The Incubus System Chapter 1143. Crocodile Tears

The Incubus System Chapter 1143. Crocodile Tears

I sighed, ripping the envelope open. The second I unfolded the letter, my stomach twisted.

Bingo!

It was from the police.

I scanned the words quickly, jaw clenching tighter with every sentence.

And then—I saw it.

My human mother’s name.

She wanted to see me. Before her trial.

I cringed. ‘Why the hell didn’t they just call or text? Why mail? This isn’t the 90s!’ I grumbled internally, resisting the urge to crumple the damn thing.

Celia hadn’t moved. Hadn’t said a word.

I exhaled through my nose. None of that mattered right now.

What mattered was that I had to sort this out. And more importantly—Celia.

I knew that look on her face. She was shutting down.

Because Mom had hurt her too much. And every time this happened, every time this woman’s name came back into our lives, Celia always got like this. I hated it.

I clenched my fists, eyes flicking back to my sister. “…Celia?”

She snapped out of it, blinking up at me like she just remembered I was there. She forced a weak smirk. “Wow. Must be my lucky day. First, I get to expose you for being a spoiled brat, and now I get a letter from the worst person alive.” Her voice was light. But I knew her too well. That wasn’t humor. That was deflection.

I sighed, folding the letter. “You don’t have to do this.”

She shrugged. “I know.”

A beat of silence.

I narrowed my eyes. “You don’t have to pretend either.”

She scoffed. “Who’s pretending?” She exhaled. “Well, you have to go, right? Another big, dramatic, mother-son reunion.”

I scowled. “Celia.”

She rolled her eyes. “Oh, come on. It’s not like you’re actually gonna forgive her. It’s just one of her desperate plays again.”

I didn’t say anything.

Because yeah.

It was.

She’d done this before.

Apologies. Excuses. Crocodile tears.

All for what?

For her.

Never for Celia. Or me…

And that’s what pissed me off the most.

Puriel, who had been silent this whole time, finally spoke. “Are you going to see her?” Her tone was neutral, but I could feel the weight behind the words.

Celia turned to me too, waiting for my answer.

I inhaled deeply. “…Yeah.”

Celia’s jaw tensed slightly. She didn’t say anything for a second. Then—she let out a forced laugh.

“Alright,” she said, smiling, but her voice was just a little too tight. “Cool. Just let me know if you need bail money when you punch her in the face.”

I huffed a half-laugh, half-sigh. “No promises.”

Celia didn’t look convinced, but what else was new?

A pause. Again.

I exhaled. “It’s this afternoon.”

She stiffened slightly, but it was barely noticeable.

I rolled my shoulders, stretching. “I guess I still have a few hours and… I bet Tiffany will be there too.” I shrugged. “Anyway, you wanna give her something? Or maybe, we could hang out after this is finished? My treat.”

Celia’s lips twitched, like she was considering it, but then she just shook her head.

“Thanks,” she said, her voice lighter than before. “But I’m not as weak as before. I’ll be okay. It feels less painful than the first time.”

I studied her face carefully. She wasn’t lying. But that didn’t mean it didn’t still hurt. I sighed. “Yeah.”

A beat of silence.

Then, I grinned. “So… want to hang out?”

Celia’s eyes lit up immediately. “Food! Buy me something sweet, okay?”

I rolled my eyes, chuckling. “Yeah, yeah.”

“But,” she added, tilting her head, “I can’t come with you.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Why not?”

She shrugged casually. “I already have plans to hang out today.”

I narrowed my eyes. “With who?”

She grinned. “Puriel, Foxy. And Olivia and Emma.”

I blinked. “Oh. Good then.” Then I turned to Puriel, my eyes narrowing slightly. “Hide your wings.”

She exhaled loudly. “Ethan.”

I crossed my arms. “And act normal.”

Puriel gave me a deadpan look. “You don’t need to tell me. I KNOW how to act normal.”

Shadow purred. “Mmm. Debatable.”

I patted Celia’s head. “And you—you need to be careful, okay?”

She rolled her eyes, waving me off. “Yeah, yeah. I got it.”

Just as I was about to return to my room, my phone dinged.

I glanced down, seeing a new text.

It was from Larry.

I frowned.

Larry: Hefvsddfp

I squinted.

“…Huh?”

“Uh. What?” Celia leaned in. “Did he just have a stroke?”

I frowned harder. “I—what the hell?”

Red tilted his head. “Maybe he sat on his phone?”

Shadow snorted. “That or he’s possessed.”

Puriel sighed. “Just call him.”

I sighed, already regretting this, and dialed.

The phone rang once.

Then twice.

Then—click.

Silence.

No voicemail. No 'hey bro.' Just nothing.

I frowned. That was weird.

Larry had just sounded like his life depended on me picking up. And now? He wasn’t answering.

Celia, leaning over my shoulder, raised an eyebrow. “Did he just ghost you?”

Rave, still lounging, smirked. “Wow. Harsh.”

Shadow flicked his tail. “Maybe he fell into the dumpster.”

Red’s ears perked. “Or maybe he got kidnapped.”

I rolled my eyes. “Larry’s an idiot, but I doubt someone would go through the trouble of kidnapping him.”

Celia tilted her head. “Eh. Could be Ruby.”

I scowled. “What?”

She nodded seriously. “I mean, Larry’s got some of the worst luck with her.”

Shadow purred. “Maybe she finally got him again and tortured him because of His Highness.”

I exhaled. Why did my life always lead to conversations like this?

Instead of entertaining whatever nonsense they were coming up with, I pulled out my phone again and texted him.

Me: What’s up? Did you make a typo?

The second I hit send—Read.

I narrowed my eyes.

“Okay, that’s twice now.”

Celia leaned in. “Twice?”

I showed her my phone.

Red tilted his head. “So, he read it immediately… but didn’t respond?”

Shadow’s ears flicked. “Suspicious.”