Hunt

But were all of them sexually abused? West and Griff?

I didn’t have the confidence to ask. I knew it was a hard topic for him to discuss.

When I reached the top of the stairs, I waited for him.

He took my hand again. “Are you hungry?”

“No.” I scanned the enormous marble hallway. The floor was covered in ivory tiles and a vast sea of paintings filled the walls from floor to ceiling.

In between each painting stood different marble statues of what I assumed to be Roman gods and goddesses since they wore marble togas. The statues stood tall and regal. Their faces were cold and impassive. Many of their arms were crossed in a pose of power.

I took in the ones closer to us. “Who are the statues of?”

“Greek gods.”

I was close.

We walked forward.

As we headed down, Cain pointed at each one. “I think this one is Gaia due to the circular globe in her hands. It resembles Earth.”

I looked at it.

We walked on.

Our footsteps echoed in the space.

He pointed to the statue on the left. “That is Zeus holding the huge lightning bolt. He’s the god of the sky.”

“He’s more like the boss too.” I looked at him. “Right?”

Cain smiled. “I would say that. Zeus always has to deal with his family of Olympians. They’re always bickering and battling.”

“And they’re always coming down to Earth and having sex with humans.”

He chuckled. “Many would agree with that.”

I pointed to my right. “And over there?”

“That’s Poseidon with the three-pointed trident. He’s the god of the sea.”

I pointed to another. “What about her?”

“That’s Demeter. Goddess of agriculture.”

I dropped my hand. “That sounds boring.”

“Sure. Demeter was one of the quieter goddesses.” He shrugged. “As long as the crops were growing and the farmers were happy, Demeter was content.”

I looked up at him. “That’s it?”

“Then, Hades—the god of death and Zeus’s brother—saw her daughter Persephone. Hades was so captivated with Persephone that he stole her.”

“Then, it was on?”

“Or off. Demeter stopped letting all the plants grow. She took away the warmth and sunshine. People began to starve.”

“Never mess with a mother and her kid.”

“Hades never got that message.” Cain chuckled. “So Zeus stepped in, as he always does and commanded Hades to return Persephone.”

We continued down the long hallway. I no longer cared about the other statues. I was too intrigued with this story. I gazed at Cain. “Did Hades ever give her back?”

“Hades was always an asshole and he’d fallen in love with Persephone so he had her eat pomegranate seeds. It was considered the food of the dead.”

“What happened when she ate it?”

“She became tied to Hades. It resulted in Persephone only getting to spend six months of each year with her mother.”

“And the other six months were with Hades?”

“Yes. This was how the Greeks explained the seasons. When Persephone was with her mother, Demeter let the warmth come to the earth and had the crops grow. That time was spring and summer. Then, when it was time for her to go to Hades, Demeter turned the earth cold.”

“Fall and Winter.”

“Exactly.”

We stopped the end of the hallway where two huge marble statues flanked the doorway.

“This is us.” Cain pointed to the door.

I studied the statues.

On the left, a huge man held a two-pointed trident. In the other hand he gripped a leash attached to a three-headed dog.

I turned to the statue on the right. A beautiful woman stood there. She held her arm out in front of it. A large, round pomegranate sat in her hand. It looked like she was trying to give it to me.

I widened my eyes. “This is Hades and Persephone?”

“Yes. They just happen to guard the Master Suite, our room.” He shook his head. “I don’t know who decorated the upper level, but I think they went a bit too far.”

“Yeah?”

“Must be new money. Sometimes when people get a massive amount of cash, they want everyone to know in every detail of their house.”

“You of all people think this decorating is too much?” I eyed him. Surely, he saw the skeptical expression on my face.

“What?”

“You live in a church, Cain. And every night a moonlit cross glows on your bed.”

“It’s a chapel, not a church.”

“Same thing.”

“It sounds less crazy.”

“It doesn’t.”

Chuckling, he opened the door. “I didn’t want to take out the stained glass above the window because I like it.”

“Or you think you’re god and deserve a cross glowing over you.”

“Never that, Phoenix.” He gave me a sad smile and led me inside. “Never that.”

I entered the room and gasped for the second time that day.

Before us was a room fit for royalty set in an opulent world of gold and white. There was a golden bed frame. And it wasn’t a typical headboard. It was made up of thick gold bars.

There were also gold window coverings. Gold velvet drapes hung in front of the windows on gold hooks and eyelets.