Chapter 27 CHAPTER 27: The Mask Falls

Chapter 27 CHAPTER 27: The Mask Falls
Elizabeth''s POV 

I didn't know what I was thinking, but I knew that I was making the right choice. 

Even after all of Lucif's warnings. I still wanted to get done with it all. There was no use of waiting anymore. Not after all the warnings. And all of Marian's little games. 

I could feel her the moment she walked through the gates of the school. But I could tell that she wasn't there to look for me. The fact that she hadn't sent me any text was a good indicator. 

But I still went looking for her. What was going to be better than attacking her unawares. 

She was in the east wing. Her chocolate scent was enough to pull me to her. Like I was some kind of moth to her flame. But I was going to let her burn me. Not now, not ever. 

Marian turned to look at me, with an eyebrow cocked. She was composed. It was almost like she was expecting me. But I saw the little twitch in her eyelids. The twitch that always gave her away when she was shocked or surprised. Or even when she was lying. And now that I was looking at her, I knew which one she was feeling. 

But she was still calm and composed. Like this was just a game that she was already winning. 

“You're becoming predictable,” she told me, and I cocked an eyebrow at her. That didn't stop me from walking towards her. 

“And you're becoming sloppy.”

She got to her feet, and put one of her feet in front of her. I immediately spotted the expensive boots. The same one that my mom said she was always going to get for her. 

It was almost like she was rubbing it in my face that she was the loved child. 

“Am I?” Marian asked, giving me a small smile. 

“Yes,” I said, pushing closer to her. “You're moving a little too fast. Even for you.”

Just then, there was a little flicker in her eyes. It was almost like she wasn't expecting it again. 

There was yet another eye twitch. 

Good, good. 

It was a new thing for me. And trust me to reel in it. 

Maybe I was enjoying this a little too much. 

“You think this is about speed?” She asked, and my mind immediately went to Andy. His character might have just come in handy for the first time. 

“No,” I said, tipping my chin. “It's about control. And I think you're losing it.”

Marian's expression tightened. It was no longer the playful face she had been trying to put up this whole time. It was almost like she was showing me who she finally was, and I was more than glad that I was seeing who she really was. 

“You know,” she said, taking a step towards me, as she pressed her visitor tag against my chest like she wanted to make sure I was seeing it properly. “You weren't even supposed to live this long. It's a shame that you actually did.”

I narrowed my eyes at her and for just a second, my chest hurt. 

To think that we were related somehow. It was hard. All I had done for the most of my life in that house was to adjust. To give her space. To not make her feel like she was too much. And this is what I got for it?

“What does that mean?” I asked, with my chest tightening even further. 

“That means,” Marian said, saying the words one after the other. “That you aren't the plan. Nothing about what she said was making any sense to me. Not even one bit. 

What plan was she talking about?

“What plan?” I asked in a calmer tone. I needed all the answers. I needed to be patient. 

She looked at me, like she was thinking about just how much she was supposed to give away. 

“You think I did all of this alone? You think I even started it? I have better things to do. I would rather shop than spend my time trying to ruin your already miserable life.”

“Then what are you here for?” I asked, and she pressed her lips into a thin line, almost like she was amused. 

“I just made sure that you stayed in the plan.”

My knees buckled. “Who is behind it?” I asked, and she tipped her head back in laughter. 

By the time she looked back at me, there was something in her eyes. And I knew that look a little too well. It was something that I had seen a thousand times on my own face. 

Fear. 

“Be smart, Elizabeth,” she simply said. Then she looked around like she was trying to make sure that we weren't being watched. 

“They are already watching you,” she whispered. 

My owner stirred in my stomach. No, no. 

I had control now. I wasn't going to lose my mind here. I wasn't going to lose control of things. Not when I had come this far. 

“Then let them,” I said, and Marian took a step back like she was shocked at my guts. 

“Be careful what you invite.”

With that, she turned, and I watched her disappear along the corridor. 

Her little confession didn't prove that she wasn't going to be playing any more games. Instead, it felt like she was going to go even harder. And it was going to be the end of me if I wasn't careful enough.

Either way, she had confirmed Lucif's suspicions. There was something that was happening underground. And I suddenly felt guilty for even doubting Lucif in the first place. 

He was right. He had always been right. He just didn't want to rub it in our faces. And he had already gone through so much trouble to bring the information that we needed this whole time. 

We just took time to actually listen, and we didn't even take any action.  It was a miracle that he didn't bring it up again.

A part of me respected him for that. 

But there it was anyway. 
My number one enemy is asking me to be careful of these people. 

She was scared of  them as well. She wasn't that good at hiding her own fear. And she was the same person that I had lived with for years. 
I knew her almost in and out. 

The damage was already done now. And I knew that Marian wasn't the enemy. She was just the messenger. And even she was scared of what was coming. 

For the first time in a while, I felt a shiver run through my spine. I could suddenly feel it around the wing. 

The bad energy. 
I had to leave. And now.