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Nico held a finger to his lips. He peeked through the gateway again, then gestured to Will that it was safe to look.

When Will saw the courtyard, he suppressed a gasp.

The garden glowed like a city at night. Every plant sparkled or glittered. One bush branched upward with stems like silvery bottle brushes. A glass cactus bloomed with ruby-red flowers. Sapphires and diamonds formed a gem-paved path that wove its way through the flower beds. Each plant was the most beautiful thing Will had ever seen until he gazed at the one next to it.

But none of them were as beautiful as the woman tending the azure roses in the centre of the garden.

Persephone’s peach-coloured dress shimmered in the light, the fabric stitched with tiny green vines that flowed and spiralled down her sleeves. Her dark brown hair framed a face so soft and gentle that the roses seemed to bend towards her, aching for contact.

The stories about Persephone’s beauty did not do her justice.

As the goddess drifted deeper into her garden, Will finally managed to peel himself away and turn back to Nico.

‘You okay?’ whispered Nico. ‘I know it’s hard to see her for the first time.’

‘She’s the most gorgeous person I’ve ever seen,’ he said in awe.

‘Calm down, Night Light.’

‘What? I’m not wrong.’

‘I didn’t say you were.’

He raised an eyebrow. ‘Are you jealous that I find her attractive?’

Nico wrinkled up his face. ‘Ew,no, Will. I’m trying not to be weirded out because that’s mystepmother.’

‘Oh,’ said Will. ‘Right. Sorry.’

‘But, yes, you’re correct. She’s stunning. I guess I’m just used to it by now.’

Will shook his head. ‘We’retoldof her beauty, but that’s nothing compared to actuallyseeingit.’

‘Okay, okay, enough of your bisexual chaos for the moment,’ said Nico. ‘We have to figure out how to get past her and pick some fruit without getting caught.’

Will thought for a moment. ‘Can’t we just dart in and grab something near the gate?’

Nico shook his head. ‘All the good fruit-bearing plants are in the centre of the garden. In fact, I’m starting to wonder … what if Menoetes is setting us up to fail?’

‘I was worrying about that, too,’ Will admitted. ‘But I think he really wants that fruit. If we’re the only way he can get it, why set us up for failure?’

Nico sucked in a deep breath. ‘Okay. We’ll just be as careful as we can. Get in, get the fruit, then get out. Hopefully Persephone stays on the far end of the garden for a while. Keep close to me, okay?’

Will nodded, and the two of them tiptoed through the gateway. They veered to the right, crouching behind a thick row of hedges with silver leaves. Will, still completely under the spell of the place, reached out and touched one.

‘This is incredible,’ he whispered. ‘How does all this grow here without sunlight?’

Nico gave Will a familiar look: something between annoyance and concern.

‘It’s just like the trees Menoetes showed us,’ Nico said. ‘Life finds a way to persist, even in the land of the dead.’

A thought came to Will. ‘It’s kinda like you, then.’

Nico’s eyebrows furrowed. ‘What?’

‘You found a way to survive even in Tartarus. You’re one of the only demigods who ever has.’

‘I was kidnapped by two fame-craving giants. It was hardly heroic.’