Page 83 of House of Malice
“That is very dangerous, Val,” Jolene said. “Witches are very much not welcome in Hel. Actually, we’re pretty hated there, if you weren’t aware.”
“I know,” Val said. “But we’ll have Rogue with us at all times. Plus, nobody will dare mess with us because of the Imp Queen. We’ll be under her protection while we’re there.”
“Alright, alright,” Alecto said. “Let’s go to Hel then.”
35
Blaze really wasn’t sure why they had to get up this early to travel to Hel. It wasn’t as if the portal to Hel weren’t open twenty-four seven.
But here they were, at the crack of dawn. In the middle of fucking nowhere.
“I’ve never been outside Inathis, I just realized,” Jolene said. “How odd.”
“Why would you go anywhere but Inathis?” Blaze asked her. “The mortal world is dull, and Hel is not for witches.”
“You’ve never been to the mortal world. How do you know it’s dull?” Jolene asked.
“I read the reviews.”
Jolene chuckled and Alecto snorted, rolling her eyes.
“He’s not wrong. The mortal world is pretty fucking dull compared to Inathis,” Alecto said.
“Much safer, though,” Andro said.
“Depends on who you are,” Alecto said.
Andro shrugged. “Fair enough.”
They had arrived in the small town on the southern edge of Inathis about twenty minutes ago. It was a town that had merely five hundred residents, and many of them worked at the stations on each side of the portal to Hel.
Val and Rogue went off somewhere, telling them to wait at this small coffee shop where they sat right now.
Alecto was on her second cup of coffee, while Jolene sipped on an herbal tea of some sort as if that could help her stay awake. Andro and Blaze were waiting for their breakfast plates.
“It’s kind of cute here,” Jolene said. “Small local businesses, everyone knows everyone, nobody is fighting for power because tradition told them to do so…”
“It’s so quiet and so boring,” Andro said. “I’d die of boredom here. Plus, there aren’t any cute witches that I have seen so far.”
Alecto smirked, rolling her cup back and forth in her hands. “That is why you have the portal nearby. You can jump to Hel to find yourself a cute demon anytime.”
Andro chuckled. “Not a bad idea, Black. I should have thought of it myself.”
“Let’s be honest, none of us would be able to live in a place like this,” Blaze said. He stretched his legs in front of himself and leaned back in his chair. “We aren’t built for a quiet village life. Not after Venefica.”
They all sat silently, mulling over his words.
An elderly witch came over, two large plates in her hands. She placed one in front of Blaze and the other in front of Andro. The food smelled amazing.
“Anything else for you, kids?” she asked, not even bothering with a smile.
“No, thanks,” Alecto said.
The witch scurried away, and Blaze dug into his food.
“You sure you don’t wanna eat?” he asked Alecto with his mouth full. He pushed his plate towards her. “We can share.”
Alecto eyed the food on his plate for a moment and then shook her head.
