Be Careful What You Wish For: A Zombie Apocalypse-Chapter 494: Hallow

The house might have been gone, completely destroyed, until there was no sign that it ever existed, but the outside world, the one that hadn’t betrayed me, was still alive and well.

The moat still shimmered under the morning sun, calm and unbothered, as if it had just been waiting for this to happen all along.

Tink sat at the edge of it, one leg in the water, tossing pebbles like skipping stones. Snowflake dozed beside him, tail curled around a patch of daisies that somehow hadn’t burned. The two of them were sunbathing like it was any other day.

The bridge still stood.

The heads on the shelf were still intact.

And the cage, the one holding the heart Dimitri had given me when they had all disappeared that night, still beat gently in the windless air.

Like I said, what belonged to me would always be mine.

I walked forward barefoot, ash clinging to my ankles, the air warm against my skin. Each step took me deeper into the clearing where the old house had once stood. Behind me, the guys were quiet, but I could feel their worry.

No one asked what we were going to do next; no matter what happened, they would follow my lead.

Unbeknownst to them, I had already started.

For the first time in my life, I knew what I was. I was Balance. I was the Devil.

But most importantly, I was a queen without a castle, and even queens needed a place to sleep at night.

Just as I opened my mouth to speak, the air around me shimmered with power.

The ashes on the hill shifted, before disappearing into the wind. With a completely clean surface, something new seemed to form. A heartbeat not my own. A presence not quite real but not pretend either. It felt like...

...a wish.

Just not one that had been granted yet.

My wish, the only one I had never voiced out loud.

The ground pulsed once.

Twice.

And then, a massive structure began to rise.

Black stone and bone-white glass folded up from the earth like a blooming flower. Curved hallways with no doors. Tall, slanted windows etched with spirals of vines. A tower made entirely of silent bells.

A castle was being formed; a house was growing. But this wasn’t like the house before; this one was new.

Built from nothing but my powers and intention, the foundations itself only there for a single purpose.

This wasn’t me transforming the Dragon’s Lair into a house. This time, I was taking Papa’s advice and starting from scratch.

I took one slow step forward. "What is your purpose?" I asked softly. I wanted to know that I hadn’t made the same mistake a second time. I needed to know I had done this right.

And then, it answered.

A voice—not human. Not male. Not female. Not even alive. But warm. Gentle.

Spoken like velvet wrapped in logic.

"You don’t need a house to be safe, but you deserve one. You wished for peace, even if you never said it out loud, so I was born. I am not the house that was before; I am the will behind it.

I exist only for your well-being, for your comfort and happiness. I am your wish. You may call me... Hallow."

Letting out a long breath, I nodded my head. "Nice to meet you, Hallow. I am Hattie."

Chang Xuefeng stepped beside me, his brows slightly raised. "It sounds like a system spirit."

"It’s not," I whispered, placing a foot on the bridge. "It’s a guardian, my guardian."

The stones settled into place. Not cold like the last house. Not impersonal.

These walls hummed with something softer. They pulsed like veins beneath skin. The energy wasn’t oppressive—it was attentive. Like it wanted me to be inside of its walls. Like it wanted me.

"You are the axis," said Hallow, the voice never once rising. "The center. The still point of the storm. The last house tried to make you answer to others. I only answer to you."

Tank reached forward, running a hand over the glass entryway. It opened for him without a sound. Not like a door, I had had enough of those. Like a curtain of air parting just for him.

Beau let out a long breath. "That’s... different."

"I like it," Ronan said, letting out a long yawn.

Luca stepped in behind them, dragging his fingers along a spiral-etched wall. "I can feel it watching us."

"I see," said Hallow gently. "But I do not judge. Only she may command. You are allowed in because she wants you in."

I stepped inside last.

And the house exhaled—a quiet sound, like a relieved sigh.

The walls bloomed with light—not bulbs, but living panels of golden moss. The floors were cool beneath my feet, polished and smooth. The air smelled faintly of lavender and something richer, darker... cinnamon and bone.

And then I saw them. My shelf with the heads of my enemies, the heart in a cage. Everything that I needed was already set up for me without me even having to ask.

"There is a room for each one of your men, and your Papa," announced Hallow with a gentle voice. "Your family is my family. Because you would not have otherwise, their pain is my enemy. Their comfort is my mission until you say otherwise."

I turned back toward the central hallway, toward the one door that hadn’t opened yet.

It had no handle, only a name, in a looping black script. HATTIE.

My hand touched the surface, and it warmed beneath my skin.

"A queen needs her castle," said Hallow. "But more than that... she needs her peace. Here, you will find it. I will not speak unless called. I will not choose for you. I will only serve."

Nodding my head, I let out a long breath. This is what I needed. This is what it should have been from the beginning.

Luca walked over and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. "He’s better than the last one."

"Smarter, too," Beau muttered. "And not mouthy."

"He?" I asked, raising a brow.

Beau shrugged. "Feels like a he."

"Technically," Hallow offered, "I am whatever she wants me to be. I exist solely for her."

"I like him," I whispered. "I like him a lot."

Behind us, the sky began to brighten as the wind picked up.

And I took my first breath in what felt like days.

Papa Khaos strolled out from the trees, hands in his pockets, eyeing the house like the proud Papa he was. "Well," he said. "Looks like we’re in business."

"No," I replied, a bright smile on my face.

I turned to face them all—my men, my father, my house, the jungle far in the distance.

Out there was a future waiting to be written.

"We’re not in business."

I stepped forward, my head held high.

"We’re in charge."