The cold bit at the world around them, but Rachel felt nothing. Snow blanketed the lower slopes of the mountain, mist clinging stubbornly at the base like a last desperate grasp at the heights above. Jim, Grace’s horse, exhaled in plumes of white as they descended toward Billings, Montana.

  Rachel shifted her weight slightly, adjusting her posture as the city lights glowed faintly beyond the snowfall. Her ears flicked up, forcing them past the whipping wind to take in the current situation. The distant hum of a city-wide military lockdown was currently in effect.

  Barbara and the General were conducting sweeps, rounding up anyone remotely suspicious while coordinating with other PMCs. On the other hand, El Santo was barreling down the mountain, securing a helicopter for the others.

  It didn’t take long for her to zero in on her brother’s location, taking bits of information from multiple sources to gain a complete picture of events.

  Maria was recovering, basking under the clear-night sky after exhausting herself healing Nam. Nam was resting, more recovery needed, but seemingly stabilizing. What that meant, she had no clue. He was still on fire. Hopefully she’d get answers from Eostre before the night ended.

  Her gut tightened when hearing Alexa and Aella near Nam, the angelic woman actually praying for him… Praying for her to succeed.

  Rachel’s gaze lifted to the sky, seeing the stars past the light pollution through her enhanced vision. I didn’t know Alexa was religious…but I guess that makes some sense with how she changed. There’s a lot I don’t know about her… About any of my family, it seems. Nam… I’m sorry.

  Leaning to the side as they hit pavement again and entered the city, Rachel observed the scrapes and light bruising on Grace’s exposed skin; most of her outfit had been rendered to rags. Holding onto the brunette’s waist, she felt each quiver of her abs. Just from the sounds her muscles made told her all she needed to know about her exhaustion.

  Her own soul was only pressing on through sheer will power.

  Nike? she internally mumbled. Are you there?

  “I am, Rachel. And I am as exhausted as you, but I will continue to look over Nia and the Triplets until they awaken. What can I do for you?”

  Rachel let a small smile lift her lips while looking down at her new celestial outfit. Can you change my outfit to something more…me?

  “I can,” the Personification of Victory chuckled. “Also, I will tell you that the final design isn’t set. This was just Nia’s swift attempt to give you the power you needed in the moment. She didn’t want to distract you but she wanted to customize it with you later.”

  Cute… That is just like her. We’ll have to craft something between all of us.

  Her outfit shimmered and was replaced with a casual tank top and shorts.

  Nike faded into the background to care for their little bun.

  The change didn’t go unnoticed. Beside her, Grace let out a long sigh, tugging at her own shredded top as Rachel pointed her down a side street.

  “Y’know, you could at least pretend to look half as miserable as I do, Boss.” Grace smacked her lips, her voice carrying a familiar dry drawl. “I look like I just lost a bet with a mountain lion, and you? Ain’t a single hair outta place. Kinda makes a girl feel inadequate. When do I get cool clothes that transform?”

  Rachel chuckled, one ear twitching before flicking back toward the town, spotting many military clusters pointing her out. It was spreading fast that she was off the mountain.

  “Mine’s kind of unique, but Elizabeth has some connections in China I’m looking forward to exploiting. Anyway, drop me off at the bar up ahead, find some decent clothes, and steal a phone from a soldier to tell Scarlet I need her to find me.”

  “Pfft. Like I know Ms. Fang’s number?”

  “You’re resourceful,” Rachel mused. “You’ll figure it out. After that, you can find a bar and drink yourself under.”

  Grace scoffed, stretching her arms dramatically as they slowed near the small bar she’d pointed out. “Oh, sure, just wring me out like a damn mule, why don’t ya? At least I get to fix myself up to not look like a rabid coyote before talkin’ to a strappin’ soldier. I’ll make sure to find a solid drinking spot.”

  Rachel smirked as they arrived and she forced herself off, cheeks puffing out with the pain ripping through her whole body. There were military personnel on every street, setting up checkpoints and secure perimeters. The hunt was on, though, for what? They had no clue.

  Grace tipped her hat and peeled off with a grunt, heading toward the denser side streets in search of a clothing store to get decent.

  I really do owe her a lot, Rachel thought, watching her speed off. The fact she’s rolled with it shows she’s Omen material, at least.

  Pausing at the door, Rachel let herself absorb the murmur of the world around her, placing a hand on her hip and turning left and right.

  A shiver ran from her ears to the tip of her tail. There was a sort of melancholy and tension that had gripped her chest since the destruction of the Fable realm.

  There’s so much to process… I don’t recall most of what happened beyond the 7th Wall. But I know I’ve lost everything…

  She put a hand against her chest, closing her eyes and feeling the faint energy of the overhead White Moon beaming down on her.

  I’m totally tapped… The Black Moon, Blood…everything. It took all I had, every favor and deity I gained favor with… My whole soul is practically ribbons underneath the surface. From that…I’m free. Everyone is free. But…what does that mean? What does any of this mean?

  Rachel puffed out a visible breath, looking up and catching the thread of conversation in the summarized reports from the officers. The helicopter was heading over to pick up Black and the others. What would happen to Ali Baba’s family, the broken princess, and depowered djinn wasn’t something she wanted to contemplate right now.

  The chatter swirled, rumors already reaching General Dallas. Green should help buy her enough time to do what she needs to maneuver. However, a report from her would be expected—she’d have to deal with that soon. But first, loose ends.

  She turned toward the door, looking at herself in the reflection and seeing all the snow piled around the road. Out of everyone…why did it have to be her?

  Rachel stepped inside.

  The bar was dimly lit, a quiet refuge untouched by the military’s current chaos. The speakers overhead played a gentle sway of music. The barkeep moved with practiced boredom, cleaning glasses with mechanical repetition, the hum of a slow radio crackling in the background.

  Rachel barely spared him a glance. Her focus was locked onto the one silver-haired anomaly lounging at the counter like she was the only thing worth noticing in the world—Aurora Bain.

  Poised like she owned the air she breathed, she sat at the bar, her hidden goat legs crossed, posture effortlessly predatory, her skin catching the low glow of neon behind the bar. The loose strands of her glistening silver hair cascaded over her shoulders, framing a face sculpted for mischief—lips curved in amusement, emerald eyes flickering like a cat who’d already caught the canary.

  Rachel released a slow, measured breath. “Out of all the annoying people I’ve met in my life, I would have picked Relica over you…”

  Aurora didn’t flinch. She merely tilted her head, resting her chin against the back of her hand, those deep green eyes shining with something between amusement and provocation.

  “Now, now, let’s not act surprised.” Her voice was smooth, velvet wrapped around a dagger. “We both know chaos follows you like a devoted lover. Therefore, I am.”

  Rachel’s ears twitched. Irritation licked up her spine like static.

  “And yet, I didn’t hear you,” she muttered, more to herself than to Aurora. That fact alone crawled under her skin. For Aurora to slip past her unnoticed was an insult. “Looks like I need to figure out a way to plug that weakness.”

  Aurora chuckled, tapping her nails against the rim of her glass. Her languid elegance was infuriating. “Oh, darling, consider it a friendly service—exposing gaps in your fortress. Besides,” she sipped her drink, voice dropping to a sultry purr, “you bring such delightful discord wherever you go. I’d be a fool not to indulge.”

  Rachel slid onto the stool beside her, rolling her shoulders. “You didn’t come here just to admire the mess I made. What do you know?”

  Aurora tilted her glass, watching the liquid swirl like she was contemplating the shape of fate itself. “Oh, you wound me, love. Am I not allowed to simply bask in the artful chaos you craft? You are a master.”

  Rachel’s stare was expectant.

  Aurora’s lips curled. “Fine, fine. Scarlet already has the angle with Astra. I wouldn’t want to steal her time on the grand stage. She’s had so little time to show off as of late.”

  She stretched lazily, then leaned in just slightly, voice dipping into dangerously intimate territory. “Do you think I could get a second dance, or should we save that for our next rendezvous?”

  Rachel exhaled sharply, already done with her. “Pass.”

  She stood, about to walk away.

  “You’re so cruel to your friends,” Aurora dramatically sighed, taking another sip of her drink. “You always ruin my build-up. Where’s your patience for the part of me that craves a friend and not just a sex object?”

  Rachel froze for half a second, her hand resting on the counter. The weight behind those words settled uncomfortably in her chest.

  She ran a hand through her unbound white hair, puffing out a sigh before turning back, giving Aurora a dry, unimpressed stare.

  “Everything about you screams sex object,” Rachel flatly said. “You can’t blame the world for what you project and practically drip.”

  Aurora’s half-lidded eyes gleamed. “Talk to me sweet.”

  “Is this how you talk to all your friends?” Rachel huffed, dropping back into the seat. “You harass all your friends like this? I’m about two seconds away from dropping your ass.”

  The succubus flashed her perfect teeth, but there was something sharp and vulnerable in it—a dangerous contradiction. The predator who still longed for something real.

  “I wouldn’t know,” she whispered, shifting her glass toward the barkeep, motioning for another pour with another lulling song that came on. “I have a head full of demons… A pretty face, yes, a heathen. Why do you think I’m lonely and friendless…when I am addicting, like drugs. It’s my nature now… I just want to feel something different. Surely you can understand how difficult it is for me to communicate without a little…innuendo?”

  Rachel felt the words like a blade against her skin.

  Damn you… That is why you’re so infuriating! Your ability to slither through conversations like a snake made of silk… You know exactly how to poke and prod. Attacking me with the ‘it is in our nature’ and ‘as much as we try to fight it, a little always slips through’ argument.

  The way she projected this new insecurity made Rachel question everything she thought about the Scottish vampire, her accent drawing and real.

  She’s the perfect predator… I do understand fighting your nature, dammit.

  “…Can you forgive me if I say I’m sorry for my nature?” Aurora’s voice dipped, fingers brushing the rim of her glass, glancing away with a pained smile. “I just want to let someone in for once…but I’m still an animal. You know something about that, don’t you?”

  Rachel suppressed the shiver that ran through her.

  Damn, she’s good.

  “I swear, you talk and I feel like I’m being wrapped in a noose made of flowers.”

  Aurora grinned. “Flattery will get you everywhere with me.”

  Rachel clicked her tongue, shaking her head. This was stupid. It felt stupid to be sitting here, engaging in good faith with someone like Aurora—a woman who could probably manipulate the Devil into writing love songs for her.

  And yet.

  She exhaled through her nose, changing the subject before she got caught in whatever web Aurora was spinning. “The Russians—I know they’re here. Can we get to business? If there’s time after, maybe I’ll be kind,” she muttered, wanting to choke on the words.

  Aurora leaned forward, brushing her bangs to the side and showing a darkness that put off a different feeling than she typically got—this woman needed to meet Yseress.

  “Wouldn’t you say that explanation was too…convenient? I know you must have felt that way before entering that Grim Tale. Almost too convenient,” she mused, voice like candy. “You’ll be barking up the wrong tree if you go charging in headfirst.”

  Rachel’s jaw tightened. “What are you implying?”

  Aurora swirled her drink. “Oh, certainly, the USSR has had their part in dancing around you… I’m almost jealous. But by the time you arrive, the deed will have already been finished and the loose end nipped in the bud. If you’re hunting your little arbiter of Fate, you might want to think…more abstract.”

  Foot tapping against the floor, Rachel resisted the urge to strangle this goat vampire, irritation prickling her skin like static. “Vague, as always. Just say it.”

  “Where’s the fun in that? Come now, love, let me have a little fun.” She leaned in slightly, voice dropping to a velvet whisper. “Let’s just say…there’s someone close to you—or your organization—who dances with Fate.”

  “What…”

  Rachel’s gut twisted. Her breath hitched for a fraction of a second.

  Not enough for most people to notice.

  Aurora wasn’t most people.

  She smiled slowly. “Oh, with an expression like that, you’ll make me feel numb. Everything you do, I can’t seem to get enough, friend. Maybe I’ll buy you a meal on our next date. Whoops! I can’t control what I say sometimes. Who could it be?”

  Ignoring her honeyed words, Rachel’s mind was already spinning. It feels…genuine. Who is this woman? Someone…close to me is working with Fate? How would Aurora even know any of this… Misfortune is twisting around us…in my favor? Even Astra and the Scarlet Hand were having trouble providing me information about what was going on. I have a spy? They have to be new, right? But…someone who would have influence. I don’t know.

  Rachel forced herself to remain composed, leveling a look at the seductress. “You’re not necessarily an enemy, Aurora… I feel that. But you’re not exactly a friend”

  Aurora’s grin widened, bangs half covering her face as her head tilted. “Semantics. I could look at you all day. Everything you do, I can’t seem to get enough.”

  “Aurora…”

  “Yes, yes,” she chortled. “I may not do things by the book, and I love to flirt, and it hurts so bad sometimes. I hope to change our relationship over time… I do appreciate your patience. Maybe it’s more accurate to say we’re something…in-between.”

  Rachel exhaled, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Really? I’m beginning to doubt everything I thought I knew about you.”

  “Now who is flirting? You play it so sweet with such an innocent disguise for that animal inside.” Aurora propped her chin on her hand, watching her like a cat that found something particularly interesting to play with. “Fluidity is such a wonderful thing, don’t you agree? It allows for such…unexpected outcomes.”

  Rachel’s patience frayed. “You really are the queen of lust… Relica was probably here for you.”

  The succubus only smiled as if she were the cutest thing.

  Jaw clenching, Rachel puffed out a breath and sat back. “How many people have you seen?”

  Aurora’s lashes fluttered, feigning purity. “Oh, now, that would spoil the mystery.”

  I hate you…

  How she danced around her without giving solid answers.

  How she made her question every instinct.

  But mainly because…she was too damn good at it.

  Aurora’s tone turned softer than warm butter, more amused. “If you’re looking for someone to pin the blame on for your dear brother’s predicament… Well, my dear, isn’t it obvious?”

  Rachel narrowed her eyes. “That’s…a dangerous game you’re playing.”

  “Is it?” A dagger-like glint, dipped with poison ignited in her bright emerald eyes. “I would never lie to a friend… To you, Rachel. Sweetie, it’s you.”

  Silence fell between them, Rachel’s fingers curling in to press against her palm.

  Aurora traced the rim of her glass with a lazy finger, her tone dropping to a whisper. “Misfortune played the only hand she could… Isn’t that just like us? Animals to our instincts.”

  For having the eyes of a devil, the woman’s gaze was pure as they drifted to her, sending electricity down Rachel’s spine. “The stars aligned in just the right way to put all the right players on the board. Your Fate was woven long before you realized it. Isn’t that right? And in breaking Fate’s strings, you’ve created a rather poetic mess… One that you must fear. You’re not alone in the fear of your own power.”

  Rachel was quiet, her mind chewing through the implications in slow motion. The chills ran down through her bones with each conclusion she made, body growing numb.

  Aurora continued nonetheless. “Since the Oscillation, so much has changed. So many things no longer make sense, yes? Your mother’s secrets. Your family’s tragedies. The way your powers…shape the world. You already know, don’t you?” Her emerald gaze gleamed with something unreadable. “Your misfortune isn’t just something you wield—it’s a force that was always meant to pull you into this…because it refused to be constrained.”

  She hated how that rang true. The animal inside rattled. Her heart thumping. A beast waiting to devour anything who stole her control…her power. How much it settled into her marrow like an inevitability she had refused to acknowledge.

  The only way for me to break free of Fate…was for me to let that explosion happen. I know that. I wasn’t warned. It was in my favor…which means if my family’s deaths will result in my favor, if my friend’s deaths will… Misfortune will actively work against my will.

  Dammit.

  Aurora raised a brow, clearly pleased by the webs she assumed was spinning in her brain. “Can I offer one more name to consider… Twilight.”

  Rachel’s narrowed eyes lifted to look into hers as she sipped at her glass, dots connecting in a string of colliding events.

  Twilight set all of this in motion? Her whole existence was tied to Scarlet… Fate tied her to Scarlet through my misfortune. Relica’s assassination attempt against me… The tragedy that followed. It had to be her. She used me to escape Fate at the masquerade…by releasing Seed Scarlet, allowing her to activate her Soul Expansion… Release the Red Sea so that Cerridwen could groom me to awaken Melishna… To unleash the Ever-Shifting Mists and Crimson Tide.

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  Dammit.

  But that didn’t mean there was no one to blame. That she was to blame.

  “So… My own misfortune manipulated events and factions to attack Nam,” she admitted, seeing it clearly now like poison dripping onto her heart. Yet, her vision was ice. “It was the only way I’d use everything to discover Fate manipulating my misfortune. Fate still caused this. It was the only way to escape her. It was me…but it wasn’t.”

  “How villains are made, my lovely hare… Whose side are you on?” Aurora sipped her drink and moved on as if they hadn’t just unraveled one of Rachel’s deepest suspicions. “Speaking of interesting little threads… Ireland will be fun. But you should know—Fiona is the key to something the Scarlet Hand wants.”

  Rachel’s gaze sharpened. “Every time you open your mouth, I feel like I’m talking to one of the gods. Why?”

  Aurora’s lips curved as she leaned over the counter, eyes fixed on her glass like it held the secrets of the universe. She ran a slow finger along the rim, the subtle motion drawing Rachel’s attention despite herself.

  “…You’re not going to answer me. Are you?”

  “You know, you’ve rescued me, Rachel,” she murmured, voice dipping into something just shy of sincere. “Captured me in a way I’m defenseless against…as warm as a glass of brandy.”

  Rachel’s shoulders tensed. “Don’t even start with me.”

  She wasn’t sure what pissed her off more—Aurora’s deliberate pacing, the fact that she was saying absolute nonsense, or the knowledge that the moment she engaged, Aurora would have her wrapped up in a conversation she’d regret having. Yet, somehow she’d remain rent free in her mind for days to come and she was powerless against it. It left her reeling.

  Aurora didn’t wait for permission to further insert herself into her web of thoughts.

  “I’m the worst and best of friends, which is why I can say Adele isn’t after Ireland,” she continued smoothly, her fingertip tracing slow circles against the condensation on her glass. “Ireland is just a high-risk distraction for you… Like me,” she added with a light giggle. “But what I’ll leave you with is more than a bite.”

  Rachel exhaled sharply, feeling the beginning of a migraine forming. Of course you’d drop a bomb like that between languid flirtation and vague poetry.

  She had a million questions, but at this point, she didn’t know which to ask first.

  “You’re stalling to string me along,” Rachel muttered, rubbing her temple. “I’m waiting.”

  Aurora’s gaze flicked up, the corner of her mouth twitching with mischief. “Oh? And here I thought you were lingering because you enjoy my alluring company.”

  Rachel’s eyes creased. A coy glance her way made her fingers twitch with the very real, very tempting desire to slap her—again.

  “You are the worst friend in history… Just your nature, right?”

  Aurora sighed dramatically, leaning back with the effortless grace of a woman who knew she owned every bit of space she occupied. Her chest shook with soft laughter, the kind that crawled under Rachel’s skin because she couldn’t tell if it was mocking or vulnerable—or both.

  “My heart is hurting,” Aurora lamented, a delicate hand pressing against her breast as though she might faint from the sheer tragedy of Rachel’s cruelty. “It’s building up. I can feel a meltdown coming—a breakdown… I don’t understand who I am to you and that kills me.”

  Rachel clenched her jaw.

  Oh no. Oh, we are NOT doing this.

  Aurora’s voice lowered, sultry, yet strangely unsteady, as if she were speaking a truth she barely understood herself. “Everything is blurry when I’m with you. It’s rough. You’re like my lifeline…”

  Rachel inhaled sharply, a ripple of unease cutting through her usual wall of frustration.

  Aurora tilted her head, studying her with that maddening look, like she was reading something in Rachel she hadn’t even acknowledged herself. “I’m screaming,” she whispered, tapping a single nail against her glass. “There’s no sound but can you hear it? This is such a nightmare…”

  A pause.

  Then a soft, dangerous smile.

  “Yet… I love it.”

  Rachel’s pulse skipped—just once.

  She hated it. Hated her. Hated how Aurora could twist everything into a game where she dictated the rules, controlled the tempo, and played on emotions Rachel didn’t even want to admit existed—she wasn’t sure if she felt some kind of friendly connection to her or if it was all a manipulation. She wasn’t sure of anything with this woman.

  The perfect actress or victim of nature.

  She knew that feeling.

  “I imagine I’m a puzzle you enjoy solving,” Rachel muttered, shoving down the foreign heat clawing at the edges of her mind. “If you want to be a part of Omen, then we’re going to have to set some rules and boundaries.”

  Aurora sighed wistfully, as if Rachel had just recited the most beautiful poetry she’d ever heard. “Oh, darling, you do know me so well…yet so little. I could never be tied down to a single organization. That’s so…stifling!”

  Rachel gritted her teeth.

  This woman is impossible.

  Aurora swirled the amber liquid in her glass, watching it with the focus of a woman reading the future on its surface. Maybe she was. Rachel wouldn’t put it past her at this point.

  Not only does she know about Twilight, but she knows what happened to me against Seed Scarlet and Fate… Who are you, Aurora?

  Rachel’s nails tapped against the counter, trying to drown out the sensation of something unspoken curling around her ribs like a slow constricting wire. This entire interaction had gone exactly the way Aurora wanted—infuriatingly vague, pushing her down a path without outright forcing her steps, dangling just enough information to make her feel like she was making the choices herself.

  The worst part? Rachel knew it…and stayed.

  She should have walked away the moment Aurora opened her mouth. But like a moth to the flame, she stayed.

  It was as if the mesmerized woman enjoyed nothing more than walking along a frail string between enemy and friend. “You really can’t help yourself, can you?” Rachel muttered, tilting her head. “Everything about you is a contradiction.”

  Aurora finished her glass and slid it across the counter as the music in the background picked up its tempo. “Ah, now you’re finally catching on. I’ve been so lonely, but you’ve been my only…sort of friend,” she murmured with a yearning that brought their eyes together.

  “You’re ridiculous!”

  Rising to leave, Aurora’s hand darted out to snatch her wrist, true vulnerability and desperation touching her face for the first time.

  “Wait!”

  “Why? So you can jerk me around? Again, pass.”

  “I live vicariously through you. I want to be there, when you need it the most…”

  Rachel paused, the look on her face cut in ways that made Rachel reflect on her whole teenage years, lost in the darkness of her own broken heart. It opened wounds she hadn’t even realized existed, possibly from her interaction with Misfortune.

  “What is your deal—”

  “Just…give me a second more,” she pleaded, releasing her hand as Rachel lifted a palm to smack her. “It’s not sexual. I know it’s confusing—I’m confusing. But…please, this is the only way you’ll even listen to me.”

  Rachel hissed through her teeth.

  She wasn’t wrong but that didn’t mean it wasn’t manipulation… All of it was. It didn’t matter if it was conscious or not, sincere or not, nature or plotted. This was her bread and butter… And, for some reason, that hit differently when she was making an effort.

  It felt like she was making an effort.

  “Go on. Get it off your chest,” she mumbled, crossing her arms and glaring down at her.

  “My heart is longing for yours still. My lips are yearning to speak with you… I gave you my earring because…I want to be the one that you call,” she whispered, vision dropping to the floor as she fidgeted with her skirt to show her hairy legs underneath. “I want to be there when you don’t need me at all… I don’t need much, Rachel.”

  She looked up at her, breathing as if her chest were being crushed by an anvil. “This isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon. Just…a place in your heart. An enemy. A friend… Anything. I’ll tear myself apart, just to have a place in your heart.”

  “Why?”

  “Because…you are my paragon,” she mumbled, cheeks darkening and glancing away. “It’s embarrassing but… By far, you're the highlight of my day. So…let me be the one that you call. Please.”

  Rachel’s glare could have cut steel. “I’m starting to think I’ll never figure you out.”

  Aurora forced a smile. “Why settle for either when being both is far more fun?”

  Rachel exhaled sharply, pressing two fingers against her temple. “I don’t know what to do with you. You’re too cunning. Too manipulative. Too knowing. Too mysterious… Too much.”

  Aurora’s lips curved in satisfaction. “So…you love me. I’m intoxicating.”

  “You’re exhausting.”

  Aurora hummed, regaining her poise as she sat back. “And yet, you’re still here. I suppose that means something…doesn’t it?”

  Rachel’s fingers curled into a fist against the bar as she slowly sat back down—for a second time. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to punch something or just walk into a snowstorm and scream into the void.

  Despite her games… She knows too much.

  Her instincts didn’t know what to do with Aurora. The threads of misfortune? Misfortune loved her. She was powerful, cunning, impossible to pin down. Everything about her reeked of manipulation, but there were these cracks—tiny, inconsistent moments that made Rachel wonder if there was something real buried underneath the playful seduction and riddles.

  If she let herself think too much about it, she’d fall into Aurora’s rhythm again.

  So she shoved the thoughts aside and forced herself back to business.

  “You knew about Fiona.” Rachel’s voice was flat. “You could’ve just led with that. I’m bouncing between strangling you and wanting to pull you into Omen…out of pure respect. You’re the worst person I’ve ever had to deal with, and that’s saying something.”

  Aurora fake pouted. “Where’s the fun in that? And now who is trying to seduce who? You can’t play with my heart like that.”

  Rachel ignored the urge to slam her head against the counter.

  “You had your fun. So what does the Scarlet Hand want with her?”

  Aurora’s gaze flickered, something unreadable flashing behind the emerald-green before she responded. “She’s the key to something. Is that enough?”

  Rachel’s brow twitched. “Wow. Really helpful.”

  Aurora giggled.

  Rachel crossed her arms, ready to slap her now. “If you want me to play along, you have to give me more than poetic bullshit. If you want to have fun, do it while being helpful and maybe we’ll get somewhere.”

  Aurora leaned in, her breath warm against Rachel’s skin, voice a soft murmur that slid like silk against her ears. “My heart is fluttering. Poetry makes the truth so much prettier.”

  Rachel didn’t move. Didn’t flinch to give her the satisfaction of making her squirm. But she could feel the sharp edge of Aurora’s gaze, searching, waiting.

  The succubus pulled back with a small smile. “Let’s just say, if you tell Anthony too soon…the game changes. I can’t say more… I shouldn’t have said much of this already. I’ll be punished! It’s worth it with how hard my heart is beating.”

  Rachel’s pulse skipped.

  Misfortune flickered like a whisper of a thought—Aurora was right.

  Dammit!

  If she told Anthony about Fiona right now, something about how the threads would unravel would make things worse.

  She let a slow, irritated breath pass through her nose. “That’s your angle, huh? Get me to keep my mouth shut? And here I thought you liked my voice.”

  Aurora’s gaze darkened just slightly, a glimmer of something deeper lurking beneath the mirth. “Oh, it enthralls me, darling. I’m simply curious, dear. Will you trust me?”

  Rachel let the silence stretch, let the question hang. “…If you’re threatened by Anthony, then you shouldn’t be. He’s engaged…twice, I think?”

  “Oh, I don’t know about that,” Aurora mused with a twinkle in her eyes. “That man has quite the complicated heart…as I’m sure you’ll find out, in time.”

  A thought popped into her mind that brought a smile on.

  “Wait… I don’t have to tell Anthony,” Rachel smoothly chuckled. “Not directly.”

  Aurora’s grin widened, amusement flickering in her eyes like a candle caught in the wind. “Ah. Clever as always. You are to die for.”

  With a slow, lazy stretch, she lifted a new glass one last time and drank from it. “Mmm. You’re always such a delight, Rachel.”

  Rachel snorted. “Personally, I’d rather be a migraine to you. Maybe I should activate [Retribution] again.”

  Aurora chuckled. “Darling, no need. You’re more of a migraine to me than you can fathom… The delight and pain are worth the price.”

  She sighed theatrically, setting her glass down and pushing it forward across the counter, seemingly finished.

  Roses bloomed around her, swirling in a delicate spiral of crimson petals, the air shifting ever so slightly as a familiar sense of absence settled over the bar. At last, the succubus was taking her leave.

  Rachel didn’t move.

  She just watched as Aurora faded like a dream, disappearing with the sound of petals brushing against the cold air.

  “I hope you think about me… Let’s make a deal. I’ll pay for the meal on our next date.”

  She was gone.

  Rachel exhaled sharply through her nose, gripping the counter so tightly her knuckles turned white. Luckily, her lack of Lunar Energy meant no damage.

  “She is so lucky I have bigger problems,” she muttered.

  The last whisper of Aurora’s presence faded into the night—petals dissolving, laughter haunting the edges of Rachel’s mind. The weight of her words lingered, curling into the spaces she hadn’t realized were open.

  Rachel’s fingers tracing the edge of the counter as she stared at the abandoned glass—a ghost of the conversation they had. She could still feel the warmth of the succubus’ breath on her skin, still hear the teasing lilt in her voice, but beneath the layers of seduction and riddles, there had been something real. Something dangerous.

  The song on the radio shifted—a slow, crooning ballad that filled the empty space Aurora had left behind.

  Then, tires crunched against the snow outside.

  Rachel’s ears twitched. Her focus expanded, pulling her from the last remnants of Aurora’s mind games to the present. A car rolled to a stop. The murmur of an engine, the creak of a door. A familiar voice thanking the driver.

  Black.

  Rachel didn’t turn as the rat woman entered, but she felt the shift in the air. The weight of scrutiny. The quiet, assessing pause at the threshold. Black’s presence was different from Aurora’s—it didn’t slink in like a soft whisper. It settled like a waiting storm, eyes carving through every corner before honing in on her.

  A chair creaked as Black slid into the seat beside her. Rachel didn’t look at her.

  Silence. The faint squeak of rats shifting in the dark corners. A few exchanged chitters, something relayed between their unseen network. Rachel ignored it. Black wasn’t here for a friendly visit.

  Out of the corner of her vision she saw the woman’s eyes on the empty glass still sitting on the counter. A second passed, then another.

  Finally, Black engaged.

  “Have you concluded that I’ve made a deal with Aurora yet?”

  Rachel’s fingers stopped drumming against the wood. Her tail flicked once behind her.

  “…I suspected it.” She sighed, rolling her shoulders back and shooting her a neutral glance before looking up at the TV. The barkeep was looking at it as if they didn’t exist unless they signed him; she’d already determined he was deaf. Aurora chose this location for a reason. “I’m finding out that vampire made a lot of deals.”

  Black hummed—a sound low and considering.

  Rachel turned her head, giving her a dry, tired look. “And before you ask, no, she didn’t give me a straight answer as to whatever exchange the two of you had.”

  A small smirk tugged at the corner of Black’s lips, but there was no amusement behind it. Just something hollow. “Didn’t expect her to… She enjoys making others squirm when entangled in her web. I’m starting to think she feeds in…other ways than blood.”

  Rachel’s gaze flicked back to the counter. “Interesting theory… She does seem less vampiric than I had imagined. That being said, she did say something useful, though.”

  Black paused, her tail twitching. “About what?”

  Rachel tilted her head, expression unreadable. “Why don’t you tell me.”

  The rat woman stilled.

  Black let out a slow exhale, her posture shifting ever so slightly, as if weighing the words.

  Rachel let the silence hang, waiting.

  Finally, Black spoke, voice quieter this time. “I don’t know how to prove I’m not working for her or how to counter her when I don’t know what she told you. What an annoying woman Aurora is. She somehow muted my rats from hearing your discussion. Somehow, she continues to complicate an already delicate situation…”

  Her red eyes lifted to look at her from beneath her hood. “I understand how much your brother means to you.”

  Rachel’s lips became a line, flexing her fingers. “What a direction to take this conversation.”

  Black’s gaze flicked to her fist—not soft, not cruel, just blunt reality—before it lifted to hers to stare her down. “As weakened as you are, I wouldn’t doubt your ability to snap my neck, Rachel. All I am saying is, if I expect transparency from you, then it needs to go both ways.”

  Rachel said nothing.

  Black leaned forward, folding her arms on the counter. “With Astra, you made it explicitly clear that you expected anyone who had information on the attack on your brother to come forward. As you no doubt have concluded… Yes. I was involved, if in a background sort of way.”

  Rachel’s grip on the counter tightened, but her expression remained neutral.

  Black continued, maintaining eye contact. “Allow me to be perfectly transparent then. Everything I do isn’t sanctioned by Fable or White. Though everything I do is in Fable’s interest…much of the dirty work is done by me behind the scenes. Red, Green, the rest of Fable don’t know what I’ve done for them.”

  Rachel’s ears flicked forward.

  Black tapped a single finger against the counter. A steady rhythm to the music as if finding a tempo in it. A calculated beat. “However, after what you did to Ali Baba’s Fable… I understand why White has been so focused. What you exposed in Alibaba’s Seed—”

  “—Was Eldritch corruption,” Rachel muttered, finishing the thought. Her gaze darkened. “And if it was in his Fable…it’s in every Fable.”

  “That…is the current theory.” She shivered and turned back to the wooden counter, fingernails scraping against its surface. “That’s why White has been pushing so hard to stabilize us… Why she went into the Crystal to keep on good terms with the US government when we defied orders to pursue Dracula. Because if we keep unraveling them, as Ali Baba did, we won’t like what’s waiting at the end.”

  Rachel leaned back, staring at the ceiling for a moment. “Alright, I’ll play along. I get you’re under contract as the Pied Piper. It’s obvious enough. Aurora’s antics somehow leveled up my patience. So I’ll wait until you get what you want off your chest, or until Scarlet comes… I’d suggest clearing the air before that happens. She can be…unstable at times.”

  She frowned, following the rat through her thought process. “What does it mean if every Fable carries corruption in its heart? If it wasn’t just a flaw introduced by the Scarlet Hand, but an inherent part of the design? Perhaps it was their initial attempt with what wiggle room they had to overcome Fate’s design… Designs you were a part of.”

  Rachel’s mind spun through the implications. How many unbreakable deals Black had made that unknowingly played into Fate’s hand? How many were being pulled like invisible threads to weave a web she hadn’t even known existed? Could she not even know she was a spy? It was possible. But that almost seemed too obvious at this point. It probably wasn’t her.

  Rachel’s breath was slow, steady. “I understand the argument.”

  Black raised a brow. “Do you?”

  Rachel tilted her head slightly. “We’ve all been playing into Fate’s game, one way or another. Even breaking its strings…” She exhaled, jaw tightening. “Even that could have been a part of a larger design. But…I doubt it. Destiny played her hand.”

  Her mind flickered back—to Twilight. To the Masquerade.

  To Elizabeth’s Legend Quest.

  To Scarlet.

  To Twilight’s escape from Fate’s grip.

  Everything she had done. Everything Twilight had manipulated.

  At first, I thought it was done to break free from Scarlet… But what if, in the end, it was Twilight who has been playing the game the longest. Who knows what happened to her aftering being plunged into the Red Sea right at the dawn of The Oscillation.

  Fate has been working from before The Oscillation, but through Scarlet, she was able to be the sole figure that was outside her influence… Twilight saved us all.

  Her pulse pounded in her ears. She hated that realization. Hated how every thread kept leading back to Twilight in her mind.

  Does that mean Twilight and Aurora are working together? I know she’s building her own network through Elizabeth, and Empress Wu is a part of that grand design… What is her end game, though?

  Rachel’s fists curled against her knees.

  She forced the thoughts down and turned back to Black, her voice steady. “Whatever you’ve done—whatever deals you’ve made—I can accept that you were manipulated, if you can answer me this straight to my face…”

  Black’s gaze held hers.

  Rachel didn’t blink.

  “Are you the mole working with Fate?”

  For the first time, Black looked genuinely surprised.

  A pause. Then, without hesitation.

  “No.”

  Rachel’s shoulders loosened just slightly, but the tension didn’t fully leave. Still, every beat of her heart told her she was sincere. It was good enough for now…but they’d need to confirm it with Maria.

  Black leaned back. “I’ve made deals with a lot of people. A lot of organizations. A lot of governments. But I didn’t know about Fate. Not until you exposed her… If she is a woman.”

  Rachel exhaled through her nose. “Aurora always screws with me…”

  The rat let go of a dry chuckle. There was a twitch at that, her ears folding back and vision averting in a way that did project clear uncertainty. “That’s what she does best, it seems…”

  Large ears rising up before folding like butter, Rachel pinched the bridge of her nose. “For women who are supposed to be so damn smart, Aurora dances circles around us.” She let out a short laugh, bitter and exhausted. “Just keep this between us. If there’s a mole, I don’t want them knowing I’m looking for them.”

  Black nodded. “It’s a deal. Forgiveness for secrecy in this conversation.”

  Rachel leaned back, staring at the ceiling. The game board had been wiped clean. Fate’s string was severed. Now, everything was uncertain.

  Everything was chaos.

  Rachel snorted under her breath, rubbing her temple. “This is exactly what Aurora wanted, for me to think about her.”

  Rachel looked toward the door where the succubus had disappeared, her expression unreadable as the silence stretched between them.

  Black tilted her head, looking a tad apprehensive, then said, almost as an afterthought, “Aurora’s dead.”

  Rachel’s mind screeched to a halt.

  Her ears flicked up. “What?”

  Black folded her arms. “I just got confirmation. Astra found Aurora Bain’s body in Scotland.”

  Rachel’s stomach twisted. “How long?”

  “A while.”

  Rachel’s breath slowed.

  A cold, creeping sensation unfurled in her gut.

  The petals. The laughter. The way she knew too much.

  “Then who the hell have we been talking to?”

  Black slowly shook her head. “Whoever she is…she’s not the Aurora of the Scarlet Hand.”

  Rachel exhaled through her teeth, dragging a hand down her face.

  Then, finally—she laughed. Not out of humor, but pure frustration.

  “That bitch, I can’t believe I fell for it.” She shook her head, lips curling in annoyance and reluctant admiration. “Again.”

  Black arched a brow. “And what’s that?”

  Rachel let out a slow breath, staring at the empty counter.

  “I don’t know. That’s what makes me want to slap her… I don’t know what I fell for. A friend embroiled in chaos? In any case, I’m going to have to unpack that one later. About my brother?”

  The rat shifted to look straight at her. “It’s more than that, Rachel… I made that deal with Aurora three days after The Oscillation. If that’s the case, whoever she is, she’s been wearing her skin and acting perfectly in-sync to what the Scarlet Hand themselves expected. Whatever she is, she’s operating on that level.”

  “Noted,” Rachel muttered.

  That’s a bit less impressive than it should be, considering Fate and my misfortune basically made the whole organization fall flat on its face after The Oscillation. Now they’re rebuilding and free from Fate, things are about to get a lot more intense with them… I need to get a message to Fiona to be careful.

  Black paused for a moment before continuing. “As for your brother’s situation. Three days after The Oscillation, Aurora contracted me to discover and obtain any blueprints on Magitech that the Mexican government was financing…

  “Not two weeks after that, the USSR made the same deal with me. And the frightening part is that Aurora gave me that contract in anticipation of them seeking me out. So, I have to assume the USSR were the ones who hired Abu to bomb your brother. However, now I have to wonder if Aurora herself, or whoever stole her identity, is actually working for Fate.”

  “Or someone just as influential,” Rachel whispered, ears falling forward. “Thanks for being honest with me, Black. But, just to be sure—”

  “Maria. I understand,” Black returned with a weak smile. “It should be me who is thankful to you, Rachel. After going through that Grim Tale collapse, I think…you may be the best partner Fable can have in solving our problems. I don’t want to jeopardize that, even if it costs me my life.”

  Rachel rose to her feet, hearing Scarlet entering town again, dragging Astra along with her. “Well, I suppose that’s it for now. I look forward to working with you in the future.”

  “As do I…”

  Black slid off her stool, flute dangling as she promptly left.

  Watching her go, Rachel puffed out her cheeks. Somehow, Aurora, every passing second I want to strangle you more. But…there’s something about you that is just helpful enough to keep breathing. And dammit. Black spilled the beans. I guess I can still act surprised when Scarlet reveals who we need to go after…even if Aurora says it will be too late.

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