Around us the party is underway but I don't move my eyes from Cupid. Heat floods to my face.

"I...uh..." I start to say. "I didn't expect...Cal said..."

Cupid brushes the disintegrated arrow off his shirt with a sweep of his big hand and his grin widens at my obvious embarrassment. He holds my gaze a second longer before looking over at Cal and raising a thick eyebrow. "What did you give her the arrows for, brother?!"

Cal at least has the decency to look slightly sheepish as he stands beside Charlie. He shrugs, straightening the cuffs of his gray tux jacket.

"You said to tell her that there was something dangerous going on here. Thought it would be more realistic."

"Yeah...right...if I didn't know any better, brother, I would have thought you wanted me to get shot."

"Imagine that," says Crystal dryly as she approaches – looking as stunning as ever in a backless dark blue evening dress, her blonde hair in a fishtail braid over her shoulder. She smiles when she sees me, but I think there's something strained about it. "Cal, can I have a word?"

Her blue eyes catch Cal's and something seems to pass between them. She turns and heads towards the corner of the trial room, by the stage. He watches her go for a moment, before turning back to me.

"Happy birthday, Lila," he says somewhat formally.

"Thank..." He turns on his heel and heads after Crystal before I can finish.

Cupid's lip quirks upwards as he watches his brother. Then he strides over to me. He cups my face with a big hand and gently brushes his lips against mine. My heart quickens, heat flooding my veins the way it always does when he kisses me. It drives away some of the cold darkness that has been twisting around inside me since my dream about Valentine.

"I can't believe you hit me with a Capax," murmurs Cupid, softly pulling away from me.

The corner of my lip twitches.

"I know. I'm sorry. But you should never creep up on a girl who's holding a bow and arrow."

"Lesson learned." He grins and steps back, slipping his arm around my shoulders. He leans down, and whispers in my ear, his warm breath tickling my cheek. "And you've nothing to be sorry about, lovebug. I blame my brother entirely."

I slip my arm around his back, feeling the hard muscles of his body even through his black tux. "Yeah...I blame him too."

He laughs and I gesture across the room to where Crystal and Cal are in deep conversation – their expressions serious.

Trouble is on its way.

"What's up with those two, anyway?"

"Don't know. Don't care," says Cupid.

I give him a look and his eyes widen.

"What?!" he says. "Don't look at me like that!"

"The head of the Matchmaking Service, and your very work obsessed brother are having a serious and intense conversation, and you don't care what it's about?"

"I don't know if you've noticed this, but my brother tends to lean a little on the dramatic side," he says.

I shake my head – watching the two of them. "I don't know. I think something's wrong," I say. "Charlie?"

I look over to her for support but it seems she's become distracted by a waiter carrying big silver plate of salmon blinis.

"Huh?" she says, mouth full, looking over her shoulder at me.

I roll my eyes. "Never mind..."

Cupid laughs. "Come on. It's your party – worry about Cal later. Let's get you a drink."

***

An hour later, the party is well underway. The main lights have been turned off and now the trial room is filled with neon pink flashes, and flickering candlelight. Loud music is playing, and more than a few Matchmaking Agents are drunk on champagne. I slip away from Cupid and Charlie, who are throwing shapes on the dancefloor, and head out of the vast, pulsating room.

I should be happy that they've gone to all this trouble to arrange this party for me. Alongside all the planning, and Cal's solemn charade getting me here, Charlie even told my dad about the party so I could stay out late. But somehow I don't feel happy. I feel like it's too much, it's too loud – I need to get away from it all.

The darkness that I've felt ever since I killed Valentine is back, it hollows my insides and twists around my heart.

We all have stains on our souls, Lila.

His words haunt me – words that I'm not even sure are real. Did I really speak to him?

I slip out and close the doors behind me, shutting out the noise. I lean back against the wall, breathing fast. It's then that I hear agitated voices coming from one of the arched doorways down the corridor. I frown. I think it's Crystal and Cal. They've been acting strangely all evening.

Softly I creep down the black and white tiled floor, stopping beside the second doorway down to listen.

"....we need to do something about the letter," says Crystal. "The Furies...The Underworld...This isn't good, Cal."

I want you to come to the Underworld and get me. My heartbeat quickens as Valentine's words come back to me. Crystal and Valentine both mentioning the Underworld can't be a coincidence.

"We don't have what they want," says Cal. "It must be a mistake."

"They don't make mistakes. Or idle threats. We're in serious trouble, Cal. I think it has something to do with Valentine."

The blood turns to ice in my veins.

"I don't feel good about having this party right now," continues Crystal sternly. "We should be telling everyone about that letter, and we should be questioning Lila about what happened that night when she killed him..."

"It's her birthday," snaps Cal, "at least let her have that. She's been through enough."

I lean back against the wall, my breathing fast. Inside the room Crystal sighs.

"First thing tomorrow we're dealing with this. Come on. People will be wondering where we are."

I hear movement inside, then the clicking of heels on the floor. Hurriedly I creep back down the hallway and slip into the nearest room as they pass by. The sound of music increases in volume as they open the doors to the trial room.

I wait for a moment, then I emerge back into the corridor, my mind buzzing. Cal and Crystal's conversation replays in my mind.

A letter? The Furies? The Underworld?

I want to slip away more than ever. This time not just because of all the noise and the people. But because I don't want to answer any questions about what happened between me and Valentine in the cave.

We shared a moment at the end, didn't we?

I rub my face with my hands, slipping my fingers through my hair. What is going on with me? I hurry down the corridor and into the quiet of the indoor courtyard. I stop as soon as I get inside. The stone pond has slid out of the way, revealing the black entrance to the dungeons.

I frown – someone from the Matchmaking Service must have left it open. 

I make my way towards it, something drawing me to the darkness inside. Slowly I head down the steps. I stop by the cell we'd contained Valentine in and my heartbeat quickens. It's almost as though I'm expecting him to be in there. But, of course, it's empty.

I exhale and sit down on the seat inside, leaning my head back against the cold wall.

I don't know what is wrong with me at the moment. I should be upstairs with my friends. I should be asking Crystal and Cal what the hell they were talking about. I should tell them about my dream, and how I might have actually spoken with Valentine. 

And yet I sit here, in the dark, in a dingy dungeon cell. Alone.

"You needed to get away from it all, too." A deep British voice comes from the cell next to mine.

I flinch, adrenaline rushing through my body before I process who it is. 

"Mino?"

"They're awfully loud and brash, cupids, aren't they?"

There's a shuffling next door, then he appears. He leans casually against the doorway of my cell – the shadow from his large, muscular body swallowing me. My gaze flits across the labyrinth tattoo inked onto the dark skin of his shoulder. Then I meet his eyes.

"Though I have to say, I'm surprised to see you down here, Lila Black. Not enjoying your birthday party?"

"I...uh..." I sigh. "It's just a little loud, I guess."

He looks at me intently.

"There's something bothering you," he says.

I shift uncomfortably in the wooden seat. "Are you doing that mind reading thing?"

He chuckles.

"You'd know if I was. The mind is like a labyrinth, Lila Black. But it is hard, even for me, to slip inside completely undetected."

"Oh," I say. "Good."

His grin widens.

"So, what is it that's bothering you?"

I sigh – my thoughts flickering back to Valentine.

"I...uh...Can anyone else get inside people's minds?" I say. "Like you can?"

"Not exactly like I can. But I suppose others could, in their own ways. The sirens, for example, can manipulate and hypnotize. Why do you ask?"

"But not undetected?"

"No. People always leave traces behind."

"If someone had been inside... someone else's mind – would you be able to tell?"

He holds my gaze.

"Of course. If I entered their mind's labyrinth." He grins – flashing his teeth. "But I take a wrong turn, disturb something I shouldn't, unlock a door that should remain closed, and – well – that wouldn't end very well for that person."

He holds my gaze a moment longer then pushes away from the wall.

"You should get back to the party, Lila Black. People will be looking for you." His eyes flick down to my hand. "That's an unusual scar."

He turns and starts to walk slowly back towards the stairs leading to the indoor courtyard. My eyes flick down to my left palm, my blood running cold.

Across the center is a long white scar; right where Valentine ran his thumb in my dream.