Nicole sauntered up behind him. Her arms wrapped around his waist. He didn’t shake her off. He let her stay there, holding him. Bile rose in my raw throat. No. I thought, I couldn’t have been that dumb. He was still with her? All the time I spent with him, and he was still with her? I wanted to be one of those girls who filled with rage, the kind that didn’t feel the betrayal or the pain. But I wasn’t. I felt every last drop with agonizing clarity.

He turned his face toward Nicole and said, “Go take it from her.” She smiled, unslithering herself, and walked over to me. Collin watched her do as he commanded. His crimson eyes traced her body as she moved through the darkness. Nicole stopped in front of me, cocking her hip, and stared. I had no idea what she was looking at, until her sharp nails bit my skin, and the chain on my necklace snapped. My pendant fell into her palm. Her long tapered fingers closed around it, before she smiled at me. Then without a word, she tossed it into the middle of the salt circle, laughing at my shocked face.

When the pendant hit the grass the ground churned like it was alive. A ripple spread from the edges of the salt circle, and raced toward the necklace. I watched in horror as the ground ate the pendant, leaving a black hole at the center of the circle where the necklace disappeared. A shiver of shock spread through my shoulders. By the time it reached my heart, it had deformed into utter hatred. She took Apryl’s necklace. It was gone. Forever.

My hands started to shake as I balled them into tight fists. Collin knew how much that meant to me. He took her comb, and now the necklace was gone too. I stood there frozen, unable to move, unable to comprehend the level of his attack. It was like he wanted to destroy me completely.

Nicole turned back to me smiling, reveling in my agony. “Thanks for the key, Virgin. We were looking for that.” She looked smug.

Collin averted his gaze, no longer watching me—only the circle. I looked at the ground, and sucked in a breath. My hand instinctively flew to my mouth, muffling any sound I might make. The ground inside the salt circle was swirling slowly, like it was liquid. The edges were white, rimmed in salt, and stationary. The ground was still hard on our side of the salt line. But the other side was turning into a mixture of earth and rock pudding. The swirling mess was becoming darker with every turn.

“What’d you do?” I asked Collin as my voice cracked. Disbelief grabbed hold of me, and I couldn’t shake it. This was the portal. It was open. That meant that the necklace… My words came out drenched in disbelief, “My necklace—it was the key?”

Nicole laughed, “Yes! We couldn’t have done it without you, Virgin!” She walked over to me, her golden hair blowing around her face. “See, every reason why this portal is here now is because of you. The prophecy was right—you are the reason that everything goes to Hell.”

I looked at Collin, trying to wipe the horror off my face. His words haunted me—it wasn’t something I decided, the prophecy was something that happened because I lived. Dread churned in my stomach, allowing my agony to rip through my body in an unimaginable way. Collin’s body tensed, but ignored my gaze. He stared unblinking at the growing hole. The wind whipped his brown hair around his eyes. He looked like a god, in a black tee shirt and jeans. The earth sank and spun before him. The wind and water swirled around him.

The Valefar began saying words that I didn’t understand, at Collin’s prompting—words that lined the edge of the painting. The spinning pit grew deeper and darker. I’d expected it to be open space—like the sky—but it wasn’t. As the thing spun and took shape, it looked more and more like the painting. The pit became deeper, as the walls shifted from brown to black. As the hole widened from the center out, the ground cracked and fell away, revealing slimy black stone. The only sounds that could be heard were wind, and the noise of rock and dirt falling into the chasm. Shards of shiny black glass clung to the walls. The hole would trap whatever fell into it. Fingers would have to fight the slippery slime to escape, and then if you did get a hold, those chunks of sharp black glass would shred you.

The wind howled, biting my face. I stood there, stunned, and too shocked to move. My eyes flicked to Shannon, who stared at me pleadingly. She wanted me to fight back.

But I didn’t know how. I had no weapon, no ring, and no way to channel my power. I broke her gaze, feeling ashamed that I didn’t know what to do—that I was letting this happen. I glanced at Eric—he wouldn’t look at me. There wasn’t any time to consider that because the bond filled with searing heat. Collin broke his gaze, and looked at me. He nodded at his Valefar. They moved in around me swiftly, and grasped my arms, moving me toward the edge of the pit.

Heart racing, I dug my heels into the ground, refusing to be thrown in. The wind whipped my hair out of my face, carrying faint noises from a distant farm. The air grew colder, as the pit grew deeper. I straightened my legs, locked my knees, and dropped to the ground screaming. The Valefar watched silently. Collin said nothing. He ignored my cries for help. He ignored the fear that penetrated the bond.

As they dragged me closer to the edge, all eyes were on me, ignoring what was occurring behind them. It took everyone a moment to recognize what was actually happening. It wasn’t until I saw several flashes of silver that I knew.

Al sent help.

The three Martis who watched me spar with Eric in the gym were suddenly in front of me. The two men slashed the Valefar who held me, killing them, while the woman, Elena, dragged me away from the edge of the pit.

Urgently she spoke in my ear, as the Valefar realized they were under attack. “We have to destroy them and close the pit. If they throw you in, you must—you MUST—kill yourself before Kreturus gets hold of you. He will absorb your power—power he needs to fulfill the prophecy. Don’t give him the chance.” She shoved me back, throwing a piece of celestial silver at me.

I touched it to my mark, and it turned into a single reaper blade. “Oh, what the hell!?” Why did I need the Grim Reaper’s blade? It felt more like an omen, than the silver choosing the weapon shape that was right for me. The farmland that surrounded the church turned into a war zone. More Martis shot out of the shadows. Eric and Shannon were freed during the first wave of Martis. When they cut Shannon free, she jumped into the fray, taking her dagger back from the Valefar who stole it. Shannon’s hair flew wildly, as she screamed, slaying Valefar after Valefar. My stomach clenched, making me sick. The smell of sweat and blood spread on the wind. I stood there unsure of what to do. I had no choice. I had to fight, but I couldn’t throw myself into the battle.

Julia ran beside me screaming, “Fight or die! If we don’t push back the Valefar before the pit opens completely, we can’t close it.” Her graceful body moved through the Valefar, slashing her short silver swords like a ninja.

I did as she said, not because she told me, but because I had to. Valefar ran at me, trying to drag me back to Collin. At first, I tried to hang back. I didn’t want to kill them. They were slaves. They had no choice in what they were. But when it turned into me or them—I swung my weapon without remorse. I could cry later. My blade cut through Valefar after Valefar. There were an unending number of them. They just kept coming. Eric’s cry caught my attention. He was making his way toward Collin, who was fighting Elena next to the pit. Collin and Elena seemed equally matched.

Silver flashed against the inky sky. A Martis cried out, as a Valefar sucked out her soul. The ear-piercing scream made me lose my focus, as my stomach lurched in response. My muscles trembled, reliving the moment of my demon kiss with Jake. The pain was so vivid that a Valefar almost caught me. At the last second, I swung my arm, and my blade ripped through his throat.

Slowly, I realized I was making a path toward Collin. The rage that filled me was because of him. His betrayal was worse than any I’d experienced. I couldn’t contain my pain. I lashed out, ripping flesh from bone, not bothering to bury my blade in the Valefar’s flesh to make sure they died. They cried out, as I left a wake of blood and screams behind me. I had to get to him before Eric. This had to end now, and I knew how. Elena told me if I died that they couldn’t use me anymore. My instincts told me that I would not survive anyway. As I slashed through two more Valefar, I knew they would never stop coming for me. I knew it would cost me every person I loved. They would never stop. That creature in the pit wanted me. I had to throw myself into the pit, and pierce my heart with my silver. The demon blood in my body would not allow me to live with celestial silver through my heart. It would kill me. That was the only way to end this and make sure all the things that I’d seen would never happen.

Morbid determination propelled me through the crowd. More screams went up around me, as Martis were drained of their souls. It chilled me, but I kept moving. My resolve thickened, as the meaning of the prophecy emerged in my head. I felt certain. All this time, this was what I was supposed to do. This is where I fulfilled my destiny.

I glanced at the pit. The sharp stones shone against the slick black walls. The lack of moonlight made it no less frightening. The hole was a portal to the Underworld.

With every step I took towards Collin, my determination increased. I slashed my weapon, not noticing the blood on my hands, not feeling the wind cutting my face.

This was my destiny. I had to fight. I had to defeat Collin Smith. As I approached him, his eyes locked on my moving figure. They had the familiar sadness that I saw every time he revealed something about his past. But now I knew that wasn’t grief, it was a lie. He planned this. And I walked right into it. With each step, a new thought flew through my mind, convincing me that I was wrong about him—that he was beyond redemption.

I’d trusted him. He made me think that he loved me. It was so easy to believe him. Eric called out to me, but I ignored him, lost in my own thoughts. I slashed the Valefar in front of me in two strokes. His blood washed over my hands, and I walked away leaving him screaming behind me.

Soulless creatures cannot love. Collin didn’t love me. The only real piece of soul he had now was mine. Hatred seared through me, making me feel invincible. I hated that he had a piece of me inside of him. It was a piece of me that I gave willingly to save his life. It linked me to him with an intimacy that I couldn’t tolerate. Not now. I felt the sting of my naivety, as my blade collided with another Valefar. Three moved in around me. Rage flashed in my eyes. I had no doubt they were completely violet, as I was consumed by bloodlust. I moved quickly, taking them down in rapid succession. All this time, Collin said I made the bond, and that I put the bond between us.

I slashed another Valefar across the face, and continued walking. I was a sucker, and I chose wrong. Again. Everything I thought about Collin was wrong. It wasn’t like I picked a bad guy—he wasn’t a bad guy—he was a Valefar. He used me, manipulated me in every way possible. My eyes burned with intensity that was singly focused on Collin. I knew he could hear my thoughts. Good. I was coming for him. I was going to kill him.

Eric yelled behind me again. “Your anger! Snap out of it, Ivy! Control yourself!”