Hades' Cursed Luna novel Chapter 167

Hades

My gaze locked onto the crumpled figure of Ellen, drenched in blood, clutching Jules’ lifeless body with a desperation that tore through the cold air. I took a hesitant step forward, my breath caught in my throat, an unfamiliar tightness constricting my chest. _{freeweɓnovel.cѳm}

"No," I whispered, but the word barely left my lips, swallowed by the unbearable weight of the moment. My hands curled into fists at my sides, my jaw clenching so tightly it threatened to crack. "No, no, no—"

Ellen’s head snapped up at the sound of my voice, her eyes swollen shut, her face bruised and battered, streaked with blood and tears, her eyes hollowed out by grief. "She’s gone," she choked out, her voice barely more than a whisper, yet it cut through me like a blade. "I couldn’t save her, Hades. I—I tried... I tried."

The guards stormed the room, guns raised, alert and searching for any more signs of danger as I quickly made my way to Ellen, who was a sobbing pile on the ground. She held on to Jules’ limp body, blood soaking into her dress, hands, and face as she held her as close as she possibly could.

"Oh, goddess..." Kael whispered, horror bleeding into his voice as he took in the macabre scene. Blood was splattered onto the adjacent wall, some still dripping. The floor was slick with more of Jules’ blood. I knew whatever wrath he felt toward Jules for what she had done to him to escape fizzled out at the sight of her body.

Ellen rocked her, her screams and pleas slashing through the air. "Please, please, don’t leave me alone. Not you too. Please," she hiccupped. "Don’t go like this. I’ll tell you everything. I won’t hide anymore. Please, you want to hear the whole truth? I’ll tell you. Please, open your eyes..." She struggled against the avalanche of emotion threatening to swallow her whole. "I’m begging you!" she screamed. "I’m begging... you."

I pulled Ellen to me, but her hold on Jules did not falter even a little bit; if anything, it became tighter as if she dreaded someone taking her away.

I looked into Jules’ face. She was bruised too, but for whatever reason, she almost looked at peace, as if asleep, save for the color leaching out of her skin. I held Ellen to me as she sobbed into Jules, her cries fractured and shattered, each sob cutting through the silence like shards of glass. She trembled violently in my arms, her grip on Jules unrelenting, desperate, as if sheer willpower could keep her here, tethered to life.

"Ellen," I whispered, my voice raw, hollow. "She’s gone."

"No," Ellen choked, her body wracked with sobs. "No, she can’t be. She—" Her voice cracked, and she pressed her forehead against Jules’, tears slipping down her cheeks and onto the lifeless skin below. "We were supposed to have more time. I was supposed to fix this... to make things right."

Kael stepped closer, his usual composed expression fractured with something that looked too much like regret. He knelt beside us, his gaze heavy with unshed grief. "Ellen..." he murmured softly, but she shook her head violently, her arms tightening around Jules in defiance.

"Don’t," she snapped, her voice sharp with the sting of heartbreak. "Don’t you dare tell me to let her go."

I felt her body tremble beneath my hands, and my grip on her tightened. "No one is telling you to let her go," I said, my voice low, my own grief bleeding through. "But we need to get her out of here. We need to—"

"Do what?" Ellen spat, her head snapping up to meet my gaze, fury and despair colliding in her bloodshot eyes. "We couldn’t protect her. She died, Hades. Right in front of me. And I couldn’t do anything. Nothing!" She beat her fist weakly against my chest, her strength depleted. "I should have—" Her voice broke, her sobs swallowing her words whole.

I closed my eyes, pressing my forehead against hers. "I know," I murmured. "I know."

Around us, the guards shifted uneasily, exchanging glances, unsure of what to do. The air was thick with the scent of blood and sorrow, a heavy weight pressing down on all of us. No one dared to move Jules’ body, not with Ellen clinging to her like this.

I took a slow, shuddering breath, lifting my head to look at Kael. His jaw clenched, but he nodded. "I’ll clear the room," he said, his voice low. "Give her time."

I nodded back, grateful. The guards began to retreat, their footsteps echoing hollowly against the cold floors. The world beyond these four bloodstained walls blurred into nothingness, leaving only Ellen, Jules, and the unbearable silence that followed in death’s wake.

Ellen’s sobs had quieted into ragged breaths, her fingers threading through Jules’ hair as if she could memorize every strand, every feature. "You were always too good for this world," she whispered, her voice cracked but full of love. "And I was too broken to deserve you."

I swallowed the lump in my throat, guilt gnawing at me. "Ellen," I said softly, but she shook her head.