Page 118 of Hell Breaks Loose

HELLENA

Fog settles over the picturesque valley like the haze blanketing my mind.

Maybe it’s shock.

Or the comfort of the two firm shoulders book-ending me on the drive up into the mountains. My rock. My energy. It feels incomplete without the third, but it’s so much more than I could have dreamed up only a few days ago.

But nothing feels real.

The events of the wedding play over and over through my head.

And I just can’t reconcile what I learned. What I saw.

Marco. He’s dead. Truly gone.

I’m free.

Yet in his place, a woman who I thought at worst was manipulative, but still my family, still on my side, turned out to be our enemy. Possibly the enemy we have been fighting against and being toyed with since I first met Evan.

Too many puzzle pieces, and it feels like they’re from different boxes.

The haze starts to drag me into a drowsy lull.

I would welcome sleep at this point.

But the truck slows, grinding to a halt. I step out, blinking, stretching, to find myself in the mountains. Beautiful, stunning.

Pure.

And I feel some of the anxiety wash away.

The hike down the hill proves even more refreshing, even after such an ordeal. Minus the wrecked heels of my shoes.

It’s hard to stay focused on that when I see the town spread out before me.

A new sanctuary for the survivors of our city, tucked neatly in a valley.

Crossing the center of the town square, I only have a moment to take in my surroundings before I’m tackled by a ball of screaming hair and crushing arms.

“HELL!” Ora whips me back and forth like a sheep dog with a squeaky toy.

Well, as much as the tiny woman can, being three-quarters my size.

“Ora. I’ve missed you so much.”

“Fuck you!”

“Yes. definitely fuck me. I am so sorry.”

“Water under the… Oof. Too soon. But you get it.”

Two strong hands rest on my shoulders, unique in the way they caress my skin. The warmth of those supportive grips is as redeeming as it gets.

Because I am free.

“This is happening, right? Like we really just had a brawl with maniac killers and escaped?”

“Not only that, but Marco is gone.”

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