"We should take our leave, sister." Bryn's voice cuts through the fog of shock, her warrior's instincts on high alert. Her tone carries the steel of a Valkyrie preparing for battle, even with only the abbreviated version of Lilith's greatest hits.
She's right. I need to get out of here before I unleash the maelstrom brewing inside me—before my power erupts and reduces this place to rubble and ash. The wind outside howls like a hungry wolf, and the clouds above have turned the color of fresh bruises.
"H-How?" The word scrapes past the lump in my throat, jagged and broken.
Lilith's smile curls like a knife's edge. "Oh, it's quite simple, darling." She leans forward, her voice smooth as silk. "The stone's power is trulydelicious, isn't it? Adrian was always my priority, you know. After you got him killed, of course."
Her words slice through me, precise and cruel. I flinch as if she's struck me, the truth of it searing my heart like a brand—everyone who's suffered or died because of me. John. Mom. Dad. My birth mother. Adrian—a trail of bodies and broken souls, the price they paid for being caught in my orbit.
"And thanks to your little angel friend," Lilith's gaze slides to Seraphina with predatory delight. "We have anabundanceof celestial blood—enough to last quite some time." Her smile widens, revealing the edge of her fangs. "Sothank you, darling. Your contribution to my day-walking abilities is simplyinvaluable."
Bile rises in my throat, acid, and rage mingling as the pieces click into place. She harvested Seraphina's blood during her captivity—And now Adrian too walks in daylight, both of them bathed in stolen divinity.
Seraphina's face drains of color, her golden eyes filling with tears that catch the light like trapped stars. Her fingers tremble against the table as she presses one hand to her throat, reliving the violation. The slight choking sound she makes slices through me like a blade.
I know that sound. I know that feeling—when someone takes the very core of what makes youyouand twists it into something profane. When they steal your essence and use it against everything you stand for.
"What thehelldo you want?" The words grind between my teeth like broken glass. My jaw clenched so tight it aches. The question hangs between us—redundant and inevitable all at once.
Our waiter approaches with menus clutched to his chest, his customer service smile faltering as he registers the electric tension crackling around our table. Lilith's head swivels toward him, her eyes flashing with something ancient and predatory. His Adam's apple bobs in a visible swallow.
"I'll—I'll check back," he stammers, backing away like he's just stumbled upon a cobra nest.
Lilith leans forward. "It's really quite simple, darling. I want Rhyland and the other half of that delicious stone you're hiding." Her lips curl back, revealing the hint of fangs. "If you don't deliver, well... poor Adrian will sufferagainbecause of your stubbornness."
My eyes lock with Adrian's. Behind his scholarly composure, behind that familiar face I once trusted, I see it—the silent scream trapped behind his eyes—the desperate plea for rescue. The invisible chains binding him to Lilith's will cut deeper than any physical restraint could. His gaze speaks volumes; his lips cannot—Help me. I'm drowning in her darkness.
Something cold and determined settles in my chest. Lilith hasn't just stolen a body from the grave—she's imprisoned a soul.
Emily erupts from her seat, chair scraping against the floor. "We're done here. We'll be in touch, bitch," she snarls, her voice low enough that only our table can hear the venom. "Come on, Dani." Her fingers close around my arm with surprising strength, yanking me from the precipice of doing something catastrophic.
"I dosohope it's soon," Lilith purrs. "Time is such a precious commodity, isn't it?"
My gaze catches Adrian's one last time. His composure slips for just a heartbeat—revealing raw desperation beneath, a drowning man glimpsing a distant shore. Then Lilith's fingers curl possessively around his arm, and the mask slides back into place.
My chest splinters like glass struck by a hammer.
He's trapped. He's alive, and he'strapped.
The next moments blur—restaurant door, parking lot, car. Emily's colorful stream of profanity fades to white noise as she peels out of the lot, her knuckles bone-white on the steering wheel. Seraphina's quiet sobs from the backseat punctuate the tense silence like tiny daggers.
My throat constricts each breath a conscious effort. Words form and dissolve before reaching my lips. Adrian. Alive. Breathing. Walking. Trapped in Lilith's web like a fly. The impossibility of it crashes over me in waves, each realization more devastating than the last.
Adrian is alive.
Adrian is Lilith's prisoner.
Adrian needs me.
Adrian will die again if I fail.
The SUV screeches to a halt at the mansion's entrance, Emily bypassing the garage entirely. The grand house looms against the darkening sky, snow falling again. The windows glow with warm light that spills onto the snow-covered lawn.
Emily yanks my door open. "Jesus Christ, Dani, breathe," she orders, her voice rough with concern. "You're turning the same shade as my freaking hair."
The mansion door flies open before we reach the steps. Rhyland fills the doorway. His powerful frame silhouetted against the interior light. As we cross the threshold, I dimly register the transformation inside—garlands drape the staircase, twinkling lights wind through evergreen boughs, and a giant pine tree dominates the corner of the great room, half-decorated with ornaments scattered on nearby tables.
Rhyland's storm-blue eyes lock onto my face, pupils dilating as he scans for injuries. "Angel?"
