Chapter 18:The Shadow Queen's Reckoning

 Hailey's POV

The quadruplets were sleeping soundly in the next room, and their subtle breathing was anchoring me to the present. I traced the doorframe with my fingers, hoping that for now, they were safe.

Then, a noise. A soft, almost imperceptible rustling just out in the hallway. My heart raced. I spun around sharply, squinting into the darkness beyond the grand staircase. Was it Vickson? Emilia? A guard on his rounds? Or… was it her?

Steadying my breath, I took careful steps into the darkness. My fingers itched to reach for the dagger concealed in the folds of my robe but that would not do. I could not appear afraid, though every nerve in me was shouting to be prepared.

I reached the top of the stairs and looked over. In the grand hall below which was empty had its silence which was unnerving but then, movement. A shadow slipping past one of the pillars.

"Ava" I whispered and my voice barely audible, yet resolute in its intonation.

The figure froze. Then, as suddenly, it shot off. My instincts kicked in, and instinctively I ran after it, my bare feet silent against the cold marble floor. I had to find out what she was up to, what she was planning before it was too late.

The atmosphere in the hall was charged as I rounded the corner, and then saw no one. The hallway was deserted. Still, I knew she was here, I could feel her like a viper coiling in the shadows ready to strike.

Then I saw it. A faint glimmer of light seeping through the tiny crack of an almost opened door. The old study.

A memory flashed in my mind-Vickson had once mentioned that he had stored some important papers in there, maps, pack records, even strategies for the upcoming summit. If Ava was snooping around, it wasn't just for revenge. She was planning something bigger.

I leaned against the wall, calming my breath before gently pushing the door open.

And there she was.

Ava stood by the large oak desk, shuffling papers with a concentration and desperation in her expression that made her oblivious to my presence. Her almost pristine composure was failing now, her face tight and tense.

"Are you looking for something?" I finally spoke, my voice was cold and sharp.

Head of Ava suddenly raised, her eyes for a split second widened before she quickly covered her surprise with a smile.

"Well, well. The perfect little Luna, prowling in the dark"

I took a step forward "What are you doing here?"

She chuckled softly and tapped the stack of papers against the desk "What about you Hailey? I'm making sure my legacy ain't erased. Unlike you, I'm not getting forgotten as some failed mistake"

My hands curled into fists. "Your legacy? You mean the one founded on deceit, manipulation, and blood?"

Her face darkened. "Don't you dare get all self righteous with me. You took everything from me, Vickson, my job and my power. Did you think I would just sit back and let you take it all?"

"You never had it to begin with, Ava. You forced it. You manipulated and destroyed everything in your path just to live a lie. And look where it's gotten you."

She scoffed, but I noticed how her fingers trembled, how her confidence was slipping gradually. "You think you've won, Hailey? Your little fairytale isn't going to last. Vickson won't always be there to rescue you. And when the time comes, I will make sure you lose everything for good."

Though her words made me shudder, I did not let her know that she had touched my courage. I took a step closer, giving her a more intense look in the eyes. "You lost it already Ava, and this time you wouldn't get away with it."

For the first time, I saw something flicker in her eyes...uncertainty. But just as quickly, she turned on her heel and stormed past me shoving her way out of the study and disappearing into the night.

I exhaled slowly and my heart was still racing. This was not over. If anything, tonight had proved that Ava was more desperate than ever. And as far as I was concerned, desperate people were the most dangerous of all.

I looked at the desk, my eyes passing over all the loose sheets of paper she'd been flipping through. My stomach tightened.

She wasn't just after me anymore.

She was after everything.

And I had no idea what she was planning next.

The air around me was charged with some sort of tension as I stood cowered in that half-lit room. Heart throbbed in panic and contradiction against my ribcage. Vickson's piercing gray eyes were locked on mine, asking for an answer I wasn't prepared to give.

"Say it, Hailey," he growled, taking another step closer. His height was towering over me and I was practically in his shadow. "Tell me why you kept them from me. Why did you make me live in agony, thinking you had moved on."

I curled my fingers into fists, the nails digging into the flesh of my palms. Truth was a vile thing coiled in my throat but yet I could not allow it to slip from me. Not yet.

"You don't deserve the truth" I said, shaking my head but lifting my chin despite the storm inside me. "You don't deserve them"

His jaw tightened. "They are my children! My blood! And you thought you could just take them away? Keep them hidden like they meant nothing?"

I swallowed hard, my body shaking with the weight of his fury, but I wasn't going to budge. "I kept them safe. Away from this madness. Away from you." I said.

His hands were opening and closing at his sides, and he was breathing in deep short breaths with will power. But just before he could utter a word the massive wooden doors burst open wide with a bang, hitting against the walls.