“You’re on time. That’s why I like you, boy. Nothing screams a job will get done than a worker who’s punctual,” Hades states as he emerges from another room and comes towards me.

He is tall with a lean, fit frame and slick inky black hair that matches his building perfectly. His eyes almost glow in the dim light. Some might say they are an icy blue, but to me, they are the hottest point of a flame. Those eyes are ready to burn you into ashes at any moment.

He waves me forward and says, “Take a seat. We need to discuss a few things tonight. Would you like a drink?” He crosses over to a bar set up on the side.

“Um, some water, please,” I reply.

He chuckles. “Okay. Boring, but water it is.”

I head towards a seating area with a fake fireplace. It’s got a blue flame flickering within it. Hades definitely knows how to show off his style and embrace his role as the King of the Underworld.

“You look good, Meg,” Hades says as he looks closely at me. “It’s nice seeing a glimpse of that young man who loved to spend his days wearing high-end fashion and attending parties.”

I take the glass of water he hands me as he continues, “Though there is a sort of beauty to the darkness lingering in your eyes after your time away, gives you a sort of cloud of mystery.”

I blink at Hades, wondering where this speech of his is going.

“I have a job for you, but for this job, I need you to be more of a sad sack, desperate for redemption instead of a mystery,” Hades says, finally getting to the point.

“Why?” I ask.

Hades sits down with a glass of a dark red, almost purple, liquid. He sees me eyeing it and smirks. “Sorry, kid. This is my own special drink. It was a gift from my ex-wife after our divorce. You could say it’s her way of saying ‘fuck you’ to me, and I actually quite like it.”

He takes a sip and winces. “It’s sweeter than what I usually prefer, but she was too, and that’s what attracted me to her in the first place.”

He sets the glass on a nearby table and waves one of his men over from the shadows. The guy places an envelope on the coffee table in front of me.

“Here’s some information we’ve collected to help you with the task ahead,” Hades says, pointing at the envelope.

I peer warily at the envelope and ask, “What task is that exactly?”

Hades looks me over before he nods and answers, “I need you to get a job at Zeus’s business. Not one of his small places. The company headquarters.”

I stare at him and he continues, “I want you to get in and get as close to Zeus as you can. Then I want you to collect information for me. Not shit like he went to dinner with Hera.”

“What kind of information do you want, then?” I ask.

“I mean, I want to know any weakness or possible cracks he might have for me to use,” Hades responds.

I’m confused. The Underworld is a huge place populated with a lot of people. There are countless others who can handle spying better than I can, so why choose me for this job?

“Everyone knows Zeus has mistresses, why don’t you use one of them?” I ask.

Hades laughs. “This isn’t the first time, Meg. Unfortunately, Zeus gets bored with his girls quickly and drops them as quickly as he collects them. When they’re no longer protected by Zeus, Hera takes her anger at Zeus out on them and they disappear. Sometimes, their families find their bodies washed up by the Styx River. Then Zeus blames me and attacks my legal businesses. It’s not fair, right, Meg?”

“Okay, but that still leaves me to ask why me?”

“Well, that’s easy. You owe me. But also because Zeus has a little soft spot for your asshole of a father. So I have a feeling if you crawl that cute ass of yours up to Zeus and beg him to give you a chance so you can make it up to your father for your past mistakes, then he might give you a chance.” Hades’ smile is friendly yet smug when he finishes explaining his logic to me.

This is all crazy, but I don’t exactly have the power to say no to him.

“And what if he doesn’t give me a chance?” I ask.

The friendly smile Hades had on his face drops in that moment. “Well, you better practice your acting before you go then, because I would hate to see what happens if you let me down.” He pauses, then bursts out laughing. “I’m kidding. We’ll just have to find another way. After all, I hate to waste a good tool without really trying it first.”

Even though he is smiling again, this time it feels different. Darker. More menacing. A shiver goes through me, and I have to fight my body’s need to run.

I don’t have a choice but to agree with Hades’ scheme. “Okay. When do you want me to start?”

“ASAP,” Hades says, sliding a credit card and cash my way. “Take these, and don’t worry, it won’t increase your debt to me. Consider it a business card and money for work expenses.”

I take the card and cash from Hades. He says, “Get yourself some new clothes and make sure you look good for this job. Also, try to appear like a charity case. Tug at their bleeding hearts. Make them feel sorry for the kid who disappointed his parents and is trying to make it up to them.”

I give Hades a doubtful look, but he pays no attention. “Take a few days to prepare yourself mentally. However, I expect to hear good news by next week that you’ve secured a job there and started gathering information for me. Oh, and here, take this too.” He slides a phone in my direction.