My heart began to pound. “What do you mean?”

At last he looked at me, and his silver eyes, so crowded with everything he couldn’t say, sent a shiver down my spine. “If I were to give you half of every year to do with as you will…would that make you happy?”

Half a year. Half of the rest of my life. Was he serious? I watched him closely for any signs it was an empty offer, but everything about him was sincere. “Yes,” I said, a thread of hope weaving its way through me. Freedom. Real freedom, even if it was only temporary. “That would make me happy.”

He nodded once, twice, three times, as if trying to convince himself. “Then—that is what I will do. From sunrise on the spring equinox to sunrise on the autumnal equinox, you may spend your time wherever you would like. In Olympus, on the surface, even—” He cleared his throat. “Even down here, if you wish.”

We both knew that wouldn’t happen, but I took his hand anyway. “Thank you,” I whispered. “I can’t tell you how grateful I am.”

I couldn’t let myself believe it, not yet, not until I felt the sunshine on my skin and the wind in my hair, but the crushing look of loss on his face all but confirmed his offer was real. “You do not have to,” he said. “Your happiness is all the thanks I need, and it is all I ask in return. Just come back to me.”

Against my better judgment, knowing it might only hurt him more, I stood on my tiptoes and kissed his cheek. It was the most intimate contact we’d had since our wedding night. “I will. Thank you.”

Rather than blush or give me a boyish smile, as Hermes might’ve done, Hades let go of my hand and stepped back. Without saying a word, he gave me one more tight nod, and the next moment, he was gone.

I sank back into my chair, elation and dread tumbling around inside me. Finally I would have what I wanted—a chance to live my own life, even if it was really only a half life. But at the same time, the pain on Hades’s face, the thought of what Mother would say—

No. I was done worrying about what everyone else wanted for me. This was my life, my world, my future, not theirs. And now that I had a second chance, I wasn’t about to give it up again. Not for anyone.

Part Two

True to his word, Hades brought me to the surface on the spring equinox. He’d said little all morning, and as we arrived in a cool meadow, he was silent. As soon as we were on steady ground, he dropped my hand, and I hesitated.

“Thanks,” I said at last, and I gave him what I hoped was a reassuring smile. “I’ll see you soon.”

He nodded once, and before I could say another word, he disappeared. I took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of nature even as a fist tightened around my heart. But I would come back to him eventually, much happier than I had been, and in the meantime, I could do what I wanted. We both lost, yes, but we both won, as well.

“Persephone?” Mother’s voice cut through the dewy morning air, and I wasted no time. One moment I stood alone in the middle of the meadow, and the next I barreled straight into her open arms. It didn’t matter that this was only temporary. Being here with her made me soar.

“I missed you,” I mumbled into her chest, and she wrapped her arms around me in a secure embrace.

“As I missed you,” she said, but there was a hint of something I hadn’t expected in her voice—disappointment.

I clenched my jaw. If what Aphrodite had said was true and Mother and Zeus had married me off to Hades as some sort of twisted revenge on Hera, then she had no right to be disappointed. None at all.

But even that momentary spark of anger couldn’t ruin the morning, and I slipped out of her hug and took her hand. We had two entire seasons to talk. Right now, I was going to relish my freedom and forget every awful feeling that had built up inside me in the Underworld. I wasn’t going to waste this, not for anything.

“Come, my darling,” she said, leading me into the forest. “Let’s go home.”

* * *

Home turned out to be a small cottage on the edge of a clearing deep in the woods. By the time we reached it, I had no idea where we’d gone or how we’d gotten there, but I didn’t care. As long as it wasn’t the Underworld, I would follow her anywhere.

It was small, one room divided into a cooking area, a sleeping area and a place to sit. Flowers and herbs hung from the rafters, creating a dizzying scent, and everything was handcrafted, as if she’d hired mortals to build it for her.

Zeus would’ve hated it. I loved it instantly.

We settled in, but the roof over my head reminded me of my constant claustrophobia in the Underworld, so soon enough we moved outside. Together we tended the tidy garden, and sometime in midafternoon, I worked up the courage to ask the question that had haunted me ever since Aphrodite had mentioned it.

“Did you marry me off to Hades because of Hera?”

Mother looked at me, her eyes wide, and her mouth formed a small circle. Dirt streaked across her face, and in her hands she cupped the beginnings of an orchid encased in earth. “What?”

My cheeks burned, but it was too late to back down now. “Someone told me that you made me marry Hades because Zeus wanted to make sure he wouldn’t have an affair with Hera.”

She said nothing as she gently set the flower in its new home. Once it was properly in place, she sat back on her heels and wiped her hands. “Who told you that?”

I shook my head. I may have envied Aphrodite to the point that it actually hurt, but I wasn’t about to betray her trust. “A reliable source.”