Page 106 of A Curse On Black Lake
“It’s not her,” Eliana says.
I glance at Eliana, hands shaking, and every fiber of my being wants to run outside. Maybe I could hug her one more time. Maybe she could tell Dad I’m trying to make him proud.
“They know what you’ve lost, and they’re trying to tempt you. Ignore it.”
“What’s happening, Eliana?” I ask her. I need to understand, or at leasttry.
“They tell me they don’t know. I believe the reason the ghosts are here is because things are changing. But the Spirits said…” she trails off.
I go back to the sofa, but check over my shoulder again. Nothing is out therefor now.I take her hands between mine, and it startles me because they’re so cold.
“What did they say?” I push her.
“They said that your father spoke to you before he died, and now is the time to tell me,” she whispers the last words.
Every muscle in my body goes taught. If I move, they’ll snap.
If I didn’t believe that the Spirits talk to her, I do now. I have never told a soul about what he said. There was no one in the house when he said it. A few people were outside, but I doubt they heard anything. Those words were between my father, myself and God.
“They told me they saw so much darkness coming. They don’t know what, obviously, but they think things will get worse. They said your dad was right.”
My cheeks puff, and resignation chokes my lungs. Part of me hoped that my father wasn’t talking tome,but speaking in general.
I knew better, and this is confirmation.
“What did he say?” she asks.
I take a deep breath trying to calm the rapid beating of my heart. Fear is a hungry thing, and if I feed it, it will get worse. “A servant of Satan is lurking in the shadows, and it has come to take everything you know and love. It will steal it in the night, consuming it like a sweet, always hungry for more. It will come for you. It comes for us all, hunting its prey, stalking in the night. Beware. Beware. Beware.”
I peek out the window again, and I don’t see another figure. Maybe they’re gone.
“Is what he said the cause of your nightmares?” she asks.
I look away, unable to answer her. When she moved in, his words plagued my thoughts because I wondered if what he said was coming true. Will she be taken from me?
I glance at her, and she’s listening to the Spirits, nodding her head with a faraway look in her eyes. “And you think they’re connected?” she asks them.
“Why would he have anything to do with this?” Eliana asks them.
“And what does that have to do with me? This is getting more complicated and confusing.” She pauses. “You’re sure?” she asks.
I drag my fingers over her wrist, feeling for her pulse.
She stares at our hands before looking at me. “They told me everything is connected and what your father said was a warning.”
My lips purse, and I squeeze her hand to reassure her or myself, maybe both. “You asked them what that has to do with you. Did they say?”
She swallows thickly. “They said that I’m going to help you shine the light on all of it. That’s all they were given.”
“What does that mean? How are we going to do that if we don’t know how all these things work together?” I ask her.
She huff’s irritated and jumps off the sofa. Her feet pace back and forth, and she grips the roots of her hair, gritting her teeth.
“I don’t know, but I’m so tired,” she says. “I’m so tired.”
I start to reach out for her and drop my hand, unsure of what I can do to make this better. She’s not mine to make betteryet,but she is my responsibility. I’ll convince her one way or another.
“Are they talking all at once?” I ask her.
