Chapter 130: The Abyss is Calling

Pain.

That was all Bella knew.

It tore through her veins like fire, burning her from the inside out.

She was on her knees in the dirt, trembling, gasping, fighting.

The ash circle around her pulsed, black smoke curling in the air like grasping fingers.

Dante stood before her, his chest heaving, his blue eyes sharp, unrelenting.

His body was marked with cuts, his hands slick with blood.

His.

Hers.

Theirs.

Because this wasn't just a battle.

This was war.

And Dante?

Dante would rather tear her apart himself than let her belong to the Hollow One.

"Come back to me," he growled, his voice shaking with rage, desperation, love.

Bella lifted her head, her golden-brown eyes flickering between light and shadow.

She wasn't herself.

Not completely.

The Hollow One was inside her now, clawing at the walls of her mind, wrapping its roots around her soul.

And the worst part?

It was winning.

"She doesn't exist anymore, Alpha," the Hollow One whispered through her lips.

"You're clinging to a ghost."

Dante's wolf snapped.

His snarl shook the ground.

"Wrong."

Then—

He moved.

Before Bella—or the thing inside her—could react, Dante grabbed her by the throat, forcing her back down into the dirt.

Her breath hitched.

The world spun.

And then—

The memories came crashing down.