Liliana stood tall before her father, her sapphire eyes hard as the gemstone they resembled, as she met his gaze without blinking. So much had changed in so little time. It felt like she had been an unfinished metal ingot, thrown into the fires of grief and pulled out, transformed into something entirely different. Some of the last vestiges of the original Liliana, the shrinking violet who only thought of herself as a victim who could never stand up for herself or see beyond her own pain, had died with Astrid.

That change made it harder to rein in her darker impulses, the insidious whispers that haunted her nights, and the shadows of her mind. The time for playing victim was over and done, the thin veneer of protection it had offered her had been ripped away. There was a part of her, a not insignificant part, that she was coming to understand came from her not the original host of this body, that wanted to burn her bridges in a storm of hellfire without a care for who was caught in the crossfire.

She’d even found herself considering pulling out the pendant that still rested in its soul bound storage ring. The power it offered her was tempting. It could grant her the power to exact her revenge in a heartbeat. All it asked from her was a price she wasn’t sure she could pay. It had never told her the price it would exact the next time she used it, but she’d seen and read enough about dealing with demons to make a guess. Her soul, her body. She knew whether it actually asked for her soul or not, if she accepted its aid, she would lose a part of her soul she’d never get back.

The dangerous thing was that the price became less daunting every hour that passed that Imogen was left to walk around with no punishment. Liliana knew her time was up, not just because the danger she was under had become too great to ignore, but because she knew if she didn’t take matters into her own hands she’d give in and accept the pendant’s aid, damn the consequences and the blackening of her own soul.

She knew why the pendant had selected her, as it had with the original Liliana. It hadn’t been because of some superfluous concept, like fate. It was because of the darkness she held inside herself. The potential she herself carried to turn dark if the right pressure was applied. It was her, her soul, her darkness, that had called to the pendant and the entity behind it. In the depths of her soul, it had seen its kin.

The only things holding her back were her bonds to those who she still loved. They were the shining lights that led her from the darkness, that tugged her along the path of better choices. Her guiding stars. They were all that chained her impulses back and kept her from pulling the pendant out and accepting its offer. She didn’t want to know what would happen if those stars ever faded or were snuffed out entirely. She feared there would be no redeeming her at that point. The gods themselves wouldn’t be able to stop her if that was ever to happen.

The person she had been confronted with when grief and rage had stripped all of her bare and forced her to stare into the eyes of her own reflection was frightening. To see who it was that hid under her mask of civility was humbling. She now understood how far she was comfortable going when push came to shove, and it was to a depth she’d have never thought herself capable of a year ago. Sometimes you’d never know who you really were until you were dragged through hell and saw what pieces remained when it was over.

“This is far too dangerous,” her father said, but Liliana could almost taste his interest. She knew how to play her father, and as much as it stung to continue pretending to have some form of familial respect for him, she would bite her tongue if it got her what she needed.

“It’s as safe as staying here. The assassins are getting more bold. They haven’t ceased their attacks, and we can assume the next attack will be worse. As well, we need to show the other nobles we are undaunted. That house Rosengarde isn’t shaken by this and instead we’re coming out stronger than ever before. The fastest way for me to gain power is to get a third Bond, and the Frostfang Mountains have the largest concentration of high-level beasts in our territory. It’s the best place for me to go.” Liliana took a deep breath and pulled out a map from storage. Striding forward and placing it on her father’s desk, she leaned forward and pointed out the path she’d already chosen.

“I’ve already mapped out the best area for me to go, with the lowest chance of risk. This area has Rank 5 to 4 beasts. It’s the natural place for me to go. If I can tame a Rank 4, it’ll silence any rumors that Rosengarde has become weak,” she told her father, still holding his gaze. She saw his jaw tighten and his eyes narrow at the mention of rumors of Rosengarde getting weak and internally she smiled.

Good, his pride won’t permit a slight like that. Liliana thought as she stood straight up once more. She didn’t want to make her father think she was challenging him. He’d take it as an insult and deny her on principle if she did so. It was almost funny, in a way, how simple people became when the rose-colored glasses were removed.

Misplaced love for her so-called father had blinded her for too long, too afraid of his dismissal to ever consider standing up to him or manipulating him in any way. Now she held nothing but cold hate in her heart for this man who was as much at fault for Astrid’s death as Imogen. She didn’t need his love or acknowledgment anymore. That part of her had died. Buried in the cold ground with the woman who had raised her. She’d gladly twist and push every button and pain point of his if it got her the results she wanted, and she loved the dark irony of his aid eventually having a hand in his own downfall.

“You’d need to bring a large guard unit with you for this, and removing guards from the manor right now is dangerous. We also have the Inquisitors coming in three weeks. If you’re away, it would look far too suspicious.” Her father raised valid arguments, all things she’d already come up with counterpoints and solutions to. These and hundreds of others. She’d prepared for this meeting like a general prepared for war, covering every variable and building multiple contingencies.

“I need only one guard with me. A large unit of guards would not only leave the manor with less protection, it would make me an obvious target. I’ve already been attacked while outside of the manor with enough guards to take out a village. For something like this, we need secrecy, as few people need to be made aware of this as possible. Preferably kept between me, you, and the guard who comes with me. And I can be back in time to see the Inquisitors provided I leave tonight,” Liliana fired off her rebuttals with confident ease, her voice firm and her posture remaining perfect. Her eyes never left the stare-down she was in with her father. She’d swear she saw a small smile ghost across his features, almost too fast to notice.

“A single guard means you’ll have very little protection if another assassin, or multiple, come for you. Not to mention the possibility of running into high rank beasts in the mountains.” Her father leaned back, and she almost felt like this was becoming a game to him as he tried to poke holes in her plans.

“Not if the guard is high-level enough and has any kind of stealth based skills. If no one knows we’ve left and no one knows where we went, they won’t be able to trace us unless you tell someone,” Liliana responded.

Two can play games, father mine. Liliana thought as she watched irritation spark in her father’s eyes.

“Who would be high enough of a level to handle the possible high rank monsters and assassins?” Her father asked, but Liliana had a feeling he already knew her answer.

“Silas. He’s the guard captain, so he has stealth skills, if only to be able to train the scouts. He’s the second highest leveled person in the manor after you, and he has a good second in command who can take over for him while he’s gone.” Liliana bit back a smile. Her father had so easily fallen into her ‘trap.’ This conversation was going as she’d predicted. “There is a reason to be gone. Considering Astrid was his fiancée, it would be expected for him to take leave. No one would suspect anything.” Liliana could barely keep her smile off her face. Checkmate, she thought as she watched her father.

“You’d leave our manor without its guard captain in this time?” her father asked, one eyebrow raised.

“You can manage without him. The assassins are after me, not anyone else. Otherwise, we’d have seen attempts on Alistair or the twins. Or even you.” Liliana raised a brow and only the small inclination of her father’s head, reluctant as it was, showed she was right. He’d had no threats against his life recently.

“Whoever is trying to do this, they’re not trying to cripple the duchy, they’re trying to kill me. Maybe to send a message to you, maybe because I insulted someone who holds a grudge, perhaps because of my relationship with the crown princess. Who can tell? But with me gone, it is unlikely anything will happen. You can even say I’ve been sent to a temple for my grief, enough servants have seen me refusing to exit my rooms or take my meals that they’ll believe I’m mentally damaged at this point,” Liliana handed her father the cover stories on a silver platter. She didn’t even really need his approval for this. It would just make things easier if her father was pulling strings for her.

“Silas is the only guard we have that makes sense. His disappearance won’t be questioned. He’s versatile and strong enough to either prevent the assassins from finding us in the first place, or kill them if they find us. He’s also the only one who could take on any of the beasts in the Frostfang Mountains if they travel out of their known areas while I’m there,” Liliana finished her argument and watched her father closely, taking in the way his eyes clouded as he considered her proposal.

She knew his pride and greed would win out. The man craved power, and she was offering him a chance to redeem his house’s tarnished honor and to consolidate his power further. She’d be marking herself as a prodigy without a doubt if she came home with a Rank 4 beast so shortly after getting a rare Rank 5. She didn’t care anymore if others thought she was a prodigy, hiding hadn’t protected her or those she loved. She’d use her god given boons and cheats to their full extent now, whatever it took.

For her plan, she needed to go to the Frostfang Mountains, and the path she'd take wouldn't be the same one she'd told her father of. Call it another contingency, yet another cover story to hide her true machinations. She'd come home with a third Bond, if only to keep her father fooled. But her real reason for going to the Frostfang mountains was because it was the only place she could get what she needed to see her plan through. She needed to be back by the time the Inquisitors were here as well.

After all, what was more damning than a confession straight from the lips of the murderess herself?

“Fine, but if you’re not back at least a day before the Inquisitors, I’ll send out half the guards to drag you back, dead or alive. And if you don’t come back with a new tame, we’ll need to discuss making your little vacation a bit more lengthy,” her father’s voice held a threat. She’d cornered him with this, and he was asserting his dominance now. She’d get what she wanted, but if she didn't hold up her end of the bargain, he’d come to collect his payment in another way.

Bring him power or lose her own, and her freedom. Liliana finally smiled as she held her hand out for her father to shake. His eyebrow raised again, but this time she saw an actual smile tugging at the sides of his lips as he took her hand and shook on their deal.

“Perhaps you got more from me than just your looks, daughter,” her father said as he leaned back and Liliana barely snapped her mask back in place before revulsion flooded her.

“That is praise I do not deserve,” Liliana responded, deflecting the compliment. It was no compliment in her mind, and she didn’t believe she deserved to be compared to this cruel man who she shared nothing more than DNA with.

“Maybe, maybe not. But it certainly wasn’t Violet’s daughter who walked in here today,” Frederick Rosengarde said, his smile still lurking on his lips. Liliana was almost stunned. That was the first time she had ever heard her father say her mother’s name in any memory she had. Rage followed the shock, frigid flames licking her chest. This bastard dared to utter her mother’s name? He didn’t deserve to lick the dirt on her grave, let alone to speak her name.

Liliana held her rage in check, reminding herself of that she needed to stay on his good side if she was to see Imogen finally punished for her crimes. But it was hard as she curtsied to him and turned on her heel. Her head stayed high and her back straight, but her fists were clenched, the nails digging deep into flesh. [Invisibility] stole over her form, hiding her from sight as she opened the study door. She’d come into this room cloaked in it and she would leave the same way, ensuring no one would know of their discussion. She’d slipped her father the note four days ago, telling him she’d be visiting him today to discuss something that had to be kept secret. It was amazing how predictable the servants were when she bothered to pay attention.

He’s right about one thing. It wasn’t Violet’s daughter who stood here today. It was Astrid’s. Liliana thought as the heavy wood door slammed behind her.