The vines rose around me, framing my body like a living crown. I could feel them tasting the air, waiting for me to give the order. They wanted chaos. They wanted blood.
But I wanted her. I would not suffer a copy of me anywhere in the world. Even if it wasn't a perfect copy… there was only one Devil, one Hattie, one Balance.
The girl still hadn't moved. She hadn't blinked. Her arms were crossed, her gaze locked on my every movement like she already knew the ending and was just waiting for me to catch up.
The creature twitched.
One leg.
Then another.
Its body coiled like a spring, and I didn't need Papa to confirm what was coming next.
The moment the beast lunged, I braced myself.
It crossed the distance in seconds…its limbs clicking, slamming into the earth with such force the ground cracked under each strike. Leaves flew. Vines whipped. Its body uncoiled like a living nightmare, faster than anything that size had any right to be.
And still, I didn't move.
I just watched.
