2025-09-27 03:08:46
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CHAPTER 024
DAISY vs. LUCIA The storm inside Daisy broke long before any thunder rolled outside. They had dragged Derek into one of the smaller rooms, Rebecca whispering instructions like a frantic nurse, though nothing she did seemed to matter. Derek convulsed on the bed, his limbs jerking so violently the headboard rattled. His lips foamed red, his nose bled, and his eyes rolled under half-shut lids as if the faceless man still clawed at him in a place the rest of them couldn’t see. Sugar muttered curses between whispered prayers, pressing a cloth to his forehead. Moses paced like a caged animal, fists clenching and unclenching. The house echoed every sound. Every tortured gasp Derek released seemed to ripple through the floorboards, to groan in the beams above, to throb in the very air. Daisy couldn’t watch anymore. Her chest felt like it would split apart. She slipped out into the corridor, not caring where she went, only knowing she had to move before she collapsed beside him. The hal
CHAPTER 023
HANNAH'S WARNING The house was too quiet. That was the first thing Daisy noticed as she stood in the corridor, her back pressed to the wall, her breath ragged. The silence wasn’t peace, it was weight, pressing on her chest, sinking into her bones. Somewhere in that silence, she could still hear Lucia’s voice, fading into the warped floor, begging not to be let go. Rebecca had tried to speak sense after they returned to the main hall, her voice firm and deliberate, but no one had listened. The group had scattered like broken glass, sharp edges pointed in every direction. Sugar and Moses had gone to opposite corners of the room, muttering curses and arguments under their breath. Dave leaned against the wall with his arms folded, silent, staring at the floor as though his shadow was more interesting than the horror around them. And Derek Daisy’s heart clenched. He sat on the steps, his head in his hands, his body rocking back and forth. His shirt was soaked with sweat, dar
CHAPTER 022
THE SHATTERED VEIL The air grew heavier after Hannah’s words, thick enough that every breath felt stolen. The lodge seemed to tilt with them, wood groaning like a ship lost in violent seas. The lamps flickered, shadows stretching across the walls until they no longer looked like shadows at all, but shapes leaning closer. Watching. Waiting. Daisy pressed a hand to her chest, her heartbeat hammering against her ribs like it was trying to claw its way free. Hannah’s eyes lingered on the book-too long, too steady. Daisy felt the suspicion curl in her gut. Hannah knew more than she was saying. But before Daisy could speak, Derek lurched forward. His eyes were wide, bloodshot, veins standing out against his pale skin. His hands clawed at his temples, nails raking lines across his flesh. “It’s whispering again!” he screamed, his voice jagged and raw. It won’t shut up, it’s tearing me apart! “Derek!” Rebecca rushed to him, gripping his shoulders. Focus! Breathe! Don’t give it more
CHAPTER 021
THE POISONED HEART The silence of the lounge stretched like a noose. The warped floorboards, still scarred from where Lucia’s cage had sunk into nothingness, seemed to pulse faintly under the dim glow of the lamps. Every flicker of light made the shadows quiver, as if the house itself was breathing. Daisy sat slumped against the wall, her palms pressed into her eyes, as if she could claw away the image of Lucia’s fingers slipping from hers. The sound of her scream still rattled in her ears, so sharp it carved into the marrow of her bones. Rebecca crouched nearby, steady but pale, her voice a whisper that barely touched the air. “She’s not gone. Not all the way. The house wouldn’t waste that much effort on a trick. It’s binding her. Holding her.” Moses let out a bitter laugh, pacing in jagged circles. His boots hammered the warped wood, the sound sharp and angry. Binding her? She’s dead, Rebecca. Dead once, dead twice, however you want to count it. You saw her drop, same a
CHAPTER 020
LUCIA'S LOVE The house breathed around her. Daisy felt it in the groaning beams, in the damp walls that pulsed faintly when the silence grew too long. It was no longer just a lodge. It was alive. Watching. Waiting. She sat on the rug near the cold hearth, knees hugged tight to her chest, while the others murmured in fractured whispers. No one dared touch the book anymore, though it lay at the center of the table like a dark heart. Its leather gleamed faintly in the firelight, as though mocking their fear. Rebecca sat upright in the corner, composed but tense, her fingers twined too tightly in her lap. Moses leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, glaring at the floor like it had insulted him. Sugar sprawled in her chair, quiet, biting at her thumbnail, her bandaged arm hidden in the shadows. Dave prowled restlessly along the wall, unable to sit still, every muscle in him taut. Derek shivered beside the door, pale and hollow-eyed, his hands twitching as though remembering the
CHAPTER 019
THE RULES OF SHADOWS The lodge felt heavier that night. Not with footsteps, not with voices, but with something older and colder that breathed through the walls themselves. The argument in the hall had ended without resolution, leaving the air poisoned, and each of them scattered like broken shards of glass. Daisy sat at the edge of the lounge, knees drawn to her chest, staring at the faint imprint in the floor where Lucia’s cage had vanished. The grain of the wood looked normal again, smooth and untouched, but she couldn’t stop seeing her friend’s clawing hand, her pleading eyes. The silence in the room mocked her grief. Rebecca remained nearby, pacing the length of the lounge with that same analytical calm that had kept her sane so far. But Daisy saw the cracks. Her lips moved silently, forming calculations that had no solution, theories that twisted back on themselves. Rebecca was trying to build order out of chaos, but chaos wasn’t bending. Moses stomped above them, pacin
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