“Suit yourself.” He smirked, and I was surprised as it nearly brought me to my knees.
I backed away from him, this night, and what was coming.
CHAPTER THREE
As I entered the hall that led to my bedroom, I paused and glanced over my shoulder. I crossed my arms and turned, annoyed that he didn’t listen, of course he wouldn’t. It was only a matter of time before my father resorted to locking me away. He’d probably search for a reason to after what would surely spread about Thomas. He’d give up on me, hide me away and turn to Olivia, who fit in so naturally. He never had to worry about her.
But it was not Sebastian who stepped out from the shadows. It was the dark itself. I backed away slowly as it advanced towards me. I had never seen this before. My legs became numb as I forced them to keep moving, my eyes lost in the roiling shadow. A glass falling off the table, a door slowly creaking open, all of that I could pretend to handle. This was a new dark. I did not know how to handle this. I choked on the scream that clawed its way up my throat.
I wanted to run, but Mother and Father would know, even though no one was around to see me. They would find out. A lady does not run randomly through the hall, certainly not in a fine gown crafted of silk. Tears pooled in my eyes, blurring my vision until they spilled over. They fell in steady rivulets as I turned my back to the figure. I took one slow step forward after the other, as stiff as a board, my throat aching from suppressed sobs. I could feel it behind me, following me. My entire body grew rigid, braced for teeth.
The hall appeared to stretch before me, my door inching further and further away. My back was ice-cold as the shadow grew nearer. I took in a shaky breath, moving as fast as my numb legs would carry me. And then I heard footsteps. They were slow in succession, slower than mine but always at my back. I kept up my pace until I finally reached the door. Just as my hand met the handle, a gasp tore through me.
The shadowed figure was in front of me, blocking the door. My body began to shake uncontrollably. My throat now raw from all that I held in. To my horror, the figure raised its hand to my face. It’s icy fingers caressed from my temple, to my jaw, and down my neck. I nearly collapsed from the feeling. What came from the shadows: of endings and brutal beginnings, of terrible evil unraveling, what threatened to bring me into the earth, what would never let go.
I bit down on my tongue, clamping my mouth shut as I pushed through the figure, wrenching the door open. I tumbled to the floor on the other side of the threshold, scrambling back to the door, wincing as I closed it too hard, the sound echoing down the hall. The sobs came freely now. I moved frantically throughout the room as if a bee lost its way in my hair. Passing through the shadow felt like walking through the dead, like cobwebs housing the last breaths of countless lives long passed. It clung to my skin. I scrubbed at my arms, itching to rid myself of the feeling.
I clawed at the laces at my back, unable to reach them. I couldn’t call for Elsie. I needed out. Now. I ripped the delicate silk, tearing it from my body. The hearth was burning brightly. I tossed the lump of fabric in. The flames quickly lapped it up. I could only hope no one ever asked of the gown.
I lifted the lever for the water and sat in the porcelain tub, waiting for it to submerge me completely. I lit every single lamp throughout my bedroom and the bathroom. Not a single shadow could exist here. Or so I hoped.
As the water reached my neck, I turned off the flow and settled into the warmth. It was already late, and the fear that coursed through me took its toll. I couldn’t fight the heaviness of my eyes, giving in to drift off.
Something slid across my skin. It was cold, like the marble floors of a home lost to ivy and thickets. It traveled up my stomach, between my breasts, around the nape of my neck, pausing at mythroat. It spread out, like fingers wrapping around me, but I couldn’t open my eyes. It disappeared abruptly, and returned as it tightened within my hair, shoving my head beneath the water.
I didn’t have time to take a breath. I was falling.
I choked on my empty lungs as I crashed through the ceiling and landed in a heap on the floor. I laid there for a moment, looking up to where I had come from, expecting a gaping hole about the size of my body. Though my eyes only met an elaborate painting: of horses and men tangled with weapons, of skeletons amongst them, and swirling flames, and naked women with flowing hair, angels descending from the heavens, and shadows clawing up through the earth. An entrancing chaos.
Once my breathing returned to a steady rhythm, I sat up slowly. My once wet hair was now dry, and my body was draped in a black gown. I was in an empty ballroom, dimly lit by the fire in the hearth. A soft breeze came through the shattered glass of the towering windows, shifting the dried leaves scattered throughout the weathered floor. My eyes followed a slight creaking as a door swung open. I dared to look through the darkened doorway.
The scream died across my tongue as a figure cloaked in black came through. I struggled to get to my feet, tripping over the long train of my gown. I froze in place as they stood before me, their towering form looming. I flinched as their black-gloved hand wrapped around my waist, the other took my limp hand. I could not see their face, but they leaned in, expecting. My eyes widened as I realized, slowly lifting my free hand to their shoulder. We danced as a haunting melody came from the wind.
The figure emanated such a cold that my body shivered, causing them to bring me closer. I whimpered slightly as our bodies pressed flush together, gritting my teeth at the living nightmare. They suddenly dipped me low to the floor. I gasped as their shadowed face hovered closely over mine. And they let me fall.
The floor swallowed me up, spitting me out to the frozen ground. The leaves crunched beneath me as I tried and failed to get up. Naked branches stretched across the starless dark, coiled together like withered fingers. The frigid air bit into my bare skin, whistling through the barren woods.
The long-awaited scream tore through my throat as the cloaked figure appeared over me. Their ungloved hand turned to bone and wrapped around my throat. Their shadowed face hung above mine once more, cool breath skittered across my cheek.
And then their deep voice took hold of all my senses, consuming me whole.
“I will see you soon, my love.”
His voice held promise of an endless night without reprieve of a silver moon, of cold nestled into bone, of eternal bindings.
I pried my eyes open, glancing wildly around the room. I slapped my hand over my mouth as I noticed the water had turned to a blood red. I let out ragged cries into my hand until the water turned clear once more.
I could not tell Elsie of what this had turned into. This had become far more than anyone could handle. I wrapped my arms around my middle, attempting to hold in what threatened to unravel. And it came down on me like a landslide—I was completely and utterly alone. Save for the demon.
CHAPTER FOUR
Before I went to bed last night, I called for Elsie to ensure I woke at a decent hour every morning. No matter what. She could douse me in ice water if she had to, whatever needed to be done to stave off suspicion.
I was up and ready in time for breakfast. The demon had let me sleep, and I was grateful I appeared well-rested, given the circumstance.
“You left the ball early last night.” Elsie’s eyes roamed over me as if she could find the reason there.
I knew what she was asking, but the horrible-awful of last night would stay with me.
