As Lilly breathed in and out with her eyes closed, she heard something beep constantly next to her. Opening her sleep filled eyes that were heavy and drowsy, she tried adjusting her eyes to the light that came in through the windows. It took her some time to realize that she was in an unknown room with the beeping sound continuing from the monitor.
Turning her head slightly, she found someone's head resting on her bed. It was her best friend Gwen who was sleeping with her eyes closed.
Where were they? She tried remembering but her head hurt. Seeing something on Gwen's arm she got up very carefully to see a gash on her arm and soon everything started coming back to her.
The loss. The betrayal. The pain. Everything.
Rose had knocked the door to alert them. After that, they had gone out to find her mother lying on the floor dead. Ace had talked about how he had used her to only get his true love back to life because she was the lost demon's soul. Her heart began pounding in her chest and her breathing turned shallow. She couldn't breathe and the monitor which was connected to her started beeping faster and louder which woke Gwen from her sleep.
"Lilly?" Gwen called out her name worried, "Doctor!" With the shock she was going through, she didn't realize people come from outside into the room.
"Lilly, breath. Calm down," the doctor spoke to her.
"What's happening, Elvis?" it was Lilly's father, Julius in the room along with the witch king who was a specialized doctor as well.
"She's having a aftermath shock. I think she was recollecting what happened and is trying to take in the state of shock," Elvis explained to her father and she felt someone hold her hand, "Focus on my voice Lilly," the witch doctor said to her soothingly.
"Do you need water?" he asked her to which she nodded her head. Pouring the water in a glass he handed it to her.
The door to the room opened again and this time it was her teacher Gerard who worked for the dragon king who stepped inside with creased lines on his forehead, "Sir, the meeting has begun and requires your attendance," he spoke to her father, "And there's a new proposal drawn."
Her father pursed his lips before looking at her. Bending down towards her, he placed a kiss on her forehead and left the room with her teacher. Seeing Gwen look anxious she wondered what it was about. The witch doctor, Elvi, went to a drawer to pull out a bottle to reveal a few pills.
"Here," he said handing it to her, "These will calm your nerves," after taking it silence filled the room. She had so many questions popping in her head and she was confused. Mustering some courage, she asked,
"What happened?"
"You were unconscious for nearly forty-eight hours, Lillian. The day your family and the others went for an outing, Ace and his fellow mates attacked to get you as you are the demon's soul that can revive the dead. His father, Weshes didn't know something like this would happen. We didn't know you guys were in contact with him," he said walking towards the window, "It was unexpected for him to do such things, I believe he told you why he did it," he looked at her.
"He wanted to bring back his fiance from the dead," she whispered but they caught to it.
"He what?!" Gwen exclaimed shocked and taken aback at the same time. Lilly smiled weakly at it. Thankfully Elvis spoke,
"Ace's mother was searching for a bride when she decided to set him up with his childhood friend, Claire. Like a storybook, they fell in love but Claire fell sick due to an undetected sickness and she died. Weshes told us that Ace had asked for some time off from the kingdom and had been away for more than a century," he went on to explain, "We believe during that span of time, he didn't use it to mend his heart but to find a way to get her back as in restore her. And the only way to get her back was your soul."
"How can Lilly be a soul?" Gwen asked him confused, "Aren't souls supposed to be floating and transparent beings?" Lilly had the same question herself. How could it be possible?
"Because you are a demon's soul," he responded, turning around to meet her eye, "When your father found you that night you were a baby wrapped in a blanket who was left on the street. Your father didn't get to see that night who had left you there but took you in and loved you. Your parents decided that they would take you to the demon world once you were of the age five but before that, you showed signs. There was a protective aura surrounding you one night and it was enough for them to know what was going on. Of course, you are still a human with no special powers but the only difference is your soul can be used to bring back life."
"Just like that?" Gwen asked him.
"No. Like for everything, there's a limitation where the soul can be drawn out twice in a year during a full moon. My guess is in the month of November and June. I don't know how it exactly works. Regorzil, Weshes, Canrart and I were the only ones who knew about it apart from your parents. Though Weshes had nothing to do with the what happened just like Cole. Were you close to Ace?" he asked her and at that moment she didn't know what to say. Her silence was enough for him to understand.
"What about my mom?" she asked him and saw a look of sadness pass through his face.
"It is hard to say anything about her. She's still under surgery," he said coming towards where she was to place his hand on her shoulder, "We couldn't get Ace's and one of his fellow mates body except for some residues. Did you ever find anything strange around him?" he asked her and her thoughts drifted to the time they had spent together. Memories that she had cherished had now turned painful.
"His reflection," she said in realization.