of the sky asked.

“Yes,” Than replied, his throat suddenl
y tight. He sent a prayer to Therese to go to Hades for protection immediately.

“How dare she undermine my authority!” Zeus declared. “I am still the lord of the gods! Am I not?”

At that moment Rhea stepped forward, spreading her manly hands wide. “This was to be a more democratic court, remember?” She dropped her arms to her side. “Yet you sought no one’s counsel when you had Cupid pierce Hypnos’s heart.”

“Are you defending Therese’s treason against me?” Zeus, who might explode any minute from anger, asked his mother.

“You are not a sovereign king,” Rhea said boldly. “You are our leader. There’s a difference.”

Zeus shook his fists and shouted, “A leader who can’t trust his people!”

“Has there ever been trust among us?” Demeter asked. “We all have our own agendas and operate accordingly, do we not?”

“We don’t have the right to undermi
ne Zeus,” Ares insisted. “She should be punished for what she has done.”

“Zeus did have his reasons,” Hera added.

Than prayed to Athena to return as soon as possible. Maybe she could bring order to the chaos breaking up around them.

“Every new system has its growing pains,” Hephaestus offered amiably. “We just need to work out the kinks and weld together a few cracks.”

“I don’t want a new system,” Zeus said. “I prefer the old.”

“Of course you do,” Hera said.

Poseidon entered the court with a raised fist. “Is that why you stole my trident?”

***

Jen and
Bobby followed their mother, Tizzie, and a white wolf down the freezing cold path to Tartarus. A river of fire illuminated the cavern, but it gave off no heat. Jen’s teeth chattered, and her knees felt weak. She reached her hand out for Bobby’s, and for once, he didn’t bat it away, but clung to it.

They reached a huge, heavy, iron gate. It screeched against the cavern floor and ceiling as Tizzie pulled it ajar. A current of even colder air lifted up from the dark pit below.

As they broached the gate, Jen and Bobby exchanged looks of fear.

“You okay?” Jen asked
Bobby.

Her mother turned a white face back to Jen, lifted her brows, but said nothing.

“Pinch me,” Bobby said. “Tell me this isn’t a dream.”

Jen never turned down an opportunity to pinch her little brother.

“Ow!” he said, slapping her arm. “That was a figure of speech.”

They turned a corner wh
ere the river of fire ended, and all below was in utter darkness.

“What in the world?” Mrs. Holt exclaimed when Tizzie started glowing.

“So you can see,” Tizzie explained. “I’m trying to help you, Mrs. Holt. Now follow me, please.”

They came to a large opening lined with boulders. Draping over the boulders were white, iridescent flowers Jen had only ever seen here in the Underworld. She’d forgotten what Hip had called them.

“Asphodel,” Tizzie said, patting her wolf on the head.

“What?” Jen stopped short. “Can you read my mind?”

“No, of course not,” Tizzie said, her snaky hair rising and falling with a huff. “You asked me, and I answered.”

They continued around the corner, Jen shaking her head in disbelief. Had she asked Tizzie? She guessed she had without realizing it.

“Mom?” Pete appeared from around a corner.

His face had no eyeballs in it, and his whole body was see-through. Jen ran up to him and threw her arms around his neck, but she fell through him. He was nothing but colored air.

“Pete?” Mrs. Holt burst into tears. “Son, is that really you?”

“It’s really me.”

Mrs. Holt stumbled. Tizzie caught her and helped to sit on a nearby rock.

“I need a cigarette,” Mrs. Holt muttered.

Jen went to her mother’s side. “You alright?”

“What happen
ed to your eyes?” Mrs. Holt frowned at Pete.

“It’s a long story,” Pete said.

“I miss your beautiful face.” Jen’s mother batted tears from her face.

“Hi, Bobby,” Pete said.

Bobby took a step back.

“Don’t be scared,” Pete added.

“I’m not scared,” Bobby insisted. “It’s just hard to look at you.”

Tizzie brought a pair of sunglasses out of thin air and put them on Pete’s face. “Is that better?” she asked.

“Much,” Jen said.

“My poor son,” Mrs. Holt said.
“I’ve missed you so much. God, I’ve missed you!”

Bobby moved closer to
Pete. “Are you for real?”