Page 254 of Bound By Crimson
She crouched near the narrow attic door and pressed her ear to it.
Silence.
She listened longer, counting breaths. The house made its usual night noises—groaning wood, humming pipes—but no voices. No footsteps. No locks turning.
This was it.
She opened the door slowly, heart pounding, and slipped through.
The stairs dropped in a straight line, every step pressing deeper into darkness. The air in the crawlspace was tighter than she remembered. Cobwebs clung to her face, her arms, her lashes.
She swallowed hard and pressed on, every creak beneath her—a warning.
Cautiously, she crawled into the closet.
Once inside, she froze at the door.
Listened.
Still quiet.
She pulled it open an inch. Then another.
Malachai’s bedroom.
Empty.
The scent of his cologne still hung in the air. Sharp. Familiar. Haunting.
She stepped out, careful not to make a sound.
The room felt like a crime scene. Once a place of comfort and love, now a place of betrayal and lies. Her stomach turned.
She crossed it quickly, hand tightening on the doorknob to the hall.
It opened with a quiet click.
The hallway stretched long and dim, the sconces flickering.
She moved silently, heart racing, sticking to the walls.
Every corner she turned, she expected to see her.
Editha.
A voice. A shadow. A hand reaching.
But there was nothing.
The nursery was just ahead.
She reached for the nursery door with trembling fingers.
She turned the knob and opened it a sliver—
And froze.
Her heart slammed against her ribs.
