Hades by Alexandra Adornetto Page A

a sitting area with a
    fireplace. The last embers were crumbling to a soft glow in
    the grate, casting shadows across the room and softening
    the edges of the furniture. The room was richly decorated in
    dark timbers, and a crystal chandelier hung from the
    decorative ceiling.
    I found myself lying in an oak-paneled bed with gold satin
    sheets and a rich burgundy coverlet. I was wearing an old-
    fashioned nightdress with lacy cuffs. I wondered where my
    costume had gone? I had no memory of taking it off. I
    propped myself up and looked around, from the plush
    carpet to the heavy velvet drapes to the vast welcome
    basket that sat on a low glass table with gilt claw feet. A
    huge leopard-skin rug was laid out at the foot of the bed.
    The bed itself was covered in plump pil ows and an
    inordinate amount of tasseled cushions. When I felt
    something cool and fragrant beneath my cheek, I turned
    over to see my pil ows were scattered with red rose petals.
    A huge marble vanity stood against one wal ; its mirror
    encrusted with gemstones. Displayed on it was a mother-
    of-pearl hairbrush and a hand mirror along with an array of
    expensive-looking perfumes and lotions in blue glass jars.
    An ivory silk dressing gown was draped over the foot of the
    bed. Two wingback armchairs had been strategical y
    arranged in front of the fire. The bathroom door was open
    and I caught a glimpse of gold taps and an antique tub.
    There appeared to be no consistent theme to the decor; it
    was as if someone had opened a magazine and randomly
    pointed to whatever suggested opulence and had it
    delivered to this room.
    A breakfast tray with a pot of steaming tea and pastries
    had been left on the low table. When I tried the door, I found
    it locked. My throat felt dry and parched so I poured myself
    a cup and sat on the plush carpet to drink it while I gathered
    my thoughts. Despite the luxurious surroundings I knew I
    was a prisoner.
    Someone had taken away the key card so there was no
    way out of the room. Even if I managed to escape and
    made it down to the lobby, it would be crawling with Jake’s
    al ies. I could try and get past them and make a run for it but
    how far would I get before being recaptured?
    There was only one thing I knew for certain. I could tel by
    the stone-cold feeling in my chest that I’d been torn away
    from everything I loved. I was here because of Jake Thorn,
    but what was his motivation? Was it revenge? If so, why
    hadn’t he kil ed me when he had the chance? Did he want
    to somehow prolong my suffering? Or was there some
    other agenda like there always was with Jake? He’d
    seemed so genuine about making me feel comfortable. My
    knowledge of Hel was sketchy as my kind never ventured
    here. I wracked my brains, trying to recal snippets of
    information that Gabriel might have shared with me, but I
    drew a blank. I’d only been told that somewhere, deep
    underground, there was a pit crawling with creatures so
    dark they were unfathomable to us. Jake must have brought
    me here as punishment for humiliating him. Unless … A
    new thought suddenly dawned on me. He hadn’t seemed
    particularly vindictive; in fact there’d been a strange
    excitement in his eyes. Was it possible he actual y thought I
    could be happy here? An angel in Hel ? That only proved
    how little he understood. My only objective was to return
    home to my loved ones. This wasn’t my world and never
    would be. The longer I stayed here, the harder it would be to
    find my way back. I knew one thing for sure: Something like
    this had never happened before. An angel had never been
    captured, plucked from the earth, and dragged into a prison
    of fire. Maybe this went deeper than Jake’s bizarre
    attachment to me. Maybe something terrible was on the
    brink of being unleashed.
    A row of tal windows stretched along the length of one
    wal , but they looked out onto a swirling gray mist. There
    was no sunrise here and daybreak appeared to be marked
    by a watery