Her face was utterly relaxed, as if a great weight had finally lifted.
Octavia struggled shakily to her feet.
Right in front of her, Hester took a small pouch, cut it open, and poured the ashes inside into the incense burner. As she did, she continued speaking, her tone chillingly calm.
“I met her in Country M. Her grandfather looked after her well. Every time I saw her smile, it made me sick. Someone like her didn’t deserve to look that happy.”
“So, I had someone peel the skin right off her. There are so many missing persons in Country M—the police can’t keep up. I made her suffer every day. Only when she finally died did I feel a little better.”
“She died missing limbs, so there wasn’t much left—just this little bit of ash I brought back for you. Think of it as the end of your years of connection. Grandma, haven’t I treated you well?”
Octavia could no longer think about revenge. Instinctively, she reached into the incense burner, trying to grab the ashes, her voice trembling in a broken whisper.
“Ariel, Ariel, it’s Grandma’s fault. I brought this on you…”
If she hadn’t brought Ariel home, she never would have met Hester, and Ariel would have been spared such horror. The same went for Sabrina. If she hadn’t brought Sabrina back—sure, maybe life would have been a little harder for her out there, but at least she’d still be alive. As long as someone is alive, there’s always hope.
But everyone close to her—one by one, they’d died. And it was all her own misplaced kindness that let the wolf in the door and doomed them all…
The more devastated Octavia became, the more delighted Hester was.
“Old hag, everyone around you died because of you. How do you expect to face them in hell? Think you can beg for their forgiveness? Too late! You’ll never know peace, not in this life or the next.”

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