Shannon’s Reviews > A Heart of Bitter Poison > Status Update

“Who knows?” Bianca says with a shrug. “Two ancient creatures, who trace back as far as we can map immortal existence, restless in themselves and in the world. Both broken and alone, now bound by blood in a bond that surpasses the confines of reason or magic. Two fates spiraling closer together with every drop of life shared. It certainly seems like a myth breathed to life, does it not?” 

“Ashen is a demon, Lu. If you give your heart to a creature of the shadows, you have to learn how to love the darkness as much as the stars.”

I hold my arms up and scream with terrified delight even though no sound comes out of my mouth. And normally that loss would grip my heart in a tight fist of sadness, but there’s no time for that. Not with Eryx absolutely shrieking next to me. All I can do is laugh and laugh and laugh.  And that’s how we spend the morning. Shrieking. Laughing. Maybe seizing once or twice. Okay fine, three times.

“Lu…Come on Lu. It’s already done,” Cole says, catching my wrist. He squeezes when I try to pull away, but not enough to force the blade from my fingers. I turn to him with a fierce glare, my whole body shaking with fury, but he leans in closer. “Get your revenge by living.” His words slap me out of my rage.

My voice that once steered ships onto rocks, that brought the most powerful men and women to their knees. It gave me joy, even when I had to hide the sound of it just to stay alive. It became something precious and rare and exquisite. Now it just… doesn’t exist. It’s been erased even though I still hear the faint echo of it in my mind. But like ink corrupted by water on a page, the edges are blurred and warped.