He nodded proudly. “If it’s easier for you to understand… yes.”
Lucy laughed softly. “Oh my God.” Then her face shifted as everything else hit her, the fight, the loss, Mary. “Where’s Mary?”
The room fell quiet.
“She’s been in her room since that night,” Mandy said softly. “Refusing to see anyone.”
Lucy sighed. “Right. Then I’d better go talk to her.”
The walk to Mary’s quarters felt heavier than any battle Lucy had fought. She paused outside the door, taking a deep breath before knocking gently.
“Mary?”
No response.
She knocked again, louder this time. Still nothing.
“I’m coming in,” Lucy said finally, pushing the door open.
Mary sat by the window, her back straight, her silhouette etched in the grey light. She didn’t turn around when Lucy entered.
“Please,” Mary said softly. “I can’t see you. I can’t seeanyoneright now.”
Lucy ignored that and crossed the room, sitting quietly on the edge of the bed. “Mum,” she said gently. “It’s okay.”
Mary turned at last. Her eyes were red, her face streaked with tears. “No, it’s not okay, Lucy. I killed Barnaby. I’ve always protected you all… and I killed him.”
Lucy’s own eyes softened. “It wasn’t your fault, Mum. Yousavedus. Without you, we’d all be dead, and Barnaby is fine!”
Mary shook her head, tears spilling again. “You saw me, Lucy. You saw what I did. Iate them.” Her voice cracked on the last word, full of disgust.
Lucy bit her lip, then smiled faintly. “Have you seen the way Corey eats? What you did doesn’t even compare.”
Mary blinked and then, despite herself, she laughed. A small, fragile sound. “You’re impossible,” she murmured.
“Maybe,” Lucy said, smiling softly. “But you’re my mum, and I love you. Monster or not.”
Mary exhaled shakily, the tension easing from her shoulders. She turned to look out the window again. “You don’t even knowwhatI am.”
Lucy frowned. “Then tell me.”
Mary hesitated. “I am… Cambion–Seraph.”
Lucy’s brows knitted together. “Aren't Nephilim and Seraphim the same thing?”
Mary smiled faintly, shaking her head. “No, darling. Not the same butconnected.Nephilim are born from angels and mortals. Half divine, whilst Seraphim, on the other hand… they arepure angels.”
Lucy tilted her head. “So, we’re kind of related, in a way.”
“In a way,” Mary said softly. “You have the blood of angels and humans, creation’s balance. I have the fire of heaven and the darkness of hell my Cambion side destruction’s balance. Together, we are two sides of the same rebellion.”
Mary’s eyes shimmered. “Cambions, the children of demons and humans. I am both, Lucy. That’s why I exist in constant war with myself. The Seraph in me wants to save. The demon in me wants to consume.”
Lucy reached out and took her mother’s hand, feeling that familiar heat thrumming beneath her skin. Mary’s lip trembled. “You always do the right thing, even when you don’t mean to.”
Lucy smiled, brushing away a tear on Mary’s cheek. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
Mary chuckled softly. “No, it's not.”
