3. “Don’t make me laugh. Lucian is mine.”

CHAPTER THREE

"DON'T MAKE ME LAUGH. LUCIAN IS MINE."

"Brim! Get off!" I tug the blanket under Lucian's hell-cat, but she won't budge.

Instead, she purrs even louder and doesn't bat an eye at my gull of interrupting her sleep.

"If you scratch it, I can't sell it!"

It's not like she understands—or if she does, she doesn't care—so I let go of the velvet blanket she's settled on and open another box of magic-laced fabric.

It's a new trend in the magical community, and I'd be a fool not to deliver, considering I run a business now.

I still can't believe it. I get to run my mom's shop. No one else. Kevin can't infect the place with his negativity and toxicity. He's not here to tell me what to do, how to do it, and when to get home. It's mine. All mine. Just like Mom intended.

Despite Kevin's influence in the apothecary, I'm glad it never got more intense. I'm glad the Taylors kept their perversions at home. Because that means I can enjoy the store without memories of their abuse infiltrating my head.

Brim rouses from her sleep when she sees the red silk dress I've pulled out of the box. She sets her course for it, but I put up my hand and, with a sharp voice, tell her no.

My tail and wings come out, making me larger than ever, but even that doesn't deter Brim. Only when I wag my tail in front of her face does she get distracted and start chasing it.

"I swear. Sometimes I think you're just a giant cat and not a demon animal from hell," I tell her while quickly packing the dress away, out of reach.

It's been so long since I bonded with the eldritch creature from the night Ryan took advantage of me that we've become one. There's no longer a consciousness inside talking to me. But I also know I'm different now. It became part of me and my new identity.

I remember how much my mom changed over the years the more creatures she bonded with. She became more confident, cheeky, and unforgiving.

It still begs the question of what on earth she saw in Kevin and how she couldn't stop him before he took her life, but I don't like lingering on those. Beating myself up over a past that isn't mine is not healthy. Mom was her own woman, and only she knows why she made the decisions she made.

We all have our weaknesses, after all.

I do too. Lucian.

I sigh and admire the ring he gave me for the millionth time, and I can't help the smile that crawls up my face.

He's changed my life in a way I could have never imagined.

I shake my head, check the time, and continue checking the delivery. By the time I open the store, I have a pretty good idea of my backroom stock in addition to the rack of clothes on display.

There's already a line when I unlock the doors. Even though I've adjusted opening hours to fit my schedule at the academy, no one has complained or been too hard on me. The only thing I wish I could avoid is the constant questions and concerns about my missing family.

Even after telling so many people they just upped and left because they're bastards and never cared about me, the occasional client still offers their sympathies for being left behind.

As if I care.

As if I'm alone.

As if I don't have Lucian. Or Jace. Or Brim.

I work through the influx of customers—a bunch of witches, some shifters, and a few other creatures I can't quite determine. Everyone seems to know I've got a new stock of magic-laced clothes, and they're here for all of them. So, naturally, I upsell spells that would go well with them, sell a few spell books, and soon, it's time to close again. I'm pretty sure I've made more money today than I ever made working for Kevin.

"Who's useless now, dickhead?" I mumble while locking the door, and when I turn, I jump.

A tall, beautiful woman with long, blonde hair and striking blue eyes stands in the middle of my store.

"Am I the dickhead?" she asks with an amused chuckle.

"Um…no," I answer.

My tail itches at the base of my spine, wanting to come out, wanting to attack the intruder, but I take a deep breath and keep myself in check.

"Who are you? How did you get in?" I ask instead.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize you close so early."

"I do. How did you get in?"

She touches her chest with her long, manicured nails and laughs.

"Oh, I hate doors."

It doesn't exactly answer my question, but I doubt she'll offer any further explanation.

"How can I help you?"

I'll worry about how she teleported in later…because that's the only way, right? Unless she hid while we were still open.

"I don't think you can. But I can help you !" she says.

I tilt my head and narrow my eyes.

"How exa?—?"

Before I've even finished, black wings appear behind her and she's in my face, two fangs protruding from her teeth. Her previously blue eyes are an abyss of black and red.

"By giving you a piece of advice."

My own set of wings comes out, and I push my forehead against hers. The time when Yu-jin was the victim is long over. If she thinks she can come into my store, my life, and give me attitude, she's got another think coming.

"Oh really? I didn't ask for any."

She glances at my wings and laughs.

"Dear hell, what even are you? Is this a joke?"

"I'll be your worst nightmare if you don't get out of here now."

"Please, sweetheart, stop with the theatrics. You don't scare me. I'm a hell-demoness. I'm not afraid of some"—she waves her hand in front of me with disdain and grimaces—"mutt!"

"I won't repeat myself." My tail also comes out, the pointy end going straight to her temple and pressing on it.

All it'll take is a thought to pierce her pretty little head.

"That's cute. I'm starting to see why he's interested in you."

"Who?"

The tension on my tail wavers for a moment, and she throws her hand up and grabs it, twisting it back toward me.

"Whatever spell you've cast on him, it's time to end it. Whatever fun he had with you is over. Just tell him you're not interested anymore and leave him the fuck alone."

"I don't know who you're talking about," I say with gritted teeth, although I have a pretty good idea.

She's got black feathery wings and she's a self-proclaimed hell-demoness. There's no denying she's talking about Lucian.

She scoffs.

"Don't play mind games with me, little mutt. I'm stronger than you, and I will burn you to a coal before you can say my name. Do you hear me? Leave Lucian alone, or you'll pay."

I smile and take back control of my tail, slapping her across the face with it.

I can't deny taking a little pleasure when I see the thin line of a bleeding scratch.

"I'm not doing anything of the sort, you delusional woman. Lucian is mine. So whatever this obsession with him, you can fuck off. He's mine. He's my soulmate. My fiancé and my soon-to-be?—"

She screams and fire erupts from every inch of her body, covering me in its whirlwind. Good thing fire doesn't hurt me anymore, or I'd be screaming in pain.

"Don't make me laugh. Lucian is mine. Forever mine."

I blow raspberries and the fire covering me blows smoke in her face.

"And what gave you that idea?"

"He did."

It's my turn to scoff.

"Please. He would never do such a thing. Lucian only has eyes for me and me alone. Who do you think you are, bitch?"

She draws back her fire with an inhale and smiles as if her little moment of derangement never happened.

"Me? I'm his wife, of course."

His…?

His…?

His wife?

What the ever-loving hell did she just say?