Ring Around the Rosie by C. Hebert

Ashes, ashes we all fall down

ASTER

Sabbath Creed had an intensity that always enthralled me, yet I never would have fathomed his love could warp my own sanity into madness, setting ablaze everything I loved until nothing was left but ashes and agony.

I’ve always been drawn to fire, the way it consumes, transforms, and purifies. But I never expected it to devour my world, leaving nothing behind but ashes and heartbreak.

From that moment on, I chose to escape my fate, to escape him.

I could always feel his presence, lingering like smoke in the air. It was only a matter of time before he would find me. His love, twisted and charred by the flames of his obsession, burned endlessly for me. He would never let me go, not after what happened.

I thought working at Camp Redwood would hide me from his gaze, but it only pushed me into the spotlight with its own dark secrets. He was here, and I needed to make the ultimate decision: allow his love to consume me or extinguish its flames. Forever.

SABBATH

She thinks she can escape me, but she’ll never understand. I’m not just a part of her past; I’m a part of her. She might try to extinguish the flames, but I’ll never let her. I will make her mine again—no matter the cost. My little spitfire.