Free From Origins (Descendant Prophecies Book 3) by Mary Ting Page B

winked.
    Smooth move, Hades! He was trying to distract me with his charm. Hades and Persephone were very convincing, and everything they were saying seemed to add up to truth.
    “How do I make a fake stone?”
    “You can ask the Oracles,” Hades answered.
    “How am I supposed to explain how I got your stone, but not your head?”
    “You’re a bright girl. You can figure something out. I’ve been stuck here for centuries; I have no idea what the world above is like. And as for my head, Hephaestus was tricking you. If you were to cut off my head, I would surely die, but we don’t leave any part of our body behind. We turn into ashes, including our head.”
    “You both better be telling me the truth, or so help me, I will take both of your lives.” I didn’t mean to sound so cruel but I meant it. I had a duty to fulfill, and that was to take care of the ones I loved. And I had no idea if leaving without the stone and Hades’s head would be the worst decision of my life.
    “Let me take you back.” Persephone stood before me. “We’ll go out the back gate. It will lead you right to Mason. He’s waiting for you. At least he doesn’t have to wait six months.” With that, she linked her arm around mine and proceeded to take me away from Hades. She seemed very eager to do so.
     

 
     
     
     
     
     
    One by one, we jumped out of the portal. No one could get out of there fast enough, except for me. If I could have had it my way, I would have waited at the spot where Sky had left me…waited for her and gotten us through the portal together.
    Plopping myself onto the sand, my eyes were focused, deadpan, on the space where the portal would appear again. While I waited, the memories I had given up came rushing back to me. It was the oddest feeling to have random thoughts flash back into my mind, but at the same time, I knew the reason it was happening.
    “If you don’t mind, I’ll sit here with you.” Nick dropped next to me, crossing his legs just as I had.
    I nodded to let him know I was fine with him, without looking at him. I didn’t even want to blink, just in case Sky needed my help when she got out. I didn’t know what state she would be in, or if…I didn’t want to even imagine my life without her, so I stopped thinking of the ‘what ifs.’ “She’ll come,” Everett said, sitting on the other side of me.
    “Whatever is going on in there, she’s fighting with all she’s got, Mason. Sky loves you so much, and that love will bring her to you.” Amanda rubbed my shoulder and sat beside Everett.
    I knew Amanda was trying to reassure me, but for some reason her words were not helping. The words “fighting with all she’s got” made me imagine things that I didn’t want to think about. If something happened to Sky, Hades would have to deal with me. I didn’t know what I would do, but I knew I would go crazy.
    The Oracles and Victor’s group stuck around. I thought they would have gone back to New Olympus, but they surprised me by staying. They weren’t sitting, but rather standing, talking among themselves. After a short while, Noah sat next to Amada.
    “She’s alive.” Zara sounded so sure. “I know this because she’s wearing the crystal I gave to Victor. I can feel the warmth from it.”
    Her words gave me hope, but I wouldn’t be able to breathe until I saw Sky with my own eyes. As water drifted to and from the shore, the clouds moved at their slow pace, and so did the sun. The beautiful streaks of red and orange were fading into a thin line as the sun was setting, saying goodbye for today.
    “You can go if you want,” I said to everyone while my eyes continued to stare at the same spot. “It’s getting colder and windier, and I know you’re all hungry.”
    “Sky might not come out until tomorrow.” Tara sounded worried. “Why don’t you get some rest, eat, and then come back?”
    Tara must be out of her mind, or maybe she thought I was, but I didn’t care. “I’m not