Hailey's POV
The moment I turned, the world slowed down.
Emilia wasn't Emilia anymore. Not the timid girl I once nursed through fevers or the sharp-tongued rebel who still laughed at silly stories. What stood before me was something unrecognizable—horns like twisted obsidian, wings darker than night, and a skin that shimmered with eerie crimson as if fire pulsed beneath it. Her eyes—those eyes—were now voids, brimming with shadows and hate.
"Not if I succeed in killing you first," she had said, voice thick with malice, echoing around the walls like it belonged to a thousand monsters speaking as one.
My children whimpered behind me, clutching my legs, their tiny fingers trembling. I drew them behind me, shielding them with my body and fury.
"Momma, what is going on."
"Run," I said quietly, never taking my eyes off Emilia. "Go down the hallway, into the light. Don't look back."
"But Momma..."
"I said run!"
