Chapter 1
HUNTER — TEN YEARS AGO
Blood was a captivating substance—vibrant and warm, and without it, we died.
I didn’t register the pain at first. The blade was still between my trembling fingers, but everything was perfect…silent. There was no more pain. No more hurt. No more betrayal.
Death kissed me like a hungry predator, and all I could think about was how angry he was going to be when he found me. Andrew was always an angel amongst a crowd of devils. A shining beacon in a dark abyss, but I couldn’t stay here. I couldn’t suffer anymore nor watch him suffer because of me.
My vision blurred as my body slumped into the bloody water.
A breath released as water singed my lips—copper and chlorine.
Even in my final moments, I couldn’t enjoy peace.
Nothing was peaceful since that night. They ruined me, but he destroyed me.
The bright-eyed girl I could’ve been died that night, and now it was time for my body to join her.
“Forgive me, Father, this is my last confession.” The words fell on deaf ears as I spit the confession.
If we confessed our sins, he would forgive us, even now.
“I cannot live like this anymore.” He didn’t care.
If he existed, he was watching me suffer—laughing at my misery and the agony Isaiah inflicted on my body and soul.
A loving God. Ha!
I didn’t register the door slamming open or the bite of nails in my dying flesh as I was pulled from the warm embrace of death.
Even in this state of desperation, Isaiah’s voice cut deeper than the razor blade that cut my sensitive flesh.
It was too late. Even the Lord couldn’t save me from my damnation now.
Why was he here?
Drew was supposed to find me.
He pulled me from the water, prayers slipping from his lips, and then his foot connected with my ribs in punishing blows—once, twice, three times.
The pain was like a phantom, like a brisk of wind kissing my bare skin.
Blood filled my mouth, grasping its choking hands around my throat as breath struggled in and out.
The crunching of bones filled my ears before an eerie silence replaced the ear-shattering noise.
His fingers were rough on my skin, burning as they trailed low and then lower.
My face was grabbed and forced to look at him.
Why couldn’t I just fucking die? I didn’t want the last thing I saw to be the devil incarnate, but here I was, staring into the soulless pits as he defiled me in the name of his god.
“Forgive her, Father, for she knows not what she does.” He made a cross with the hand not inside me before he grabbed my throat. “Give her peace, but do not take her soul. I will cleanse her. She will be pure.”
Pure.
Please, God, let it be peaceful. “You submit to me.” Thrust. “You obey me.” Thrust. “I am your savior—your salvation.”
Darkness danced in the corner of my eyes as I watched him remove his fingers and reach for the button of his pants. God, please end this suffering. If you truly cared, take me now and don’t let me endure this…again. Of course, it was unanswered—it was always unanswered.
My eyes fluttered closed. In the end, I would die in misery the same way I came into this world. Only this time, maybe I could greet the sweet oblivion death brought me. I wanted peace. I wanted silence. I wanted the pain to stop.
A weak grunt escaped my lips as Father Isaiah collapsed on my body before he was ripped off of me.
Andrew’s face came into view, blood on his face as he tapped my face to get my attention.
He was always gentle like I was made of glass.
I finally shattered, but this time, he wouldn’t be able to pick up my broken pieces.
“Let me die.” My words were barely a whisper, but he heard me.
“Emily, you’re not dying today.”
Emily.
Emily.
Emily.
She was dead.
She didn’t exist. Not anymore. Not since they took every part of her soul.
“No!”
“Don’t let them win,” he said, pulling me once again from my sweet symphony of silence. “Fight. Fight and let's watch them burn.”
I nodded, but death kissed the horizon once more. It was everything I ever wanted.
Peace.
Darkness.
Absolution.