“Enough, she’s not gonna be around much
longer anyway, Souls that fight to the end, they
don’t taste as good.”
Another voice, smooth and comforting,
I squinted, taking deep breaths.
>
Then came the next shocker.
The guy who roughed me up started sprouting
black horns and a tail.
Souls, contracts, and this creepy castle…it all
clicked and my memory snapped back.
This is Ethan Blackwood’s demon lair!
Years ago, me and him had a major fight.
I bailed out of the castle, only to discover I was
pregnant with my daughter.
Too prideful to reach out, I raised my daughter
alone.
And now, all these years later, I’m hauled back
here.
Knowing who was behind this, a strange calm
settled over me.
“I know you guys are demons! Just let me go!”
The two guys exchanged a look, then started
laughing.
“So what if you know? You’re gonna be dead
pretty soon.”
Their eyes were full of mocking glee.
One of them pulled out a nasty knife and sliced into my palm.
I screamed and coughed up blood.
He dipped his fingers in the blood and sucked
them, a dreamy look on his face.
I stammered out, “Ethan Blackwood is my
boyfriend! If you even lay a finger on me again,
he’ll rip your heads off and use ‘em as
footballs!”
<
The name, Ethan Blackwood, seemed to rattle
them.
The next second, I got slapped, hard.
“You think you’re worthy enough to talk about
our boss? His girl is long dead!”
Dead?
I froze, realizing that my disappearing act led
Ethan to believe I had died.
“It’s me! And I had his daughter!”
I was desperate to explain, but I didn’t know
where to start.
The dude grabbed my hair, his disgusting
tongue licking at the wounds on my face,
sending sharp pain through me.
My hands shook, then I saw my daughter
<
passed out on the ground, and an idea came to
- me.
“You don’t believe me, fine! My daughter’s a
demon!” I screamed out.
The two guys exchanged a glance, running over
and sniffing her arm.
Their faces immediately went white.
For a brief moment, I thought I was saved.
The next thing I know, I was back on the
ground, kicked down.
“Damn it, just a human and a demon’s mutt!”
“Our boss would never get with a human! You
think you can trick us, you little witch? We’re
gonna split your soul into eighty–one pieces.”
I had heard of soul dissectors.
<
Ethan had joked about it, threatening me with
- it.
A human soul is made up of three spirits and
nine souls, and demons eat that.
Usually, demons eat souls when they’re
“cooked“, but there are some demons who take
pleasure in splitting them up.
The thought of it made my stomach churn.
That’s one of the reasons I had fought with
Ethan.
He promised me that he wouldn’t let the
demons eat any more humans, but looking at all
this, it was all lies.
I started thrashing, pure panic flooding through
- me.
As the knife went down. ready to slice me open.
<
the door got busted open.
“The boss is up, keep it down.”
I blinked, I recognized the voice, it was Ethan’s
right–hand man.
Maybe he’ll recognize me!
I reached out with my hands to grab his pants.
But before I could, the guys pulled me back.
Desperate, I yelled out, “Pete! I’m the boss’s
girl, remember me!”
Pete paused, then his face went hard.
He stepped closer, “Where did you guys pick
this one up?”
