Elude

The Beast

The wails of a fire truck passing down the street woke Persephone up with a jolt.

As if by instinct she reached out to the space beside her in bed not even aware what exactly she had been expecting.

Persephone swung her legs over and her bare feet touched the fluffy rug. She yawned widely, feeling very well-rested.

She looked around her pre-war apartment and the hand-me-downs she received as part of the property's lease. Persephone thought that she had been very fortunate indeed as the girl who used to live there also left a closet full of clothes. It is, after all, a challenge to find clothing for her figure.

Persephone is not your run-of-the-mill Olympian goddess. She is actually very plump, with an apple-shaped figure but has a very big heart and the most beautiful face. Smooth skin that looked poreless, just the slightest tinge of rosiness in her cheeks and expressive, round eyes. But even goddesses have body image issues. Who wouldn't, with the likes of Hera and Aphrodite running the show in Olympus?

Yawning widely, she grabbed a silk bathrobe she discovered in the closet.

Yanking the fridge open, she decided she'd have the cold, leftover pizza for brunch. Persephone sat in the minimalist dining area and watched some television - which was by far, her most favorite mortal contraption.

A few hours later, someone was knocking on her apartment door.

Strange, I thought this apartment had a doorman. Persephone thought, her imagination running wild on who it might be.

The knocking persisted.

"Just a minute!" she called out, changing into an oversized shirt and a pair of boxer shorts.

Persephone took a deep breath and opened the door.

"Finally! I thought I might have to call the morgue. Why is it that YOU do not have a phone?!" it was Emily, her redheaded supervisor from work.

"Um... how did you know where I live?" Persephone asked Emily.

"Human resources, duh. Again, it would have been easier if you had a phone. So I didn't have to schlep all the way here." Emily rolled her eyes.

"Why are you here?"

"Ugh, so many questions, Persephone. Anyway, I need you to do something for me. Here..." Emily rooted around her large black Balenciaga shopper bag.

"The boss asked me to have you send these over to his penthouse on the Upper East Side." She handed Persephone a thick, black sealed envelope with the company logo. Immediately after, she handed what appears to be a claim stub.

"But, I thought we had no work on weekends?" Persephone protested.

"I am also running errands for him today, Persephone. It's gotten quite busy recently. Okay, first things first. You need to pick up his dog, Spot from the groomer's. Address is in this slip. No need to pay, the boss has a tab there managed by his personal accountant. After the groomer's, it's straight to the penthouse. Do I make myself clear?" Emily said.

Persephone nodded.

"Great. I'm gonna call his driver to pick you up in 45 minutes. Wait outside the building, okay?" Emily rattled on while fumbling for her phone.

Persephone nodded again.

"Awesome. Bye, hun. Have a nice day." Emily air-kissed as she made her way to the elevator at the end of the hall.

Persephone mutely waved goodbye and went back inside her apartment to quickly shower and change clothes.

30 minutes later, Persephone was sitting on the apartment's front stoop.

A black Lincoln town car pulled up and a suit-clad chauffeur got out and looked at her.

"Miss Persephone, I presume?" he asked in a British accent.

"Uh...yes. I'm her. That's me." Persephone stammered.

"In you go, if you please." the driver said, opening the back door of the vehicle for her. "My name is Charon. I will help you get around today as per Mr. Eubulus' orders."

Persephone awkwardly got into the vehicle.

"We'll just swing by to pick up Spot. I hope you don't hate dogs." the driver said cheerily, looking at Persephone in the rearview mirror.

She smiled. Deep inside, Persephone is terrified. She had never met the boss. Now, after a few weeks, here she is, getting his dog from the groomer's and dropping off documents.

15 minutes later.

"Here we are." Charon said.

Persephone opened the car door and entered New York City's most expensive pet grooming shop.

The blonde in the reception table gave her the once-over.

"Um... I'm here for...uh..." she fumbled for the paper she was supposed to hand over.

"I'm here for Mr. P. Eubulus' Spot." Persephone said, handing the receipt over to the blonde.

"Just a second." the receptionist said.

While waiting, Persephone tried not to balk at the rates of the services the shop was offering.

"Here we are..." the blonde was back and spoke in a crooning voice.

Persephone thought it was a bear. The Newfoundland dog had shiny black fur and was a bit round.

She gasped. "He's so...fluffy!"

"Well, another one bites the dust. If I had a dollar every time a customer gushes at Spot, I might be able to buy that Chanel bag just in time this season." the receptionist said, handing over the leash to Persephone.

Persephone crouched down at the dog's level. "Hello, Spot! Aren't you a handsome fellow?" she said while allowing him to smell the back of her hand.

Spot's ears pulled back slightly and wagged his tail.

"Let's take you home now." Persephone said, leading him out of the shop.

Charon was leaning against the Lincoln with his hands in his Armani suit. He straightened up and immediately opened the door for Persephone.

"You're too kind. I can manage by myself." she said.

"In we go, Spot. That's a good lad." Charon said, patting the dog's head.

"Really, sometimes with the way he behaves, you'd think he's human." he chuckled as he started the vehicle.

"Well, best get him back home." Charon said. He smiled softly to himself. He now understood why Hades fell in love with the goddess.

They drove towards NYC's most coveted and prestigious address - 740 Park Avenue.

Charon steered the car towards the building's parking and was surprised that as soon as he cut the engine off, Persephone once again did not wait for him to open the door for her.

"Come on, Spot. Let's go." she said to the dog, who immediately jumped out after her and barked happily.

"This way, please." he led the way towards an elevator bank. Charon then swiped an access card before pressing the button that said "P".

As the elevator whooshed up, Persephone started fidgeting with Spot's leash. Calm down, she told herself. All you have to do is hand over the envelope and his dog, then you're leaving.

The elevator pinged and opened. They had arrived.

Persephone did not know what it was she had been expecting, but this was not it.

The massive room had floor to ceiling windows all around, offering a 360 view of the New York skyline. To the right, a staircase led to the upper floor - she assumed that was where the bedrooms were.

Charon stepped out ahead of her.

"Please wait in the Master's foyer. Have a seat." he said in a hushed tone as he gestured towards a seat facing the elevator.