Page 16 of Necromance
I nodded. “When you were alive. You were in a study, speaking to someone, but I couldn’t see who it was. It was like… like the memory was fractured.”
Lucien’s grip on my hands tightened slightly. “Has that ever happened before?”
“No,” I admitted, shaking my head. “Not like that.”
A flicker of something passed through his eyes. Curiosity? Unease? It was gone too quickly for me to decipher.
Silence stretched between us, heavy with unspoken questions.
Finally, Lucien leaned back slightly, his smirk returning, though it was tempered by something more thoughtful. “Seems I really am quite the mystery, aren’t I?”
I exhaled sharply, pulling my hands from his grasp. “That’s one way to put it.”
I could still feel the remnants of the vision clinging to my mind, like smoke from a snuffed-out candle.
Lucien’s smirk faded, his expression shifting into something more serious as he studied me. “Are you alright?” he asked, his voice lower now, more careful.
I straightened, rolling my shoulders back. The last thing I needed was his concern. “Of course,” I said lightly, waving a hand. “That was just… unexpected.”
His eyes narrowed slightly, as if he didn’t believe me, but he letit go when I turned the conversation elsewhere. An idea had formed, and I wasn’t about to waste the opportunity.
“You’re not exactly a ghost,” I said, watching him carefully. “But what about the other spirits in this castle? Can you see them? Speak to them?”
Lucien leaned back in his chair, fingers tapping idly against the armrest as he glanced around us. “I can see them,” he admitted. “Though most of them are nothing more than flickering shadows.”
“Shadows,” I repeated, intrigued.
He inclined his head, motioning around the room. “They linger at the edges of my vision, watching. But they haven’t spoken to me, if that’s what you’re after.” A lazy smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. “Perhaps they find me intimidating.”
I scoffed. “Or they know better than to trust you.”
Lucien pressed a hand to his chest, feigning offense. “You truly do wound me, little necromancer.”
I ignored his theatrics, leaning forward slightly. “But you can see them?”
He gave a slow nod as if regretting his admission.
A thrill of possibility ran through me. If the spirits wouldn’t come to me on their own, if they were too afraid or bound to something unseen, perhaps Lucien could draw them out.
“What if you helped me lure them forward?” I suggested.
Lucien arched his brow. “Lure them? Like bait?”
“More like… an invitation,” I corrected. “They won’t come to me, but you might be able to coax them out. Let them know it’s safe.”
His lips twitched in amusement. “You assume I would be a comforting presence.”
“I assume they might recognize you as part of the castle,” I countered. “Maybe they’ll trust you more than they trust me. It’s likely at least some of them know you.”
Lucien exhaled, tilting his head as he regarded me. For a moment, he said nothing, and I wondered if he would refuse.
“Alright,” he said, pushing back from the table. “Shall we go ghost hunting, then?”
I hadn’t expected him to agree so easily, but I wasn’t about to question it. Rising from my chair, I grabbed a candle and straightened my skirts.
As we moved through the dimly lit corridors, the candle in my hand cast long, flickering shadows across the walls. The castle seemed quieter than usual, as if holding its breath, waiting. I glanced at Lucien, walking beside me with that same effortless grace, his hands tucked into his waistcoat pockets as if he were merely out for an evening stroll rather than searching for lost souls.
I decided to take advantage of his presence while I had him. “Tell me about the castle,” I said, watchinghim carefully. “About the other ghosts.”
