"Yes," Victoria said simply. "All of that."
Something inside Lilith broke. The careful control she had been maintaining since she woke up, the anger she had been holding onto like armor, it all shattered at once. She felt her knees give out and then Victoria was there, catching her, pulling her into her arms as Lilith dissolved into sobs.
"I know," Victoria murmured, holding her tightly. "I know, sweetheart. It's not fair. None of this is fair."
"I can feel it," Lilith gasped between sobs. "The curse. It's inside me. Growing. Like something alive and hateful coiled around my ribs."
Victoria's arms tightened around her. "I know. That's what the curse does. It feeds on life force. On magic. And you have so much magic inside you, Lilith. So much power. It will consume you from the inside out unless we stop it."
"How?" Lilith pulled back to look at her aunt's face. "How do we stop it?"
