Mag-log inVaelora's POV “I’m just saying, it was incredibly embarrassing—” “You are standing on top of the answer to why I left early!” I shrieked, the full force of my fury finally breaking through. I gestured wildly at the collapsed ceiling, the charred walls, and the complete destruction around us. “My house is destroyed! My mother was dragged out of here by force! And your primary concern is that people at a high-end restaurant thought you got stood up?! You’re worried about your social status while my life is completely burning to the ground?!” Andrew winced slightly, stepping back as the sheer volume of my voice seemed to finally register. He cleared his throat, adjusting the collar of his scuffed jacket, looking thoroughly uncomfortable. “Look… okay, I’m sorry,” he muttered, though his tone was defensive, his eyes darting away from mine. He didn’t look sorry at all. He looked like a man who was simply trying to say the right words to get out of trouble, his mind still entirely focused
Vaelora POV The adrenaline that had propelled me out of Madame Agnes’s cluttered apartment didn’t fade; it morphed into something cold, heavy, and dangerous. My lungs burned with the residual sting of smoke as I forced my feet to move silently up the wooden stairs. The fire extinguisher was awkward and heavy in my arms, its metal edges digging painfully into my ribs, but my grip on the handle was a vice. Every instinct I had was screaming at me to run, to flee into the pouring rain and never look back. But panic had burned itself out, leaving only a raw, desperate fury in its wake. Someone was in our apartment. Someone who might know exactly where they had taken my mother. I crept onto the upper landing, the shadows stretching long and distorted across the water-damaged walls. The door to our apartment hung crookedly on its hinges, splintered and blackened around the frame. Through the gap, the smell of charred fabric and ozone drifted out, thick enough to choke on. I squeeze
## Chapter 18### VaeloraVaelora's POVI didn’t look back at Zane. I didn’t care if he followed me or if he vanished back into the shadows like the ghost he was. Blinded by anger, I bolted out the hanging, splintered front door and lunged down the wooden staircase, my boots slamming against the steps in a frantic, desperate rhythm.There was one person left in this building. One person who claimed to see things nobody else could.I reached the bottom landing, my heart hammering against my ribs like a trapped bird. I threw myself at Madame Agnes's door. I began to knock. Not a polite rap, but a frantic, heavy pounding. Knock. Knock. Knock.“Madame Agnes! Open the door!” I yelled, my palms smacking against the heavy wood. Knock, knock, knock.The thick, cloying scent of sage and incense seeped through the cracks, mixing with the smell of smoke still clinging to my hair. Nobody answered. I kept going, pouring all my panic, all my desperation into the wood. Knock, knock, knock.Finally,
Vaelora POV I flinched backward hard enough to hit the blackened wall behind me. My breath caught in my throat while dark smoke spread through the room like burnt paper. The demon was gone. Gone. I stared at the empty space where it had been standing only seconds before. My ears rang so badly I could barely hear anything else. The apartment Mum tried so hard to keep neat and arranged was destroyed now. Broken glass covered the floor. Her drawings that had taken her months to paint and finalize were scattered in black, jagged pieces everywhere. Nothing felt real. Zane lowered the strange amber-glowing blade slowly. He pulled his jacket cap off his head and ran his fingers through his hair, his eyes still on me before he slowly turned them away, looking around the apartment, checking every shadow carefully like he expected another monster to jump at us. His eyes landed on me again. The look on his face changed instantly. “Are you hurt?” he asked. I opened my mouth, but no
Vaelora The monster lunged, and I stumbled backward against the counter, biting down hard on my lip to stop myself from screaming. Tears blurred my vision, but I forced myself to stay standing. “Come on,” I whispered, trying to sound braver than I felt. “Come get me.” The creature growled and charged. For one terrible second, I almost lost my nerve. But then I recalled Momma’s terrified voice over the phone. How scared she sounded. I remembered the fear that was evident in her voice. The noises. And something inside me hardened. I whirled my head to the monster. It was getting closer and closer. Without a second thought, I started to turn on the gas stove switch one by one until the smell of it overtook that of the monster’s foul odor. I grabbed the red knife and gas lighter from the counter. The monster’s footsteps thudded against the floor as it came closer, slow and heavy, like it already knew I couldn’t escape. The overhead light flickered weakly above us, thro
Vaelora POV I staggered backward, tripped, and fell just as the creature lunged after me. I rolled to the side and it missed me by inches, sliding along the wood floor, its claws gouging deep grooves. A low growl bubbled from its throat. I scrambled to my feet and ran toward the hallway, but it was too fast for me. It sprang again, landing just above the door, where it stayed like a malignant gigantic spider, staring down at me with its scary eyes. Its jaw opened slowly, showing a row of fanged canines and molars that looked so sharp. I didn’t want to imagine how much pain I would feel if it managed to sink its teeth into my flesh. How did my life get to this point? I had no time for self-pity as the thing gurgled and hissed. To my horror, I realized that the noises it was making were words. “A girl,” I managed to decipher. “Fresh flesh. Fresh blood. To eat, to drink. Oh, lovely snack.” It hissed. It began to slither down the wall towards me. Some part of me had passed be
Vaelora's POV I held my hand over my mouth, trying not to make another noticeable sound. I needed to get out of here. Oh God! Scrambling to my feet, I kicked free of the electrical cables. Slowly, I began to back away, glad that none of them paid attention to me. Nyxen had reached Zane and was hol
VAELORA He drove the blade aiming for the bound boy's heart. It was halfway there, blood sipping out from the chest chamber and out of his mouth. He didn't take his eyes off Zane. I could take no more. I stepped out from the pillar without thinking twice. "Stop!" I cried. "You... stop that rig
VAELORA POV I pushed the door to the storage room open, and stepped inside. For a moment, I thought there was no one in here. Looking around, I saw that there were only three or four window so high up and barred; faint street noise came through them, the sound of squeaking brakes and honking car
Author’s pov “Hey girl, what’s your beauty name?” The girl turned and smiled charmingly. The faint light that was in the storage room spilled down through high barred windows that was smeared with dirt. Piles of broken chandeliers, electric cables, along with shattered bits of light bulbs and d







