Page 167 of Her Blood Revenge

The blood queen is dead.

And I am here.

Here in hell.

I turn to the gate. To the blood still pouring into my world. To the souls of the blood witches.

If I can’t kill the blood goddess, at least I can trap her.

I take a breath. My shoulders sag.

And I feel the sand around me. I feel the mountains. There’s so little life here but enough to do one last thing.

I kneel and sink my fingers into the ground below. The sand swarms around me, caught in a gale of power I pull from every inch of life I find in this desolate landscape. It swarms wildly, whipping my blood-soaked hair around my face and drying the tears as they fall.

A witch does not get freedom. We are born cursed. Cursed to be owned. To be trapped. To be used. And then our souls are taken and sent to the gods we stole all this power from.

I had a few days in the sun. A few nights of pleasure.

A few moments of love. Of joy. Of peace.

That is more than most like me get.

My life meant little.

But my death means everything.

So bring it the fuck on. Because if there’s anything I have learnt about myself, it’s that I have never done as I am told. I have never given up without one hell of a fight.

With a determined scream, I channel all my will and desire into every grain. The sand shoots towards the arch of bones and chips away at it.

My scream is endless, and tears at my throat.

Cracks, splinters and chunks of bone fly in all directions, weakening the gate.

I give one last heave.

The bones shatter outwards into a million pieces. I throw my arms up to protect myself as it rains down on me. Then I look up.

The arch is gone. The gate between this world and that one has been decimated. All that remains is a faint shimmer of that bloody mirror slowly dripping down to the floor.

I release a breath. My final breath.

The river of blood above crashes down, and I close my eyes, waiting for it to hit.

I was always destined to end up here. At least now, my end serves a greater purpose.

Neve is dead. Hel is trapped.

And I did what no one thought possible. I fell in love. And I was loved in return.

Not bad for a little mud witch, huh?

My heart rate is slow as I watch the blood fall. A strange type of calm settles over me. A peaceful acceptance.

I think of those men of mine.

They relish in their darkness. They devour and feed. Kill and fuck. And I found myself drawn to their world like a moth to a flame, pulled in by the depravity, the lust, and the all-consuming power.

---