Page 44 of The Road to Hell

His heat flooded my veins and filled me with power.

The brimlord jerked, his claws spasming. His once-massive form seemed to shrink, as if hollowing out from within. I was ripping away his very essence and siphoning it into me.

His eyes widened and he rasped, “What?”

I clenched my fingers, tightening my hold. More fire spilled from him, draining faster now, the glow fading from his body as the cracks along his molten skin cooled and hardened, turning to blackened rock.

He staggered. Fell to one knee.

I took one final pull.

With a shuddering gasp, the last embers of his fire left him—a final, thin strand of flame curling into my palm before vanishing.

The brimlord’s body froze. Then, with a final breath, he crumbled.

A hushed gasp rippled through the market.

I lowered my hand, my skin still tingling with lingering heat.

Silence.

A netheron moved first, dropping to one knee. Another knelt soon after. Then another. Until half the market knelt before me.

I touched my swollen bottom lip with my tongue, tasting blood, as my gaze swept over the sea of stunned hellspawn.

“All right then,” I murmured.

Hell would be whispering my name before the day was through. Word would spread, exactly as we’d wanted. But I couldn’t quell the thread of fear plucking at my nerves. A voice in my head screamed, “Run!” Go back to Earth where I belonged. This was all too much.

I quieted that voice and instead watched as Eliza came to stand next to me on one side and Rathiel on the other. He gestured toward the hellspawn. Right. I needed to say something.

I clenched my jaw, swallowing the knot of panic rising in my throat. I’d been here before—on the brink, fighting for survival, always one step ahead of being crushed beneath my father’s boot. I’d failed once. What would keep us from failing again?

No. I couldn’t think like that. I just had to be smarter, faster, stronger this time.

It took a few moments, but I managed to quiet the doubt and focus my attention on the hellspawn—all of whom were staring at me like they’d just seen a ghost.

I squared my shoulders, shoving down the gnawing anxiety clawing at my gut. Then I raised my voice, enough for it to carry across the market. “As you can see, I am very much not dead. Nor am I strung up like a trophy in the Grand Hall. I was gone, yes, but I’m back.” My voice grew stronger, harder with each word. “Back to finish what I started. To take my father out.”

Rathiel stood beside me, silent and imposing, his blade held out for all to see. He looked the very definition of a warrior sentry.

“You’ve all lived under my father’s rule long enough to know what that means. Pain. Fear. Power wielded only for his gain. This isn’t what Hell was meant to be. And you arenotwhat your souls should have become. I’m here to restore balance. I know we lost last time, but wewon’tlose again. And if you choose to stand with me, know you’ll have a place in my kingdom.”

More whispers swept through the crowd. Some nodded, others remained frozen, caught in disbelief.

“You have a choice,” I said. “Stay in the shadows and keep kissing my father’s ass. Or stand with me and take back what’s yours. Take back everything he’s stolen.”

I looked at Rathiel, catching a flash of approval in his eyes.

“Spread the word,” I continued. “The rebellion isn’t dead. And now it’s time to take back Hell. Let your friends know. Let your enemies know. Lucifer’s daughter has returned. And this time, my father won’t survive.”

Chatter rose among the group, spreading in low, rippling waves. Some of the hellspawn stared at me with wide, unblinking eyes. The weight of my words hung in the air, heavy and electric, but the longer the silence stretched, the more the energy began to shift.

Rathiel leaned in close, his voice low but urgent. “We’ve pushed our luck enough for one day. Let’s move.”

He was right. If we lingered too long, all it would take was one brave fool—or one loyalist to my father—to turn this into a bloodbath.

After sheathing my swords, I collected Purrgy, then turned on my heel and strode away from the market with Eliza—Vol still tucked in her hood—and Rathiel at my side. The crowd parted reluctantly, whispers following us like shadows. Every instinct screamed at me to flee, but I forced myself to keep an even pace.

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