Rhea didn't let go of Adrian for several seconds after the mirror exploded.
Her heartbeat thudded wildly against her ribs, and Adrian's hands on her shoulders were the only thing keeping her grounded.
"Rhea."
His voice was low, calm, and steady—completely opposite of the storm raging behind his eyes.
"You're safe now."
But Rhea shook her head. "Safe? She almost came through the mirror! She called you her husband—she told me I didn't belong here—"
"I know."
Adrian gently guided her to sit on the edge of the bed.
He knelt in front of her.
A billionaire kneeling.
A cursed man lowering himself.
It made her chest tighten painfully.
"She won't break through again. I reinforced this room once before."
"Before…?" Rhea swallowed. "For your other wives?"
Adrian's jaw flexed, but he didn't look away.
"Yes."
The truth stung more than she expected.
Rhea clasped her shaking hands together. "Adrian… if she came for them… why am I still here? Why didn't I run? Why am I—"
"Because you're stronger than them."
Adrian's voice cut through her panic.
Rhea blinked.
He continued, "The first two… They weren't prepared. They didn't know how to fight her. But you—"
He lifted her chin gently.
"You faced her. You didn't collapse. You didn't faint. You didn't run."
Rhea whispered, "I was terrified."
"And still you stood your ground."
A strange warmth spread through her chest, even though her body still trembled from fear.
Then Adrian stood, exhaling quietly.
"There's something else I need to show you."
Rhea stiffened. "What now?"
"A room."
His voice grew colder.
"A room this mansion hides. A room no one enters… not even me."
"If no one enters it," Rhea whispered, "why do we have to?"
"Because Lilith grew stronger tonight. Stronger than I expected. And that room is connected to her power."
He extended a hand again.
"Come with me."
Rhea hesitated only a moment before taking it.
They walked deeper into the mansion.
Past hallways Rhea hadn't seen before.
Past doors painted shut.
Past portraits with faces scratched out.
The mansion seemed darker here, older—each step echoing like a warning.
"Adrian…" Rhea whispered. "Where are we going?"
"The west wing."
"Isn't that section… locked off?"
"By design."
The air grew colder the farther they walked.
Candles flickered without wind.
The corridor narrowed, suffocating.
Rhea tightened her grip on Adrian's hand.
They finally stopped before a tall door—rusted metal, covered in blackened vines, locked with three heavy chains.
"This," Adrian said, "is the room that started everything."
Rhea felt her breath snag.
"Lilith did… something here?"
Adrian nodded slowly.
"This is where she cast the curse. This is where she died. And this…"
He placed his hand over the cold metal.
"…is where her soul still returns."
Rhea's stomach flipped. "Why haven't you destroyed it?"
Adrian let out a bitter laugh. "You can't destroy something the mansion protects."
"But if it's so dangerous—"
"It is."
He turned to her, voice quiet but firm.
"But Lilith appeared physically tonight. That hasn't happened in years. The curse is evolving. And if we don't understand why…"
He didn't finish.
He didn't have to.
Rhea already knew.
Lilith wouldn't stop until one of them broke.
Rhea drew a shaky breath. "So what do we do?"
Adrian met her eyes, something fierce and determined burning there.
"We open the door."
Rhea's heart lurched. "Adrian—are you insane? What if she's inside? What if she comes out? What if—"
He stepped closer, lowering his voice.
"This room may hold the truth we've missed for years. Something Lilith fears. Something she doesn't want us to see."
"And what if she kills us?" Rhea whispered.
"Then she would have done it already," Adrian said simply.
"You are the first person she hasn't tried to drag into the mirrors. The first she didn't touch."
Rhea blinked.
"She's watching you," Adrian said.
"Not to destroy you. Not yet."
"Then for what?"
"For fear," he murmured.
Rhea's pulse quickened.
"Fear of what?"
Adrian's eyes moved to the door—cold metal, ancient chains, and cursed markings pulsing faintly like veins of shadow.
"You," he said.
"She fears you."
Rhea's breath stopped.
Before she could question him, Adrian pulled a small silver key from his coat.
The chains rattled.
The air thickened.
The mansion itself seemed to hold its breath.
Rhea whispered, "Adrian… please wait—"
He didn't.
He unlocked the first chain.
It clanged to the floor like a scream.
The walls shuddered.
The candles blew out.
A wind rose from nowhere.
Rhea grabbed his arm.
"Adrian—something's wrong—"
He unlocked the second chain.
The floor trembled under their feet.
A faint, distant wail echoed through the corridor.
Rhea choked, "Adrian, stop—STOP—"
But he held her hand tighter, steadying her.
"We have to face this, Rhea. We don't run."
He lifted the last lock.
The third chain fell.
The door groaned, vibrating with some ancient force.
And then—
It swung open on its own.
Inside was pitch black.
No furniture.
No air.
No sound.
Just a darkness so deep it felt alive.
And then a voice rose from inside—
"You weren't supposed to come here."
Not Lilith's voice.
Different.
Older.
Angrier.
Adrian's face lost all color.
Rhea squeezed his hand.
"Who… who is that?" she whispered.
Adrian swallowed.
"That," he said slowly…
"was my father."