Page 49 of The Call of Crimson
Dressed in a white sleeping gown and wrapped in a thick wool robe, I silently glide down the dark hallway. The stones beneath my bare feet hold a chill that comes with the onset of the autumn season.
I nod to the few guards I pass, letting them know I’m alright. They pay me no attention as I turn down a dark passage. There are no windows lining this hall, no moonlight to light my way,and no lit sconces. I conjure a faerie light to follow along with me as I walk.
Since the entire castle now knows I hold a Gift, there’s no point in hiding my magic. The only person I feared discovering it is dead, by my own hand.
No one will ever use me again.
Shadows flicker as I pass down the hall, the dim light bouncing off every stone that makes up the walls.
“Traitorous bitch…”a haunting voice whispers.
I come to an abrupt halt, my eyes darting around my surroundings in search of the voice.
Nothing.
I’m alone, but it doesn’t feel that way.
I push forward, determined to get out of this passage. For several more minutes, all I hear is the soft pad of my feet against the stone floor.
“Stupid girl,”the phantom voice hisses. I feel putrid breath against my ear, and a shiver wracks my spine, covering my flesh in goosebumps.
I flip around, hand raised and ready to attack whoever is behind me.
Again, there is no one.
Shoulders tense, I turn back in the direction I’m heading. I’m officially done with this hallway and whatever ghosts haunt it. My speed increases, bordering on running, as I search for the exit from this nightmare.
Spotting a heavy wooden door, at last, my brisk walk turns to a full-on run. I yank on the iron handle, praying for the door to swing open.
It doesn’t budge.
I groan, tugging at it again with both hands. It creaks and moans, eventually budging an inch.
“Come on, open!” I shout at the stubborn thing.
An eerie sensation floods my body as I sense eyes on me. My throat constricts like there’s a hand wrapped around it.
It squeezes, sharp nails digging into the flesh of my neck.
Finally, the door relents, a loud scraping groan echoing around the passageway as I pull it open.
Bursting through the now-open doorway, I suck down fresh night air as the choking sensation dissipates.
A cough rattles through my chest as I pull oxygen into my burning throat.
I pull the door shut behind me, but don’t let it latch. I’d prefer to find a different way back, but don’t want to risk being shut out if there isn’t one.
Leaning against a wall, I inhale deeply, waiting for my breathing to return to normal. My eyes open wider as I take in the beautiful garden before me.
This isn’t like the castle garden Elijah had found me asleep in. There were no neatly trimmed rose bushes or well-kept flowers with stepping stones between them. This was wild, and raw, and savage, and utterly breathtaking.
Moonflowers with creamy white petals opened to the light shining down on them. The scent of night-blooming jasmine catches my attention right before I find the pink and yellow blooms amongst the moonflowers. The combined fragrance soothes something inside of me.
A soft violet glow emanates from the center of star lilies scattered throughout the space. Unlike any other lily, the star lilies were said to be created by Revna, the goddess of night, as a gift to her children. They resembled any other lily under the sun, but at night, they let out a soft glow so her children could always find their way back to her when it was darkest. They bloomed year-round, never missing a night, no matter the weather.
All around me, the flowers grew wild, covering wherever they pleased. In the center of the space surrounding the tree was aclearing of grass where no flowers grew. A sense of deja vu crept through me, a memory I couldn’t place.
“You always loved this garden as a little girl,” a soft voice says.
