CHAPTER#121

"What do I do now?" Yuki held up the little doll, looking deep into its painted glass eyes. The demon had taken Beth without a care in the world, and Yuki had turned her to stone just as quickly, her body sinking away into another plane of existence. She wasn't worried about the demon undoing the spell, but now she feared that Beth would get smashed by a vengeful demon who might attempt to come after her.

Beth had given up everything to keep the house safe. That was how Emily used to be, back before she had disappeared. Either the woman was very brave, stupid, or both, and Yuki was struggling with the ramifications.

"Do you think I was wrong?" she asked Jenny, not expecting an answer. The little doll was limp, and Yuki cast a quick spell to make sure she was still in there. Satisfied that Jenny hadn't vacated her cloth body, she set the doll up on the mantle.

"Beth said they forgave you for causing trouble. Do they know how many people you killed?" Yuki knew of at least a couple of occasions that the doll had escaped and the host had ended up dead. However, she now lived with at least one viable human host. Why not hop in and start the process anew?

There were too many thoughts going through her mind, and she couldn't process them all at once. Too much was at stake, and if she made the wrong decision, she would lose the house. Frustrated, she flopped down on the couch.

How many times had she been captured by humans in her long life? It was too many, and the instances ran together in her mind. A feudal lord in Japan, farmers in China, even a group of fishermen who caught her in a net and insisted she was some type of wish-granting deity. She scowled at the memories, turning her thoughts to Emily once more.

"Why did you betray me?"

The empty room had no answers, and neither did the doll on the mantle.

Yuki closed her eyes, fighting the grief that swelled in her chest. Had Beth been right? Was her judgment clouded by what Emily had done? Upon meeting Mike, she had tried to kill him, never even giving him a fair chance to explain himself. How much of that had been the desire for a revenge she could never have?

For years, she had promised to kill Emily on sight, without any hesitation. Being able to commit to murdering a loved one was nearly impossible, and those long years had been spent emotionally distancing herself from everything. When push came to shove, she used the Eye to resolve disputes rather than taking a life. Her inability to commit had further frustrated her, and she had acted without thinking, seeing the man as an immediate threat. There would be no bargaining, simply justice.

Now the house itself had turned against her — and that was unexpected. The hero's welcome she had hoped for on her return was now the solemn march of a villain.

"Why?" She stood and approached Jenny. "Why does it have to hurt so much? I thought that when I came back, everything would put itself together. But then I hear about this man, this supposedly wonderful person. I remember how everyone loved Emily, but she did bad things. I thought that was maybe because of her magic, the nymph inside of her. The Caretaker is loved because of their magic, not their actions. And now here I am, fucking everything up while they defend him!" She stomped her foot and a chill wind rushed through the room, briefly lifting the edge of the area rug.

"Tell me, Jenny! If it was up to me, I would lock you in a block of ice for all eternity in the Vault, but he gave you a second chance! Was he right? Do you deserve it? Is he truly a good man? Because even a good man can fall from grace!" Yuki slammed a fist into the mantle, knocking loose a brick and breaking the skin of her hand wide open.

"Ow, baka kitsune," she hissed in pain. Sticking the wound in her mouth, she licked up the blood and waited. Minor wounds were an inconvenience, and she used magic to speed up the healing process. Pulling her hand free, she scowled at the itchy scab on her hand.

Idiot indeed. There was a mirror over the hearth that had been covered with a piece of fabric. Yuki pulled it down and looked at herself, taking in the image of the fox who looked back. Once, she had prided herself on her ability to approach things logically, to survive in the wild using her wits. Her years in confinement had worn away that person, leaving behind the raw nerve she had become, so eager to act or react. Being honest with herself for the first time, she saw little more than a scared, stupid fox girl so obsessed with revenge that she could no longer see the forest for the trees.

"Naia." Her best friend, her confidante. Even if the nymph had forgotten her, it wouldn't change the caring soul she had been when they met. If she could talk to anybody right now, it would be her.

Frowning, she paced the room, occasionally glaring at Jenny. The doll was no use, and without Daisy, she had nobody else to talk to. She had effectively traded one prison for another.

Taking a deep breath, she made the decision, walking toward the back door of the house. She would free Naia and hear her out, let her talk. It was time for the voice of reason to speak to her, to help her make an informed decision.

Her wards went off.

"Chikusho," she swore. What now? All of her wards were being broken, and she walked to the front window of the house to look outside. The front yard was a pristine canvas, her wand warriors standing at proud attention like a small group of trees. A gentle wind scattered ice crystals across the yard, and a small group of figures stood at the wrought iron gate she had built.