I LOVE YOU TONIGHT

CHAPTER TWO : A CALL FROM THE PAST

The room was stiff with the weighty scent of blood and death was heavy in the air. Lilith got down from Dan's lifeless body that was still cold on the bed. She looked at him without a single pity in her eyes. She felt no remorse instead the feeling was replaced with joy and satisfaction.

She left the old hotel room that had worn out furniture barely reflecting the heat of their encounter. Lilith knew that no one would suspect anything, not even who killed Dan. She walked briskly towards the payphone, it was ringing to. No one ever called here, not anymore.

She walked slowly tot he phone, her hand hung over the receiver before she finally decided to pick it up.

'Lilith' her father's voice was unblameable, deep and full of authority even after all these years. For a moment she was speechless with nothing to say as flash backs of old memories created a whirlwind in her mind.

'Father' she finally spoke, her voice was cool but wrapped with tension. 'It's really been a very long time' she ended.

'It has' he replied his voice neutral, but with a edge that only she could detect. 'It's been a long time, too long, it's time for you to come home' he ended.

Lilith's grip tightened at the other end of the phone. 'Why now?' she asked with a mix of suspicion in her voice. 'You know I left for a reason'.

'There ae things you will not and will never understand' he said, his voice now steady. 'Things that concern you and our family. 'You've been away long enough'.

She closed her eyes, willing herself to be strong. However, the wave of emotions threatening to break through her hardened exterior was too much to bear. She felt the tears welling up in her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. She had to remain strong.

“I’m not coming back,” she said firmly. “I have my own life now.”

Her father’s voice grew colder. “You cannot run from your blood, Lilith. It binds us. You will return, or the consequences will find you.”

A beat of silence stretched between them, thick and suffocating. Lilith’s mind raced. She had built a life for herself, far from the chains of her past, but the weight of her father’s words was undeniable. The threat lingered in the air, unspoken but heavy.

“Come home before it’s too late,” he said, his tone softening slightly. “This is not a request.”

Before she could respond, the line went dead, leaving her in the dimly lit room, the phone still in her hand.

Lilith stood motionless, her thoughts swirling in confusion and anger. She had spent centuries avoiding her past, creating a new life away from the suffocating grip of her family. But now, it seemed the past had come knocking, and this time, she couldn’t ignore it.

With a deep breath, she dropped the phone back onto its cradle and glanced at Dan’s body one last time. There was no escaping what was to come. She could feel the pull of home, dragging her back into the shadows she had fought so hard to leave behind.

Stepping over Dan’s lifeless form, she walked toward the door, her mind already turning to the journey ahead. She was going home—but this time, she wouldn’t return as the daughter they once knew.

This time, she was ready to fight.