Chapter 370: The Price To Pay

"Like what?"

"Lilith’s blood," Elena said. "Collected before she dies. It has to be fresh, no more than a day old when the ritual begins. You’ll also need something that belonged to her. Something she valued. A piece of her essence bound to a physical object."

Victoria thought about the necklace Elena had given Nicholas. The crystal that had kept Lilith alive for three days.

"The necklace," Victoria said. "Would that work?"

"Possibly," Elena said. "If there’s enough of her magical signature still embedded in it. But you’ll need more than that. You’ll need Components from all three Alphas as well"

"Why?"

"Because the soul bond is what’s holding Lilith between life and death," Elena explained. "To resurrect her properly, you need to strengthen those bonds. Make them physical as well as magical. The Alphas’ components will serve as anchor points, ways for her soul to find its way back to her body."

Victoria was taking mental notes, cataloging everything Elena was telling her.

"What else?" Victoria asked.

"Salt blessed under a dark moon," Elena continued. "Silver wire that’s been soaked in blood. Crystals attuned to death energy....obsidian, onyx, hematite. And...." She paused. "You’ll need the name of a death god. One powerful enough to grant passage between realms. That’s where Thalia comes in. She’ll know which entities to approach."

Victoria felt overwhelmed by the complexity of what Elena was describing.

This was not simple magic. This was intricate ritual work that required precise components and exact timing and knowledge most witches did not possess.

"How long will it take me to gather everything?" Victoria asked.

"If you’re efficient?" Elena considered. "Two days. Maybe less if Thalia cooperates and helps you access the Underworld quickly."

Two days.

Lilith would die during the transformation attempt. Victoria would have two days to track down Thalia, make deals with Underworld entities, gather components, and return to the estate ready to perform the resurrection.

And all of it had to happen within seven days or Lilith would be lost forever.

The timeline was brutal. Unforgiving. No room for error.

"I can do it," Victoria said.

"Can you?" Elena challenged. "Victoria, I need you to understand what you’re committing to. The moment Lilith dies, you’ll be on a clock. Two days to do what would normally take weeks of preparation. And during those two days, you’ll be making deals that will corrupt your magic permanently. Trading pieces of yourself for power you were never meant to have. Becoming something dark."

"I know," Victoria said.

"Do you?" Elena pressed. "Because once you start making deals with Underworld entities, there’s no reversing it. The corruption spreads. The darkness takes root. And even if you successfully resurrect Lilith, even if everything works perfectly, you’ll never be the same person you were before."

Victoria thought about the girl sleeping in the estate. Thought about Lilith’s smile and her courage and the way she had chosen to love three cursed Alphas despite knowing it might kill her.

Thought about the promise Victoria had made fifteen years ago to protect the last member of her family.

"I don’t need to be the same person," Victoria said quietly. "I just need to be powerful enough to save her."

Elena looked at her with something that might have been respect or might have been pity.

"Then you should start preparing now," Elena said. "Even before the transformation attempt. Gather what components you can. Research Thalia’s last known locations. Prepare the tracking spell you’ll need to find her quickly. Because if Lilith dies during the transformation, if the curse consumes her in those final moments, you won’t have time to hesitate."

Victoria nodded. "I’ll start today."

"Do it quietly," Elena warned. "Don’t let the Alphas see what you’re doing. Don’t let Lilith suspect. If they know you’re preparing for her death, they’ll lose hope. And hope is the only thing keeping them functional right now."

"I understand," Victoria said.

They stood in silence for a moment.

The estate was visible through the trees now. Morning was fully here. Soon Lilith would wake up and want breakfast and want to talk about the transformation and want reassurance that everything would be okay.

And Victoria would have to smile and lie and pretend she was not preparing to watch her niece die and then sell pieces of her soul to bring her back.

"One more thing," Elena said quietly. "When you approach the Underworld entities, when you’re standing in front of demons and death gods making your bargains....remember this. They can smell desperation. They can feel your fear. And they will use both against you to extract the highest possible price."

"So I should hide my desperation?" Victoria asked.

"You should accept it," Elena corrected. "Go in knowing that you’re desperate. Knowing that you’ll pay almost anything. But set limits before you arrive. Decide what pieces of yourself you’re willing to trade and what pieces you’re not. Because if you go in without boundaries, they’ll take everything and leave you hollow."

Victoria absorbed this. "What did you trade? When you attempted resurrection four years ago?"

Elena’s expression shuttered. "Ten years of my life. My ability to cry. And all my memories of my sister’s childhood. I remember that she existed. I remember that I loved her. But I can’t remember what her laugh sounded like or what games we played or what she looked like before she died. Those memories are just....gone. Traded away for power that didn’t even work the way I needed it to."

The devastation in her voice made Victoria’s chest tighten.

"I’m sorry," Victoria said.

"Don’t be sorry," Elena said. "Just be smart. Set your limits. Know your boundaries. And don’t trade away pieces of yourself you’ll need later."

She turned toward the estate.

"I’ll help you prepare," Elena continued. "Quietly. We’ll gather components. We’ll research. We’ll do everything we can to be ready. And we’ll pray to whatever gods are listening that the transformation works and none of this preparation is necessary."

"And if it doesn’t work?" Victoria asked.

Elena looked back at her with eyes that had seen too much darkness.

"Then you become the villain who saved her," Elena said. "And you live with what that costs."