Page 31 of Premonition of Peace

“Please, August. I have to do this alone. I need you to trust me.”

His nostrils flared, and a moment later he nodded, disappointed but resigned.

“Thank you,” I breathed in relief. “We’ll raincheck breakfast.” I shot a pointed look at Lucifer. “Alone, next time.”

August pulled me into a tight hug and planted a kiss on the top of my head. “Be careful.”

“I will,” I promised, before heading out the door with a stormy and silent Lucifer in tow.

As we got to the car, I rounded on him. “I don’t have time for this right now, but please know that I’m mad at you for what you just pulled with August,” I said bluntly. “That wasn’t how I wanted to do that. It wasn’t your place.”

Lucifer raised an eyebrow, his expression unreadable. “Noted.” I ground my teeth and took a deep breath.

“ And even though I’m pissed at you, thank you for doing as I asked and actually helping me the way I need.”

He just hummed in understanding. “Consider it done, little witch,” he said, his tone serious. He pulled me into his arms for a brief, but strong hug. “Be safe, and don’t do anything crazy. You don’t have to face every choice alone. Remember that.”

He let me go with a lingering kiss to the forehead and I slid into my car without another word. He held the door open for me, letting me climb in. I drove away watching him in my rearview mirror as he walked the opposite way, pulling out his phone as he went.

Driving to my family home, my mind raced with thoughts about this new development. Carissa was dead. It felt surreal. She had been a constant tormentor in my life, a presence that was more malignant than familial. Despite this, her death definitely disturbed me—not because I felt a loss, but because I was sure it was connected to everything else that had been happening.

As I drove, I felt the pull of my memory loci, but I kept my focus on the road. My different selves were arguing. As usual. The best I could do was let them talk. I could listen, but I couldn’t allow myself time to retreat into my mind.

The Warden was the first to speak.“Carissa’s death can’t be a coincidence. It’s too neatly aligned with everything else going on.”

Ann agreed.“We need to consider the possibility that her death is part of a larger plan. With everything going on with Sasha and the other murders, Carissa’s death could be a strategic move.”

“But what if we’re missing something?”Peace asked.“What if her death was a warning or a message? What if it’s a trap?”

Caretaker hummed.“Carissa may have been awful, but she was still family. Her death means something. We have to be careful.”

Bad Nat scoffed.“Who cares about the why? The point is she’s dead, and it’s connected to everything else. We need to focus on the bigger picture and figure out our next move against Not-Sasha.”

“We know her behavior was strange last time. It’s possible she was influenced or controlled by something—someone,”Ann suggested.

“You think it’s connected to Sasha? Er, Not-Sasha? Or whatever it is that’s in her?”Caretaker asked.

“That could make sense,” I mumbled, glancing at the clock and then back at the road. “The question is what’s the connection? All of this is intertwined in something bigger; I can feel it.”

Peace spoke up, her voice steady.“All of this is just saying we don’t know exactly what we’re facing here. We can’t rush into this blindly. Maybe we should have let one of our guys help us.”

Bad Nat’s annoyance was barely contained.“Of course you want to play damsel and let the men do all the work. This is our problem, we fix it.”

I cut through all of the arguments, speaking out loud. “We’re going to Carissa’s body, and we face what we face when we get there. We can’t hide out and we’re not letting the guys handle our business. We’ll gather information and be prepared for whatever comes next.”

The Warden and Ann hummed in agreement, satisfied with the plan. Peace and Caretaker didn’t argue, but they were clearly worried. They knew the decision had been made.

Pulling in front of the massive estate, my stomach churned with anxiety.

The front door creak echoed ominously as I pushed it open. The house was eerily quiet and every step I took seemed louder than normal. I found Carissa where the picture indicated, in the living room, her lifeless body sprawled on the floor. Her skin was pale, and there was a vacant look in her eyes.

What I didn’t expect was to find another person in the room. Kneeling beside the body, her hands in her lap was none other than my twin sister.

“Kat?”

With her head hung low, she didn’t look up as I moved further into the room. The chestnut brown hair that we shared covered her face. Her shoulders were hunched over and the whole scene was fucking bizarre.

What the hell is she doing here?Part of me wondered if this was something she did, like some of the other victims. I knew she hadn’t been the cause of all of those deaths, but her explanation had been shaky at best.

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