Chapter 35
Priest
My phone buzzed against the table.
I snatched it up, already moving. Miyori’s name lit the screen.
“Priest.”
Not her voice. Zia’s—low, tight, the kind of calm people only use when they’re trying not to scream.
“Why do you have Miyori’s phone?”
“I took it.” A shaky breath. “Someone broke in. A lot of someones. Armed. They came through the front like they owned the place.”
The room narrowed. A hundred men on that property. Gates. Cameras. Distance. It should have been impossible.
“I’m in the basement,” she said. “Got out before they saw me. But they have her. They have all of them.”
I was already at the door. “Who?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t recognize the woman. But she’s the one giving orders.” Another breath, faster this time. “She’s been—Priest, she’s been beating Miyori for the last ten minutes. I can hear it from down here. The sound carries.”
Something in my chest locked.
“I got a picture before I ran. Check your phone.”
I pulled it away from my ear. The image loaded slowly, like the universe wanted me to feel every second of it: a woman standing in the doorway, blood on her hands, blood streaked across the front of her dress, wearing that same manic, too-wide smile I’d seen a thousand times before—usually right before she did something that left bodies.
Lilith. Alive.
I stared at the screen until the edges of the photo started to blur.
I had watched them put her in the ground.
I had stood there while they closed the lid.
I had believed the story because I needed it to be true.
And the entire time, she had been breathing, planning, coming for the only thing in my life that had ever felt like peace.
“Priest?” Zia’s voice cut through. “Who is she? Do you know her?”
She hadn’t seen the face, hadn’t heard the voice—just the aftermath.
“It’s Lilith,” I said, my voice flat, almost calm. That was the dangerous part. “My wife. The one who was supposed to be dead.”
Silence on the other end. Then, quietly: “She’s alive?”
“Not for long.” I was already moving again. “Stay where you are. Stay quiet. Do not come out no matter what you hear. I’m coming.”
I ended the call.
Caine and Kael were on their feet. Caine looked like he had seen a ghost; they’d heard enough of everything.
“We’re going,” I said. “Now.”