The Gates of the Damned, Part 2

In his rush to rescue their teammate who was being chased by what they assumed were the city guards, Sam had forgotten a very important problem; he was still cursed with the Mark of Hector, and the dead were all around him now.

His meeting with Achilles had made Sam complacent because the shade of the ancient hero hadn’t attacked him when they’d met. He didn’t realize until now that Achilles must have been a special case—a strong spirit that could ignore the curse Hades placed on Sam—while every other shade in his immediate vicinity snapped their heads in his direction so that he was suddenly beset by hungry gazes.

“Oh, crap…” Sam pressed the node to the left of his belt buckle and summoned Gram into his hand. “Why’s the damn mark acting out now of all times?!”