"Leave my son!" Ana scread, her voice cracking as her hand pointed toward Lilith like she was casting a curse. Her face was red, tears falling freely now..not from hatred, but from helplessness, grief, and the overwhelming fear of losing her child. The silence in the hallway shattered instantly.
"Mom!" Rose cried out, standing in front of Lilith protectively, her hands shaking. "Stop it, please! What are you even saying?! You’re being unreasonable!"
But Ana wasn’t done. Her emotions were spilling out like a storm she couldn’t stop. "You all don’t understand," she sobbed. "The master of our family... he said Lilith isn’t right for him. He said her presence invites danger. He said she’s too cold, too powerful... she’s not ant for a soft-hearted man like my son..." Her knees buckled slightly, and she leaned against the wall, crying into her palms. "If he dies... I’ll never forgive myself..."
Ethan clenched his jaw tightly, stepping forward with fire in his tone. "Aunty," he said, eyes dark, "you’re starting to sound just like that old witch you used to hate. The one who thought controlling people was love." His voice was sharp. "Don’t ruin everything just because you’re scared."
Ana said nothing, just cried harder.
But Lilith stood behind Rose, completely still. She hadn’t moved a step since the slap. Her expression hadn’t changed.
Ana’s tears hadn’t even dried when she opened her mouth again, her voice trembling but stubborn. "You can leave my son," she said quietly. "I’ll find soone better for him. Soone gentle. Soone who won’t bring chaos into his life—"
That was when Lilith’s patience broke.
She took a slow step forward, the soft sound of her heel clicking against the floor like a warning bell. Her head tilted slightly, and the smile that touched her lips wasn’t kind. Her voice, when she spoke, was soft. But it carried the sharpness of a blade laced with venom.
"Heh..." she breathed. "You’re thinking about him now?"
The hallway stilled.
Lilith’s eyes darkened, and sothing shifted around her, a heavy, suffocating presence. A cold pressure that made even Rose stop breathing for a second. Lilith stepped forward again, her voice no longer calm, it was dead cold.
"Where were you when that old woman and her monster of a brother tortured your son?" she asked, her tone heavy with restrained anger. "Where were you when he was locked in basents for hours? When he acted like everything was fine, but his hands shook when no one was looking?" Her gaze bore into Ana, unmoving. "You speak of finding soone gentle for him now but back then, you didn’t even notice he was breaking."
Ana’s lips parted, but no sound ca.
Because she knew.
Lilith took another slow step, and Ana instinctively stepped back, her eyes wide. That aura dark, powerful, and laced with pain wrapped around Lilith like a storm about to explode. "I saw him," Lilith whispered. "When no one else did. When even you turned away."
Lilith didn’t wait for anyone this ti. She didn’t explain. She didn’t need defend herself. Her feet moved on their own, and she turned away from the ICU doors, from the sobbing mother, the stunned silence.
She walked toward the stairs slowly, but without stopping. Her back straight. Her shoulders pulled in. But her heart... her heart was aching in a silence no one could hear. She didn’t wipe her face, didn’t show a single tear, but inside, it felt like sothing inside her was folding inward.
As she reached the landing, a soft voice called after her.
"Sister Lilith!" Rose’s voice cracked through the hallway, full of panic and sorrow. She tried to step forward, but Ethan gently held her wrist, stopping her.
"Let her go..." Ethan said softly, his eyes following Lilith’s back. "She needs ti."
Rose looked down, tears slipping down her cheeks as she gripped Ethan’s arm. She didn’t want sister Lilith to walk away like that.
***
*Blink*
*Blink*
The world slowly returned.
Alexander opened his eyes, the white ceiling above him unfamiliar, too bright. There was a dull ache in his head, and everything felt heavier than it should. His chest rose gently with every breath, and for a mont, he blinked again trying to rember where he was... and why.
Then it ca back.
Sienna.
Her voice. Her madness.
The vase.
He flinched slightly.
Just then, he heard a familiar voice. Soft. Gentle.
"Don’t move," his mother whispered, her hand resting lightly over his shoulder. He turned his head, frowning slightly at her presence. His voice ca out hoarse, dry. "What are you doing here?"
Ana smiled gently, brushing his hair back. "I’m here for you," she said as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "How are you, Seb?"
He didn’t answer that. He only nodded faintly and sat up anyway, ignoring her warning.
His mother watched him for a mont, then reached for the glass of water, but he didn’t take it. His eyes were already scanning the room, moving slowly from corner to corner.
Looking for soone.
Not a nurse.
Not his father.
Not Rose.
Not anyone else.
But her.
The woman with ocean-blue eyes and a voice that always made him forget the rest of the world.
Lilith.
She wasn’t there.
He cleared his throat and looked back at his mother with the sa calm tone he always used when he wanted to keep things polite. "Don’t you have your charity events and NGO etings?" he asked quietly.
Ana stiffened slightly, caught off guard.
But Alexander didn’t say anything else.
"No," Ana replied quickly, a smile still stretched across her lips, though her fingers trembled slightly as she adjusted the blanket around his legs. "I just skipped everything today... for you." Her voice was soft, almost proud, but sothing about her tone didn’t sit right with him.
Alexander blinked slowly. Then, with that sa polite calmness he always used when he didn’t want to argue, he said, "Oh." And after a pause, he added, "Then you can go back to your work now. There’s no need for you to be here anymore."
The smile on Ana’s face cracked for a mont.
Her hand froze mid-air.
"Seb," she said quickly, her voice rising slightly, "I’m your mother. I have every right to stay by your side."
Alexander didn’t respond. He looked away, his eyes falling on the window.
The sky outside was bright.
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