Chapter 321: I Don’t Want To Die

The words hit Nicholas like a physical blow. Victoria was gathering forces. Which meant she was preparing for war.

Which meant the deadline was not just a threat anymore.

It was a promise.

"Come on," Nicholas said to Sebastian and Elena. "We need to move. Now."

They followed Maria back through the pristine hallways and out into the night. Elena walked between them, silent and tense, clutching her bag like a lifeline.

Nicholas pulled out his phone and checked the time.

They had been gone from the estate for eight hours.

They had twenty-six hours left before Victoria’s deadline expired.

And they were about to spend the next four hours driving a terrified witch to a safe house instead of getting the information they desperately needed.

Through the bond, Nicholas could feel Lilith, awake and anxious back at the estate. Could feel Sebastian’s frustration bleeding through his connection. Could feel the countdown ticking in his head like a bomb waiting to explode.

They were running out of time.

And Nicholas was starting to think they might not make it back before everything fell apart.

***

*Meanwhile - Back at the Estate*

Lilith stood at her bedroom window and stared out at the forest where Nicholas and Sebastian had disappeared hours ago.

She could feel them through the bonds, distant but present, moving further away with every passing minute. Could feel their determination and frustration and fear all twisted together into something she could not quite name.

They were looking for answers. She knew that much even though Sebastian had tried to lie about it.

The question was.....would they find them in time?

Behind her, the door opened without a knock.

"You should be resting," Lucian said from the doorway.

Lilith did not turn around. "I can’t sleep."

"The curse?" He asked.

"Everything." She pressed her hand to her chest where the curse sat like a cold weight around her ribs. "I can feel it growing, Lucian. Every hour it gets a little bit stronger. A little bit heavier. What if Nicholas and Sebastian don’t find answers in time? What if there is no other way?"

Lucian was quiet for a moment. Then she heard him move closer until he was standing right behind her, close enough that she could feel the heat coming off him.

"Then we face it together," he said quietly. "All of us. Whatever happens."

Lilith closed her eyes and felt tears burning behind her eyelids. "I don’t want to die."

"You’re not going to die," Lucian said, and his voice was absolute. "I won’t let you. None of us will."

"You can’t promise that."

"Yes I can." His hand came up to rest on her shoulder, gentle despite the strength she knew he was capable of. "Because losing you is not an option I’m willing to consider. So we’ll find another way. And if we can’t find one, we’ll make one."

Lilith turned to look at him and found his eyes already bleeding gold. "Even if it means you go feral?"

"Even then."

"That’s not fair to you...."

"Life isn’t fair," Lucian interrupted. "But this is my choice. Our choice. We’re choosing you, Lilith. Over everything else. Over the curse. Over our own lives. Over anything and everything."

Lilith felt a sob catch in her throat. "I’m still angry at you. For marking me without permission."

"I know."

"And I don’t know if I can forgive you."

"I know that too." Lucian’s hand tightened slightly on her shoulder. "But I’m not asking for forgiveness right now. I’m just asking you to trust that we’re going to fix this. That Nicholas and Sebastian are going to find what we need. And that you’re going to survive this."

Lilith wanted to believe him. Wanted to trust that everything would work out.

But she could feel the curse inside her, growing stronger with every passing hour.

And she was running out of time to hope.

***

Victoria’s POV

The hospital smelled the same as it always did.

Antiseptic and something else underneath it, something Victoria had learned to recognize over the past few days of visiting. The smell of people waiting. Waiting for loved ones to wake up. Waiting for miracles that might never come. Waiting for death.

Victoria walked through the supernatural ward on the third floor with her hood up and her magic carefully contained, drawing no attention from the nurses who passed her in the hallway. A simple glamour, nothing elaborate, just enough to make people’s eyes slide past her without really seeing.

She did not want to be seen.

Not here. Not now.

She stopped outside room 347 and took a breath before pushing the door open.

Her sister lay exactly where Victoria had left her three days ago.

Cassandra Thorne....formerly Cassandra Morvaine before she married Victor and took his name, looked smaller than Victoria remembered. Thinner. The machines hooked up to her beeped steadily, monitoring a heartbeat that refused to stop even though Cassandra’s mind had fled somewhere Victoria could not follow.

Catatonic, the doctors said. Brought on by extreme psychological trauma. They did not know when or if she would ever wake up.

Victoria pulled a chair close to the bed and sat down, reaching for her sister’s hand. The skin was cool and dry, and Cassandra’s fingers did not curl around hers the way they used to when they were children.

"Hello, Cass," Victoria said quietly. "I’m sorry I didn’t come yesterday. Things have been... complicated."

The machines beeped. Cassandra didn’t respond.

Victoria had been having one-sided conversations with her unconscious sister for two days now. She should be used to the silence. Should be used to talking into the void and getting nothing back.

She was not.

"Lilith is in trouble," Victoria continued, her voice tight. "The Blackwood Alphas....they’ve bonded with her. All three bonds complete. And the curse..." She stopped and pressed her free hand to her mouth, trying to contain the rage that wanted to explode out of her. "The curse transferred to her, Cass. Just like the prophecy said it would. And they marked her anyway."