The House of Hades (Heroes of Olympus Book 4)

through his armour like buckshot.
    Clytius staggered backwards. His disembodied voice bellowed with pain. His iron breastplate was peppered with holes.
    Golden ichor trickled from a wound on his right arm. His shroud of darkness thinned. Hazel could see the murderous expression on his face.
    You
,
Clytius growled.
You worthless –
    ‘Worthless?’ Hecate asked quietly. ‘I’d say Hazel Levesque knows a few tricks even
I
could not teach her.’
    Hazel stood in front of her friends, determined to protect them, but her energy was fading. Her sword was already heavy in her hand, and she hadn’t even swung it yet. She wished Arion were here. She could use the horse’s speed and strength. Unfortunately, her equine friend would not be able to help her this time. He was a creature of the wide-open spaces, not the underground.
    The giant dug his fingers into the wound on his biceps. He pulled out a diamond and flicked it aside. The wound closed.
    So, daughter of Pluto
, Clytius rumbled,
do you really believe Hecate has your interests at heart? Circe was a favourite of hers. And Medea. And Pasiphaë. How did they end up, eh?
    Behind her, Hazel heard Annabeth stirring, groaning in pain. Percy muttered something that sounded like, ‘Bob-bob-bob?’
    Clytius stepped forward, holding his sword casually at his side as if they were comrades rather than enemies.
Hecate will not tell you the truth. She sends acolytes like you to do her bidding and take all the risk. If by some miracle you incapacitate me, only then will she be able to set me on fire. Then she will claim the glory of the kill. You heard how Bacchus dealt with the Alodai twins in the Colosseum. Hecate is worse. She is a Titan who betrayed the Titans. Then she betrayed the gods. Do you really think she will keep faith with you?
    Hecate’s face was unreadable.
    ‘I cannot answer his accusations, Hazel,’ said the goddess. ‘This is
your
crossroads. You must choose.’
    Yes, crossroads.
The giant’s laughter echoed. His wounds seemed to have healed completely.
Hecate offers you obscurity, choices, vague promises of magic. I am the anti-Hecate. I will give you truth. I will eliminate choices and magic. I will strip away the Mist, once and for all, and show you the world in all its true horror.
    Leo struggled to his feet, coughing like an asthmatic. ‘I’m loving this guy,’ he wheezed. ‘Seriously, we should keep him around for inspirational seminars.’ His hands ignited like blowtorches. ‘Or I could just light him up.’
    ‘Leo, no,’ Hazel said. ‘My father’s temple. My call.’
    ‘Yeah, okay. But –’
    ‘Hazel …’ Annabeth wheezed.
    Hazel was so elated to hear her friend’s voice that she almost turned, but she knew she shouldn’t take her eyes off Clytius.
    ‘The chains …’ Annabeth managed.
    Hazel inhaled sharply. She’d been a fool! The Doors of Death were still open, shuddering against the chains that held them in place. Hazel had to cut them free so they would disappear – and finally be beyond Gaia’s reach.
    The only problem: a big smoky giant stood in her way.
    You can’t seriously believe you have the strength
, Clytius chided.
What will you do, Hazel Levesque – pelt me with more rubies? Shower me with sapphires?
    Hazel gave him an answer. She raised her
spatha
and charged.
    Apparently, Clytius hadn’t expected her to be quite so suicidal. He was slow raising his sword. By the time he slashed, Hazel had ducked between his legs and jabbed her Imperial gold blade into his
gluteus maximus
. Not very ladylike. The nuns at St Agnes would never have approved. But it worked.
    Clytius roared and arched his back, waddling away from her. Mist still swirled around Hazel, hissing as it met the giant’s black smoke.
    Hazel realized that Hecate
was
assisting her – lending her the strength to keep up a defensive shroud. Hazel also knew that the instant her own concentration wavered and that darkness touched her, she would collapse. If that happened,she wasn’t sure Hecate would be able – or willing – to stop the giant from crushing her and her friends.
    Hazel sprinted towards the Doors of Death. Her blade shattered the chains on the left side like they were made of ice. She lunged to the right, but Clytius yelled,
NO!
    By sheer luck, she wasn’t cut in half. The flat of the giant’s blade caught her in the chest and sent her flying. She slammed into the wall and felt bones crack.
    Across the room, Leo screamed her