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Surprisingly, his lips twitch as if he’s fighting back a smile. But maybe I imagined it because he stands straight and looks to Calix. “The charges?”
“Murder,” the man replies as he consults the scroll. “Oddly, just before she died herself. Tied a man to her bed and slit his throat.”
The king’s eyes come back down to me. “You really do like cutting into men.”
“You’re not a man,” I snap.
“No, I’m not,” he agrees. “How did you die so suddenly after you committed murder? Did you kill yourself?”
I press my lips shut. I’m not about to provide fodder for him and those watching.
Calix chuckles, however, and my head turns his way. His eyes pinned on the scroll, he says, “It appears she tried to cross a street and stepped in front of a bus.”
The king winces. “Ouch. That had to hurt.” He then rubs his chin thoughtfully. “Murder usually earns you a one-way ticket into the river, but there’s a reason Zora sent you here for judgment.”
Zora. The person Calix called the god of Death.
“Are you sorry for what you did, human?” the king asks.
“I’d do it all again if you put me back in that same position,” I choke out. I’m operating on little control over my words and actions. I know my full demise is mere seconds away because I’ve watched this creature throw every other person into the river. He’s going to do the same to me, and I want everyone to know that I have no fucking regrets.
King Amell tilts his head, his brows furrowed. “Would you, now? You know you’re pretty much demanding I toss you over.”
“Do it, then,” I hiss, then to add insult, “You nasty buzzard.”
Pressing his thumb to his chin, he rubs his lower lip with his finger as he considers me. After what seems like forever, his hand drops and I close my eyes, knowing I’m about to be hurled.
“I think you might be fun to play with,” the king says, and my eyes pop open to stare at him in shock.
But he’s not looking at me anymore. Instead, there’s another wave of his hand and a thick metal collar appears around my neck. Chains are attached to the front and connect to shackles on my wrists.
He turns his back as he issues orders. “Take her to the castle.”
One of the guards jerks me up by the arm and drags me across the bridge toward the massive structure of spires. I don’t think to struggle against him because I’ve earned a reprieve from that river. I don’t know what awaits me, but it has to be a step up from eternal damnation.
I twist my neck and look over my shoulder just in time to see Amell flick another person over the edge. The screams shred my ears, and the cheers from the crowd terrify me. While I didn’t see any joy or pleasure in his task, the king doesn’t look distressed by his duties.
Just another day at the office.
As I’m brought into the castle, my jaw drops at the size of the building. In the massive entryway, the ceiling rises so high into spires that I can’t see the tops of some. The walls and floors are done in a black tile polished to such a sheen I can see my reflection clear as glass. It looks like a version of me walking upside down in pace with my own steps, and it’s disorienting.
I’m boggled as we pass people—no, not people—creatures. Some look like humans, some look like monsters. Some look like a combination of both.
Most snarl at me as we walk by, and one particularly gruesome-looking thing with horns curving from under his jaw and a triple row of sharp teeth murmurs, “Like to take a bite out of you, little girl. Maybe later.”
I shudder, and my stomach pitches as I realize I’ll now be in continual danger. Amell said he wanted to play with me, and given that this is Hell, I’m guessing it’s going to be painful.
I’m led along several corridors and down a spiral staircase carved from black stone in one of the turrets. It gets colder the farther we descend, which surprises me. I thought Hell was supposed to be hot.
At the bottom, we traverse more corridors until we enter a long hall with cells built into the stone on both sides, each one separated by thick metal bars. I see what looks to be other humans in the cells.
At least they look like humans, but I can’t be sure. I don’t know enough about this place.
There are no beds, no sinks, no toilets that one might enjoy in a prison.
Just the same craggy obsidian rock, and not even the comfort of a blanket.
I’m led to a cell and shoved in, the metal door clanging behind me. The guard pulls out a ring of keys and locks me inside.
