Page 25 of Illusory

But still, I didn’t move an inch.

Something deeper than my urge to run away from the heartbreak was holding me in place then. Surprisingly, it wasn’t because of Trace or Dominic, or my love for them, or that deep-seeded, everlasting hope that despite all probability, they might still find a way to forgive me someday. To love me again.

It was deeper than even that.

The truth was, I had too much unfinished business here. Too many scores to settle. Despite the turmoil churning in my heart, something weighty and grievous called out to me from some place deep within my makeup, reminding me of who I was and what I was born to do. That I couldn’t just give up and walk away. That I couldn’t let the ones that had wronged me—wronged so many of us—get away without having to pay the price for it.

Even if that meant staying in Hollow Hills longer than I wanted to. Even if that meant having to wake up to the misery of losing Trace and Dominic day in and day out until my business here was done.

In all the chaos of unrequited love and uncertain futures, there was one thing I knew for sure: I wasbornto vanquish beasts and slay dragons, and I wasn’t going anywhere until every last one of those fuckers drew their final breath. Nikki. The Horsemen. The Senior Magister. The entire backwards Order. They’d gotten away with far too much for far too long and it was time for them to pay the piper.

My days of running and hiding and taking it laying down were over. If I had to wake up and face the music, to pay for the sins of my flesh, then so would they. They would rue the day they ever crossed paths with me, and they would remember my name long after I was gone.

Whatever magic I needed to learn, I would learn it. Whatever books I needed to read, I would read them. How ever many hours I needed to train, I would double them.

Whatever it took, however long it took, I would do it. Because I was the motherfucking Daughter of Hades and I may have been a shitty bet in love, but payback was a mighty, vengeful bitch, and I vowed to become the worst bitch this town had ever seen.

* * *

I made my way back inside a short while later with renewed purpose and a clearer head. Even though my own life was in complete shambles, I was going to put my personal troubles and aching heart on the backburner so that I could focus on what needed to be donenow. Something much bigger than myself and my crumbling love life was calling out from deep within me, urging me toward the path I’d been born to walk.

And this time, I was listening to it.

Tessa and Jaqueline were both still in the kitchen, chatting around the kitchen island when I returned, though Gabriel no longer appeared to be with them. I could only assume that he had returned to the basement to check in on Trace, but I tried not to give that very much thought. The less time I allowed myself to think about TraceorDominic or what that monumental loss would truly mean for me, the better chance I’d have of staying focused on my endgame long enough to survive these next few weeks without them.

And then, and only then, could I be done with this town and everyone in it.

“Where do we start?” I asked no one in particular as I came to a full stop across from them at the kitchen island and met each of their gazes. The cold glint in my eyes and clipped tone made it clear that we weren’t going to be discussinganything other than my schedule for the day.

Tessa and Jaqueline exchanged a quick glance before meeting my eyes again.

“Right now, you should probably work on combat training until we get the grimoires sorted out. You can start with disarmament and takedown techniques…with your sister,” supplied Jaqueline, drawing out the last part as if to test it against any resistance.

But I wouldn’t give her any. “Fine, and after that?” I asked, needing to stack my schedule as high as I could and bury myself in my work until all I could see was the finish line.

“There is noafter that,” she answered gravely as she tucked a strand of her ebony hair behind her ear. “You do ituntil. If you aren’t eating, sleeping, or studying, you need to be honing your abilities and working on controlling your magic, and you need to do it each and every day until calling it up is like second nature to you.”

“Fine,” I agreed easily. “Then that’s what I’ll do.”

“And you’re still going to needsomeoneto help you learn how to port,” reminded Tessa, her tone and eyes cautious, as though she were wary of broaching that topic again since we both knew who she meant bysomeone. “Unless you’re planning on giving up the Sang Noir to the Order.”

I most certainly was not.

“Get me whatever books you can find on porting, and I’ll figure out the rest.”

Tessa looked as though she wanted to say something, like she thought it was a stupid idea or a waste of time being that we had a Reaper just twenty feet away from us, but she knew better than to bring that up again.

“Whatever. It’s your fucking funereal,” she muttered under her breath and then pushed away from the counter. I was just about to fling a retort at her when she threw herpalm in the air and silenced me at the sound of the front door opening and shutting in the distance.

My heart promptly jumped up between my ears and started pounding in my head as I silently prayed it wasn’t the Order coming to ambush me before I had a chance to finish my morning coffee.

“Who the hell is that?” I hissed over the counter as I listened to two very distinct sets of footfalls coming from the foyer. The confusion was only heightened by the fact that everyone we knew andwantedhere was already in the house—minus one vampire who couldn’t be out during the day anyway.

“How the hell should I know?” answered Tessa as she reached out and grabbed an oversized carving knife from the butcher block. With her free hand still raised, she signaled for us to stand back as she quietly crept toward the kitchen doorway that led to the hallway.

One set of footsteps were still marching toward us while the second set had disappeared altogether as though we were about to get ambushed from all sides.

“Fucking Christ,” said Tessa and then lowered the knife unceremoniously.

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