Page 82 of Tainted Serenity

Grey fastens the seat belt around me, and the car starts before backing away from the trees, skidding onto the asphalt road in such a hurry that my body is pushed against the car’s window.

I don’t ask how Daxton got this car, nor how he managed to find us inside the manor. I don’t ask any questions as I stare back at the chaotic mess of the manor I burned up. The flames destroy everything in their path, including the guards who are shouting commands at each other that quickly become silenced as the flames destroy them, too.

My stomach grumbles from nausea at what we have done, but at least we survived. We fucking survived, and maybe it’s time to start living. At least try to.

I know that behind me, both Arthur’s and Irene’s bodies are withering away from the flames, and I cannot help but smile to myself, realizing my soul is even more tainted now.

Ethereally tainted, and there’s no changing that. I glance at Daxton as he drives through the gates, now deserted by the guards who have hurried into the house in search of us. The car quietly leaves the property and heads out onto the roads ahead, out into the terrifying unknown. I look at Grey, who squeezes my hand with an exhausted smile on his face as he looks at me.

‘I love you,’ he whispers to me, causing an intense emotion to settle inside me as I blush, weakly squeezing his hand back in acknowledgment.

And I turn my gaze toward the tailgate window overlooking the manor behind the gates, seeing the ominous dance of orange flames as the Grimhill legacy finally disappears once and for fucking all.

To be concluded in