Monster's Bride

Monster’s Bride Monsters’ Consorts Stasia Black Copyright © 2023 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Contents Preface Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Chapter 42 Chapter 43 Chapter 44 Chapter 45 Chapter 46 Chapter 47 Chapter 48 Chapter 49 Chapter 50 Chapter 51 Chapter 52 Chapter 53 Chapter 54 Epilogue Also by Stasia Black About Stasia Black We are all worthy of the most spectacular love. From one disabled girl to another <3 Preface MONSTER It is a tragedy when the One who created you cannot love you. Enough almost to destroy a man’s soul. I suppose it is presumption to call myself a man, though. You see, I was not perfect enough. Not created in his image perfectly enough. Which, let’s be honest, was more his fault than mine. But then, I was the fool who sought his love for far too long. Almost to my own destruction. Because he would destroy that which was not beautiful. And so in the end I killed god, my father. Now I am a wild thing set free. A terror upon this earth. I do not think it was my destiny. But a child unloved will turn to violence. Or perhaps what he said before he died was true, and I have always been a monster. Chapter One HANNAH The path is rocky and I struggle with my crutches up the mountain. I’m seeking a monster who can perform miracles, after all. So what else did I expect if not a struggle? But still, sweat pours down my forehead. “How much farther?” I ask my guide, a young guy from the nearest town. He’s stopped up ahead. He doesn’t like moving as slowly as I do, so he keeps hiking further, then waiting till I catch up. But he’s the only one I could find who would even take me this far. These mountain paths are treacherous, or so the locals have warned me. There’s no cell service out here, and though I have a sat phone, I’m not sure it will help me. It certainly didn’t help the others who took this trail before me in search of miracles, and they were all able-bodied folks. We had to abandon my walker half an hour ago when the path became too narrow, and my balance is dicey at the best of times. And now that I’m so exhausted? I try to hug the side of the mountain path that’s by the forest; the other edge is a sheer cliffside. It’s not like there’s even a railing or anything to grab if I go stumbling that direction. My guide—Keith—points up the path. “The cave is about a half mile more. That way. But this is as far as I go.” I frown, confused. “But I paid for you to take me the whole wa—” “I told you, lady. You’re crazy. No one comes back from here, and if anyone knew I even took you out this far…” He shakes his head, looking worried. Then he slices his hand through the air. “No. You come back with me now. You got to see it. You can say you came up the mountain, and that it just didn’t work out. Look, I’ll take a picture of you so you can put it on your Insta and prove you did it.” He pulls out his phone, obviously only for its camera function, since there’s no cell service. “I’m not turning back.” I frown as he taps the screen, taking pictures of me, I can only assume. “I paid for you to take me as close to the cave as possible.” He gestures around him. “This is as close as possible, and my mama would kill me if she knew I even went this far. I told you what happens on this mountain.” He covers his eyes to block out the sun and look up the path toward the mountain that looms above us. The air is thick with mosquitos, but I’ve quickly learned that swatting at them is futile. They just swarm right back. Keith shakes his head as he turns and starts walking back toward me. “Yeah, we should head back before the sun goes down. We have just enough time to make it to town. This went a lot slower than I expected.” He glances at my elbow crutches. “But if we leave now, we should be able to get far enough down to be safe.” I dig my crutches into the dirt stubbornly. “I’m not turning back.” The only person who has made it back alive from this trek is a child—a previously disabled child who has somehow been cured of his terrible scoliosis after visiting the mountain. He speaks of a monster so fierce and deadly, it’s scared away most since. Or so the rumors say. Most people think it’s just a story, one of those local legends. Especially since no one can find the boy, whose family has apparently moved away after the miracle. But the legend has only grown. Especially since other adventure seekers coming this way recently, most seeking out the mythical beast, have a habit of going missing. So why am I, a disabled woman alone, who has difficulties navigating a downtown street much less a mountain, attempting such a hike? Likely because I’m