Hades Read Online Free Page A

students of
    Bryce Hamilton. The party marked the end of an era for us
    and we had mixed feelings about it. We were al on the
    cusp of graduating and shaping our futures. It was the start
    of a new life and while we hoped it would be ful of promise,
    we couldn’t help but feel a degree of nostalgia for al we’d
    be leaving behind. Col ege life with al its associated
    independence was just around the corner. Soon friendships
    would be tested by distance and some relationships would
    not survive.
    The night sky seemed vaster than usual and a gibbous
    moon drifted between wisps of cloud. As we drove, I
    watched Xavier out of the corner of my eye. He looked so
    at ease behind the wheel of the Chevy. His face was free of
    anxiety. We were cruising now and he steered with one
    hand. Moonlight fel through the window, il uminating his
    face. He turned to look at me, shadows dancing across his
    even features.
    “What are you thinking about, babe?” he asked.
    “Just that I could do so much better than a cowboy,” I
    teased.
    “You are real y pushing your luck tonight,” Xavier said in
    mock seriousness. “I’m a cowboy on the edge!” I laughed,
    not ful y understanding the reference. I could have asked
    him for an explanation but al that mattered was that we
    were together. So what if I missed the occasional joke? It
    made what we had even more intriguing.
    We swung into the winding, overgrown driveway and
    fol owed a battered pickup truck ful of senior boys cal ing
    themselves the “wolf pack.” I wasn’t sure what that meant,
    but they were al wearing khaki bandanas and had painted
    black war stripes across their chests and faces.
    “Any excuse to get their shirts off,” Xavier joked.
    The boys were lounging in the back of the truck,
    chainsmoking and working their way through a keg. Once
    the truck was parked, they let out a wolf cry and leapt out,
    heading toward the house. One of them stopped to throw
    up in a nearby bush. Once he’d expel ed the contents of his
    stomach, he straightened up and kept right on running.
    The house itself reflected the Hal oween theme. It was old
    and rambling with a creaking porch that stretched across
    the length of the front. The house was badly in need of a
    paint job. Its original white paint was cracked and peeling,
    revealing grayish weatherboards underneath and giving the
    whole place an air of neglect.
    Austin must have enlisted the help of his female friends
    as decorating crew because the porch was brightly lit with
    jacko’-lanterns and glow sticks, but the windows on the top
    floor remained in darkness. There was no other form of
    civilization in sight. If there were neighbors, they were too
    far away to be seen. I understood now why this house had
    been chosen as the party venue. We could make as much
    noise as we wanted and no one would hear us. The thought
    made me a little uneasy. The only thing separating the
    house from the highway was a col apsing fence that had
    seen better days. I could see a scarecrow propped on a
    stick in the middle of the yard about a hundred meters from
    where we stood. Its body was limp and its head lol ed eerily
    to one side.
    “That’s so spooky,” I whispered, drawing close to
    Xavier’s side. “It looks so real.” He wrapped a strong arm
    around me.
    “Don’t worry,” he said. “It only goes after girls who don’t
    appreciate their boyfriends.”
    I elbowed him playful y. “That’s not even funny! Besides,
    the girls think it’s healthy for us to spend some time apart.”
    “Wel , I disagree.” Xavier wrapped an arm around me.
    “That’s because you’re such an attention seeker!”
    “Watch out, I think he can hear you … .”
    Inside the house was already crowded with guests. It had
    been vacant so long that the power had been disconnected
    and the whole place was lit with lanterns and candles. To
    the left was a sweeping staircase. It was obvious Austin’s
    parents had let the house go because the stairs