For the second time, in as many minutes, Hades was certain he had heard Lexi wrong. Was she truly willing to follow him home? Did he dare hope she might bring him the happiness he'd been longing for? He stared into her tear-soaked eyes, seeing bold determination and a fair amount of anger in her unflinching gaze. It was encouraging, but he had to be sure.

"Lexi, you're upset and not thinking clearly. Please, do not do this for me."

"It's not for you. I'm being completely selfish. I deserve to choose which road to take, whether right or wrong, and Zeus is forcing me to decide before I know which is which. So, I'm taking the information I have and improvising." She breathed out a purposeful sigh.  "All I know is, I don't want to spend eternity in a world without you. Just tell me what I have to do."

Hades dried her cheeks with his thumb, unable to hide his smile. "First, you have to kiss me." He leaned in and pressed his mouth to her lips, savoring her softness and the salty mix of tears and seawater. The idea of having Lexi near enough to taste, to feel her body's warmth when his went cold, to seduce her and have her willingly submit... It made his heart and manhood ache.

After a passionate exchange he hoped would bolster Lexi's spirit, Hades released her, and with a lump in his throat, he explained. "Here is how I see it. Z will be taken by limousine to a secluded area where he will meet his chariot..."

"A chariot? You're kidding me, right?"

"Chariots have served the gods perfectly from the beginning. We have no need to modernize like mortals. While Z ascends through the clouds, I descend through the earth. Usually by way of a cave or a canyon."

He paused while Lexi nodded her understanding. He knew the learning curve would be steep. "The only way I see this working for us is to beat him to it. I know you will want to say goodbye to your family, so we cannot leave now. Therefore, we must think of a convincing diversion to aid our escape before Z drags you off. Whatever we decide, it needs to be quick. I suggest we take your car for a faster getaway, if you follow my meaning."

"I follow you perfectly." Lexi nibbled her lip as she stroked the back of his hand thoughtfully. "I'll want to bring a few things on my supposed trip to Olympus. You know, personal items to remind me of my family. Zeus has to allow me that much, right?"

"I'm sure he would not deny you that."

"Okay, then. While I'm in my room doing that, you collect your stuff and slip into the garage. I'll use my balcony to escape and meet you there."

Hades smiled at Lexi's cleverness, a trait that seemed to come naturally to her, along with other fine attributes. She was going to make a superb goddess. But something still troubled her. A distant expression had washed over her face. He knew this expression, and it made his heart sink. "What is it, Lexi? Are you having second thoughts?"

"No. But I'm still trying to wrap my head around this idea of Olympus and the underworld. Are they located in some incredibly remote place on Earth, unreachable by humans? Are they in a different dimension? On another planet? My only frame of reference is books...and Disney."

Hades released the breath he'd been holding. Of course, she would have questions about her future home. This was sure to be the first of many. "It would be hard to explain in the limited time we have, but you can think of it as a different dimension, for now. Only immortals can enter. Or souls, in the case of the underworld. This is because gods and spirits are not bound by matter in the same way mortals are. Does that help?"

"Not really, but I'm throwing caution to the wind today."

The dining room door flung open, and Lilith rushed in. Tears trailed down her face, leaving black smudges in their wake. Z entered behind her, his jaw set like the rock of Gibraltar. Obviously, Z had taken it upon himself to inform her of Lexi's fate.

"Oh, Lexi," Lilith gushed as she swept Lexi out of the chair and into her arms. "I thought we would have more time. This is so unfair. But you cannot move an immovable object." She lifted her eyes to glare at Z. "I expect you and Lexi to visit soon. She's my daughter too, dammit."

"Of course, Lilith. You have my word."

Lilith did not look convinced, but anything she might have said in her defense was abandoned as the door swung open again, and Charles and Dion walked in, followed by Aphrodite and an entourage of gods.

"Here you are. I had to see the Beckmans off myself." Charles's tone had an edge to it as he strode into the room, but his posture softened when he took in the blood-shot eyes of his wife and daughter. "Lilith. Lexi. Have you been crying?"

Lexi dragged her wet sleeve across her nose and sniffled. "Dad, there's something you need to hear, but you might want to sit down first."

"Why? What's going on?" Charles's forehead creased with worry as he surveyed the gathering group, all of whom waited eagerly for the show to begin. The news had spread like rot on an apple, which came as no surprise to Hades. Gods loved to gossip.

"Well, Dad, um..." Lexi began tentatively as she spun a chair around and offered it to her father. He ignored it. "This is about the hardest thing I've ever had to say, and when you hear it, I don't want you to think I love you any less because I will always think of you as my dad."

Charles's forehead wrinkled a bit more as he waited for Lexi to deliver the blow, but Lilith intervened. "Lexi, wait. I should be the one to do this. I'm the responsible party."

Lexi hesitated before turning to stare daggers at Z, although her accusatory gaze was probably lost on Charles. She took Hades's hand and nodded, giving her mother the podium.

Lilith faced her husband, her blue eyes glistening as she blinked the moisture away. "Charles, I knew this day would come, although I have dreaded it for more than eighteen years. And since there is no easy way to say this, I'm going to come right out with it. Lexi is not your daughter by blood. She is the daughter of Zeus."

All heads turned to stare at the stone-faced god. If the mood had not been so somber, Hades would have found it amusing. Z appeared genuinely uncomfortable when Charles raised a pointed brow, directing his shock at the truly responsible party. Then he dropped heavily into a chair. Lexi released Hades's hand and crouched next to her father, looking up at his dumbstruck face, which had shifted to the color of sea foam. Neither spoke, but neither had to.

"My baby girl," Charles said finally, tugging gently on her chin. "If you are the daughter of Zeus? Then that would make you..."

"That would make her a god," Z said, his gruff voice disturbing the reverence of the moment. "And I will be taking her to Olympus as soon as you say your goodbyes."

"What?" Charles pushed up from the chair and planted himself in front of Z, making a valiant attempt to look worthy. "You cannot just take Lexi away. She may be your flesh and blood, but I have raised her."

Again, Z appeared momentarily taken aback, but this only showed in the arch of his brows. "She will not be gone for long. I promised Lilith that Lexi will return soon for a visit. Perhaps, for the feasting day in November."

Charles paled even further as his gaze flicked to his wife, the realization of her dalliance finally hitting him. He reached for the chair and sat back down, and Dion took his turn to question Lexi.

"So, that's how you were able to beat me at so many things. You're the daughter of Zeus."

Wiping tears from her cheeks, Lexi smiled weakly at her brother. "If it makes you feel better to think of it that way, Dion, go right ahead."

For a moment, there was only silence as the weight of the disclosure dominated the mood, then Aphrodite swept forward, tugging Hermes along with her. "Dearest Charles, what is family but the bonds we make? Do not put boundaries on your love. Lexi will continue to bless you with her gifts, like she has all of us."

Aphrodite kissed Hermes playfully on the cheek, causing him to blush like a summer rose. Charles was forced to crack a smile in respect to the gracious goddess, and the mood lifted as Dionysus walked to a serving station where several carafes of wine were set up.

"The man does not need a sermon. He needs a drink."

As Dionysus served up his own version of psychotherapy, conversation got underway, with Apollo breaking into one of his gut-wrenching stories of love and loss. Hades couldn't tell if the story was helping Charles through his crisis or not, but he believed the wounded smile Charles wore was there because Lexi had climbed onto his lap to wrap her arms around his neck.

Hades took the opportunity to pull Mnemosyne aside and make a request. "If you are not opposed to getting banned from Zeus's bed for a time, I wondered if you could help me and Lexi with a little distraction."