Chapter 424: What Did Thalia Asked For As Payment?

The portal deposited Victoria in the eastern gardens of the Blackwood estate.

She stumbled forward onto familiar ground and immediately had to brace herself against a tree to keep from collapsing.

Every muscle in her body screamed with exhaustion. Her magic was depleted to dangerous levels. The corruption spreading through her channels pulsed with each heartbeat like a second, darker pulse.

But she was home.

She looked up at the estate and felt something twist in her chest.

The damage from Thalia’s attack was still visible, scorch marks on the walls, broken windows being repaired, sections of the grounds torn up and slowly being restored.

But there was also life.

Pack members moving about their business. Lights burning in windows. The steady hum of a household that had survived devastation and was choosing to keep going.

Victoria pushed away from the wall and forced herself to stand upright.

The eastern gardens stretched before her in the darkness. It was late, well past midnight based on the position of the moon. The estate was mostly dark except for a few windows still glowing with light.

She stood up straight and started walking.

Each step required conscious effort. Her body wanted to collapse. Wanted to give in to the exhaustion and corruption burning through her magical channels.

But she needed to see Lilith first. Needed to confirm with her own eyes that her niece was truly alive and breathing before she could allow herself to rest.

Victoria made her way through the gardens toward the main entrance.

A pack member on night watch saw her approaching and his eyes widened.

"Lady Victoria," he said. "You’re back. Should I alert...."

"No," Victoria interrupted quietly. "Don’t wake anyone. I’m just....I need to see Lilith."

The guard nodded and stepped aside.

Victoria entered the estate and moved through the familiar corridors on autopilot. Her feet knew the way even when her mind was too exhausted to think clearly.

Up the stairs. Down the hallway. To the door of Lilith’s room.

***

Victoria stopped outside and took a breath.

Then she opened the door as quietly as she could and slipped inside.

The room was dimly lit by a single lamp in the corner. And there....

Lilith.

Sleeping peacefully in her bed. Her breathing was steady and deep. Her face was relaxed. No pain. No convulsions. No blood.

Just a girl sleeping.

Alive.

Victoria felt her knees buckle.

She made it two steps into the room before she had to sink down onto the floor beside the bed. Her hands came up to cover her mouth as tears started streaming down her face.

Silent. Overwhelming. Absolutely unstoppable.

Lilith was alive.

The resurrection had worked.

She reached out with a shaking hand and gently touched Lilith’s arm, just to confirm she was real, that this was not some cruel dream born of exhaustion and corruption.

Warm. Solid. Living.

Victoria pressed her forehead against the edge of the mattress and let herself cry.

She did not know how long she sat there. Minutes maybe. Or hours. Time felt meaningless when the relief was so intense it hurt.

The sound of movement made Victoria’s head snap up.

Sebastian and Lucian were standing near the door. Both of them looked exhausted, like they had not slept properly in days. Sebastian’s expression was soft with understanding. Lucian’s was harder to read.

"She’s been sleeping for a few hours," Sebastian said quietly. "Since shortly after she woke up. Elena said her body needs rest to adjust to...." He stopped. "To having her soul back."

Victoria nodded and wiped her face with shaking hands.

"We’ll give you some privacy," Sebastian continued. He looked at Lucian. "Come on."

Lucian hesitated. His eyes fixed on Victoria with an expression that looked like he wanted to say something. Something probably angry and accusatory and fair.

But Sebastian put a hand on his shoulder and steered him toward the door.

"Let her have this moment," Sebastian said quietly.

They turned and left.

And Victoria was alone with Lilith and....

She realized with a start that Elena was there too.

The priestess was sitting in a chair in the corner of the room. So still and quiet that Victoria had not noticed her in the dim light.

Elena was looking at Victoria with an expression that made Victoria’s chest tighten.

Not judgment. Not accusation. Just....sadness. Deep and profound.

Elena stood slowly and crossed to where Victoria was kneeling beside the bed.

"Victoria," Elena said gently.

Victoria looked up and met Elena’s gaze.

"What did Thalia ask for as payment?" Elena asked.

The question hung in the air like a death sentence.

Victoria looked at Lilith sleeping peacefully. Then back at Elena.

She could lie. Could say Thalia had taken years of her life or memories or something else that did not involve Lilith.

But Elena would see through it. And Victoria was too tired to maintain lies.

Victoria stood on shaking legs. "Not here. She shouldn’t....even unconsciously, she shouldn’t hear this."

Elena nodded. "Where?"

"My room," Victoria said.

She took one last look at Lilith, memorizing her peaceful face, her steady breathing, the miracle of her being alive.

Then she turned and walked out of the room with Elena following behind her.

***

They moved through the quiet estate in silence. Down the hallway. To the room Victoria had been using as her own.

Victoria opened the door and Elena followed her inside, closing it firmly behind them.

The moment the door clicked shut, Victoria felt the last of her carefully maintained composure crack.

She turned to Elena and the words started pouring out.

"She doesn’t want me," Victoria said. Her voice was shaking. "Thalia doesn’t want me as payment. She said my magic is corrupted. That I’m useless to her now. That the blood magic and death magic I used destroyed the one thing that made me valuable."

Elena’s expression did not change. "Then who does she want?"

"Lilith," Victoria whispered. "She wants Lilith."

Elena was quiet for a long moment. Then she stood and crossed to the window, looking out at the estate grounds.

"Tell me everything," Elena said. "Every word Thalia said. Every detail. I need to know exactly what we’re dealing with."

Victoria took a shaking breath and told her.