Chapter 12 : Blood Ties and Betrayal

Emilia's POV

The wind howled outside just like the storm rage inside me. I burst into Vickson's study gasping for breath. He stood by the window. A glass of whiskey was in his hand watching the dark clouds march over the horizon.

He spun around abruptly at the sound of my footsteps "What do you want?"

Without a word, I handed him the note. His face slipped as he read Ava's message, her words tightening his grip on the paper until his knuckles were bloodless.

"She's planning something" I said in a whisper, my voice shaking just a little "And whatever it is, it's bigger than we thought"

Vickson exhaled sharply and tossed the note onto his desk. "We need to find her before she takes her next step. If she still has agents among us"

"She does." I interrupted him, my heart pounding. "And they are closer than we think."

A taut silence hung in the room until Vickson's face hardened. "Then it's not up to us. We get Ava first, and we end this."

A thunderous clap split the sky outside, rattling the walls around us. Somewhere deep inside, I knew-

The war was only just beginning.

The night was heavy, it was like an unquiet ghost as I stood just outside the manor house, my heart drummed so hard that I thought it would break through my ribs. The weight of the secrets I bore was getting too much to bear. Every shadow appeared to move, and each whisper of the wind caused a shiver in me Ava was getting close. It got into me. I knew it. How she had eye- contacted me earlier, there was a gleam in her eyes—it is the look of a predator at the cornered prey.

I had to move fast. I entered through the back door and crept along the dark hallways of the mansion trying to keep my footsteps silent. If Ava thought for a second that I was talking to Vickson, it wouldn't be long before she acted. And if there was one thing I'd learned about my so-called sister, it was that she never left loose ends.

In my path to the quarters, a strong scent of some unknown perfume hung in the air. I paused, seizing the door handle with curled fingers. Someone had been in my room.

The door opened slowly and I stepped in. The burning candle was flickering on my desk like it sensed the turmoil brewing inside me and danced wildly. My gaze raced around the room looking for anything that seemed out of place. Then I found it. A note lying on my pillow.

I swallowed hard before picking it up, the handwriting was unmistakable.

A secret shared is a weakness revealed. You should have kept your mouth shut dear sister.

My blood ran cold. Ava had found out.

A sudden noise outside my window caused me to turn around. A figure stood in the darkness, watching me. Heart pounding, I lunged forward but when I came to the window it was just then that the figure disappeared into the night.

I held the note tightly in my hand, gasping for breath. There was no doubt now: Ava was finally through with the games.

I had to act before she did.

Meanwhile, in Vickson's POV

My study had an oppressive atmosphere. The documents before me corroborated my greatest fears, that Ava's influence was much deeper than I had hoped. She had her spies, her alliances in very unlikely places. And now, with Emilia back, she was getting desperate.

A knock on the door interrupted my thoughts.

"Come in," I called, already expecting trouble.

The door creaked and Elena came in through her expression was grim. "Vickson, we have a problem," she explained as she placed a small blood stained dagger on my desk.

My muscles tensed. "Where did you find this?" "By the eastern border," she whispered. "A 

Ava wasn't just killing Emilia. She was sending a message to me, Hailey, and everyone who might stand in her way.

A slow but intense rage began to boil within me. I had been patient long enough, too much actually. Ava had crossed the line.

If she wanted war, she would soon have it.

Hailey's POV

The wind howled through the trees speaking things I cannot hear very well. My pulse races when I lean against the cold stoned wall, my breath shaky and uneven. The night was full of deep haunting sorrows that sent chills through you and made your intuitions plead with you to leave. But I couldn't - not just yet. Not until it was all clear for me.

I followed the blood trail, Emilia's blood, into this desolate house. My hands shook as I held the dagger Vickson had given me, my palm itching to clutch harder against the cold hilt. Everything that had been promised, all that Emilia had risked to escape from Ava to finally reveal the truth to Vickson, would be for nothing if I faltered now. It wouldn't be in vain. It couldn't be.

The smell of wet wood and decay got into my nose making me take a cautious step forward while my heart was pounding in my chest. Long shadows sprawled across the narrow corridor, springing as each dim light barely lighted the way. I strained my ears, listening for any sound that would lead me to Ava's position.

Then I heard a piercing scream, then a low cruel laugh. My stomach knotted Ava.

I inched closer to the door from which the noise had emanated from, my fingertips grazing the coarse wood. I could still hear Ava talking and her voice had a sharp edge.

"Did you really think you could escape from me?" she scoffed. "Silly girl. Did you think fleeing to Vickson would protect you? That he'd forgive you for not speaking all these years?"

My breath hitched. I could only imagine what state that left Emilia in. Ava had always been a pretty big monster, but she's coming completely unhinged now.

I had to act fast.