Eva Pohler - The Underworld Saga, Books 7-9

THE UNDERWORLD SAGA, BOOKS 1-9

The Complete Set

Eva Pohler

Published by Green Press

Copyright 2021 Eva Pohler

This ebook islicensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not bere-sold or given away to other people. If you would like toshar e this book with anotherperson, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. Ifyoure reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was notpurchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy.Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

The cover was createdby B RosE DesignZ.

Eva Pohler isa USA Today bestselling author of overthirty novels in multiple genres, including mysteries, thrillers,and young adult paranormal romance based on Greek mythology. Herbooks have been described as addictive and sure tothrill KirkusReviews .

Table of Contents

THANATOS (Book One)

Chapter One: The Drowning

Therese Mills peeled the white gloves off hersweaty hands as soon as she and her parents were in the car. Nowthat her mothers thing was over, she could finally get home andout of this blue dress. It was like being in a straitjacket.

Anything for Mom, of course.

What the

A man glared at her through her backseatwindow. She jumped up, sat back, blinked. The man vanished, butwhen she blinked again, she could still see the eerie face behindher lids: the scruffy black beard and dark, haunting eyes.

Thanks again for making tonight so special,her mother, apparently not seeing the man, said from the passengerseat as her father started the engine. You two being there meant alot to me.

Did you see that man? Therese peeredthrough her window for the face.

What? Her mother also looked. Whatman?

What man, Therese? her father asked.

Never mind.

Therese did not find it unusual that hermother hadnt noticed the man. Although her mother was a brilliantscientist, she wasnt the most observant person.

Just last spring after all the snow hadfinally melted around their house in the Colorado mountains, andTherese and her mother had been able to enjoy their wooden deckwith the melted lake spread out in front of them and the forestrising up the mountains behind them, Therese had spotted the wildhorse and foal she had seen just before winter. They both hadreddish brown coats with a white stripe between their eyes, thefoal nestled beside its mothers legs, staring intently at Theresewithout moving. The animals stood beneath one of two magnificentelm trees ten feet from their back doorthe tree her mother saidhad gotten the Dutch elm disease. Therese relaxed with her motherat the wooden table on the deck, each of them with a mug of coffeein the bright Sunday morning. Her mother had the paper but wasntreading it. She had that look on her face when she was thinking ofa scientific formula or method that she planned to try in her lab.Therese stared again at the horse and didnt move. She whispered,Mom.

Her mother hadnt heard.

Mom, the wild horses, she whisperedagain.

Therese looked from the beautiful creaturesto her mother, who sat staring in space, transfixed, like a personhypnotized.

Mom, are you deaf? she blurted out, andthen she heard the horses flee back up the mountain into the tallpines. She caught a glimpse of the foals reddish-brown rump, andthat was that.

As Therese strapped on her seatbelt, she alsoconsidered the possibility that she had only imagined theman in the window. She was, after all, prone to use her imaginationand fully capable of making daydreams as real as reality, as shehad, just now, with her memory of the horses.

Her phone vibrated. A text from Jen read,Heat sheets r n call me when u get home. Awesome, she thought.Therese was anxious to see who would share her heat in tomorrowschampionship meet. She hoped she would be swimming breaststroke inthe top heat against Lacey Holzmann from Pagosa Springs. She wantedto beat her this time.

She searched outside her window for thescruffy face but saw only a line of headlights as others, likethey, exited the parking lot of the concert hall. Maybe shehad only imagined the man. It was getting dark. Themountains across campus were barely visible as dusk turned intonight.

Were both so proud of you, Honey,Thereses dad said from behind the wheel.

Therese probably got her imaginative talentfrom her father, who was a successful crime fiction writer. As soonas his first book made the New York Times bestsellers list,he moved his family out into their big log cabin in the San JuanMountains.

Therese saw her father eyeing her in therearview mirror. Arent we, sweetie pie?

She wondered at her fathers need to praiseher mother all the time. Didnt her mother already know she wasbrilliant and that her husband and daughter looked up to her?Absolutely. Youre awesome, Mom.

Thereses phone vibrated again. A text fromPaul read, Wat r u waring?

She cringed and murmured, Oooh. How gross.She couldnt believe he had got her number. He had been stalkingher around campus just before school let out for the summer.

Before she had a chance to delete the text,Therese heard the rear window behind her head explode. What theGlass shards pricked at her neck and bare shoulders. The carswerved left and right. She looked back to see the window behindher busted. The line of headlights had dispersed into chaos, hornsblasting, people shouting.

What the hell was that? her father yelled.Oh my God! Linda! Linda!

Dad, whats wrong? Is Mom

Another explosion rang out, and somethingzipped just past Thereses head.

Therese? Are you okay? Get down!

Whats happening? Whats going on? Theresecowered in the back seat as a third explosion sounded, this timenear the windshield. Therese could barely breathe. She gasped forair, her heart about to explode.

Stay down! Someones shooting at us! herfather shouted.

The car swerved, slowed, and turned. Thesmell of burned rubber permeated the air. Thereses head whippedback as her father gunned the accelerator. Her fingers trembled sowildly, she was barely able to punch the correct numbers on herphone. She messed up twice and had to start over. Finally shepressed them in slow motion: 911. It seemed an eternity before awoman answered on the other end.

Nine-one-one, is this an emergency?

Someones shooting at us! Youve got to helpus. Were leaving Fort Lewis College. Dad, where are we?

Heading toward Huck Finn Pond.

Huck Finn Pond! Therese screamed into thephone as the car swerved, her seatbelt digging into her hip. Thenshe noticed the blood dripping down the back of her mothers neckand onto her mothers silk scarf. Oh, my God! Mom? Mom, are youokay?

Shell be okay, Therese! her fathershouted.

Oh my God! I think my moms been shot!Youve got to do something! Youve got to help us!

A crushing sound shot through the car, andTherese felt herself jolted hard to the right. She hit her head onthe window and dropped the cell phone. When she bent over and triedto pick it up, the back end of the car lurched upward like aseesaw, and her head hit the back of her mothers seat in front ofher. She sat up and saw they were sailing through the air over thelake. The front end of the car hit the water, causing her head toflop forward and back. She heard the air hissing through theairbags as they inflated in the front end. She was so stunned, shecouldnt speak. She watched in silent shock as water crept into thefront end of the car, up to her fathers neck, the untied bowtie ofhis tuxedo floating around him. The front airbags pressed againsther fathers cheek, her mothers face. Water spilled over the frontseat and onto the floorboard in back where she sat elevated higherthan her parents.

She unfastened her seatbelt and leaned overand looked down at her mother in horror. A bullet had put a hole inthe back of her neck, and blood rushed from it. Her head layagainst the airbag turned to one side, toward Thereses father. Hereyes were open and she was gasping for air, but blood was pouringfrom her mouth and choking her.