Chapter 12: Fire in the Blood

The storm outside was nothing compared to the storm within Ivy.

Rain lashed against the windows of the safehouse as Mira handed her a dagger—an old, curved blade with strange etchings along its edge.

“What is this?” Ivy asked, holding it like it might burn her fingers.

“A relic,” Mira replied, loading her weapon. “It belonged to your mother. And before her, her mother. It’s said the blood of the true heir can awaken its power.”

Ivy stared at it. “You think I’m supposed to use this?”

Mira gave her a hard look. “You’ll need it. Because what’s coming… is worse than anything you’ve faced.”

Suddenly, Aiden cursed from the window. “They're circling the house. We’re surrounded.”

Ivy’s pulse kicked into overdrive. “How many?”

“Six. Maybe more.”

Mira moved with precision, positioning weapons, checking escape routes. She handed Ivy a flashlight and gestured to a trapdoor beneath the floorboards.

“If things go wrong, you get out through there. Don’t argue.”

“I’m not leaving you,” Ivy said, gripping the dagger.

“You’re not leaving for me,” Mira replied, “You’re leaving for your child.”

The first bang rattled the door.

Ivy flinched. A second bang followed—then the glass from the front window shattered inward.

“They’re coming!” Aiden growled, standing with the help of a chair, pain etched on his face.

The next few moments blurred into chaos.

Smoke grenades rolled across the wooden floor. Men in tactical gear burst through the windows and doors. Mira fired the first shot, dropping one man instantly. Aiden grabbed a steel rod and swung at another.

Ivy ducked behind the overturned table, clutching the dagger. Her breath came in shallow gasps. The room filled with shouting, gunfire, and smoke.

A man grabbed her arm from behind.

She spun, instinct kicking in—and the dagger in her hand plunged straight into his chest.

The man froze, eyes wide.

A flash of light erupted from the blade.

The force threw him backward. Ivy stumbled back, stunned. Her hand glowed faintly, and the dagger hummed with an energy she couldn’t explain.

Mira saw it and froze. “It’s started,” she whispered.

“What’s started?” Ivy shouted.

“The awakening.”

But before Mira could explain, more attackers swarmed in. One grabbed Ivy from behind, pressing a blade to her throat. She struggled, but the man held firm.

Aiden roared and charged forward—only to be tackled by two others.

“Ivy Hale,” the man holding her sneered. “You were never meant to carry the child. You’ve disrupted everything.”

She tried to speak, but the cold steel at her neck silenced her.

Then, another voice cut through the chaos.

“Let her go.”

Everyone froze.

From the shadows, a woman stepped into the room.

Dripping wet, dressed in a long black coat, her hair silver at the roots and eyes sharp as blades.

Ivy’s heart stopped.

“…Mom?”

Lilith Keller’s presence silenced the room like a gunshot.

“I said let. Her. Go.”

The man hesitated—then released Ivy. She stumbled forward, her mother catching her effortlessly.

“You’re alive,” Ivy whispered. “After all this time…”

Lilith didn’t smile. “We don’t have time for tears. I’ve come to end this.”

The men—once so sure of themselves—looked at each other nervously. Even Mira seemed taken aback.

“Lilith,” Mira breathed. “You said you wouldn’t return until—”

“The child awakened,” Lilith said, nodding at the dagger in Ivy’s hand. “She has. The bloodline lives. And now we finish what we started twenty-five years ago.”

Ivy trembled. “What do you mean?”

Lilith looked her dead in the eyes. “You weren’t supposed to survive. They altered the plan. But the moment you did, the prophecy bent around you. Not Killian. Not Aiden. You.”

Ivy blinked. “But the child—my baby…”

Lilith's eyes softened. “Will be more powerful than any of them expected. That’s why they fear you.”

Suddenly, a sharp pain stabbed Ivy’s abdomen. She gasped, dropping to her knees.

“Ivy!” Aiden rushed toward her.

Lilith knelt beside her, placing a hand on her stomach.

“It’s too early,” Ivy gasped. “What’s happening?”

Lilith’s eyes turned dark. “They’ve triggered it. A forced awakening.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means,” Lilith said, rising with fury in her voice, “they plan to take your child tonight.”

And just like that, the final truth fell into place.

The attacks. The tracking. The lies. It wasn’t just about Ivy—it was about her baby. And someone wanted to rip it from her before it was born.

A dark figure outside called out through a megaphone.

“Lilith Keller. Ivy Hale. You have five minutes to surrender the heir. Or we come in guns blazing.”

Mira’s hand shook as she loaded another round. “We’re outgunned.”

“Not outmatched,” Lilith said, stepping toward the door. “You forget who I am.”

She turned to Ivy. “You must choose now. Stay in hiding… or take control of the destiny they tried to steal from you.”

Ivy rose slowly, one hand on her stomach, the other clutching the dagger.

“I’m not running anymore.”

Lilith smiled faintly. “Then we go to war.”