AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Halfway through their tone-deaf growling, the doors clattered open. A cloaked figure slipped gracefully through the morass of shadows and indifferent patrons. Sensing a far more intriguing diversion, I settled back to observe.
With parsimonious movements, the stranger threw back their hood, eliciting gasps from the pathetic crowd. Like sunlight piercing gloom, Seraphina’s radiant beauty and bearing cut through the tavern’s mundane drear. Bounding smoothly onstage, she raised a hand for silence.
“Thank you all for coming, but your time here is done. Leave us.” Her tone brooked no dissent. After a muttered word from the management, the bands filed out, grumbling and cowed. None dared oppose such regal command.
The room emptied swiftly until only Seraphina and I remained. In unspoken accord, we moved together to the center of the dim stage. Her grey eyes shone with triumph barely contained, a secret on her lips begging to be shared. Unable to bear the suspense, I broke the silence first.
“Clearly, you’ve woven some enchantment here, my beautiful one,” I teasingly said. “Dare I hope it is good news you bring?”
Joy illuminated her face then, bright as twilight’s first rays spearing through the shadows. “The best, my heart. I believe I’ve found a way to break your curse at last!”
Her words struck me dumbfounded for a dozen heartbeats. Break my curse? Dizzying hope warred with years of bitter disappointments and loss inside me. I dared not yet grasp this lifeline fully.
Seeing my hesitation, Seraphina clasped my hands in hers tightly, eyes burning with conviction. “Listen first, then judge if this path holds promise,” she soothingly said.
I nodded silently, afraid to shatter this fragile dream.
“I asked Professor O’Connor for help,” Seraphina explained. “As an authority on ancient lore, he said your curse resembles one recorded centuries ago—a gargoyle shifter doomed to turn to solid stone.”
She went on eagerly. “The Professor showed me the tale in an old tome. He believes only fulfilling your true heart’s desire can break the spell.”
“But how will I know what that is?” I asked, grasping for some scrap of hope.
Seraphina squeezed my hands. “We’ll figure it out,” she assured me soothingly. “Somewhere in you lies the key.”
I raked my fingers through my hair in agitation. “You make it sound so simple. But after all this time...” I trailed off hopelessly.
“PerhapsIcan help.” The smoky voice behind us sent a chill down my spine. I turned to see one of the nightclub’s raven-haired owners regarding us kindly. The Wicked Twins’ fame preceded them.
Crow, her name was. A notorious witch, though her youthful style belied her formidable magic. Everything about this woman read power—from the bold hot-pink tips streaking her inky hair to the glinting labret piercings adorning her full lips. Her velvet dress clung to her frame like liquid shadow, hinting at occult symbols embroidered around the hem in silver thread.
“Sorry to eavesdrop, but your story is quite moving,” Crow said. “And curses happen to be a specialty of mine.” She flashed a confident wink.
I hesitated. Could this stranger really help what scores of adepts had failed to in decades past? But Seraphina nodded encouragingly.
“We’d be grateful for any insights you can offer,” she replied.
Crow grinned. “Then if you’ll both follow me, I know just the ritual that may provide some... clarity.”
She sashayed towards anEmployees Onlydoor, beckoning us into the club’s shadowy depths. Seraphina and I stepped forward into the unknown. If Crow spoke the truth, enlightenment awaited within.
CHAPTER15
Rhys
The parlor Crowushered us into reeked of aged incense and secrets long buried. Ornate tapestries cloaked the windowless walls, muting any ambient sounds from the club beyond. The chamber felt heavy, laden with sorceries that pressed like a physical weight.
My instincts bristled in warning, but Seraphina showed no hesitation, threading her fingers comfortingly through mine. I envied her faith that some redemption awaited within these occult depths. My hope had been so often betrayed that I now viewed such promises as siren songs, luring the desperate into treacherous shoals.
But for Seraphina, I would tread these dangerous waters once more. Her belief I could be saved shone too brightly to risk dimming with my ingrained doubts. And so I held my tongue, watching warily as Crow lit candles around the room with a theatrical sweep of her arm. Their meager, earthly flames seemed to shy from the space’s endemic gloom.
“Make yourselves at home,” our hostess purred with a scarlet smile. As she swayed towards a bell pull in the corner, I gripped Seraphina close, uneasy about leaving her unguarded even for a moment. Sensing my tension, she leaned her head soothingly against my shoulder.
“All will be well,” she murmured.
I pressed my cheek into her hair, clinging to her optimism like a talisman against gathering darkness. But the weight of bitter experience wrapped me in leaden chains not so easily shed.
With a jarring chime, the sconces lining the walls flickered to life, casting everything in lurid shades of crimson. The panels covering them were etched with leering demons posed in sordid tableaus. My skin crawled anew, but Seraphina only tilted her head curiously, taking in our surroundings with open interest. Her courage was a clarion call, emboldening me to quiet my misgivings for now.
