Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 111353 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 557(@200wpm)___ 445(@250wpm)___ 371(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 111353 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 557(@200wpm)___ 445(@250wpm)___ 371(@300wpm)
But as fortunate as Charlotte was to have an army of silent bodyguards who never slept and had supernatural hearing, not even they could stop every attack—
So I did.
I blew up that worthless shit Connard when he tried to hit her with the gut-exploding spell for the second time. I covertly switched out her food and drink every time it was secretly poisoned. I beheaded three glamoured assassins who tiptoed into her bedroom, thinking they were clear to go.
I did it all, and it baffled me every time. I didn’t understand it, but with every murder attempt, it became clear that someone, or a group of someones, did not want supernaturals to leave hell. They didn’t want anyone to gain the power of the All Hallows. They didn’t want a single thing in hell to change, and they were willing to kill Charlotte to stop it happening.
But who? I mused as I followed her through the halls. The lords of hell want to abduct and imprison her for sure, but they don’t want her dead. They want her firmly under their control so that she could grant the All Hallows to no one but them.
They wanted it so badly, that after centuries of extraordinarily shitty parenting, Zariel, Mammon, Leviathan, Beelzebub, and Asmodeus were sweet-talking and showering their little princesses with so much praise and presents, it was embarrassing.
All five of them were swearing up and down that everything was going to change. All their daughters had to do was deliver the Avos witch to them, and they could rule side by side—father and daughter—emperor and empress of the twin realms for all eternity.
So far, none of the princesses had given in. Like I said, centuries’ worth of shitty parenting had frayed any trust between them a long time ago, but that didn’t stop my head from exploding every time one of them followed Charlotte around or put their hands on her.
Bzzz.
Fishing in my jacket pocket, I took out my phone.
Father: He’s here. Now get rid of him.
I grinned even as I rolled my eyes. Only my father would get annoyed at a visit from a devoted lackey who’d do almost anything for him. Dear old dad really didn’t like it when someone got in the way of his doing nothing.
I looked up at Charlie as she reached the tower steps and started climbing. “Finally,” I whispered. “Your gift is finally ready, and you’re finally going to be mine again.” I scoffed. “I’ll show that stupid mutt who’s the master of groveling.”
The whole way up, I practiced what I was going to say. She’d be surprised to see me pop out of nowhere, for sure, but as long as I could convince her to come with me, everything would be fine.
“What’s up, Charlie, I— No, fuck! That sucks.” I cleared my throat, starting over. “Hey, Charlotte, how you been— Idiot!” I pounded my head. “She’s been horrifically depressed and throwing herself into revenge to mask it. You can do better than this!”
Charlotte pushed open the tower door.
I took a deep breath and filled my lungs with acrid, burning air. “Charlotte, hi. I know you’re surprised to see me, but there’s something I—”
Charlotte climbed onto the ledge.
“Wait! No—!”
She jumped.
“NOOOOO!” Racing to the ledge, I shattered the invisibility and ripped off my face glamour. Turning my face toward the skies—blinding, golden light pierced through the never-ending gloom. “SAVE HER!”
The carrion crows launched off their perches—shrouding me in shadows as their massive flock dove.
“Ow!”
Charlotte kicked, flailed, and carried on as they plucked her from certain death and took off, flying her back up to the top of the tower.
My glamour was firmly in place by the time her head crested the ledge.
“I knew it!” she shrieked.
“What the fuck was that?!”
“You’ve been following me! Stalking me!”
“Are you insane, woman! Why would you jump off a fucking tower!”
“I knew all those times I woke up in the middle of the night thinking I heard someone cough, I wasn’t imagining it!
“Don’t ever do that again!” we shouted at the same time, chests heaving and eyes flashing.
The crows deposited Charlotte on her feet, and I shot forward, crushing her in a hug. “You scared the shit out of me,” I groaned, furious tears blurring my vision. “Don’t ever do that to me again.”
Charlotte was still in my embrace, allowing me to hold her close—
—for all of ten seconds.
“Get off me!” She wriggled free, shoving my hands away. “I only jumped to prove you were stalking me. Telling you to disappear doesn’t mean you literally disappear, Ronin. It means fuck off!”
Her fury didn’t faze me in the least. “I’m not fucking off anywhere now, then, or ever. You’re mine, Hunter. I love you and I’m always going to protect you. Whether you like it or not.”
Charlotte’s jaw dropped. “Are you kidding me? You can’t still be on that. What is wrong with you! I swear, you’re the worst fucking psycho ex-boyfriend ever, and you’re not even my ex-boyfriend!”