Dreamless

matter?” he said into her neck as he hugged her. “Are you hurt?”
    “I’m fine,” she said, laughing a little at her overly emotional reaction but still clinging to him tightly. Finally, when she felt calm enough, she eased away and looked Orion in the eyes. “I have a lot to tell you.”
    “And I want to hear it, but can you do something first? Say out loud that you don’t ever want anything to attack us again while we’re down here?” he asked expectantly.
    “I don’t ever want anything to attack us again while we are down here!” Helen repeated emphatically. “Good thinking.”
    “Thanks. I like your dress. But, you know what? I actually think you’d be warmer in those little shorts with the hissing cats. They covered more.”
    Helen whirled on him with a shocked look on her face. She couldn’t believe he remembered seeing her in her pumpkin pajamas.
    “You have no idea what happened to me this morning! I had to wear this,” she said defensively, trying not to blush.
    “You look beautiful. Not that that’s anything new,” he said softly.
    Helen stared at him, completely thrown, and then pulled her eyes away and stared at a boring asphodel flower like it was really interesting. She felt Orion move closer to her and told herself to relax. She hadn’t kissed Orion last night, she reminded herself. That was Morpheus as Orion. Big difference. And the real Orion didn’t even know anything about it, so there was no reason for her to feel shy around him. Except that she did. In her head, Helen heard Hector say that she could have a lot of fun with Orion if she wanted, and she lost her train of thought.
    “Now, tell me what happened to you this morning,” he said, concern creasing his forehead.
    Helen snapped back to reality and quickly recounted her accident, the student revolt that Eris had caused at school, Thanatos walking the streets of Manhattan, and the bedlam that erupted in the News Store right before she descended. Orion listened silently, clenching his jaw more and more tightly as Helen went on.
    “Are you okay?” he asked in a controlled voice.
    “Yeah, but I feel awful!” Helen blurted out. “I left Kate and my dad in the middle of a riot! How could I do that?”
    “Hector won’t let anything happen to them,” Orion said with certainty. “He’ll guard them with his life.”
    “I know he will, but in a way that’s even worse,” Helen said, almost pleadingly. “Orion, what if the Delos family comes to check up on me at the store and they find Hector?”
    “You mean what if Lucas comes to check up on you and finds Hector. You’re not really worried about Jason or Ariadne,” he clarified, frustration edging his tone.
    “The twins are different. Even before Hector became an Outcast, he and Lucas used to fight a lot, and sometimes it got really bad,” she said in a shaky voice. “It’s like they’ve always been headed toward something violent, and I keep thinking maybe it’s another one of these Scion cycles that’s doomed to happen.”
    “Lucas and Hector are practically brothers, and brothers always fight,” Orion said, like it was obvious. “Not everything in our lives is part of a cycle.”
    “I know. But the Furies! They won’t be able to stop themselves.”
    “That’s why we’re down here. We have all the time we need now, and hopefully, we’ll take care of the Furies tonight,” he said. He made her stop and brushed her wrist with the tips of his fingers. It was a slight touch, almost nonexistent, but it commanded her attention.
    “ If I can even find them,” Helen admitted with a pleading look. “Orion. I have no idea where the Furies are.”
    Orion leaned away from Helen and adjusted his backpack, assessing her.
    “You’re just about to panic, aren’t you? Don’t.” He was deadly serious. “This is where you need to be, right here in the Underworld, not back in the real world fighting a hysterical mob. Any member of the Delos family can do that, but you’re the only one who can do this. Let’s get the water first and take it from there.”
    He was right. They had to do what they could here in the Underworld or nothing back in the real world would ever get any better.
    “Okay. Let’s do this.” She reached out and put her arms around Orion’s neck, and felt him lay his heavy hands on her hips. “I want us to appear by the banks of the River of Joy in the Elysian Fields,” she said in a clear, commanding voice.
    Soft, sun-streaked