Page 77 of Wolfsbane Hall
Anger whirled in Celestine’s stomach at the word.Fuck all of them. They were all in on it the whole time.
25
Saturday, November 11, 1939
Grand Ballroom
Celestine’s insides felt like quicksand. Cracks formed in her heart like fault lines spidering out. “You’re all in on this?” Her eyes grazed over all of them and landed on Vivian. “Even you?”
Vivian averted her eyes and pretended to pluck lint off her dress, and an anchor dropped in Celestine’s heart. How could she have believed that at least one of the Ashbrooks was on her side? She should have known.
She was so foolish.
They were all villains—all monsters. But Vivian’s betrayal somehow felt so much sharper than the men’s. With the Phantom’s presence, Celestine knew one of the twins or James had betrayed her. She’d somehow gotten used to that fact, but she never imagined Vivian would be in on it. And not only that, but she was enjoying it. She said the family came to watch the cast desperately try to discover the Specter’s identity but fail.
They came to watch them die like animals in a cage.
They came to bathe in her blood.
Yes, all Wolfsbane Hall patrons came for a horror show—that was the point. But never had they come to watch the cast be tortured. They came to watch their friends, family, or loversin horrible situations, but there had always been resurrections—an out.
There was always hope.
Not anymore.
But worst of all, the men, including Vivian, knew it was a hopeless night, and they came anyway—for entertainment.
They were gladiators in ancient Rome.
Celestine fell back in her chair and rubbed her temples. If they were betting on the cast’s deaths, did that mean the riddle was even more impossible than Celestine first imagined? Did the riddle even have a correct answer?
Celestine played with a sequin on her dress. After James had destroyed her earlier outfit, she’d asked Wolfsbane to provide her with another. It had, except what it chose was forged from passion. It clung to her curves and fell down her waist like liquid silver, dripping like mercury from a broken thermometer. The waist was gathered into a tightly knitted corset that split at the middle, showcasing her considerable assets.
Bile rose in her tight throat, and she turned to Vivian. “Have you placed bets, too?”
Irene clapped her hands. “Oh, yes, it’s been immensely fun. I have you dying next. I also have you being the first one to guess the Specter’s name wrong.”
Dean, under his breath, said, “And youwillbe wrong.”
“Probably why you wanted to kill her, Mother.” James’s voice was pure wildfire, ripping through a forest and coming for rich houses.
“It doesn’t count if you kill her.” Jon pulled a notepad out of his suit jacket pocket. “She has to guess the Specter’s name wrong.”
“But if she dies, then she won’t be able to guess, and I willwin anyway,” Irene said, petting one of her over-the-top furs. “I only bet she would die first.”
“Well, you are going to lose, Mother.” Vivian tapped her fingers on the table nonchalantly. “Celestine will win this absurd game.”
“True,” Everett said, leaning against the piano and still very drunk.
The sentiment didn’t make her feel any better. They set her up and watched her like a little pathetic mouse in a maze. They were all sick. Who cared if they thought she’d win it?
The only people she could trust in this house were Frances and Babette.Fucking Babette.What had the world come to? Everything was so fucking rotten.
The valves in Celestine’s heart clenched.
“Was Lorraine’s death just a charade?” Celestine swallowed, the burning sensation her only comfort. It fucking hurt, but at least it meant she was alive. “And all your secrets being exposed… Has it all been fake?”
A soft wind skated through the room, and her voice carried on it like a haunted requiem. Her song was met with the thrumming dark harmony of the Phantoms as he said, “Oh, no, Sweet Celine, they’re playing a game as well. They just always enjoy the suffering of others, but trust me, lovely, their deepest, darkest secrets have been plaguing them all night long. Everyone is playing a slightly different game tonight.”
