Intended Series Collection: Books 1-6, Abigail Grant [best thriller books to read txt] 📗

“What now?” I ask anyone with answers.

Aunt Mags turns to the root arch and points at it. “There it is. You go through there to enter hell.”

It’s Liam who comes in with the snarky comment. “Right. Cause hell has an actual door under the root of a giant tree. Of course…” His sarcasm practically pours from his lips.

Kassy shoves him. “Don’t mind him. He’s still new to the magic process.” She takes a step toward the invisible door. “Shall we?” She turns to me with a shrug.

I shake my head and grip her arm before she can go any farther. “Kass, I told you I don’t want you guys in there. Stay back and wait for us here.” She watches me with reluctance. “Please?” I add.

Liam pulls Kassy to his chest and nods to me. “We are sticking around with the seasoned Seers. We’ll be here to fight if anything follows you out, though I’ll probably end up hiding behind my wife when it comes down to it.” He smiles with a grimace and looks down at Kassy, nearly a foot below him.

Kassy laughs and I can’t help my own almost-smile. I hug them both and turn to the rest of our party. “I don’t know what we’ll find inside, and I know you guys are only here for Gavin, but thank you all for listening to me and being here. Just the five of us are going in, but it could be bad when we leave, so please be ready. I don’t want anyone getting hurt.” Jed, Alexa, Uncle Jack, and Neo come to stand with me as my small army.

Sophia and Danielle stayed home with little Ethan, but the rest of the family is here to lend a hand. Camilla stands before me and grabs my hands in her small ones. “I’d do anything for my boy, El. But I’d also do anything for you. You’re my daughter now, and family to all of us.” She kisses my cheek and I want to cry for the hundredth time in the past two days, but the well is dry.

I pull her in for a hug and she turns to hug the rest of us taking the journey, even Neo. He may not do well with family, but this one loves him already. We both got pretty lucky.

I turn back to Aunt Mags and she touches my cheek. “Be safe in there hon.”

I nod. “I’ll do my best, and I have some killer witch brew to help me out.” I wink at her and she gives me a warning glare at my wrong terminology, with a hint of a smile.

She gives the five of us each a water bottle with a brown mixture inside. Why is it always brown? I wrinkle my nose and drink the contents quickly.

“Ech!” Uncle Jack shivers at the bitter taste. “That’s disgusting, but if it works then it’s also pretty cool.”

“It works. You all now officially have no soul and look like the rest of hell’s inhabitants. Well, for about five hours at least. So be quick.” She turns to me and wraps me in her warm, motherly arms. “I love you baby girl. Come back to us with that cute man of yours.”

“I will, mom,” I say, holding back even more dry tears.

I step in front of the space below the large tree root and take a deep breath. It feels impossible that stepping underneath such a simple thing will lead me to an entirely different world, but here goes nothing. I close my eyes and stick my foot out in front of me, through the empty space, and my boot falls on hard rock. No way…

***

No giant, ancient metal gates of fire. No long staircase winding into a burning pit of bodies. The entrance to Hell is literally just a long, claustrophobic tunnel of rock. I guess it’s torture not knowing when it’ll end, but I expected something different.

“Anyone else feel like we’ve been walking in one direction for a year?” Jed complains from the back of our single file line.

Uncle Jack has taken the lead, being the most experienced of us all. He cranes his thick neck back. “It’s been less than an hour, Jedrek. Chill.”

His large frame in this skinny tunnel is almost a funny sight. Or it would be in different circumstances. There has been no indication to where the demons or Gavin might be. The string on my heart isn’t being any help in this place. Even if it were pulling in any direction, there’s only one way to go. Forward.

Just as I start to feel like we’re not getting anywhere, voices approach us from the dark ahead. “What are you mice doing in here?” A high-voiced woman with a short man by her side step in front of us.

I freeze, worried that our magical disguises aren’t working. Just as I feel like I might start to squeal like a pig, the woman talks again. “Get to work in the atrium! I don’t recognize you lot, but you’re about to not recognize yourselves if you keep wandering where you don’t belong!”

The demon woman doesn’t have black eyes like I’ve seen before. I guess in hell, since they are not possessing anyone, they have their own eyes. Her brown eyes stare us down as we all keep our mouths shut for fear of being found out.

Her slick, black hair sways as she turns her head to her companion. “Daniel, show these idiots to their stations.” She flicks a hand at Daniel and he bows his head at her.

“Come.” Daniel says to Uncle Jack. Daniel was once a human, but he also looks like a troll doll. His nose is pressed flat and his jaw is wide. His wild gray hair sticks up in odd places, and looks like a tall weed on top of his head.

Alexa presses against my back as we follow the demon man to where he came from. She whispers