Chapter 48

Burning. My stomach burns from the most intense hunger I had ever felt. Cracked lips, with a throat so dry and sore I can’t mutter a sound. There’s a dull thud inside my skull. With each second that passes the thud becomes louder until its echoing in my ears like a wild band. I am crouched with my head in my knees on the cold basement floor. But I don’t feel the cold. I feel nothing but the scorching pain in my stomach and the thud in my skull. Slowly I pull myself up. Its dark, pitch black in the basement with the locked-up creatures of the hidden world. Yet my eyes quickly adjust, and I can see everything.
“You are now a creature of the night. Foolish boy.” I spin my head to the sound of the words. Staring back at me is Ms. Oakley. She held that all knowing smug look that I wanted to rip from her face. As I took a step towards her, she stepped back.
“Lilith is now free. You my boy have signed your own death certificate.” She let out a little laugh before retreating further into her cell.
That’s right. I had come to find Lilith. The mother of all demons. Things had gone terribly wrong.
What had Lilith done to me?
“What has she done to me?” I demanded gripping the iron bars tight.
“She has killed you. Now you have awoken as a vampire.” No that can’t be true.
“You’re lying. Lilith is a demon.” I spat back at the crazy old woman who just smiled back at me.
“No, Lilith is the original vampire. Cursed by God. A night owl. The omen of death.” Backing away I shook my head. No that is not true.
“With her bite you are now released from Lucifers hold. You can either choose to help your friends and control your urges or succumb to the darkness.” Her voice followed me as I ran from the basement.

***
I was suddenly swallowed by a cloud of smoke as I felt my soul being tugged out of my body. I gasped at the sudden sensation, and in a matter of seconds my body fell on a soft bed, the mattress dipping underneath my weight.
I looked around and I instantly recognized the dimly lit room. It was the same room where Lucifer took me when he told me the truth about my mother, the same four-poster bed and candle-lit chandelier. I took in a shaky breath as I looked around me, moving up against the headboard and hugging my knees close to my chest as the words that Aradia told my father replayed in my head over and over again.
“Your daughter, Lucifer. We want your daughter.”
She could have been referring to me or Irene but seeing how I was the one who was brought back in hell while the rest of them stayed to fight off those women, there was only one answer.
“What did they want from me?” I asked myself aloud.
Another cloud of smoke appeared in front of me, and I flinched a little. It was Irene, and she was gasping for air as if she had run a mile.
“Irene!” I exclaimed as I neared her. We engulfed each other in a tight hug, and I felt a fresh batch of tears welling up in my eyes. “Are you okay? Are you hurt??”
She shook her head as we let go of the hug and she examined my face and body for any injuries. “I’m okay. What about you?”
“I’m fine, I’m not hurt.” I reassured her. “What about the others??”
Irene sighed as she led me back to the bed and she sat next to me. “They’re warding them off, the three of them. Dad asked me to come check on you. He was the one who brought you here, you know. The moment those words left Aradia’s mouth; we all knew she was referring to you.”
A chill ran up my spine. I was surprised that I wasn’t on the floor having a seizure by now after all these chills running up and down my body. Maybe if it weren’t for my immortal body, I would have collapsed already.
“Why? Why would she want me? I’ve only been introduced as his daughter just weeks ago??” I asked, worried, and I fought the urge to hyperventilate.
“We really don’t know, Lilly. I’m so sorry,” Irene apologized as she stared at me sympathetically.
I sighed. “Only dad can answer my questions, right?”
Irene didn’t have to speak to tell me that she agreed. I leaned back against the headboard and closed my eyes. Despite my mentally exhausted state, my body was still buzzing with adrenaline, and it still didn’t want me to sleep just yet.
“Who are they, anyway?” I asked. But I already knew the answer.
“They’re witches, Lilly. Yes, they exist.” Irene confirmed. “But they shouldn’t be harmful. The highest order of witches made a peace treaty with our father years ago to stop trying to be at war with demons. They live everywhere all around the world, in small towns or in deep mountains where they’re not being suspected by humans. They just go on about their lives as witches…until now.”
“Why do you think they came back?” I asked.
“Maybe dad didn’t follow his end of the deal? I don’t know, I’ve never seen them as a threat. I almost even forgot that they existed, mainly because witches weren’t brought up as a serious topic around here.” Irene replied as she stared at space thoughtfully. Even so, my human mind was still blown knowing that witches existed. I thought they were just urban legends, just myths. But knowing that they were real, and they could cast magic, spells, potions…it was both amazing and scary.
Our quiet and almost peaceful stay in that room was cut short when three clouds of smoke appeared, and before us stood Lucifer, Taehyung, and Yoongi. They were all covered in wounds and black liquid.
“Dad,” I breathed out as Irene, and I sat up from our relaxed positions against the headboard. I looked at Taehyung and Yoongi, and they were panting. They looked tired.
“Tae, Yoongi,” I said as I neared them, leaving the bed standing in front of their towering heights. I examined their faces. They had bruises and cuts and black liquid everywhere. But they didn’t look like they were limping.
“You okay, little one?” Taehyung asked as he stared at my untouched face. I couldn’t help the small laugh and roll of my eyes.
“I should be the one asking you that, Tae. You’re literally covered in cuts!” I exclaimed. Just when I was about to touch his face and touch the black liquid, he held a hand up in between us as if to stop me.
“Watch,” he told me. He held a hand up half of his face, touching his skin and he closed his eyes. He muttered something underneath his breath and as he removed the hand that covered half of his skin, my eyes went wide when I saw that it was clean of bruises and cuts.
“Whoa,” I breathed out. “We can heal ourselves?”
“Yeah, a very good advantage.” Yoongi replied and as I turned to face him, he was clean and his skin was back to its smooth and pale state, as if he didn’t just fight with witches in Goldpeak.
“You want to try?” Taehyung asked me when I faced him again.
“I-I don’t know how…” I mumbled. But my fingers tingled at the thought of being able to try to do some magic on my own. Although I wasn’t sure how, but I trusted how Taehyung or any of my siblings would teach me.
“Give me your hands,” he instructed. I followed, and he covered my small hands in his much bigger ones. His palm was much wider than mine, and his fingers were longer and much slender, the veins at the back of his hand protruding.
“Close your eyes.” He said and I followed. “Look within yourself. Dig deep and visualize yourself creating magic at the tip of your fingertips.”
“Don’t forget to focus,” Irene piped in from behind me and now only did I realize that everyone’s attention was on me. I took in a deep breath and did as I was told, imagining myself grasping witchcraft and convincing my mind that I was capable of doing such things and that I was just as strong as my siblings. A small gasp left my lips when I felt something tingle at the tips of my fingers, the funny sensation trailing up to my palms, arms, shoulders, then down to my chest. It tickled, but something at the back of my head told me not to break my focus and keep on going.
“Do you feel it?” Taehyung asked in a whisper. I nodded. “Good. Now, slowly open your eyes, and touch your hand against my face. Visualize yourself healing me.”
I opened my eyes, my face filled with focus as I brought a hand up and held Taehyung’s cheek that had a small bruise just at the corner of his eye and an open wound in his cheekbones and lip. And as I breathed out, I felt the tingling sensation slowly leave my hand, as if the magic was oozing out of me and into Taehyung’s face. I watched as Taehyung closed his eyes his brows furrowing and his lips slightly parted. Scared that I might have hurt him more, I gasped and quickly retrieved my hand, all ounce of tingling magic quickly dissipating.
“What, what happened??” Yoongi asked, alarmed.
“Taehyung, are you okay? Did I hurt you?” I asked frantically. “I’m so sorry! You shouldn’t have taught me!”
But as I looked up at the side of his face where I touched him, his cuts and bruises were gone, as well as the black liquid that I’ve been meaning to ask them what it was. So, it did work.
Taehyung shook his head as he smiled proudly at me. “You did well, little sis. In fact, very well. I didn’t expect you to heal me completely, but the sudden burst of warmth and magic against my face shocked me. You’re a very fast learner.”
I grinned. “Really?”