HADES

Dickheads

Celina sneaked into the mansion quietly from the back. She did not know how she had managed to do that, but something told her that Greta was behind saving her ass. However, she didn't dwell on that matter because she had to wave her stranger goodbye as a sign. Now that she was inside the mansion she recalled the events that had taken part in the car.

"I found your address in dads office. He doesn't know that I contacted you though. I just want help with something and you seem to be the only tracker who isn't currently busy with finding the prisoner Hades" she had explained when they sat in comfortable silence.

The lights at the side of the road looked beautiful and reminded her a little of the bakery she worked at. Scar, her papa, had bought the bakery back and renewed it so that it looked the same as it had when Lorenzo and Bella had met in it. Celina had taken it upon herself to work there like her mother to not let the memories fade away. Some days when she felt sad, she found herself lurking in the bakery alone. She would imagine how her papa Scar may have talked, acted or even laughed in the bakery. She would imagine how Lorenzo would always secretly spoil her with the cookies that Bella made. She would imagine how life was before she grew up and realized that not everyone was as kind as her parents. There were people like Sebastian and his family who wanted to inflict her family harm and somehow, she had given herself to them as an exchange for her family.

"Hades?" Hades asked, pretending to not know about the infamous criminal that he himself knew too well.

"Yeah, the guards are tripping" she said before she could control her lingo and chuckled. If anyone from the East had heard her, they would be so threatened from the "influence of the West". She imagined the ladies holding on to their pearl necklaces as they screamed. The thought made her giggle and Hades who was driving had to turn his head to look at the happiness radiating from the girl. If his arrival that made the guard scared made her that happy, he guessed it was worth it, right?

"Tripping ey?" he mumbled and leaned closer to the wheel to look out. It had gotten quite foggy because of the weather and his sight was not the best either because of his irresponsibility when it came to eating and taking his pills for the constant headaches.

She nodded and smiled slightly. "They are running around like kitchen without heads" she told him, feeling the nervousness leave her slowly. "And my parents are in Italy for something too, as you probably know" she tilted her face to him.

Hades shook his head and licked his lips as he felt anxiety prickling up as the topic of Italy was coming up. He could only imagine what a man like Lorenzo Moretti would be doing in Italy where everyone had expected Hades to escape to. He wouldn't be going there to taste the fine wine, that was for sure.

"I don't work for your father any longer. We haven't seen each other in...years" he lied through gritted teeth as he thought about the last time he had seen the real Ryder and murdered him. It had been when Hades had escaped the cells newly and ran into the best tracker of the Morettis who had tried to harm him. In absolute panic, Hades had killed Ryder and buried his body somewhere in the East.

"Why?" she asked curiously and looked at him with her innocent eyes.

"I don't like hanging with too many dickheads at one place" Hades muttered as he thought about Ryder and how he was talking about handing him to his dickheads of guard friends.

Celina laughed out loudly at that and felt happy that there was someone who despised the guards as much as her. Hades was more than shocked at the fact that Celina had laughed at that when he had expected her to be mad at him and not ask for help. The girl was surprising him whether it was by staying at his cheap flat and eating from his hands to her laughing at the ignorant people from the East.

"Dickheads is the perfect word" was the only thing she said, making him smirk lazily. Now that she looked at him up closely, he looked tired and his voice dropped a few octaves lower when he talked to her. Making her a bit more flustered than what she needed to be for the safety of her heart.

"But will you help me? I wish to find a family friend of mine that is nowhere to be seen" she asked, looking at him hopefully. What she didn't know was that Hades was no tracker and his way of handling business was not by sitting behind a computer. Instead, he was the more violent type and his specialty was not to track people.

"I don't think that I am befitting of that gattina. I have ended my relations with your father and don't want them to.." he tried explaining, but was having difficulties with expressing his emotions.

"I won't utter a word to anyone and I would like for you to not do that either. Pinky promise" she rushed out, holding up her pinky to his face. Hades didn't bother to acknowledge what she was doing because he was confused as to what he was supposed to do. Pinky what?

Celina understood that she wouldn't get an answer to that and she quietly tried to play the action off. Instead she snapped her fingers in front of his face, making him even more confused. Jesus, take the wheel her consciousness begged and this time she agreed. She really did embarrass herself beyond what a person could imagine.

"I will need something in return" Hades spoke up after a while of being confused and even more confused at her actions.

Celina nodded quickly, ready to do anything to get James back. She expected him to ask for either money, a mansion or something materialistic but what she didn't know was that Hades had all that. He had too much money to even spend and was therefore stuck in the flat. Instead he had bought a garage where he bought cars and fixed them to his imagination. He had always been a nerd for racer cars.

"Now that they are raiding houses in the West, I don't want to be troubled by them. I need them to not raid my flat" he spoke with finality which made Celina a bit taken back. She did not know how she would pull that off, but she agreed.

The rest of the ride was quiet and peaceful. He had dropped her off at the border that was quite close to the mansion. He instructed her to go to the top floor and wave at him as a sign for him to leave. He had stated that it meant "coast clear", but he himself knew that he wanted to know if she had reached safely. He couldn't deny that he felt guilty every time he saw the bruise on her neck and the slight uncomfortable groan that escaped her mouth from her back pain.

Therefore, she was now tip toeing to the highest floor from where he could see her waving. She felt as if she was in a Disney movie where she was Rapunzel and him, obviously, Ryder. Maybe Sebastian is Maximus- "oh shut up inner Celina" she muttered to herself and panted as she reached the highest level.

She went to the window and opened it, feeling goosebumps arise from the wind. She spotted the beautiful white car that was parked at the border that splitted the East and the West. She waved like a maniac, hoping that he noticed her short frame in the big mansion. Hades who was waiting outside patiently squinted his eyes and felt like chuckling at how funny she looked, waving like that. It almost looked as if she was going to fall out any moment and that was enough for him to start up the car and drive away. Leaving Celina to stand there even after the car had driven away leaving not a single trace of him. She suddenly felt empty and the feeling of not seeing him again, disturbed her. 

"Princess?" Gretas sleepy voice was heard from behind her. Celina let out a squeal from being startled and clutched on to the shirt was wearing. It was dark outside and she happy that Greta could not see her startled expression. "Where have you been?" she asked in a whisper, her motherly note so evident. Greta had always been there for Celina when her parents would take trips to Italy and took care of her like her own daughter. 

"I was with Gracie and lost the track of time" she excused and even though she knew that Greta didn't believe it, she didn't say anything. Instead, she nodded and urged her to go to her room before she fell sick. Celina who just wanted to escape the situation ran to her room just as the words were uttered and closed the door.

She leaned against the door for a second, breathing out. hesitantly, she lifted the shirt she was wearing to her nose and smelled his cologne and the home she had stayed at. A small smile formed on her plump lips and she closed her eyes in bliss. Now you have him in your room too, her consciousness teased, to which she flushed bright right. 

"Shut it, you creep" she whispered to herself, but the smile on her face had still not left her mouth. 

It was still there.