Page 3 of Blaze of Our Lives

Her reaction meant I was probably on the right track, so I kept going. “Burn the bridge that you’ve walked on for so long. It’s the past. The only thing left in Pandora’s box is hope. I can help you let it out.”

“Fuck you,” she ground out.

“I’d rather not,” I replied.

Her lackeys laughed. The irate glare she shot their way didn’t affect them. They were done. She knew it, and they knew it.

“Don’t let your pride be the sin that destroys you,” I said calmly.

“It already has,” she screamed. “Let me out. Let me leave. I’ll not bother you again.”

I shook my head. “Not the way it works. Embrace what is repugnant to discover the beauty that lies beneath.”

Getting down on the floor next to the broken Goddess, I wrapped my arms around her. She fought me tooth and nail, but she was no match for a Goddess at full strength. As I hugged her tight against my body, she began to sob. It pulled at my heart, and I held her even tighter. In my arms was the woman who had killed my mother—the woman who had done her best to destroy me.

Pandora’s hatred for me might never go away. My hatred for her might last for eternity, but it didn’t outweigh my pity for what the Higher Power had done. Who knew? In time, I might even learn to forgive her.

I felt the tendril of hope heat both of our bodies. A golden glow surrounded us and danced over our skin. The sensation was glorious. Pandora’s eyes rolled into the back of her head as she went limp in my arms.

Oh, holy Hell. Was she dead? Had I killed her? That hadn’t been the plan. Killing the Goddess would make me no better than her, regardless of my intention. To top it off, we were still live on the Demon Network.

Frantically, I searched for a pulse and let out an audible sigh of relief. Pandora’s heartbeat was steady and strong. The Demon Goddess wasn’t dead.

There was applause, and I couldn’t tell if it was the Demon’s or one of Cher’s audio effects that she’d used in the show. I let out a soft squeal when the glowing enchantment lifted us both off the ground and suspended us high in the air. A summer-scented breeze gently wafted through the scene before the golden light surrounding us went from warm and gentle to nuclear blinding.

Cradled in the breeze, I shielded my eyes as we floated back to the ground and landed softly. When the light diminished, Pandora’s eyes shot open and bored into mine. She appeared desperate and terrified.

“It’s okay,” I whispered. “You’re okay.”

Her smile was fleeting as she began to fade. My pulse kicked up a notch as I held her tighter in the hopes that she wouldn’t disappear. This wasn’t a transport. She wasn’t escaping. No. This was something I couldn’t have expected. Pandora was literally fading into nothing.

“What’s happening?” I cried out.

Candy and Abaddon rushed over.

“Help me help her,” I begged as Pandora grew more transparent.

“I told you not to touch me,” she whispered brokenly as she faded into nothing.

“Where the hell is she?” Abaddon ground out, glancing around wildly.

“Hold that thought,” Candy said as she began to glow. “I just need a sec here.”

No one said a word as the Keeper of Fate glowed so brightly we had to look away. She chanted in a language I’d never heard, and diamond-like crystals rained down from the ceiling, covering every surface on the sound stage.

It stopped as abruptly as it began.

“Fuck me,” Candy Vargo said with a surprised chuckle. “Can’t quite explain it. She’s gone, but she ain’t dead.”

“Then where is she?” Abaddon demanded.

Candy shrugged. “Not sure, but it ain’t far.”

I stood up and dusted the crystals off my clothes. In a move that shocked everyone, Pandora’s henchmen got down on their knees and bowed to me. “All hail, Bitch Goddess Cecily,” the Demon in the front shouted.

The others repeated it.

“Wasn’t expecting that,” I muttered, keeping an eye open for any sign of Pandora. If anything would bring her out of hiding, I would assume that her people swearing fealty to me would do it.

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