Lillian's nose twitched as she perceived the pleasant scent that was coming off Hal's body.

Her eyelids trembled and opened up only to see Hal smiling down at her. His Sapphire blue eyes were sparkling with amusement.

The moment Lillian saw him, she visually stiffened and looked around the beautiful room she was in.

The last thing she remembered was Melinda landing a solid blow to her head after which everything went black.

Since she was here and Hal was still smiling at her so complacently, she must have been captured by the enemy.

Her first thought was to flee.

But could she?

Was the security of this Mansion so lax that she could really leave just like that?

And even if she did,

Where would she go?

To Gregory who she didn't know how to feel towards or to her Master whose fate, she knew nothing of.

She mentally shook such troubling thoughts away. She would not allow herself to remain here and be subjected to his whims, she would...

"Hellooo, Earth to Lillian?" Hal interrupted her thoughts and waved a hand in front of her face,

"You look so lost. Cheer up Lillian, after all, you are with me"

Lillian looked him directly in the eye and swelled like she was about to explode and yell out her pain but the anger made her incapable of piecing together her thoughts accurately so she took a deep breath and spoke calmly,

"Why am I here?" She asked. After all, she hated Hal and wanted him dead, so why would he even accommodate her presence.

"Is it not obvious?" Hal asked with a grin that showed off his perfect teeth.

Lillian shook her head and Hal sighed,

"I pity you" he said.

"What?" Lillian was stunned.

Hal shrugged and repeated,

"I pity you"

And then Lillian lost it,

"You pity me? You killed my son, you tore my family apart. Because of you I sought power and got stronger by absorbing the essence of dead men and you sit there and tell me you pity me? I hate you!"

Hal sighed and shook his head as though she were merely throwing a tantrum,

"No, you don't"

"Excuse me?"

"I said, you don't hate me. You never hated me. The one you hate..." The door opened and in came a weak-looking Gregory who Hal pointed to and completed his words,

"...is him"

Gregory's head was down and it was like he could not look up at Lillian.

Lillian looked from him to Hal,

"That's ridiculous. I hate the two of you. I really do" The last part sounded as though she was questioning herself but Hal ignored it.

"No, you hate Gregory and you also love him. To quote Gregory himself, There is a thin line between love and hate and you Lillian are teetering over that line.

On the day Rad died (Lillian winced) I came with two propositions, which were either to be welcomed back into the family or have a Deathmatch with Rad.

Prior to this challenge being made, I had already showcased my prowess when I punched Rad hard and yet Gregory still chose to send Rad out for the Deathmatch rather than welcome me back.

And why?

Because I reminded him of my mother.

He was ready to send his son, your son, out to what could potentially lead to his death just so he would not have to see the eyes that haunt him. Just for his own vendetta.

I remember clearly how you pleaded with him not to do so but he ignored you.

You say I tore your family apart but we both know that Gregory is the one who did that.

Once the Deathmatch was agreed to, it was still Gregory who gave Rad a Flame Maniac pill which would still have been detrimental to him in the long run.

While I do not deny that I absolutely disliked Rad and that I enjoyed killing him, I also believe I did him a favor.

I saved him from oncoming years of agony.

Think about it deeply, Lillian. Gregory is the one that is truly to blame.

He is the one you hate"

*Thud*

Gregory fell to his knees,

"Hal, son. Master, please..."

"Shut up Greggy, stepmother is thinking" Hal said with a finger over his lips.

And Lillian WAS thinking and as she did, she saw the light.

While she still disliked Hal, she could also now see that her hatred was only truly towards Gregory.

And the fact that she could not deliver the final blow on the battlefield was because, just like Hal said, she also still loved him.

She hated how she was feeling at that moment.

She felt weak.

While he had already accepted responsibility, Gregory marveled at how Hal was able to successfully turn all the blame of Rad's death on him and his pleas had been for Hal to spare Lillian any more pain because this topic of discussion was bound to end up being devastating to her.

Hal grinned in his mind at how successful he was. However, he was not very surprised, after all, the Devil was master of posing falsehood for truth.

That said, he hadn't been completely dishonest, it had been a perfect mixture of truth, lies and ensnaring personality.

Now for the finishing touch...

"It's why I said I pity you. When you said you said you had lost it all, you did not truly understand the concept but it was true. You HAVE lost it all.

But worry not, dear stepmother. Consider all you lost as part of a life in your past. A life never to be seen again and cast your lot with me and walk into a whole new future" Hal said it all with a grin and stretched his hand out to Lillian.

She looked from him to Gregory whose face was twisted into a grimace of despair and she stretched her hand to touch Hal's.

She only touched it and had not grabbed it but that was all it took for her to fall into the temptation.

She had been successfully Ensnared and tempted and as her fingers lightly brushed Hal's fingers, Lillian grabbed it completely and felt her body spasm in pleasure from that touch.

Her eyes closed immediately and she moaned,

"Mmmnnnggghhhh"

Hal pulled her under himself and captured her lips in an ardent kiss while he grabbed one of her breasts.

It was full and while not the biggest he had ever held, it still filled his palm and he squeezed softly before nipping lightly at her bottom lip.

A part of Lillian's mind registered how inappropriate this was.

Not only was Hal her stepson, but he was also her son's killer.

However, that part of her mind slowly went silent the longer Hal fondled her chest and touched other parts of her body.

Gregory stood locked in place and his face was frozen with shock as he could not believe what was going on and yelled in his mind,

'What the hell is happening here?'