Hades' Cursed Luna novel Chapter 203

Eve

Tomorrow was the day, and every waking thought was on what the dreaded meeting would bring. My mind flipped through all the possible manipulation tactics they would use to sway me back into their clutches.

As we lay in bed together, his arms wrapped around my waist, my head resting in the crook of his arm, sleep refused to find me. I tried to calm myself by listening to his steady heartbeat, but each time I closed my eyes, I could see their faces.

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My damnation gleamed in their gazes.

My curse—the one they had branded onto my soul since the day of that fateful birthday—would be their weapon, sharpened by years of torment, of whispers in the dark, of the cold chains that once bound me.

I could already hear their voices.

Their justifications.

Their lies.

"We did this for your own good."

"We tried to save you from yourself."

"You belong with us. You always have. You always will."

A shiver crawled down my spine, and I curled deeper into Hades, as if I could escape the ghosts of my past by pressing myself into his warmth. His grip instinctively tightened, his subconscious recognizing my unease even in sleep.

I tilted my head slightly, looking up at him in the dim glow of the moon filtering through the curtains. He looked so at peace—so unlike the king who bore the weight of a pack on his shoulders. His brow, usually furrowed in thought or restraint, was smooth, his lips slightly parted as he breathed deeply, steadily.

I envied him.

Hades had his demons, but he had conquered them. He had torn them from their roots and forced them to submit to his will.

Mine still lurked in the shadows.

I exhaled slowly, carefully slipping from his hold. His arms twitched, reaching for me in his sleep, but I moved softly enough that he didn’t fully wake. Standing, I wrapped one of his discarded robes around myself and padded toward the window.

I pressed my forehead against the cool glass, my fingers tightening against the fabric of the robe.

"You are not Ellen Valmont anymore."

"You are Eve Stravos."

I repeated the words in my head like a mantra, willing them to become truth.

But names alone did not erase the past.

I had spent so long surviving that I had never learned what it meant to live. To be free.

And tomorrow, I would be stepping back into the cage I had once called home.

The sound of shifting sheets pulled me from my spiraling thoughts, and I turned to see Hades watching me, his eyes alert like he had not been sleeping.

"You should be sleeping," he murmured, his voice husky from sleep.

I offered him a tired smile. "So should you. You weren’t sleeping, were you?"

"Your heart was pounding like a war drum. There was no way I was sleeping. Rhea is agitated too—Cerberus can feel it."

He sat up, rubbing a hand down his face before pushing back the covers. Without a word, he stood, walking toward me.

I didn’t move as he approached, his warmth radiating even before his arms wrapped around me from behind, pulling me against his chest.

"Talk to me," he said simply.

I swallowed, staring out at the city. "I just… can’t shut my mind off."

His chin rested against my shoulder. "You’re scared."

It wasn’t a question.

I let out a quiet laugh, but there was no humor in it. "Wouldn’t you be?"