Wrath of Hades by Annie Rachel Cole

someone stole an arrow from him? That’s possible.” Raven started pacing back and forth.
    “They’re locked in a vault that’s protected by both nymph and giant magic. No one can get past the magic guards that were put into place.”
    Raven stopped pacing and thought for a minute. “Shadows,” she said. “There are shadows in the vault.”
    “So.”
    “If there are shadows, t hen anyone from Hades can open a doorway into the vault and steal an arrow or two. It’s the only explanation that makes any sense,” said Raven. “It’s like that movie we watched. If you rule out all of the possibilities then whatever you have left, even if it’s crazy, has to be the answer.”
    “H ow do you know about shadow doors?” asked Bree. She eyed Raven cautiously.
    “I know about them b ecause I’ve used the Shadow Express. It’s an ability I brought back with me from Hades. It’s how I was able to get Ethan and the others out of Cerberus’s lair last night.”
    “The Shadow Express?” asked Leslie.
    “It’s kind of what I called it last night when Persephone popped into my bedroom.”
    “I like the ring of it,” Bree said, nodding her head. “So you can use the shadow doors, I mean the Shadow Express?”
    “It’s no big deal.” Raven shrugged her shoulders.
    “Yeah, that’s a big deal. Does Hades know you can do that?” asked Bree.
    “No, not that I know of, but it doesn’t matter right now. We’ve got a possible idea of what’s wrong with Ethan. We’ve just got to get some proof and a cure for it.” Raven’s voice filled with hope. “We need to go talk to Eros.”
    “We can’t, a t least not right now,” said Leslie.
    “Why not?” asked Raven.
    “He and Angela are still on vacation. All I can do is send Angela a text message and hope she answers it.”
    “Great!” Raven felt like banging her head against the car.
    “As soon as I can, I’ll send the text, but we had better get to class or we’re going to be late.” Leslie jerked her head toward the building.
    Raven nodded. For now there wasn’t much she could do until she actually talked to Eros, but she felt better, like a small bit of the weight had been lifted off of her shoulders and her heart.
    She had a clue.
    She had hope.
    And for now it was better than the nothing she had earlier. But she knew she still had to protect herself—her heart. That had to be her first priority.
    The girls hiked across the parking lot and joined the crowds of students moving into the building. It took several minutes but finally they made it into the main hallway without too many bruises.
    “I’ll see you later. I have to sit in the principal’s office until I’m released to go back to class.” Raven grimaced. She hated the very thought of sitting in the principal’s office, but she had no choice at least not until the new principal cleared her to go back to class.
    “Hopefully we’ll see you in English,” said Bree.
    “Hopefully.” Raven waved at the girls as they took off toward their first period classes.  Raven took a deep breath and let it out slowly. At least Meritus Myers and Marley were nowhere near the campus. In fact, no one had seen Meritus since she and Jay fought in Raven’s backyard. Marley had been missing for just a little longer.
    Raven glanced around and started making her way across the crowd moving through the hallway. For the most part, the students parted and let her through, at least the ones who knew who she really was. The y were the only ones who didn’t bumped and pushed her as they rushed to get to their classes.
    Raven stopped in front of the office door and stared at it. Slowly she turned and looked out at the sea of moving students. The school didn’t look any different than it had the first day she walked in, but it felt different.
    “She’s not here.”
    “Who?” Raven asked as she turned to look at the person speaking to her. The man was tall, but broad shouldered. His long dark hair was pulled