Page 42 of Once Upon a Midnight Dreary
A strangled gasp gurgled up her throat.Either from the near fall or the fact he was holding her against him.She clutched his sleeve, her heart tumbling at both his nearness and her misstep.
She was uncertain how he managed to move so fast, but she was grateful.She tilted her head up.Their faces were inches apart.
“Careful.These old stairs are treacherous.”
“Thank you,” she managed, her voice but a whisper.
But that’s not what she wanted to say.She wanted to tell him she saw his portrait and that he was exactly the same as he was now.Andhers.She wanted to tell him knew Lenore haunted these halls.
But she didn’t.She remained silent as he took her hand and walked with her down the remaining steps.At the foot, he released her.
He made a motion toward the dining room.“Ready for luncheon?”
She nodded and followed him.As she did, she felt the ghostly presence of Lenore behind her.
That night, a storm came.Soft, at first, with faint rumbles of thunder.Lightning lit up her window, casting an eerie flashing glow across her bedroom floor.Unable to sleep, she shoved the blankets down and rested on the bed’s edge.
Her room was cold.
She recognized that cold.
Rising, she snatched her dressing gown off the end of the bed and pulled it on.She put on her slippers and grabbed the single candelabra on her bedside table.The flame flickered as she whisked open the door and peered into the dark hall.
The manor was quiet.
As she stood in the threshold, she glanced down the length of the hall to Gabriel’s room.Light slashed into the hall.His door was open.She headed to it and peered inside.But it was empty.He wasn’t there.
Her footsteps were light as she made her way to the stairs.Holding the candle in one hand, she gripped the handrail in the other, taking care to make slow, methodical steps until she reached the bottom.
Pausing, she glanced toward the darkened parlor.She heard faint notes of the piano.As though someone tapped the keys.Not a tune.Just a note here and there.
“I’m not afraid of you.”But even as she said it, the fear clotted the back of her throat.
She turned away from the parlor and headed for the sitting room.The thought of the comfortable old sofa and a warming fire sounded good.Like the best way to wait out the storm.
As she rounded the corner, she saw faint light flickering from the doorway.As though a fire was already lit in the hearth.
Gabriel?
If he was there, she wasn’t certain she wanted to disturb him.But then, having him for company would help ease her restless mind.
When she entered the room, she halted.There he was, on the sofa, a tattered volume in his hand and the firelight illuminating his features.When she entered, he looked up.Surprise flickered through his gaze as he put down the book and rose.
“Did the storm wake you, miss?”
He’d called her Victoria earlier that day.She preferred he use her given name than call her miss.But she didn’t correct him.
“I’ve been awake for some time.I’m sorry to disturb you.I should return to my room,” she said.
“No, please.”His urgent voice stopped her from leaving.He motioned to the seat next to him.“Sit with me.We can pass the time together listening to the storm.”
She placed her candelabra on the low table next to the settee and then lowered onto it on the opposite side of him, drawing her legs up underneath her.He picked up his book again, his gaze focused on the pages in the low lamplight of the room.
“What are you reading?”she asked, unable to stand the silence.
“A book of poetry.It’s calledCelestial Hymns.” He handed the open book to her.
She took it and scanned down the page.It seemed to be poetic tales of celestial beings written in fragmented verse.One of a girl born of starlight and moonlight.Born of blood under a ruined sky.A lyrical, lovely piece of poetry.She handed him back the book.
