Hades' Cursed Luna novel Chapter 364

Chapter 364: Rendezvous

Hades

We hit the clearing outside the sub-bays, scent trails tangled in the chaos of burnt oil, blood, and ash—but then...

Nothing.

The trail stopped.

Dead.

I dropped to one knee, dragging claws across the concrete where the blood ended. A few more splatters... a scuff mark... then silence. Emptiness.

Like they vanished into air.

"Scan the perimeter again," I growled, voice low and lethal. "Drones. Thermal. Energy displacement. I want the entire sector mapped."

"Yes, Alpha!" the Gamma team scrambled into motion.

I stood slowly, breath catching in my throat as I stared into the tree line beyond the wall. They were gone. But not far. They couldn’t be.

Unless...

Unless they planned this long ago.

And this was a route we never knew existed.

My hand slammed into the nearest wall with a crack of splintering stone.

They had Kael.

And I had nothing.

I turned back to the Gammas. "We widen the net. I want every mole tunnel, every spillway, every old trade duct sealed and checked. Silverpine operatives don’t just disappear."

"Sir—"

"NOW!" I roared.

"Right away!"

But then—

"Easy, luci,"

That voice.

I turned slowly.

Cain.

He was leaning casually against the wall just beyond the guard post, arms folded, expression unreadable. His cloak fluttered slightly in the breeze, but he hadn’t even broken a sweat.

"What are you doing here?" I snarled.

"I’ve been waiting for you," Cain replied, pushing off the wall. "Took you long enough. I expected you’d be faster."

"I don’t have time for your games."

"Good. Because this isn’t one."

He stepped forward, eyes hard now. "You think they just waltzed out through a hallway and vanished? No. This was orchestrated. And you’ll need more than brute force and a half-panicked command team if you want to find Felicia. Or Kael. If they’re even still within the borders."

I clenched my jaw.

Cain leaned in just slightly, lowering his voice. "I have men stationed underground. Places even your Gamma eyes can’t see. Smugglers. Couriers. Runners. They know the arteries of Obsidian better than anyone—because they built them. Used them."

"You’re admitting you’ve been running illegal ops under my watch?"

"I’m saying," Cain said with a smirk, "that you should thank the gods I did. How else do you think we got medical stock, Flux suppressants, and intel out without your glorious Council pissing themselves every time a crate crossed the gate?"

I stared at him, every instinct telling me to shove him into the dirt and run alone.

But Kael was out there.

And Cain...

Cain had always been good at finding the rot in the walls.

I exhaled sharply. "What do you want?"

"Nothing. I want Kael back too."

He paused. "He’s my friend." Then another pause before the bastard began to chuckle.

My face darkened, jaw ticking.

"Too much?" He asked, unapologetic. Not like his contrition would mean shit to me. "Stop frowning you look constipated." Some of his humor fell. "It’s Kael. Eve’s brother from another mother. And we have a deal. I am still her ally. Her problem is my brother."

The way he said her name made my stomach turn.

Cain straightened. "Let me help. My men are already moving. We’ll sweep the veins beneath the capital. If they’re still in Obsidian, we’ll find them."

I didn’t nod.

Didn’t thank him.

Just looked at him.

"Then go," I said. "But if this is a trick—"

Cain scoffed. "You’ll gut me? Burn me? Please, brother. Save it. If I wanted your throne, I would’ve taken it when you were still sleeping beside her."

Cain smirked as he started to turn, but then paused, glancing at me sideways.

"We’re brothers, after all," he said, voice lighter. "Even if you keep pretending we’re not."

I didn’t answer.

Didn’t flinch.

Didn’t blink.

His gaze lingered for a beat. The grin twitched back onto his lips, this time with something wry beneath it.

"You know," he added, strolling a few steps ahead, "if you stop acting like a jackass for five whole minutes and help me coordinate this sweep, I’ll even swipe some of that honey fig pudding from the kitchen for you."

My jaw tightened.

Cain kept walking, clearly amused with himself. "Just like old times. Before you grew fangs for breakfast and forgot how to laugh."

"I didn’t forget," I muttered under my breath, already signaling the nearest Gamma Captain to reroute forces toward the city’s sub-vein exits.

Cain’s ear twitched. He heard that.

He grinned wider, hands in his coat pockets as he fell into step beside me.

"Good," he said. "Means I don’t have to start spoon-feeding you pudding to remember you’re still human underneath all that brooding Lycantitan rage."

I gave him a glare so sharp it could cleave a continent.

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