The Labors of Hercules Beal

Presented through the eyes of his younger brother, Achilles appears to be a detached older brother fulfilling his obligation of running the family business and acting as caretaker for Hercules. Before his parents’ deaths, he worked as a traveling writer who penned articles for publications like Smithsonian Magazine and National Geographic. At the outset, Hercules believes his brother “thinks that living back in Truro, Cape Cod, after living in Brussels and Sydney and Beijing and Barcelona and New Delhi and Cairo and Johannesburg, is like dying a little every day” (3). Here, Hercules assumes that it pains Achilles to return to the Cape and that he would prefer an adventurous life to being tied down by his brother. Furthermore, Hercules perceives his brother as an unfeeling adult because Achilles will not get him a dog, forces him to attend a new school, and demands that he work in the Nursery.

In reality, Achilles cares deeply for his younger brother, and he loves Truro. After seeing a hospital bill for Hercules’s injuries acquired while dispatching the Ugly Cat Pack, he tells Hercules, “I just need you not to get hurt” (81). Although Hercules hears this as annoyance, it is Achilles’s way of expressing the fear of losing him. Hercules finally understands this months later when Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer reveals that Achilles watches his younger brother go to the Dune each morning and anxiously awaits his return. Like his brother, Achilles struggles to express what he really thinks. When they help search for Mrs. Neal in the rubble of their house, he hesitates to leave Hercules even for a moment. Achilles says, “Herc, I can’t lose—” (129). What he does not say is “you too.” He loves his brother and is terrified that he might get hurt or killed, reinforcing how bereft Achilles is after the loss of their parents.

The brothers’ common grief is finally apparent when they visit the Dune together on Christmas morning, and Achilles whispers good morning to their parents as well. Despite this breakthrough in their relationship, it is not until Achilles is hospitalized that he tells Hercules he loves him. Furthermore, Achilles has been secretly working on an article about the beauty of Truro, proving that he loves his hometown as much as Hercules does.

Initially, Viola, Achilles’s girlfriend, is painted negatively by Hercules. He insists that her avoidance of the sun and dark clothing are signs of a vampire. However, in Hercules’s second labor, she demonstrates kindness and perception not indicative of a monster. Returning from their quest to retrieve plants in Cleveland, Hercules divulges how he asked to keep one of his father’s machines on after the man died. Viola gently explains that “once that machine went off, it meant he really was gone,” and Hercules acknowledges that “she was right. [He] hadn’t even known why [he] told the nurse to keep it on, but was she was right” (94). Viola’s keen observation helps Hercules unpack his own grief and understand more about himself. Later, when they arrive back home, she encourages him by telling him, “We get better […] It takes a long time and there’s a whole lot of scars, but we get better” (97-98). Viola’s use of the pronoun “we” suggests that she, too, has endured loss and grief and is speaking empathetically from experience. This encouragement illustrates her care for both Achilles and his little brother.

Viola’s support of the Beal brothers takes many forms, from helping with the business to providing words of encouragement to acknowledging harsh truths. When she learns that Achilles and Hercules had turkey sandwiches and cleaned on Thanksgiving, she reprimands Achilles for not having holiday traditions anymore: “Then you make new ones, jerkface. And eating turkey sandwiches with mayonnaise and lettuce for Thanksgiving isn’t one of them” (175). Viola’s tone, evident in her insult of Achilles, is brutally honest, reflecting her desire to push the brothers to navigate their grief in a healthy way. Viola’s discernment ultimately endears her to Hercules. Later, when she and Achilles momentarily break up, she asks Hercules why he thinks she is a vampire, and he tells her the truth: “Because then it wouldn’t matter […] If we lost you too” (273). Hercules’s fear of losing Viola highlights just how much he loves her; in fact, she is like family to him even before she and Achilles get engaged.