Chapter Twenty-Six
Kara
As I wandered through Hell, one question refused to leave me alone: How the fuck does this place actually work?
Surely, it couldn’t all run off the Devil’s will alone. Could it?
The deeper I roamed, the more it felt like I was walking through nothing. Just endless darkness. A void that swallowed me whole no matter which direction I turned. There had to be more. More rooms. More dungeons. This was supposed to be a prison for damned souls—so where the hell were they?
Worse ? I had no clue how to get back to Luke’s room.
Could he see me? Know where I was at all times? Probably.
Which meant the second I slipped out, he knew. And honestly? I hoped so.
Yeah, I was trying to find a way out. Duh. But if this didn’t work, I was going to need him to show up and drag me back. Preferably to food.
Gods, I was so hungry.
The last of the snacks I’d stuffed into my back pocket were gone, and now my stomach felt like it was clawing at itself from the inside out. A cramp hit hard, doubling me over. I stayed like that, folded, for several seconds, just breathing through the pain.
Then I pushed forward.
…Or maybe it was backward?
I couldn’t tell. In a place like this, directions didn’t matter. For all I knew, I was walking straight down into a deeper abyss.
Hades, I’d kill for a steak. A rare one, juicy, sizzling off the pan. My mouth watered even as my stomach twisted.
I paused and stared out into the void. Couldn’t even see my hands.
Maybe I’d been thinking about this all wrong. Maybe Hell didn’t have an exit.
But if I treated Luke’s domain as a realm—an entity—maybe I could attack it. Break it. The way Harvest had torn the realms apart to start the apocalypse. Random holes between planes had appeared ever since.
And I was strong. I was strong. Starving but strong.
With enough willpower…maybe I could rip open my own damn exit.
It might hurt like hell. But I was already in it.
Besides, I’d need to eventually get out. One way or another, I had a fight ahead of me—with Harvest and Luke both.
But first?
I wanted that steak.
I was going to need the energy.
Materializing my scythe, I shifted it into a blade. The purple glow of my essence crackled along the steel, lighting a path through the dark. A grin curled my lips.
“Big, juicy steak. Big, juicy steak,” I chanted under my breath, keeping my focus sharp.
Food was an excellent motivator when cursed with endless hunger.
I swung the blade forward, slicing through the dark like fabric. The air split with a sound like tearing silk. A seam opened, curling at the edges like the corner of a burnt page.
Warm, muggy air spilled through. Insects buzzed.
The stench of something hot, swampy, and undeniably contaminated rushed into my nose.
I winced, covering my face with my arm as I peered through the slit.
It looked like some kind of jungle—maybe the human world, maybe not.
I didn’t see water, but the whole place felt soggy.
One step inside, and I knew it: humidity clung to my skin, thick and miserable. My boots sank slightly into the spongy ground. The air was stifling. Each breath was like trying to inhale soup.
My stomach cramped hard enough to double me over.
“Okay, okay,” I panted, gripping my side. “No steak. Got it.”
After a moment, I tried fading to Grim’s woods—nothing. That told me everything. I was still in Hell. Just…a different corner of it.
“Figures,” I muttered, glancing behind me. The rip I’d come through was gone. Vanished like it was never there. “Are you kidding me?”
Hot and hungry. A cursed combo.
Still, food was pulling at me. I could feel it, the way my curse lit up like a flare under my skin. A jungle meant animals. Maybe even something edible. Hopefully not something alive and screaming, though I wasn’t sure I’d stop myself at this point.
I wiped sweat from my forehead and pushed forward through the brush—until a scream ripped through the air.
My head shot up. A man. Then—thump. Thump. Thump.
The ground shook beneath me. Branches snapped. Trees groaned. Something massive was tearing through the forest. Even the birds stopped chirping. The buzzing quieted.
Everything stilled.
Something was coming.
And whatever it was, it wasn’t running from something. It was hunting.
What horrible reality had I thrown myself into? Luke created an individual hell for his prisoners. Could it be—
A dirty, half-naked man burst from the trees, charging straight at me. He kept glancing behind him, like something was chasing him—until he saw me. Then he stumbled, his beady eyes widening as he hooted and grabbed at the pathetic excuse for a loincloth barely covering him.
Absolutely not.
His thick brow bone jutted forward, huge teeth curling over his lip, and his forehead bulged like evolution had skipped him entirely. Not a modern human—something older. Way older.
I threw my weapon straight at his chest. He dropped like a sack of potatoes.
Only to reappear ten feet away.
I killed him again. And again. Each time, his corpse stayed behind, but a fresh version of him popped up in a new spot.
“Oh, Hades,” I muttered, yanking my sword back into my hand. “Nothing can die around here.”
The man hooted again and slapped his lips together as he sprinted toward me.
Nope.
I sliced the air open, tearing into the fabric of the realm again. Another hole unfolded like paper peeling back. I didn’t look where it went— just leapt.
I hit the ground hard and rolled, springing upright fast.
Night surrounded me.
A crowd of humans with torches marched toward me in the distance.
Well, the air smelled better. That was something.
Until someone threw a pitchfork at my head.
“What’s this?” A cold feminine voice sneered behind me.
I spun around—and got slammed in the chest with a blast of magic.
Pain exploded in my ribs. But still, nothing hurt worse than the gnawing curse inside my stomach.
I gasped, trying to stand.
“I’ve been in this torment for too long,” the witch hissed, stepping into view. Her eyes gleamed with unhinged joy. “You can take my place.”
Hell no.
Then—a tap. Light and cool against my shoulder.
I turned.
Shadow stood behind me—a blotted, shifting mass of dark. Its outstretched hand waited.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, already grabbing the offered limb.
The world twisted again.
Suddenly, I was back in Luke’s massive chamber— standing before a table heaving with food.
I didn’t hesitate. I threw myself onto it, grabbing fistfuls of meat, bread, fruit, whatever I could shove into my mouth. The relief was instant. I moaned through a mouthful, tears springing to my eyes.
When the curse finally quieted in my stomach, I paused mid-bite.
Shadow lingered near Luke’s desk.
A paper floated into the air, drifted toward me, and landed.
“This place is dangerous. When will you learn?”
I scowled. “You didn’t answer my question. How can you be here? And how did you get me back?”
Another paper landed in the mashed potatoes.
“I am the darkness.”
I rolled my eyes, snatching a buttery roll and devouring it. “You ported us here. I didn’t know a blob had power like that.”
“Don’t talk with your mouth full.”
With a grunt, I crumbled the paper and chucked it at Shadow. The ball sailed right through its form, which of course prompted it to grab another damn sheet, scribble something, and launch it at my head.
I snatched the paper mid-air.
“You had so many months to say your goodbyes. Are you regretting ignoring it now?”
Of course, Shadow mentioned that. The one thing guaranteed to piss me off. I was beyond tired of Shadow and Luke both trying to force farewells out of me, like I was supposed to throw in the towel because they said so.
I let the paper fall to the ground.
“My family isn’t fading away. I will see my father again. So saying goodbye is unnecessary. Until I turn to ash and scatter like he did, the Devil and Harvest haven’t won.”
Another paper flitted toward me.
“You can’t escape Hell. How do you plan to stop anything?”
“Why are you even here?” I shouted, arms spread wide. “Is it just to piss me off? Unless you’re planning to help me escape, get lost.”
Another note:
“You’ll never see Grim again. Accept that.”
Tears blurred my vision. No. No. I wasn’t doing this.
I sniffed, huffing like an angry child, and materialized a large backpack. I started shoving finger foods into it—rolls, cheeses, fruits, whatever I could grab with shaking hands.
Shadow was trying to break me. So was Luke. Everyone thought I needed to accept death like it was noble. But I wasn’t ready to fade. Not without a fight.
I heard another whistle of paper sliding through the air, but I ignored it, shoving half of the meat pie into the side pocket and heading for the door.
If I weren’t so busy being annoyed, I might’ve noticed the change in the air. The way my stomach had stopped cramping.
I slammed into something burning hot.
Two hands gripped my shoulders before I could bounce backward.
I tilted my chin up and saw him.
Two massive horns. A wicked face. The barely restrained gleam of something wild in his red eyes.
Burned marshmallows. That scent hit me like a rush, and I wrinkled my nose, trying to fight the warmth spreading in my chest. My limbs. Lower.
Why was my body responding to him like this? Like I’d just walked into heat and safety all in one? I could easily climb that tall, obsidian monster like a tree, curl up in his lap, or let him spread me wide and—
I shoved away from him so fast my feet nearly slipped.
Luke arched a brow, gaze dropping to the overstuffed backpack.
“Where are you going, Kitten?” he asked, voice like gravel soaked in honey.
I squared my shoulders. “Where do you think?”
“Since there’s no exit for you to escape,” he murmured, gaze traveling over me leisurely. “How do you want your punishment?”
My clit throbbed. Once again, I was thankful he had lost so many of his senses. I’d be screwed if he hadn’t lost smell. “Hard pass, but thanks for asking.”