Free Strife: Hidden Book Four by Colleen Vanderlinden Page B

and I went into the house. I made a pot of coffee and we ended up sitting around my kitchen table drinking out of my vintage FireKing coffee cups. It felt surreal, especially since my father was drinking out of the Snoopy one and Nain was using the same one he’d used the morning he’d died, the dark orange one. I looked down at the Formica tabletop. The thing inside me seemed smug, almost pleased. It wasn’t raging, which I guessed was a good thing, though it had apparently gotten all of its rage out the night before.
    Hades and Nain talked about damage control. About how it was a good thing many beings hadn’t seen me in my true, winged, form. Nain seemed perfectly fine with the idea of destroying anyone who decided to publicly connect me to the video.
    “Don’t,” I said, still looking down at the table top.
    “If they talk, if they cause trouble for you, I’m gonna shut them up. We can’t be soft about this.”
    “I agree with the demon.”
    “Of course you do,” I said, glancing up at my father. “But I don’t. Hunting down anyone who talks isn’t going to help. It’s only going to make people wonder if maybe those who talked were right. We’re not the mob.”
    They were both silent, irritated. Demonic/Nether anger coming at me from both directions.
    “Set the testosterone aside for a minute and think,” I said, transferring my gaze to Nain. “You want to make me look guilty? Do you want to make it obvious I did this, or do you want to help me fix it?”
    “You didn’t do this, though,” Nain said.
    “And how many people would believe I was possessed or whatever the hell it is? Come on,” I said, getting up to pour more coffee for myself.
    I heard Nain huff out a breath in irritation. “Fine.”
    “But if this becomes a bigger problem, then we do things the demon’s way,” Hades said.
    “You just want to hurt someone,” I said to my father, and he nodded in agreement.
    “Of course I do. I’m the Lord of the Nether. And you’re my daughter, and despite your noble words you want the same thing.”
    “Well. We don’t always get what we want. There’ll be plenty of time for me to hurt people later.”
    It was then that there was a distinctive “crack” and my mother and Asclepias appeared near my back door. The dogs started barking. They were used to the imps. It was all of the immortals materializing out of nowhere that freaked them out now.
    I greeted the healer immortal, and he shook my hand warmly. He looked the same: flowing white beard and hair, pale blue robes, kind eyes.
    “Ah, Mollis. Pleasure to see you again my dear,” he said, taking my hand.
    “Thank you for coming.”
    “Your mother says you are having some issues. I saw the news reports. She showed them to me before we came over here.”
    I nodded. “It started in the Nether when I was dying and coming back, and it’s just gotten steadily worse since I’ve been back here. It seems to be affected by my moods, my energy level, my former boyfriend…”
    “The shifter?” Asclepias asked, and I felt a stab of irritation from Nain.
    “Yes. The one you healed for me.”
    “I remember it well,” he said, nodding. “Very odd that it would focus on a specific person.”
    “I know. And he’s the only one. On the other hand, it’s calmer when I’m around my parents, my aunt, Eunomia, Nain,” I said, gesturing at Nain, who was still sitting at the table, watching us.
    Asclepias studied him for a moment. “Demon. Very powerful one. Have you shared blood with him?”
    I nodded. “We were bonded, but then he died, and then I died, and our bond is dead,” I said, hating having to explain all of my personal things to a stranger.
    “Yet I can still feel you in him.”
    “And can you feel him in me?” I asked, curious. The healer god focused for a moment and nodded.
    “Yes.”
    “How?”
    He shrugged, smiled. “Your bond may be broken but it isn’t dead, my dear.”
    I felt satisfaction from Nain, resisted the