Chapter 9

Flames climbed into the sky.

Alarms wailed across Manhattan.

I stood on the lawn outside the manor, watching the mansion that symbolized Kieran's power and our past succumb to the inferno.

My phone buzzed.

It was a furious message from Magnus.

"Aurora! What are you doing? Seraphina called in a panic, saying you're burning the house down! Are you trying to get the entire Thorne clan killed?"

I called him back, my voice unsettlingly calm.

"I have just one question for you. If you lie to me, I'll turn myself in and take the entire Thorne family down with me."

Magnus was startled by my tone. "You... go ahead and ask."

"Did Kieran truly suggest putting me in the Cell of Silence?"

There was a pause on the other end of the line, then Magnus's tired voice came through: "...Yes. The elders only suggested house arrest. Kieran insisted on the Cell of Silence. He said you needed that kind of pain to learn, to learn respect for Seraphina."

"Thank you."

I hung up.

The last bit of hesitation vanished.

I took off the ring from my finger and threw it into the fire before me.

Then, I tossed Kieran's black card, house keys, and car keys onto the lawn.

"We're even."

I turned and flagged down a taxi.

"To the airport."

Forty minutes later, I stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows in the departure lounge.

The radio was broadcasting breaking news: "A massive fire has broken out at a prominent Manhattan mansion, reported to be property of the Nocturne family..."

My phone vibrated non-stop.

Dozens of missed calls, all from Kieran.

I pictured him right now.

Angry? Shocked? Or finally starting to panic?

What would his expression be when he saw the pile of ashes, the empty safe, the ring I left behind?

It didn't matter anymore.

"Flight to Los Angeles is now boarding..."

I grabbed my suitcase and headed for the gate.

Just then, a commotion erupted at the entrance of the hall.

That familiar tall figure rushed in.

Kieran was searching frantically through the crowd.

He used vampire speed, moving like a blur.

He was looking for me.

Through the bustling crowd, his gaze seemed to sweep over me.

For a split second, my heart instinctively clutched.

Five years of habit. It was a reaction etched into my very bones.

I knew if I turned around, he would rush over, maybe embrace me, maybe lock me up again.

But I didn't stop.

I gripped my boarding pass, my knuckles turning white.

Goodbye, Lord of Shadows.

Goodbye, that foolish Aurora.

I stepped into the boarding tunnel, not looking back.

Outside the glass window behind me, the massive silver bird was waiting to carry me to freedom, to the man who had been waiting for me in Los Angeles—Lucian Ashford.

Whether it's hell or heaven, as long as Kieran isn't there, anywhere is fine.