“I don’t belong to you,” I whisper, and then I pull back, but I keep his hand in mine. Part of me always thought my revenge would be like this—a dramatic movie moment where I win—but I stare at the shocked expression on his face, like I betrayed him, and it just feels like I’ve lost all over again. He tries to rip his hand away from me as he attempts to lift his other hand to remove the knife, to heal, but I beg the magic to stop him, and it pulls him down. He sinks to his knees, mouth floundering, but I don’t need to hear his last words.

I didn’t get that luxury with my parents.

And then it’s over. He falls backward, crunching into the gravel and the blood he spent years collecting. I focus on the bloom of red beneath my knife. It reminds me of a wilting rose.

I don’t want to look into his vacant eyes. I don’t want that memory. He doesn’t deserve to be something that haunts me.

I glance around at all the magicians watching me, and then at the garden—the tangle of vines and flesh and blood. Nothing seems broken by his death, but these spells have been fed for years by more than just him. I’m not done yet.

I look for Xander. He’s standing close to me. All my troupe is. Except for Reina. She holds Roman like she knows I need someone to stay with him. That I can’t do what I have to do otherwise.

Xander steps up to me and kneels, running a hand over Lucius’s eyes, and then I finally look down, but not at his face. I reach and pluck the crown from his head. I’m afraid to put it on. I’m afraid that if I let in one more sliver of power, I’ll combust.

But I have to.

I take a deep breath and think of Nadine and Willow. Their magic is in me now too, tied to this sick place. But I also have the strength of their friendship.

And that’s the thing that makes me put the crown on my head.

Instantly, my blood boils. Something warm and wet drips down my nose, and I lift a trembling hand. It comes back red. The magic wants out of all the places Lucius trapped it—every stone, every nook and cranny of this haunted place—and I can finally let it loose. But I need to hold on to it for just a little bit longer.

I turn to the hungry vines behind me. Let go.