It was slow at first and then it hit all at once, tearing my soul from my body. Bones levitated out of my skin, the buzz tingling chilled limbs. An electrifying heat zapped from cell to cell, and my ears popped, deafening to an nonexistent explosion.
I nearly collapsed and buried my head between my legs to regain my senses. My nails dug into the seat, leaving crescent shapes in their wake.
The burning electricity wreaked havoc until it dissipated into nothingness, and I returned to the familiar jostling pain of the carriage.
“I should have warned you,” he said. “It has been quite some time since a mortal crossed the boundary. I often forget the effects that it can have. It’s harder to cross when the moon is not at full strength.”
The carriage came to a jolted stop, and he leaped out, offering a hand to help me down.
Under the waning moon, the castle was a fortress of ominous beauty, with its tall spires and stone walls standing against the flashing bolts of lighting of a spring storm rolling in. The structure was eerily similar to Saint Luke’s Cathedral, as if it were a replica.All that it was missing was the stained glass imagery of the gods to judge me further into hell.
I’d mistaken it further for a church, if it not for the ghosts dancing around the grounds as we climbed the stone steps. My heart pounded against my ribs, reminding me I was not in a dream.
All of this was real.
I followed a man who feasted on blood and who lived in a castle inhabited by ghosts.
He opened the large wooden door into a space completely different from the sacred church I had wandered into so often as a girl.
A large chandelier hung in the expanse of the space, and two staircases led to a balcony overhang. My heels clicked on the granite floor as the man led me into the middle of the room.
“Ebony!” he called out. “We have a guest.”
A cold wind blew, and I shivered, rubbing my arms.
A voice tickled my ear. “I swear if it’s another one of those, I’m going to—”
I swung around.
“My, my! She is gorgeous!”
A white apparition of a woman’s face appeared first, and a sharp nose and shadows where her eyes should have been pressed closely to my face.
I yelped, jumping back, the urge to cough nearly on the tip of my tongue as my chest tightened. “Who are you?”
When she smiled, her white lips curled up toward her hollow eye sockets.
“I am Ebony Whitten. I am the keeper of Castle Briar while Master is away.”
The strange man cleared his throat, snapping both mine and Ebony’s attention. “There are a few rules you must abide by during your stay. One is that you are free to explore the grounds as you like except for the west wing.”
“What’s in the west wing?” I asked, stumbling into him as he stopped mid-stride.
He turned, brows furrowed. “The west wing is forbidden. End of story.” He paused. “The second rule is that you are to dine with me every night and without fail. During which you are to guess my name—my true name. If you guess correctly, you win your freedom.”
“And if I don’t?” I asked, the ring a glinting reminder.
The man from the cemetery and the ball—that was a dream, a sweet, pleasant one I’d courted of my own accord. The man before me was the devil, a beast who’d take my life with one press of his mouth against my neck, snapping me in two like a rag doll.
The stranger began his ascent along the grand staircase and trailed along the banister, appearing lost in thought, his eyes downcast as long strands obscured his face. His lips were curled into a heinous smile as he leaned over the rail and said two simple words.
“You die.”
I was quickly shuffled into a room by Ebony. I avoided looking into the dark orbs where her eyes were, both to be polite and to not fry my mind further by trying to figure out how she sees without them. She drifted through the endless hallway, guiding us down rows of doors. The section’s musty smell was apparent, as were the spiderweb-draped crevices and dust. Stone walls kept the place cool to the point of freezing, and I had to refrain from tearing my dress in two to provide at least a little comfort.
Ebony stopped outside a door, producing a key. “I’ll leave you to get settled. The wardrobe is stocked with dresses from the last guest who had stayed here, although your options may be limited compared to what you are used to. I’ll see to it that we get you the proper clothing in the coming days.”
“The last guest?”
