Page 199 of Hekate: The Witch (Goddesses of the Underworld #1)

At the Crossroads Again

It felt like this splitting

was connected to the many

crossroads of my life.

I could not stop when it happened,

the pain of being split physically

reflected the pain of splitting within

and the three of us screamed together,

bodies stiff in the agony

of what was discovered,

and when we stopped,

when we had to stop

because our throats

were so sore that the screams

were nothing more than croaks,

we sobbed and sobbed until

finally I felt a hand on my shoulder.

‘Hekate.’ The whisper was so soft

I knew it had to be Thanatos.

I looked up into his kind eyes,

the same eyes that had recognized me

in his mother’s halls

and then aided me on my journey.

The same eyes that had watched

me break after the crone’s words

in Hades’ throne room

and I realized how much

I needed the truth. Charon stood

beside his brother, his face

marred with worry. I trusted

no one but them now.

But there was something else.

Their gaze was fixed

on something behind me.

I followed it to the direction

of the palace door.

Except there was no door left.

There was only Styx and Pallas

staring at a pile of rubble,

which was the palace they had

built for me. I had done that.

My screaming had done that.

I felt a sharp crack on both sides

of my spine and knew that

the other two versions of me

had abandoned me too.