My Ex From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy, #1)

If you can't beat 'em, poison 'em (Part 2)

Until I took three steps and realized if I hadn't done anything to Bethany, maybe Ms. Keeper had. Maybe this had nothing to do with me and she was just your run-of-the-mill psychopath, preying on kids.

I'm not sure how comforting that thought was, but at least it wasn't personal.

I grabbed Theo's arm and hustled him out the front door. "You're never going to believe this."

I described my encounter with Veronica and explained my theory about Ms. Keeper being a serial killer.

"If that's the case," he said, "don't go anywhere alone with her."

"Theo! We still need to stop her."

"Why us? Call the police."

"Who are they going to believe? Me and my probational Bethany-hating history or a kindly member of our school's staff? No. It's up to us."

"Whatever. First there's somewhere I want to take you." He swung around the side of the school.

"Where? There's nothing out this way except the track."

"And the creek."

True. The creek was pretty small, even for a creek, but it babbled and flowed prettily. Occasionally, on hot days, students stomped through it to cool down, but generally it was deserted. Not deep enough to swim in. Or dangerous enough to drown in.

He stopped at the bank and pulled two small silver bracelets from his jacket pocket.

"What are those?" I asked. "And don't just say 'bracelets.'"

"These puppies will orient us back to the school when it's time to leave."

"Leave from where?"

"Hades," he replied.

"Are you insane? Why?"

"I want to show you something that I think could help recover your memory."

"Breaking and entering? In the Underworld?"

"And theft," Theo added cheerfully.

"No way. I'm following the de-clutter approach to life," I babbled. "Less is more."

"It's just because you don't remember you want this. Trust me. You do."

"No," I hastily protested. "Unless you want me dead, in which case, no freaking way."

"You're not going to die. No one will even know you're there. We're going to sneak in."

"You can't sneak in."

"Why not?" Theo refuted. "Suddenly you're the big expert? People do it all the time."

"Name three," I demanded.

"Hercules, Psyche, and Orpheus. And me."

"Name ten."

He shot me an exasperated look. "We'll be fine."

"And by fine you mean 'dead'? Hades wants to kill me. Generally, you don't make it easy for the homicidal lunatic by going to the place where they are lord and master."

"You have to go. There's something you need to retrieve. It was a gift from your mother, and should be in your possession again."

"I don't care," I lied. "Her parenting leaves a lot to be desired anyway." I tried to keep my voice steady as I said, "Not like she's bothered to come back for me."

"No one knows where she is. I'm sure she'd come if she could. Which is why you need this. It's all you have left of her."

Damn him. I gave a tense nod.

"Relax."

"How can I relax? You want me to go to Hell."

"No, really," he said. "You need to relax. This is going to hurt." Theo slid one bracelet onto his wrist and the other onto mine. It had a reassuring solidity to it. He grabbed my hand and pulled us into the water.

I screamed as the bracelet twisted into my skin with what felt like a thousand tiny razor-sharp bites. Then something icy cold filled my body. It swirled and expanded within me. I couldn't even catch a breath. This is it, I thought dully, I'm going to die.

Instead, the world shifted and I found myself on a grassless bank, staring at a gigantic river. Which didn't rule out the being dead part, but did make it more watery than I'd anticipated. The sky above was dark but not like a picturesque inky night. More like every bit of light had been sucked out of it.

"Welcome to the Styx," Theo commented dryly. "Our creek is a gateway to the Underworld, if you know how to get through."

I was not amused. I couldn't stop staring at this river which swirled in a corrosive blend of dark oranges and reds. "It looks like the stuff that melted Two-Face," I whispered.

"That was a soothing facial. Trust me. You don't want any part of it to touch you. Also, don't eat anything. Don't drink anything. Unless you want to be stuck here forever. Got it?"

"Got it. How can we even be here?" I asked, incredulous.

I could hear the smile in Theo's voice as I stared, transfixed, at the River Styx. "Magic."

"Like a transporter spell?" I took a couple of steps closer to the water, almost compelled by its sinister beauty.

"No. The creek is a gateway for appropriate people."

"'Appropriate' meaning?"

"Dead," he replied.

I narrowed my eyes and turned to him for the first time since we'd arrived. "Holy cow."

"Yeah. We both look a little different."

Different meaning gray and deceased. "I'm not breathing."

"Perk of being dead?" He patted my arm. "No need. It's part of the 'death up close and personal' experience."

"Tell me this is reversible."

"The water activated the bracelets. Soon as we go back, they deactivate. In theory."

"Theo!"

"Kidding. You have to be dead to cross the river. So we're in a simulated non-living state. Right now, you're a run-of-the-mill, checked out cadaver. Should work enough to get us where we need to go."

"Which is where?"

"The Palace. It was the last place you lived and where Hades kept this pendant he took from you. You need it back. Might help you remember. Alrighty. Get on."

I glanced at where he was motioning and shook my head violently. "Absolutely, positively not."