Chapter 1
I'm freezing. I think my mom left my window open again after she left my room last night. I’ve told her so many times to close that damn window because I can’t stand the cold. With a sigh, I try to get up to close it so I can go back to sleep, but a throbbing pain stops me in my tracks. What the hell? My ears start to ring, and that's when I feel something sticky and warm trickling down my back. My heart stops. I’m not in my bed—or even in my room. Fear and panic start to clawat my chest. I force my eyes open, the haze clouding my vision making me rub my eyes frantically. After what feels like an eternity, my eyesight begins to return, but what I saw mademy stomach turn violently,threatening to spill everything I ate last night onto the floor.
” No, no! Please no!” The words barely escape my lips. In the graymoonlight filtering through the shattered windows, I see them. Myparents and my sister, lying in a pool of their own blood, their limbs twisted in ways no human body should everbe—like broken dolls left behind the counter to rot. Their faces, frozen masks of horror and pain, their mouths stretched in silent screams. What have I done? I don’t understand.I was so careful, I left no tracks, no trace—even masked my scent with the swamp near the trail. I try to take a deep breath and manage to look around again. We are in our living room, or what’s left of it. The table where we used to eat every morning is now shattered into pieces. The ivory couch, where I used to sit every afternoon and read, lies in a large pile of shreds, its pale fabric saturated with dark, clotted blood. The broken glass from the window that looked outover our front yard lies now scattered on the dirty living room floor—this is no longer our home. I try to stand up, but a searing pain in my back makesme bite back a scream. Carefully, shaking, I reach behind me. My fingers touch something slick, sticky, and warm. I frown. I force myself to look, to bring my fingers forward, and I almost puke. It’s my blood—my golden blood. I try to rise slowly, gasping for air, trying not to look at my family’s lifeless bodies as I stumble to the nearest mirror. My golden hair is caked with blood,matted around my head, and the bags under my pale blue eyes make me look older than I am. I rip my eyes away from my reflection as I reach down to lift my soaked nightgown,the motion making me grit my teeth in agony. And then I freeze. Mybreath catches. My eyes water. My knees are almost buckling. There, onthe left side of my back, is a wound so jagged I can nearly see my bone,stretching from the top of my shoulder down to the middle of my back. Golden blood oozes from it like a waterfall.
I feel my body convulsing forward as I throw up over and over again—Iwipe my mouth with the back of my hand as I try to stand, my eyes darting across the room. When did this happen? I can’t remember anything. And then I hear them, speaking the language my mom forced into my head when I was too bored to listen, too annoyed by her endless lecturing. They’ve come back for me, to finish what they started. I need to run. Now!Without another thought, I glance one last time at my parents and sister’slifeless bodies and break into a sprint toward the back door that leads to the forest, my back barking in protest. I can feel the blood pouring down my back in burning rivers. I have to stop the bleeding, or they’ll smell it and catch me. But just as I’m about to reach the door, a hand grabs my ankle and yanks me down, slamming my face into the floor with a thud—Shit!My head spins as I start to struggle,trying to hold onto something, but my fingers are too slippery, and he is toopowerful. The smell of sulfur and burning flesh makes my eyes water.With a sharp twist of my body and abark of pain escaping my lips, Imanage to turn so I can face the thing that grabbed me, but my blood freezes. A demon with black eyes like hollow pits smiles at me, his razor-sharp teeth glinting in the dark hall. His thick, black saliva drips onto my leg. A guttural noise coming from his lipless mouth.
”No! No, not now!” I try to fight him,my fingers reaching for his face,clawing and punching. His bonyhands grip my leg tighter, his long black nails puncturing my pale fleshas he drags me across the room—itlaughs. It fucking laughs. I try to open my wings, desperate to escape, but the moment they stir beneath my skin,pain explodes through me. For a moment, I forgot that they’re useless—I am useless. I will never fly. The demon laughs again, his high-pitched sound making my ears ring, mocking me. It drags me harder across the cold floor, and with a swift movement of his hand, it throws me beside my family’s lifeless bodies. My knees scrape the wet, hard floor. The metallic smell of blood and gore almost makes me vomit again. I try to reach for them. If I die, at least it will be beside them. I lift a shaking hand towards my mother's face. What a waste—all this time, hiding, surviving, erasing every trace, for nothing. The sound of light footsteps makes my head snap in the direction of the noise.
“My, my.. What a beautiful show you put on,“ The man says, amusement dripping from his mouth. “Come on, don’t be sad! It’s not like I killed your family.“ A burst of laughter comes out of him. I raise my head slowly, my eyes locking with his. A pair of crimson eyes was looking at me, filled with pure amusement. His mid-length, dark hair is swept away from his face, revealing dark eyebrows, a straight nose, and high cheekbones that give him a regal appearance. If it wasn’t for the lines etched at the corners of his eyes, I would swear he wasn’t a day over twenty-five. His sensual lips curve into a wicked smile. He made two steps forward, his fine emerald tunic and trousers barely holding his muscles. A beautiful man— one I will enjoy killing someday.
“Who are you?” I rasp, my heartbeat slamming against my ribs. He tilts his head, his eyes searching my face.
“How can you not know? I’m sure your mother told you stories about me, about my kind. Thought you our language and our ways.” The shock hits me like a brick. It’s hard to breathe. How could I be so stupid? All the signs were there—he hair, the eyes, the royal aura. A demon, a very vile one. He was the King of Darkness, of Despair. The King of the Underworld. The most feared and powerful demon in the whole realm. And me, his little prize, the one he’s searched for more than acentury.
“How did you find me?”
“Well, it wasn’t that hard when you left your pretty little coat hanging on a branch outside the woods. As it happens, a little slave of mine came across it while hunting for a meal. He brought it to me, and, well, it reeked of your kind.” He smirked—I’m so fucking stupid. This is all my fault. I should’ve stayed home last night, I should’ve listened to my mother’s pleas instead of acting like I knew better. But I wanted fresh air, to read in peace, away from her nagging. And that cost my family their lives— and soon, mine. A wave of rage cutst hrough me, and I lift my head, refusing to bow to him.
“You killed my family, and I will make sure there isn’t a day when you don’t go to sleep with one eye open.” I spit, my voice shaking with fury. “How dare you speak to me like I’m a fucking prize you won?” His eyes darken, his nostrils flare. For a moment, I thought he would strike, but then he relaxed his composure, a lazy smile plastered on his lips.
“What a sinful mouth you have. You will put even a demon to shame with that venom,” he says. ”If it weren’t for that golden blood and those pretty wings, I would swear that you’re just like us—cunning and deceitful.” The gleam in his eyes makes me cringe.My head throbs, and with the wound on my back not preventing any movement, I’m certain that I couldn’t fight him even if I wanted to.
“As you know, these things you call family can’t procreate angels. Sure, they fed you, trained you, and even loved you,” he says, motioning lazily with his left hand. “But you were never their real daughter.” I knew it, of course I knew it, and he is right—but they did not deserve this.
“Why did you kill them?” I’m still bleeding, and I feel like I’m going to pass out. “You wanted me, so why them?” He clicks his tongue, an expression of annoyance flickering across his face.
“So many questions!” he sighs. “I killed them because they were nothing—just bugs crawling around a house playing family,” He steps closer, his face inches from mine, hands clasped behind his back, every movement reeking of power. “They served their purpose. They softened you, made you feel love, made you feel safe. Now, I want to see the monster you’ve been trying so hard to bury inside of you.” I spit in his face.
„Fuck you!” I hiss, trying to reach him to rip his throat out with my bare hands. ”One day you’ll die, and I will be the one looking down at you as thelife fades from your eyes.” I try to stand, leaving golden trails down my back, my nightgown soaked in it. “You think you’re untouchable?” A low laugh escapes my mouth. ”Keep dreaming. I’ll be your nightmare.” He wipes my spit from his face, and he smiles—not a lover’s smile or a friend’s smile, but a smile that promises a lifetime of pain and terror. A smile only his enemies know.
„ I would love to see you try.” He purrs. Without another word, he turns and nods toward the left corner where the demon stands. Before I can process what’s happening, a shar p pain explodes inside my skull—and the world goes dark.
——————————————————————————————
I jolted upright, the motion making me bite my lip until blood poured from it, my back wound tearing open. Fucking hell! Where am I? My hands press against the hard stone floor as the memories come rushing back—the demon, the King of the Underworld, my family. With a sob escaping my lips, I close my eyes and I pray to Asterin, the Goddess of peace and Souls, to make their journey swift and to watch over them in the afterlife. I cry until my throat burns and my eyes ache. After what feels like an eternity, I wipe my tears away and take a deep breath, trying to calm myself. The stench of putrid flesh and excrement crawls up my nose. The place is dark, with brick walls coated with old blood and mold. To my right sits a single bucket, clearly meant for bathroom things. But no bed, no blanket, and no windows—just a lone bulb of light hanging above my head. I shiver, the cold so brutal I can barely feel my fingers. I don’t think I’m at the grand castle. It would’ve taken days to reach it, and I’m sure that I haven’t been unconscious that long. I force myself to stand, placing my trembling hand on the cold brick, dragging my legs forward to the metal bars. The pain in my back is making me wince with every movement. It will heal, eventually, if it’s not already infected, but it will leave a very nasty scar. From the looks of it, they didn’t find what they were looking for. Fools. They don’t know anything. I place my head on the rusty bars as I’m looking around the empty hallway, welcoming the cold on my hot forehead. Dark cells decorated the long hallway. Even though there were many in number, they were empty, only the bones and rats skeletons joining them. I let myself slide down slowly, taking my knees to my chest, the motion splitting the wound farther. Lucky me. With a sigh, I close my eyes, suddenly exhausted.
