"Oh," Tessa murmured. "Mary's son is all grown up. Wait—how did you know I was Tessa Roman?"
"Luke Roman hired me to investigate."
"Luke..."
Tessa lowered her eyes, grief crossing her face. "I wasn't a good mother."
Geralt gave her no time to dwell on it. "What is this place?"
"The Rift Between the Mortal World and Hell."
Tessa began telling him how it had all happened.
More than twenty years ago.
Back then, Mary and John had been a year or two younger than Geralt was now. They had grown up together. Tessa had been their senior, practically an idol to them.
On a mission, Tessa discovered a natural passage connecting the mortal world and Hell. An organization called the Cow Blood Society was trying to use it to summon an army of demons.
Tessa and her half-trained Demon Hunter husband defeated the Cow Blood Society handily. But the real problem remained: a Greater Demon had reinforced the passage. Closing it completely was nearly impossible, so they could only seal it.
To deal with the passage for good, the Roman Family moved in next door to this old house.
Before long, the seal began to weaken.
Far sooner than expected.
It was a Greater Demon, after all.
If the Greater Demon used the passage as the foundation for a stable portal, countless demons would pour into the mortal world without end.
When that happened,
this whole region would be devastated.
It would become Hell on earth.
With no time to wait for reinforcements, Tessa had no choice but to sacrifice her life and use the Demon Seal to seal the passage again.
Then another disaster struck.
Just as the passage was sealed, the Greater Demon sent a demon through.
Tessa knew her husband. He had no hope of defeating