โAre you saying goodbye because youโre going back to England? Or are you saying goodbye for forever?โ he asked with look of concern on his face. Clara was impressed with Xavierโs perceptiveness. He was the only person to guess everything almost correctly with no real clues. โI will never see you again,โ she said calmly. โI wonโt even exist in two weeks.โ Xavier frowned. โWhy not?โ โI was only able to live longer for revenge,โ she explained. โNow that I have achieved revenge, my extra time will come to an end.โ Xavier didnโt say anything at first. Clara noticed that there were tears forming in his eyes and he looked like he was about to start crying. โIs there any chance you can change that?โ he asked. โIt doesnโt seem fair.โ "Thatโs not how it works,โ Clara said gently. โHumans arenโt supposed to live beyond their time. I died four years ago wanting revenge. Now that Iโve got what I wanted, my time is nearly up.โ Xavier let out a quiet sob and Clara watched him with a
Clara spent her first week back at home maximising the time she spent with James. She went with him to the office, took him out for lunch and played board games with him in the evenings. She knew he was wondering why she was so clingy and she really couldnโt tell him why. โArthur is coming back today,โ Caiden told her one morning. Caiden now freely gave her information about the future. Now that knowing the future wouldnโt affect anything, he was very open about what he could see. โIโll give him some time to recover from the long flight,โ Clara said. โDo I meet him tomorrow then?โ The demon nodded and reached out to play with a strand of her. โYou do. You meet at a fancy patisserie in Soho,โ he said. โI wonโt tell you what you say to each other. I think the conversation will work best if you donโt already know what youโre going to say in advance.โ Clara nodded. She was going to be as open as she could with Arthur about why she had asked him for so many odd requests and ha
โIt was a good ride,โ Arthur said with a wink. โYou kept me guessing for so many years. Iโm so pleased to finally know what was going on the entire time.โ Clara relaxed. The hardest part was over now. โIs everything over now?โ he asked a moment later. โYouโve brought all of your targets down apart from Xavier King.โ โIt is,โ she confirmed. Arthur nodded and then he looked deep in thought. He coughed awkwardly before speaking again. โWhere did Clarissa go if you are in her body?โ he questioned. Clara had been expecting this question. Arthur was the only person who had a connection to Clarissa and knew that she was using her body. It would have been odd if he didnโt ask where Clarissa had gone. โ...She died when she committed suicide four years ago,โ she explained. โHer body was alive for a short time and I was put into it. Iโm sorry to tell that she died all that time ago.โ Arthur frowned and looked away. โI see... Thatโs sad,โ he said. โItโs odd to hear that Clariss
Clara knew that her grandfather was confused to hear her sentimental words. They rarely talked about their personal feelings. โI havenโt been the best grandfather,โ James replied with a deep frown. โI brought Beryl here to be your mother figure as I had felt that it would prevent you from becoming like my daughter. It turned out to be the worst decision I have ever made.โ Clara could not deny that Jamesโ decision to date Beryl and bring her into the family had been lethal for Clarissa. She decided to focus on something else. โThank you for rescuing me when I was a baby,โ she said. โIโm sure Clara would also thank you for looking for her.โ โYou donโt need to thank me for that,โ James replied. โI would also like to thank you for taking me in instead of leaving me to the care system,โ Clara continued. She didnโt know much about the British care system, but it was likely similar to the American one she had lived through. She had been lucky to be adopted by a decent set of foster pa
Caiden was lost for words as he watched the events that he had foreseen so many times play out in front of him. It was no longer a vision of the future; it was happening in reality. It was finally the end of Claraโs life. Her soul floated in front of him as her eyes slowly closed. Caiden made his decision in that moment. He grabbed hold of Claraโs soul with his hands and pushed it back into her. Despite being very light, her soul wouldnโt move until he exerted all of his power. Claraโs eyes snapped open when her soul returned to her. โ...Whatโs going on?โ she asked breathlessly. โI canโt take your soul,โ Caiden admitted. โI want you to keep it.โ He had no real idea what was going to happen now. The contract had not been fulfilled properly. He had completed his part of the contract and he had stopped Clara from fulfilling her part. There was no precedent to follow here. He was the first demon to refuse a soul. โWhatโs going to happen to both of us?โ Clara questioned weakl
Clara landed on the floor of her bedroom alone and fully aware of the gravity of the situation. She didnโt have Caiden at her side anymore. She needed to find him for that to happen. Clara stood up and realised that her legs were shaking. She had been feeling intimidated by the demon king and had refused to let him know. Now her nerves and lack of sleep had got to her. She took a deep breath to calm down. She had vowed that she would be able to find Caiden and she needed to start working on that.One person came to mind immediately. Arthur would be able to help her. She took her phone out of her pocket and called him. โ...Hello?โ Arthur asked cautiously when he picked up the call. Clara realised he had assumed that the phone call was someone else using her phone to inform him of her death. โItโs me, Clara,โ she told him immediately. โThings have changed. Can we meet up? I have a lot to tell you.โ โOf course,โ he said. โI think we'll need to go somewhere that allows for private c
The weeks quickly turned into months and soon an entire year had passed. Clara had taken a position at St. Clair that had enabled her to travel around the world just so she would have better chance of finding Caiden. She returned to the family mansion on the anniversary of her return from the demon realm after an unsuccessful trip to New York. Her actual work had gone well, she just hadnโt found any signs of Caiden in the city. There hadnโt been any traces of Caiden in any of the 10 countries she had travelled to over the past year. He didnโt have any presence on the internet either and Clara didnโt have any idea of how she could improve her search methods. Clara collapsed onto her bed and closed her eyes. She was physically and emotionally exhausted from her search. Despite everything, she wasnโt going to give up. She would sleep for a while and then she would look at other highly populated places to visit. โClara Kennedy.โ Claraโs eyes opened immediately at the sound of
When Clara finally looked up from her phone and glanced back at the door, the person she had been waiting for had already left. She had missed a lot in the two minutes her attention had been diverted.A member of staff approached her table with a cup of coffee in her hand. Clara looked around in confusion. โI didnโt order anything,โ she said. Clara was aware that she was the strangest customer in the coffeeshop and the staff were probably wondering when she was going to leave. She had been the first customer of the day and had only ordered two drinks in the past three hours. โOne of our regulars came in a couple of minutes ago to pick up his online order. He saw you looking tired and bought an expresso for you,โ the staff member explained with a smile. โHeโs a nice person.โ Clara blinked in surprise. She had never noticed any of the customers paying attention to her. The incident must have occurred when she had been occupied with her phone. She checked the name tag on the girlโs
โIโm getting married!โ Clara announced happily. She smiled over her coffee and Arthur watched her with a bemused look on his face. "When is the wedding?" he asked. โNext month,โ Clara told him. โI was planning to invite you. Weโve only just decided on the date so thereโs no invitations to give out yet.โ โDo you not have wedding planner then?โ the hacker questioned. โInvitations are normally sent out much sooner.โ โI donโt want a big wedding,โ Clara replied. โJames was fine with it and just asked that I invite him.โ She was a little surprised that her grandfather had agreed with her desire to have a very small wedding. They both enjoyed high positions in society and people like them normally had grand weddings with a long guest list and a high budget. โI shall consider an invite as a great honour then,โ Arthur quipped. โHow many guests are invited?โ โIโm inviting 12 people,โ Clara said. โCaiden has invited a couple of friends. He doesnโt have any relations to invite.โ โOf cour
Their first month of dating passed by quickly. They soon fell into a routine of meeting after work and going on dates. Clara was blissfully happy, but she knew they needed to discuss their future together. Caiden was only living temporarily in the UK after all. She chose to ask after they had finished eating Caidenโs latest attempt at a home cooked romantic meal. His cooking skills were unique to say the least. โAre you going to stay here in London when your job here is finished?โ she asked. โWhere would you like to live?โ he questioned. โHere or in a different country? We have lots of options.โ Clara thought about the matter seriously. She had grown up in the US and had been unexpectedly pulled into a different country. She did prefer living in the UK, but there were other countries to try as well. โWe can move around,โ Clara said. โI think we should make this our main country and travel to other places. That is if you want to. This is a decision we should make as a couple.โ Ca
Clara kept a careful watch on the office building opposite so she wouldnโt miss seeing Caiden leave when his work day had finished. She had already missed seeing him before, she wasnโt going to do it again. Fortunately, he was one of the first people out of the building and Clara immediately began to pack up everything she had brought with her. Caiden entered the coffeeshop and beamed when he saw her waiting by the door. โExcellent. Youโre ready to leave on our date,โ he said and held his hand out to her. โCan we take a diversion first?โ she requested. It was only fair to let Arthur know that she had found Caiden, but she had decided a text wouldnโt suffice and it was better to let them meet in person. โWill it take long?โ โI want to introduce you to someone,โ she explained. โArthur has been helping me look for you and I think he would like to see the success of our search.โ Caiden looked thoughtful and then he nodded. โI would like to meet him. He has provided assista
When Clara finally looked up from her phone and glanced back at the door, the person she had been waiting for had already left. She had missed a lot in the two minutes her attention had been diverted.A member of staff approached her table with a cup of coffee in her hand. Clara looked around in confusion. โI didnโt order anything,โ she said. Clara was aware that she was the strangest customer in the coffeeshop and the staff were probably wondering when she was going to leave. She had been the first customer of the day and had only ordered two drinks in the past three hours. โOne of our regulars came in a couple of minutes ago to pick up his online order. He saw you looking tired and bought an expresso for you,โ the staff member explained with a smile. โHeโs a nice person.โ Clara blinked in surprise. She had never noticed any of the customers paying attention to her. The incident must have occurred when she had been occupied with her phone. She checked the name tag on the girlโs
The weeks quickly turned into months and soon an entire year had passed. Clara had taken a position at St. Clair that had enabled her to travel around the world just so she would have better chance of finding Caiden. She returned to the family mansion on the anniversary of her return from the demon realm after an unsuccessful trip to New York. Her actual work had gone well, she just hadnโt found any signs of Caiden in the city. There hadnโt been any traces of Caiden in any of the 10 countries she had travelled to over the past year. He didnโt have any presence on the internet either and Clara didnโt have any idea of how she could improve her search methods. Clara collapsed onto her bed and closed her eyes. She was physically and emotionally exhausted from her search. Despite everything, she wasnโt going to give up. She would sleep for a while and then she would look at other highly populated places to visit. โClara Kennedy.โ Claraโs eyes opened immediately at the sound of
Clara landed on the floor of her bedroom alone and fully aware of the gravity of the situation. She didnโt have Caiden at her side anymore. She needed to find him for that to happen. Clara stood up and realised that her legs were shaking. She had been feeling intimidated by the demon king and had refused to let him know. Now her nerves and lack of sleep had got to her. She took a deep breath to calm down. She had vowed that she would be able to find Caiden and she needed to start working on that.One person came to mind immediately. Arthur would be able to help her. She took her phone out of her pocket and called him. โ...Hello?โ Arthur asked cautiously when he picked up the call. Clara realised he had assumed that the phone call was someone else using her phone to inform him of her death. โItโs me, Clara,โ she told him immediately. โThings have changed. Can we meet up? I have a lot to tell you.โ โOf course,โ he said. โI think we'll need to go somewhere that allows for private c
Caiden was lost for words as he watched the events that he had foreseen so many times play out in front of him. It was no longer a vision of the future; it was happening in reality. It was finally the end of Claraโs life. Her soul floated in front of him as her eyes slowly closed. Caiden made his decision in that moment. He grabbed hold of Claraโs soul with his hands and pushed it back into her. Despite being very light, her soul wouldnโt move until he exerted all of his power. Claraโs eyes snapped open when her soul returned to her. โ...Whatโs going on?โ she asked breathlessly. โI canโt take your soul,โ Caiden admitted. โI want you to keep it.โ He had no real idea what was going to happen now. The contract had not been fulfilled properly. He had completed his part of the contract and he had stopped Clara from fulfilling her part. There was no precedent to follow here. He was the first demon to refuse a soul. โWhatโs going to happen to both of us?โ Clara questioned weakl
Clara knew that her grandfather was confused to hear her sentimental words. They rarely talked about their personal feelings. โI havenโt been the best grandfather,โ James replied with a deep frown. โI brought Beryl here to be your mother figure as I had felt that it would prevent you from becoming like my daughter. It turned out to be the worst decision I have ever made.โ Clara could not deny that Jamesโ decision to date Beryl and bring her into the family had been lethal for Clarissa. She decided to focus on something else. โThank you for rescuing me when I was a baby,โ she said. โIโm sure Clara would also thank you for looking for her.โ โYou donโt need to thank me for that,โ James replied. โI would also like to thank you for taking me in instead of leaving me to the care system,โ Clara continued. She didnโt know much about the British care system, but it was likely similar to the American one she had lived through. She had been lucky to be adopted by a decent set of foster pa
โIt was a good ride,โ Arthur said with a wink. โYou kept me guessing for so many years. Iโm so pleased to finally know what was going on the entire time.โ Clara relaxed. The hardest part was over now. โIs everything over now?โ he asked a moment later. โYouโve brought all of your targets down apart from Xavier King.โ โIt is,โ she confirmed. Arthur nodded and then he looked deep in thought. He coughed awkwardly before speaking again. โWhere did Clarissa go if you are in her body?โ he questioned. Clara had been expecting this question. Arthur was the only person who had a connection to Clarissa and knew that she was using her body. It would have been odd if he didnโt ask where Clarissa had gone. โ...She died when she committed suicide four years ago,โ she explained. โHer body was alive for a short time and I was put into it. Iโm sorry to tell that she died all that time ago.โ Arthur frowned and looked away. โI see... Thatโs sad,โ he said. โItโs odd to hear that Clariss