“Dionysus.”
*
Hades had a theory that Dionysus had discovered Ariadne’s association with Theseus, likely because he’d had his maenads stalking her since her unwanted visit to Bakkheia. He decided not to waste time arriving the mortal way and chose to teleport instead, appearing in Dionysus’s darkened office at his club.
“How discourteous,” the god said when Hades appeared.
“Do you have Ariadne?” Hades asked.
“As if anyone could control that wicked, mouthy—”
“I did not ask for a list of traits you admire about her,” Hades cut him off.
“Do you have her? ”
Dionysus glared. “She’s mine to punish, not yours.”
“She doesn’t deserve your punishment,” Hades said.
“She betrayed me,” he said.
“You cannot blame her for the deaths of the Graeae. I doubt it was her who held the knife, but she can tell us who did.”
“I am not a child, Hades,” Dionysus said through clenched teeth. “I know her value.”
“That, coming from someone who won’t choose a side.”
The God of the Vine glared. “I’m letting you in, aren’t I?” he countered.
“Is that choosing a side?”
Hades lifted his head. “It’s a start.”
Dionysus pushed past Hades. “Come.”
They left the office for the elevator on the way to the basement.
“No dungeon?” Hades inquired, glancing at the god, who seemed more on edge.
“No,” he said with none of his usual sarcasm.
Hades raised a brow but said nothing.
Once in the basement, Hades was surprised to find Ariadne in the common area among the maenads, though she kept her distance, sitting in a large chair farthest from everyone in the room, reading. He’d expected her to be locked up in one of the dorms, though he recognized that was probably not wise, considering the Graeae had easily been taken from there.
At least if she were in a crowd, there would be witnesses to a potential abduction.
Ariadne looked up as they approached and stiffened.
“What do you want?” she snapped.
Hades rolled his eyes. “I see you haven’t lost any of that venom.”
She offered a malicious smile. “It doesn’t seem to deter you.”
“Not when you happen to have answers to my questions,” said Hades.
“I’m not sure what you think I can give you,” she said.
“Don’t you? The Graeae?”
There was a long pause as Ariadne stared at the two gods. Her eyes began to water.
“I hate you,” she said between her teeth. “You think he won’t know that you’ve taken me? You think he won’t guess what you want?”
“I told you I would protect you,” Dionysus clipped.
“And what about my sister?” she yelled, her voice raw and pained.
Hades watched Dionysus look away, jaw clenched. Clearly there had already been some discussion around what kind of information she was willing to offer.
“Where is your sister?” Hades asked. He realized he still did not know why Theseus seemed to have her.
“Her sister is married to Theseus,” said Dionysus, speaking for her. “And he uses her to manipulate Ariadne.”
That explained why she seemed to have to earn the right to see her.
“What she doesn’t seem to realize is that there’s nothing we can do for her,” Dionysus said.
“You can’t,” Ariadne said. “But I can and the only way to ensure that is to not tell you a fucking thing.”
“Do you really think Theseus will grant you access to his wife?”
“Don’t call her that,” she said between her teeth.
“Tell me,” said Dionysus. “How long has it been since you’ve seen her?”
When Ariadne did not respond, he asked again, and this time, she screamed. “Three years! Three. Years. You. Bastard,” she seethed. “And now, because of you, I will never see her again!”
There was silence in the aftermath of Ariadne’s outburst, though Hades did not blame her. He could feel the love she had for her sister. It shook her body and broke her voice, and he wanted to do everything in his power to ensure she saw her again.
“Perhaps you should have thought about that before you came here with the intention of locating the Graeae,” Dionysus said, because he did not know when to shut up.
“I didn’t!” she seethed. “I came here hoping you might help me rescue my sister, but when I discovered how difficult you were, I decided it was easier to just go along with Theseus’s instruction.”