Page 7 of Queen to the Sunless Court (Brides of Myth #2)

The Rift

Calliste

Awed by the presence of all the Underworld gods, Calliste began her tale from the moment when she and Hypnos had entered the Roots, transformed into a realm reminiscent of Elysium. She deliberately omitted Hypnos’ earlier outburst and their quarrel by the shore of Styx.

Hades listened in deep silence until she reached the part where Tempest had pinned her down, about to cleave open her chest. He raised his hand. “Wait.”

Calliste paused, breathless. Her pulse was racing.

Hades regarded her with a deep frown etched between his brows. “It’s all too recent. Your body is reacting to that ordeal. I want to hear everything, but not at the expense of your well-being.” He sighed. “Hypnos? We could use your abilities here.”

“Of course,” Dream replied smoothly, rising from his seat and moving behind her.

Calliste tensed as he slipped his hands on her shoulders.

“Don’t worry, Calliste,” he murmured. “I’ll help you calm down so you can finish.”

A cold shiver raced down her spine before she composed herself. The last thing she wanted was to make her uneasiness obvious as Hypnos touched her, and inwardly, she wished he wouldn’t.

But as soon as the soothing warmth from his hands spread through her body, her muscles relaxed, no longer tense.

She soaked it up before continuing, “I asked her why she was toying with me, and she said I should have heeded her warning to stay away from the Roots. And then—” She gasped as Hypnos’ hands suddenly turned cold.

“She warned you?” he asked from behind her, his voice filled with disbelief. “You mean, she spoke to you previously? When ?”

Calliste tensed again as silence thickened in the library, chilled as she recalled that Tempest had indeed warned her about the dangers of being a mortal caught in a game of immortals, and then specifically about Hypnos being dishonest—an exchange she’d never disclosed to him because at that point, she already didn’t trust him.

“I didn’t put much stock in it,” she replied weakly, avoiding Hades’ intense gaze.

“In fact, I wasn’t certain if it was real or imagined. ”

“But why didn't you think to mention it to me?” Hypnos demanded, his grip now tight, painful. “If I’d known about her, I would have arrived at the Roots prepared.”

She clenched her teeth.

“Brother,” Thanatos’ nocturnal voice carried across from the other side of the table like a frosty breeze. “This isn’t an interrogation. Why are you questioning her like this?”

“Why?” Ice seeped from both Hypnos’ hands and his voice. “Because an unidentified deity is meddling right under our noses, and the mortal I trusted to investigate it—”

“Enough,” Hades’ voice rolled like a distant thunder. “Step outside to calm down.”

“I am calm.”

Hades leveled him with a piercing gaze, and Calliste shuddered at the dark, magnetic, wave of stark authority emanating from the ruler of the Underworld. “Take your hands off her and step outside .”

She was still holding her breath until Hypnos’ grip vanished and the door snapped shut, and only then did she exhale, her eyes on the slow swirl of gold and midnight blue beneath the table’s surface. The silence lingered until she finally gathered the courage to look up.

Hades sat with his elbows on the armrest, eyes narrowed at her as if she were a puzzle he was trying to solve.

“As much as I don’t want to pressure you, I would appreciate an explanation.

From what Thanatos told me, you appear to understand that this is a volatile situation and we need every clue.

So why didn’t you mention anything? If not to Hypnos, then to Thanatos. ”

Stay calm . She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, then opened them to meet Hades’ straightforward gaze.

“At the time she warned me, I suspected Hypnos was hiding something from me. And I was right about that, but wrong about what he was hiding—it wasn’t related to that mysterious deity in the Underworld. ”

“What was her warning?”

“She told me to stay away, as I am merely a mortal caught in the game of immortals. She also said that Hypnos wasn’t entirely honest with me. Which proved true.”

“How?”

She faltered, struggling to reveal something so personal in front of all the gods. Her words caught in her throat.

Hades glanced at Thanatos, whose intense gaze burned into her across the table. “You asked me a strange question earlier… about falling into Styx. Why? Specifically, why would you worry that my brother might let this happen to you?”

Be fearless , urged a little voice in her head.

Admitting the truth was risky, but remaining silent and under Hypnos’ power was worse.

He was unpredictable, and his sickly jealousy and entitlement frightened her enough already.

Perhaps this is my only chance to hold him accountable .

“Because he nearly plunged into Styx with me,” she replied in a whisper.

Hades straightened. “When?”

“The night we faced Tempest. As he carried me to the Underworld, he found out that I might be growing attached to… to a certain mortal. He tried to persuade me to accept his favor instead. When I refused his advances, he nearly crashed us into Styx to punish me.”

“Ah, damn it.” Thanatos slumped against his armchair’s headrest.

“Unbelievable.” Hades scowled. “Thanatos, get him back in here.”

The god of death rose, his wings leaving inky trails in the air as he marched to the door and flung it open to confront his brother, who was hovering in the doorway. “You were risking a crash into Styx? Have you lost your mind?”

“I knew what I was doing.” Hypnos’ eyes blazed silver.

“I suspected you were up to something, but this ? Why are you trying to force your affection on her?”

“I don’t need to. I’m her patron god.”

“Epione is her patron goddess, and Calliste is far too important for your games,” Thanatos snarled. “Is this why you ignored the danger and went into the Roots even though it was clearly bespelled? Is this why you were captured and she nearly died—because you weren’t paying attention?”

“She nearly died because she chose to keep secrets from me,” Hypnos slapped the open door with his palm, hard enough to slam it against the wall.

Calliste flinched, shrinking in her skin at Hypnos’ raised voice.

“You were supposed to be her guide, nothing more,” Thanatos replied icily.

“I would be, if she weren't making foolish choices and letting herself be swayed by a scrap of attention from that blasphemous mortal king.”

Cheeks flushed, Calliste rose from her chair, her fear melting away in a heat of indignation. “I told you not to call him that.”

“Or what?” Hypnos’ wings glowed harsh azure again as he side-stepped Thanatos, his teeth bared in a nasty smile. “What will you do? He is who he is.”

“He’s the reason I’m here.”

“Don’t be delusional, Calliste,” Hypnos hissed, stepping forward. “It’s the Fates.”

From the corner of her eye, she noticed Morpheus rising beside her, his stance alert. It emboldened her. “Then he’s an extension of the Fates’ will,” she replied. “And the Fates wouldn’t allow a blasphemer to execute it. Tell me that I’m wrong.”

Hypnos glared. “I am your patron god and you are not to stray from me.” But then his gaze shifted to someone behind Calliste, and his anger cooled to wariness.

Calliste glanced over her shoulder.

Hades had also risen, his black robe flowing about him.

He might have been dressed plainly, yet he exuded a power she sometimes sensed radiating from Theron.

Authority resonant in his steely voice, he drawled, “If the Priestess has already made her position clear, the least you can do is acknowledge that, instead of derailing everything with your misguided notion of loyalty. Since you still refuse to respect this, you’ll step aside. Morpheus will take over for you.”

Hypnos’ eyes darted to his son and then Hades, and he stepped forth as if to confront the lord of the Underworld.

Calliste froze, but Morpheus moved to block Hypnos’ path. “Not a wise move, Father.”

“Nor is your interference.” Hypnos glowered at Hades. “She’ll fail without my support.”

“Then support her without conditions,” Hades replied evenly. “As we’re short on alternatives, and I don’t like that you’re choosing to argue about it.”

“You speak as if you didn’t expect the same from us. You also demand loyalty.”

“Loyalty is not the same as obedience, and one doesn’t exclude the other,” Hades retorted. “I may not have your obedience now, but I don’t assume you’re disloyal because of it.”

Hypnos’ wings glowed brighter, and the scent of green apples intensified. “She owes me obedience for the years I supported her on her path.”

“I might.” She squared her shoulders, determined to set the record straight. “But obedience is not a coin you can trade for anything else. I’ve told you: I am my own sanctuary.”

He narrowed his eyes at her. “And I’ve told you it’s unwise to defy me.”

“That’s enough ,” Hades thundered, his voice causing the library to tremble as it echoed off the glittering ceiling. “I’ve never seen you this blind to reason, Hypnos. It affects you far too much. Step back and reflect. I don’t want to see you until you have.”

“Truly?” Hypnos sneered, but after a moment, his features froze into eerie calm. “You know where to find me.” With that, he spun around and stormed out.

***

Thanatos gently closed the door and rubbed his face. “I should have guessed.”

Calliste shook her head, exhaling deeply as she reached to steady herself on the back of the chair. “When he made his sentiment obvious, it came as a surprise even to me.”

Thanatos sank into his seat with an unhappy sigh. “He’s my brother and I know his past. I should have seen it coming.”

Morpheus looked at Calliste, his turquoise eyes like the depths of the sunlit ocean, as if unaffected by the outburst, and sat down, too. “The wisest course is to hear the rest of your story, so we might identify who Tempest is, especially since my father won’t share his account.”