My heart bursts with pain as I walk along the steep mountain with my bare feet. A strong wind blows away my long hair, pushing me toward the precipice, but I fight it, not intending to give up. I want to stay strong, both physically and mentally.
Too much has happened recently. I have been manipulated by Thomas, he has entangled me and used me to achieve his goal.
I trusted him and was deceived.
I am angry with myself, with Cupid, who repeatedly said that he would be the only person to extend a helping hand to me.
Was he in cahoots with him from the beginning?
Apparently.
I'm so pathetic, everyone around me is taking advantage of me, and I don't see it.
I stop at the edge of the mountain and look down, and painful memories return. This is the place where Andy gave his life for me. The place where he died.
As much as I try, I will never forgive myself. I know that if he had been beside me, he would not have allowed Thomas to take advantage of me. That's why he also defended himself against his feelings for Lisa.
Irene was not the reason for this, he did not intend to become a "Faerie". They are said to be the lowest species, but demons want to become them at all costs to get rid of their black wings, the burden of their sins.
Andy gave me his white wings, and I mindlessly shared them, even though I gave that half to his friend.
Would he be angry with me? Probably currently, he would have shouted at me, or even slapped me upside the head to make me regain my sanity.
I smile slightly when I imagine it.
I miss my mentor, I miss this wonderful friend.
I crouch on the edge of the precipice and look down with sad eyes. The height seems terrifying, but I don't feel fear one bit. Now I'm not human, I have powers, so I can't die.
- Since I showed up in this house.... I have destroyed everything.
I close my eyelids and lean forward. I stretch my arms and with my wings spread, I fly down like a bird. It's a pleasant feeling — a moment that regenerates my mind.
I land on the ground and open my eyes, and my attention is caught by the sand that is floating in the air. This is happening exactly where Andy died.
I get the impression that it is arranged in the silhouette of a person. I am not afraid of what I see. I am curious about the image that is happening before my eyes.
The sand swirls, creating colors.
I blink my eyelids, with my mouth open, looking at the man who appears before me. Dressed in a black suit and white shirt, which he has unbuttoned to his chest, he is combing a hand through his arranged hair.
It's Andy, although he looks entirely unique. He is more... elegant and sophisticated?
- Damn, what a foul place," he says, looking around him with distaste. Eventually, his gaze finds me. - Hello, sweetie.
I don't know if I'm dreaming right now, but it seems to me that I'm not stuck in reality.
- Andy? - I ask in a stifled voice, watching him walk towards me with a ferocious step.
- Abaddon, sweet. Angel of the Abyss," he introduces himself, shaking the dust off his jacket. - Don't you remember?
I raise an eyebrow, wondering what's going on with him. This is not my guardian. It seems to me that an entirely different person is standing in front of me.
I just can't accept the fact that it's Andy.
- Jennie, beautiful Jennie," he says, grabbing my elbow. He pulls me close to him, and I look at him with wide-open eyes. - Your beauty is so captivating that you will become my princess.
- What - another moment and I'll choke on my saliva.
- You will be the mistress of the underworld, the abyss of hell. - With one hand, he holds me around the waist while the other strokes my cheek. - As a "Faerie" you are perfect to become my wife.
- Don't get worked up," I reply in a frightened voice. - For many years you were my guardian, my best friend, you even called me your child. I waited so long for your return, I suffered because you gave your life for me....
He closes his eyelids and takes a deep breath.
- You are my soulmate.
- I am the one! It is thanks to me that you have returned, Abaddon! - Behind his back I notice Irene.
It seems to me as if I found myself on the set of a romantic comedy with fantasy in the background.
Andy rolls his eyes and, not intending to let me out of his embrace, he and I turn to face the demon girl.
- Forfeit! You're not my type!
It sounds fun, but I'm still confused.
Irene snorts under her breath. She crosses her arms over her breasts and stares at me sternly:
- Get away from him, as long as I'm nice!
- But what can I do if he is holding me by force? I can't free myself! - I defend myself, and then he looks into my eyes again with a gentle gaze.
- Rest assured, dearest. In my arms you are safe. You are in no danger.
Now this comedy with fantasy in the background is turning into a soap opera.
The demonic girl tries to use her strength to separate us, but Abaddon is more powerful than she is. He shows her the middle finger, then takes us to another place.
I don't know where we are just now, but I begin to feel uneasy as I look around me and notice that black walls surround us. There's a huge canopy bed in the middle, a navy-blue dressing table to the right, and a giant closet with clothes to the left.
- What is this place? - I ask in a fearful voice.
His hands encompass my face, forcing me to look into his eyes.
- Our kingdom. Here we will spend all eternity.
Why couldn't he kidnap Lisa, or at least Irene? I'm sure they would have been entranced by wanting to spend all eternity with him here.
Not that I'm complaining. I'm glad that Andy is back, although I'd rather, he was still himself. I want him with me, but in the old way.
The new Andy scares me.
- But I would rather not spend all eternity here. I want to return to the world of the living.
It seems to me that his eyes are changing, and his gaze is becoming sharper.
- Speechless. Now the world of the dead is your home.
- But I would rather not be the princess of the world of the dead. I would like to return to myself.
His grip is stronger this time as he grabs my forearm.
- Abaddon is not opposed by anyone. Not even his princess," he says warning, mirroring me with red eyes. And it's barely a moment before they regain their natural brown color and his gaze softens. - Now let's make my beauty even more stunning.
He runs his hand over my body, causing me to feel a strange chill. All the while, I watch his face, and my attention is caught by that captivating smile he bestows on me again.
He grabs me by the shoulders and positions me in front of the mirror. I look like an entirely different person, literally like a character from a fairy tale.
My hair is now blond. It falls in waves down my back to my waist. I'm dressed in a jasmine-colored long dress that emphasizes my waistline. On my feet are gold stilettos, and my neck and hands are adorned with precious jewelry.
- I look like a real princess," I whisper, being charmed by my appearance.
- This is the only beauty that deserves to be called queen of the underworld.
I am haunted by memories of Thomas, of how he hurt me.
- Do you think I'm worth that much?
Thomas doesn't think so at all. He cheated on me, manipulated me, thinking I was an idiot.
- You are worth enough to make infernal beings bow at your feet.
Keeping his hands on my hands, he rests his chin on my shoulder, looking at us in the reflection of the mirror.
I must admit that such a sophisticated and elegant Andy is even more beautiful than when I met him.
For a long moment, I couldn't take my eyes off our reflection.
- You will see... here you will be happier than in the human world.
Why do I keep getting the impression that it is not Andy who has been reborn, but someone entirely different in his body? Is Irene sure she did everything right? Did she definitely bring Andy back?
It seems to me as if he knows everything about me, albeit not as my guardian, but someone I don't know at all.
- Abaddon, how long have you been an Angel of the Underworld?
In the mirror, I see his lips twist into a smile, then he whispers in my ear in response:
- Thousands of years, if we ignore the not-so-long gap.
He plays with my hair, and I can't take my eyes off him.
- Why should I be the one to become your queen?
- No one knows this, Jennie, but every meeting we have is not a coincidence.
I turn to face him and look at him with concerned eyes.
- What do you have in mind?
- I am Abaddon. The most powerful being in the world of Angels and Demons. Do you think I don't remember any period of my existence? I remember every one. - He grabs my chin, smiling sinisterly. - I was Abaddon for centuries, until I was punished and reborn as a human being. You accompanied me. There was a reason I had you under my protection when I became a Guardian Angel. It is our destiny, Jennie. We have belonged together for centuries.
- What are you talking about? - I exclaim, watching him with wide-open eyes. I haven't been this terrified in my entire life.
- Irene helped me to be reborn, and I helped you to return to the right place. This time we are doomed to each other for all eternity. You are no longer an ordinary girl.
I want to walk away from him, but he grabs me around the waist, holding me in his embrace.
- I don't believe it," I say in a whisper.
- Being an Angel, it was a period of torment for me, so it was hard for me not to sin. I tried, although it didn't work out for me....
- So you never loved Irene? You used her to become a celestial being, and when she gave you her wings, you just pounced on her and broke contact with her? - When I put everything together it starts to make sense. - So all this time you were also pretending to be a friend of Lisa and Thomas?
- I actually liked them. They were funny, although occasionally, they irritated me.
Now I know why Andy was not polite, being a Guardian Angel.
- So you're saying we've known each other before? You knew who I was all along?
He strokes my hair, looking at me with caring eyes.
- Of course you did, Jennie. I have waited hundreds of years for you to be reborn again. Now that I'm Abaddon again, and you're my princess, I won't let you go for any reason. - So the fact that Andy was my guardian angel was no accident either.... - There was a reason why you couldn't fall in love with another man. I made sure it never happened.
And I thought it was something wrong with me, since I was unable to fall in love with Victor and Thomas.
Now it's all clear... oh my god!