CHAPTER 175 : MEETING THE PERSON

At the first light of dawn, Kira's eyes opened, and she got up from her bed.

The night before, after leaving the living room, she had headed upstairs, but then remembered she had to go get her weapons, and so, she made a quiet detour and went out to go see her horse.

"Hey," she whispered as she brushed her hand along his mane, smiling gently while looking at him.

Kai responded with a low grunt and nudged her shoulder, happy to see his rider.

Tied to his saddle, was a dark leather roll-her weapons pack.

A warhorse like Kai didn't just carry a rider; he was also trained to carry a small arsenal for her, and Kira was genuinely grateful that no one had touched her stuff, as she rubbed Kai's mane for a little longer before taking what she needed.

The leather roll was fastened to the side of his saddle, just behind the stirrup. It contained her bag of knives, her quiver of arrows, and her sword.

Kira unhooked them carefully, one by one, checking each with her hands in the dim, stable light.

Satisfied, she whispered a thank you to Kai, pressed a soft kiss to his snout, and made her way back inside.

When she got inside, she dropped the weapons where she had dropped her armor in the room and washed up a little before going to bed.

Now, the morning had come, and she stood in her room, dressed in a fitted black top tucked into black trousers and a lightweight black jacket that fell just below her hips.

Her hair was already tied up into a high ponytail, neat, as she walked over to where her weapons were, picked up the bag of knives, and set it on the top of her dressing table, which was currently empty.

Kira opened the bag, inside revealing her knives, which were carefully arranged and held in place with loops and compartments.

Each blade was sharpened, spotless and oiled to perfection. Some had ridged edges, while others were so fine that they looked like they could cut the air.

She selected two slim throwing knives, slipped them into the inside of her boots for easy access, then a slightly curved dagger went at her lower back, hidden beneath her jacket.

Two smaller blades slid neatly into the sheathes inside her sleeves, and then came the hairpins-long, gold pins that looked decorative and expensive but were, in fact, deadly.

She slid them into her ponytail, tucking them in a way that no one would suspect them for weapons at a glance, and then took one last look in the mirror and gave a "ready" nod to herself.

She was not sure what she was walking into, and despite being half witch, she also wanted to be prepared for anything.

With her ready, she left the mansion and made her way to the car she had used the day before, got in and drove off.

Unknown to Kira as she drove off, Bryan and Aiden were already up and knew when she left the house, although they respected her decision and didn't follow her despite how hard it was.

Kira drove, the address on the paper familiar to her.

She didn't need a map and had heard of the place, but it also seemed like whoever this person was, gave her an address that she would know, and how the person knew that, was quite suspicious.

Kira knew that she had to be careful.

The place was an isolated area, far from the main road, which was normal to Kira, considering the meetup and why they were meeting. The deeper she drove, the fewer signs of life there were, until she finally got to her destination.

In the center of the wide, open area stood a building.

"I wonder how many uncompleted and hidden buildings are in New Orleans," she muttered to herself as she turned off the engine of the car and came out, closing the door gently.

The building was large and completely uncompleted. There were no windows, no doors, nothing, except for a roof, and it could have been a mansion or a warehouse, but that wasn't any of her business, she told herself as she checked her surroundings again before walking toward the building.

The air inside the building was cooler, and the silence was heavier than it had been outside.

Kira's footsteps echoed as she walked deeper into the building-no signs of life and no sound.

She wondered if she had come too early until a voice rang out behind her, calm and collected.

"Welcome. We finally meet Kira Valen."

Instantly, Kira stopped and turned, her hand instinctively reaching for where she had placed her dagger behind her back, but she didn't pull it out as her eyes locked on the figure in front of her.

A woman.

The woman had long, very dark hair as midnight, and her skin was pale. She wore a black medieval-style gown and had a smile on her lips as she stepped forward slowly.

"Who are you?" Kira asked as she dropped her hand from her back, seeing no need for her dagger.

"I am the witch you are looking for," the woman answered, her voice clear.

"What do you mean?" Kira asked for confirmation.

Still smiling eerily, the woman gave her an answer.

"The witch who cursed your mates. It is I."

Silence fell between them for a beat, and Kira didn't move as she watched the woman, trying to read her, although she could get nothing out, the woman also watching her carefully.

Letting out a light chuckle, the woman folded her hands in front of her as she observed Kira.

"You are thinking if you should believe me," she said with amusement, like she could see straight into Kira's thoughts. "I have no reason to tell such a lie, and well, I will tell you a story of how everything started. Are you ready to listen?"

"Tell me," Kira murmured as she eyed the woman suspiciously.

"It started many centuries ago," the woman began, and stepped a little closer, but still kept a respectable distance.

"You were never born. They were never born. A witch and a leader of a werewolf pack were in love, or so was the witch to believe. The leader had never loved her and only used her for her powers."

"They did everything together," the woman continued. "But this leader was someone who loved power. He wanted to be the most powerful in the world. He wanted his pack to have more power than any pack in existence. And so, one day, he asked this witch to help him cast a spell to make his wish come true."

"Of course," the woman twirled softly as she went on with her story. "The witch was blinded by love and would do anything for him. The leader wanted to be able to change at will, but when this witch could not give him what he wanted, he changed."

"Do you know what he did next?" the woman asked Kira, tilting her head a bit as she smiled.

"He lied that she was involved with dark magic and tried to kill him," Kira murmured, something about the story sparking a memory.

Her gaze dropped slightly as the pieces came together in her mind. "He said she had used a love portion on him, and in the end, he burned her alive."

"Mmm, impressive," the woman clapped slowly, her eyes gleaming and her voice mockingly delighted. "Someone has been doing their homework."

"Baba Razz," Kira whispered under her breath, the realization washing over her. "He wasn't just telling me a story. It was a clue."

"You're Lilith," she said firmly as she lifted her head, her eyes locked onto the woman again and her voice no longer unsure. "You are Lilith."

But the woman only smiled wider and shook her head.

"No, my dear. I am Lucinda, her twin sister."