Page 20 of Artemis’ Bow (Halfling Academy #5)

“ J ayden,” I scream, flying up in the bed.

I blink my eyes open, scrambling frantically. When my hand lands on a hard chest, my shoulders slump in relief.

“Hey, are you okay?” Jayden cups my cheeks, his thumb rubbing the tears away.

Sobs rack through me as I bury my face in his shoulder. “It was awful, I’m sorry.”

“You’re okay. Shh, it was just a dream. We’re okay.” Jayden runs a soothing hand over the back of my head.

“I can’t. They can’t make me choose. I don’t think I can. Why would fate do this to me? What did I do to deserve all this pressure on me?” I ramble into his chest.

Jayden wraps his arms around me, pulling me into his lap. He rocks me back and forth as I silently sob. The worst part is that I can’t remember anything about the dream itself. Just the impressions that it was like the rest.

Hera standing over Jayden with a sadistic smirk as she made me choose him or the world. Does the queen know my weakness? If she does, Jayden isn’t safe anywhere near any of this.

“Maybe you should go to the underworld so you’ll be safe,” I whisper.

“That’s the most ridiculous thing you’ve ever said to me, love.” Jayden’s arms tighten around me. “I go where you go, remember?”

“The queen could use you against me.” I cry harder.

“I’m not that breakable, Beth.” Jayden rubs my back.

He’s right but that doesn’t stop the overwhelming sense of dread and panic that are coursing through me. I won’t survive without Jayden. I can’t. Going to the underworld is the safest for him but he’s as stubborn as I am.

“I would feel better about what I’m expected to do if you were safe.”

“And who’s going to keep you safe?” he growls.

“I can keep myself safe.”

“So, you don’t think I can keep myself safe?” he asks, his voice tinged with annoyance.

“That’s not what I meant. You don’t have to be a part of this. I do. I am the stupid chosen one or whatever. I don’t want any of this, but I don’t have a choice.”

“If you don’t have a choice, then neither do I. Someone has to keep you safe and that someone is me.” He grips my biceps, pushing me back so he can stare into my eyes. “I love you. I. Go. Where. You. Go.”

“Your stubbornness is going to get you killed.” I sigh.

Jayden wraps his hand around the back of my neck and smashes his lips to mine. “I may be a stubborn ass, but I’m your stubborn ass and I’m not hiding out in the underworld like a coward while you run into danger alone.”

“It’s not cowardly to hide when the stakes are this high and you could be used against me.”

“This is my choice to make. And I have already made it. I’m not leaving you behind so just drop it, love. It’s never going to happen.”

“Fine.” I shift in his arms, glancing at the room around us. “Any idea how long we slept?”

“I would say we got a full night’s rest. I feel rested and ready to go find Artemis and get rid of the endless sun.” Jayden stretches his arms over his head.

His muscles bunch deliciously. I turn my gaze away from him before we’re late. It really should be illegal for him to look that good without his shirt on, like a traffic hazard or something.

If I was driving and saw him walking around shirtless, I wouldn’t have to worry about a vengeful goddess. My own distraction would be the end of me as I crashed the car.

Jumping from the bed before I make a poor decision and decide to keep Jayden in my bed and say fuck the world, I head to my dresser and grab the clothes I piled on top of it yesterday to travel in.

“Baby, you better get that sexy ass dressed before I do something about it, like drag you back to this bed,” Jayden says with a groan.

Glad I’m not the only one affected.

“We don’t have time for that, Jayden. I haven’t finished packing.” I snap my bra into place.

“You probably still have your bag half-packed from the last time.” He chuckles.

I pull my leggings up my thighs and turn to the closet. He’s not wrong. I never unpacked my bag from before. It’s an old habit from childhood when my mom would make us leave our house in the middle of the night, running from monsters discovering us.

I pick up my bag and rifle through it, making sure everything we need is in there. The shell we got from the dryad the first mission for Zeus is in there along with some other things. I stuff a few changes of clothes into it and head to my bathroom.

“Are you done packing?” I ask Jayden.

“I took a page out of your book and just cleaned the clothes I traveled in and then put them right back in the bag so I could be ready if we had to leave quickly again.” Jayden shrugs. “Just gotta stop by my room and grab it.”

“Okay, then we should be ready pretty quickly.” I pull my hair back into a ponytail and finish getting ready.

“All done?” Jayden asks when I step back into the bedroom.

“Yes, hopefully the others are ready as well.” I reach for the door to my room.

Jayden gets there first and opens it with a flourish and a wink. Every time he does something sweet like that for me, it reminds me of the jerk he’d been when we first met and how much he’s changed in the months since that first fateful trip to the academy.

He wraps an arm around my waist as we rush down the stairs to his floor. There’s no one on the stairs because we are the only two demigods on our floors, but the silence isn’t eerie or oppressive. It’s calm and peaceful which isn’t something we’ve had a lot of recently.

“Just let me grab my bag real quick,” Jayden says.

A shudder rolls down my spine as I step into the darkness of his dorm. The son of Hades doesn’t exactly enjoy the décor either, but the rooms are all based off the perception of the god or goddess parent for that floor. Hades isn’t as dark and depraved as people make him out to be.

He’s a caring father and a doting husband. He and Persephone are absolutely adorable together and I wouldn’t equate them with darkness at all. They are powerful allies, though.

Jayden saunters through the room with his bag slung over one shoulder and grins at me. “The room isn’t that bad.”

“It’s creepy, Jayden.” I shiver.

“Maybe it just takes some getting used to.” He shrugs. “Let’s go.”

The stairway gets exceedingly more crowded as we descend the steps to the lower floors. I block as much of it out as possible. I can’t afford to get into it with idiots right now.

I’m not sure if it’s the expression on my face or if people know we’re leaving today, but students part for us, and no one says a word to us as we leave the dorm building.

“Relax, we’ll get there in a minute. You’re making students uncomfortable with that expression.” Jayden squeezes my hip.

“I’m just worried that we won’t get there in time. It’s already gone on for days. How long can the world keep going like this before everything freezes over?”

“We’ve been on a race against the clock time and again. It’ll be okay,” Jayden says.

We turn the last corner to the parking lot at the front of the academy and find the others gathered around a black SUV. Adrian sees us first and waves a hand.

“Is everything ready?” I ask.

“Yeah, we just loaded our bags in the trunk,” Adrian says.

“Good. And you’re sure about the location?” I ask.

“The vision was clear and to be completely honest, that city is a hotbed for paranormal activity.” Adrian nods.

“He’s right,” Greyson cuts in. “My kind avoid it at all costs. The vampires run that city, and we do not get along.”

“Vampires?” I screech. “No one said anything about fucking vampires. What in Hades?”

“Unless they feel threatened, they mainly stick to their own dens. They are a threat to watch out for, though. Especially since I will be with you.” Greyson rubs the back of his neck.

“Is there any other paranormal species we need to worry about there?” I ask, throwing my hands up in the air.

“They hide in plain sight. They look like normal humans and I’m not sure if they will be attracted to you all or not. They can smell magic so I would just be cautious.”

“Just great. If I end up a chew toy for a bloodsucker, I’m going to shish kebab you, Greyson,” I growl.

“That’s not happening,” Jayden snarls, pulling me against his side. “Any vampire tries and a pointy stick will be the least of their worries.”

“What’s a vampire?” Chiron asks behind me.

“Undead bloodsucking assholes from after your time,” Jayden says. “They aren’t a threat to us. I hope anyway.”

“I don’t know about that. Some are ancient and insanely powerful. They don’t age.” Greyson leans back against the SUV.

“This just keeps getting better and better.” I walk over to the front passenger door of the car and yank it open. “We need to avoid anyone with pointy fangs.”

“Agreed.” Raven chuckles. “Not that we’ll know they have them until they smile, and then it will be too late.”

“That is exceedingly unhelpful,” Jayden grumbles.

“But not untrue,” she sings.

“All right, let’s get back on track. What did you need from us, Chiron?” I ask.

“I just came to see you off and make sure you have everything you need.” Chiron crosses his arms over his barrel chest.

“I think we’re good. We gathered our supplies yesterday and rested so we are fresh for the long journey.” I sigh. “We’re as ready as we’ll ever be, I guess.”

I dump both my packs on the floorboard of the SUV and turn to face the centaur. Chiron nods in thought.

“There are dark forces at work here, but I have faith in you all. You will do what you need to as you always do.”

“Thank you, Chiron. We will bring Artemis back so we can begin the true preparations for the war.” I place my fist over my heart and bow my head slightly in the warrior’s sign of respect.

Chiron offers us the same sign of respect before turning and trotting away.

“Oh good, I caught you,” Hermes says as he pops into existence. “Popping into and out of moving vehicles is always a bit tricky. I’m glad I don’t have to attempt it.”

“Hermes, what are you doing here?” Jayden asks. “Is everything all right in the underworld?”