Page 117 of Forever Touched

The club. They’d hidden out in theclub.

It was too perfect. Too ironically twisted. They weretrappedjust like I had been trapped. Stuck in a dangerous world and unable to leave. The sun wouldn’t set for another half hour, which meant that they were going nowhere. Not unless they wanted to burn to ash.

Knowing that they were helpless to flee, my new instincts were practicallysinging. But it was Everett who brought me back to myself, who reminded me that seeking revenge had consequences. Whatever happened next, I would have to live with the outcome. We’d both seen how devastating the aftermath of revenge could be. This was our chance to start fresh, to become the kind of leaders we hoped our kingdom would follow.

As much as I wanted to hunt down and destroy the cruel familythat had made my life hell all these years, I let the need for vengeance go. This was about justice. About making things right. Treating the Faircrofts in the same manner they had treated me wouldn’t give me closure.

It would only make me a monster.

They already knew we were coming, and that was reward enough. In their arrogance, they hadn’t bothered to plan for this outcome. An outcome where they landed on the bottom. Their coup had failed, and it was time for them to face the consequences of their actions.

Although Isla was also a Feltore, she’d insisted we let her tag along. Every inch of her skin was carefully covered up, even her face. She’d worn dark sunglasses and had carried an umbrella, but had removed them when we’d entered the club. Kade, Loch, and Kenna were also with us, along with Silver and Pepper. I’d wanted Pepper to remain in Everett’s room back at the castle, but she’d insisted that she needed closure too.

I was pretty sure she just wanted to see the Faircroft’s faces when they realized what had happened to me. I couldn’t blame her, though. I was looking forward to that myself.

We soon realized the Faircrofts weren’t on the ground floor, and our group silently split up. Loch, Kenna, and Silver took one stairwell, while Kade and Isla took the other. Everett and I headed straight for the elevators, my little mouse familiar perched on my shoulder. Without even thinking, I punched the button for the third floor, fairly certain I knewexactlywhere my ex-mistress and her two daughters were hiding.

I think you might be more excited about this than I am, I told Pepper as we ascended.

Pshh, I’m just excited to be out of that dirty basement, she replied.

I smirked.Admit it. You want to see the Faircrofts get squished.

She sniffed as if offended.Why, Adalyn, I would never be that petty. Inside this cute furry body is an angelic being. We don’t condone the act of squishing.

I rolled my eyes.

Everett caught the movement and reached over to lace his fingers through mine.You okay?

I’m great,I easily replied, even as the elevator stopped and the doors slid open. Even as I stepped onto the third floor and headed for the place that had stolen so much from me. Our companions emerged from their stairwells, and no one spoke a word as we strode toward our destination with purpose. The closer we got, the louder Madame Faircroft’s heartbeats became.

I knew they were hers. Knew she wasterrified. As terrified as I had been while under her thumb.

When I stopped outside the room where they were hiding, memories threatened to pull me under, dragging me into darkness once more.

Three years. Three years of abuse lived within those walls.

The air grew thin, suffocating. The need to hide, to shield myself behind a mask trembled through me.

I couldn’t go in there. I couldn’t go back to that world of pretend.

But before the sucking darkness could claim me, Everett’s family crowded in close.Myfamily. They surrounded me with their support, theirlove, giving me the strength to shove the darkness away. To rise up and face the root of my nightmares.

As the memories faded, I stood tall once more, squeezing Everett’s hand before letting go. I raised my fist to knock on the door, then froze, a wicked grin curling my lips.

Hold on, I said to Pepper, then raised my foot to kick the door in. As the metal gave under the impact, violently flying open to bangagainst the wall, Everett’s approval pulsed through our bond.

That was hot, he purred, making my grin stretch a mile wide.

Twin screeches of alarm reached my ears, and I wiped the grin from my face. As I entered the room, my expression was calm. Poised.Queenly. But it wasn’t a mask. I’d come to deliver justice as a queen would to her wayward subjects, and that’s exactly what the Faircrofts saw when I stepped into the space that had once been my personal hell.

“I’m surprised you chose this room. Feeling nostalgic?” I said by way of greeting. There was a light on in the kitchen, but the rest of the space was cast in shadow, the curtains carefully drawn over the living room window. Madame Faircroft, Georgina, and Octavia were standing in front of the couch as if they’d jumped up at my theatrical entrance. They were still wearing their ball gowns from last night, but their masks were long gone, revealing their terrified faces.

At the sight of me, Madame Faircroft’s expression soured. “You,” she hissed, taking me in from head to toe. “What areyoudoing here? How are you notdead?”

I took another step inside, noting the bloodstain embedded in the carpet where Councilman Torres had fallen. The air was still heavy with lavender, incense, and old blood, making my stomach turn. Beyond the doorway of the bedroom, I could make out the remains of my destroyed bed.

Instead of answering her, I said, “I know what you did. I know that you lied to me from the start about my dad. Venturi didn’t kill him.Youdid.”

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