Page 46 of Gorgeous Nightmare

Ronan.

Like smoke and fresh lavender after an autumn rain.

The raven skull in my abdomen pulses. Its energy no longer scares me, but rather, makes me feel a kind of power I’ve never held before. It vibrates through me with more energy than ever, like it knows she’s close.

My mother.

Lilith.

The Queen of the Succubi, the one ruling the Dreamworld.

This may be her world.

But I’m her blood, and I came to burn everything she loves to the ground.

I reach my palm out, placing my fingertips to the ground in front of my sitting form.

The ground breaths beneath me, pulsing like a steady heartbeat synced with the raven’s skull inside of me.

“You sense her, too, don’t you?” I whisper to her, feeling this world's power coursing through me.

I can’t explain this pull, but my body knows better than my brain right now, and I’m listening.

Whatever is making me feel this energy begins to work quickly as silver veins bloom from where my fingers rest, leading me forward like the Dreamworld itself wants to deliver me to her.

I rise to my feet and walk forward, following the spiraled, glowing path ahead of me.

Massive trees twist at every step I take as my shoes sink slightly into the soft moss below, the earth meeting my feet like it’s breathing below me.

Watching me.

Guiding me.

I keep pushing forward, the raven skull pulsing beneath my skin increasing its rhythm, matching the pounding in my chest.

Every part of this world is breathingwith me.

The air grows cold, trees shifting to open into a break, revealing a clearing lined with dead trees covered in black bark and glowing thorns. And there, wrapped in the darkness, Lilith awaits.

She smiles like she’s been expecting me.

Good.

She should be.

“Welcome home, my dear Aisling. I wondered how long it would take you.”

“You knew I was coming?”

“Why wouldn’t I?” She smirks, examining her fingernails in front of her, like she’s already bored.

“Every move you made, every choice you felt like you had no other option but to submit to… that was all me, darling.” Her smile grows more sadistic, her teeth glowing in the dark.

“Every time Ronan was sick, every time you felt something watching. Even down to your undoing with Tyler. Now, losing that one was a shame. I hadreally grown fond of that pet… I guess that’s why I ended up taking yours,” she snickers to herself, like this is all some kind of game created for her amusement. “Soul for a soul, as they say.”

She snaps her fingers, gesturing to the shadows as the dark mist swirls and parts, revealing a shadow.

Ronan steps from the shadows, taking a place beside her. He meets my gaze, but it’s as if he doesn’t recognize me anymore. He just stands there, silent and still, jaw twitching like he’s fighting some invisible force.

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