Ivy's pov
We finally arrived at the mansion after what felt like an endless ride through darkness and tension.
The second the vehicles stopped outside the massive black gates, Nicholas stepped out first, calm and unreadable as always, while the other warriors immediately spread themselves around the courtyard with sharp alertness.
Weapons gleamed beneath the estate lights, engines still humming softly behind us, but I barely noticed any of it.
My attention remained fixed on the mansion.
This place.
The moment I looked at it, memories came rushing back so violently that my stomach twisted painfully.
Every horrible thing in my life had happened here. The punishments. The coven. The screaming. The blood. The beatings. I could still remember being dragged across these same grounds bruised and terrified while the servants pretended not to see.
