Beyond the Gates of Evermoore Page 12

  Luckily that didn’t happen. She made it to the other side and then whirled back to face Eric, only now there was a whole bed between them.

  “I’m taking it,” he growled. “Even if I have to rip it from—”

  “FUCK YOU!”

  The words came out loud and harsh, with an edge of furious anger. Eric smiled through bloodstained teeth. Spat a big glob of something red on the bed.

  He’s wounded.

  She could tell by the wet rattle in his lungs that her adversary might be worse off than she originally thought. An internal injury, probably. Or maybe he was stabbed.

  “Where’s Lucus?”

  Eric didn’t answer. He only smiled.

  “I said where’s—”

  He lunged for her. If she hadn’t been prepared, he might’ve caught her too.

  Eric ended up sprawled across the bed, just far enough that his fingers barely missed the fabric of her dress on the other side. Melody took advantage of him being off-balance. She skirted the bottom of the bed and sprinted for the door.

  “NO!”

  He lunged again, and this time he did catch her. Then, without warning, Eric began to scream.

  “WHAT THE—”

  It was Lady Neveux. She had him by the wrist.

  It was an awful sight. The woman’s eyes had gone terrifyingly wide; two white orbs against a leathery face. Her thin, wasted hand was clamped tightly over Eric’s strong, young wrist. He yanked hard on his arm, and Melody knew the horrendous rending sound would live on in her nightmares for the rest of her life.

  The woman in the bed hissed through clenched teeth as she tried to hold him. She may as well have been trying to hold back a charging bull. Eric tore away, then latched onto Melody with both hands. She was in the center of the room now. Trying to crawl away from him on her hands and knees.

  There was a flash of movement. A change in the shadows. Melody looked up and Lucus was standing over them both, his arms covered in long, jagged cuts. He pulled back with his leg and kicked hard, catching Eric square in the ribs. There was the sickening sound of shattered bone, but he still held on.

  “GIVE… ME…”

  Lucus reared back to kick him again, but Eric was deceptively fast. He spun his body in a wide arc and extended his leg, sweeping Lucus instantly from his feet. He fell hard to the floor with a whoosh of air, and an intense grimace of pain. Melody could tell he was struggling to breathe. Struggling to recover from falling flat onto his back.

  Eric’s hand finally closed over the pendant. There was a heart-stopping moment where she envisioned him tearing it free from her neck…

  Then she lowered her chin to his hand and bit him.

  He screamed, instantly jerking his hand back in pain. Luckily he opened it first, and didn’t take the amethyst with him.

  “YOU BITCH!”

  The insult bought her time. Another second, maybe two. Still, not enough to struggle away. He still had her with one hand, still pulled her toward him.

  “GIVE IT TO ME! GIVE ME THAT FUCKING—”

  Another figure appeared over them, and for a split second she thought it was Lady Neveux. This figure was too big, though. Way too tall and gaunt. It reached down and grabbed Eric, this time by the throat.

  Eric’s eyes went wide as he spun to face his fourth adversary in the span of a single minute. When he saw who it was his expression turned absolutely furious.

  “LET GO OF ME YOU MISERABLE—”

  His voice died in his throat as a pale white hand closed over his windpipe. Melody recognized Miles instantly; his face was still impassive, his eyes still glowing silver-grey in the shadows of the cluttered bedroom. He had Eric tightly by the throat, holding him at bay as easily as an angry father might fend off an insolent, ten-year old child. Then he swung his arms, hurling the man bodily across the chamber with a thick grunt followed by a savage scream.

  Eric sailed across the room, crashing into the base of a tremendous, antique armoire. Unluckily for him, the furniture’s two front legs were already old. They shattered more than folded inward, sending the entire massive assembly crashing down on him.

  “AHHHH!!!

  There was a scream, followed by a resounding boom. The room exploded in a shower of dust, accompanied by the sounds of cracking, breaking… and splintered wood.

  “Unnggghhh…”

  Eric’s voice was a low groan now. A strangled cry. Melody watched his body go frighteningly limp as all the remaining fight went out of it. She gasped in horror.

  “Oh my God…”

  From the chest down, he was completely buried beneath the giant armoire.

  31

  Eric lay trapped, flat on his back. Against her better judgment Melody crawled over to him. She took care not to get too close, but quickly realized it wasn’t going to matter. Both of her former companion’s arms were pinned at his sides. Even more telling was the froth of pink blood, foaming up along the surface of his lips.

  “You asshole!” she yelled at him. Her voice was tinged with frustration and disappointment. “All of this… and for what?”

  He looked back at her sheepishly. There was no more anger. No malice.

  “Look at what you’ve done to yourself, Eric! You’re hurt!”

  He was more than hurt and she knew it. He knew it too. As if to make the point he coughed, and a great gob of blood splattered across the front of his shirt.

  “I’m… sorry…” he murmured. “I… I just couldn’t…” His voice trailed off as he shook his head. His eyes closed heavily, then slowly opened to stare back at her. “Not again…”

  As she knelt over him, Melody became aware of someone else standing nearby. Lucus had made his way back to his feet. He stood beside her now, protectively.

  Eric ignored him. He looked back at Melody pleadingly. He was almost smiling now.

  “What… What year is it?”

  She blinked. An hour ago she would’ve been completely taken aback by the question. But not now.

  “It’s two-thousand eighteen,” she said sadly.

  Pain crossed Eric’s face. It wasn’t a physical pain at all. It ran much deeper, far down at an emotional level.

  “Ah shit,” he mumbled.

  He coughed again, and a bigger clot came up this time. His eyes were glazed now. Becoming unfocused.

  “You have to go.”

  The words came from Miles. He uttered them simply, matter-of-factly. Like they were a known actuality.

  “Take her out,” he said to Lucus. “You already know she can’t stay here.”

  Lucus looked back at him solemnly and nodded. He extended his hand.

  “Come on,” he said, staring down at her. “There’s little time.”

  Melody glanced back one last time as the blacksmith helped her to her feet. Eric had stopped moving altogether. His eyes were finally closed.

  Lucus left her side temporarily, and when Melody looked again he had Lady Neveux in his arms. She looked no bigger than a child held against his chest. A piece of ragged, twisted cloth. He laid her gently back on the surface of the bed, even stopping to arrange a pillow beneath her head. When he was satisfied he pulled up the remaining linens and tucked them beside her.

  “GO,” said Miles, loudly. His eyes shifted nervously around the room now, as if seeing something Melody couldn’t. “It’s almost here.”

  The whole thing made no sense. There was nothing tangible, nothing she could see. And yet, she could feel it. Pressing in on her. Pushing against her in ways Melody could only describe as a constriction of the soul.

  “Come on.”

  When she glanced up again Lucus was grabbing her hand and pulling her from the bedroom.

  32

  They moved hurriedly, through the hallways and down the broken staircase. Melody trailed behind Lucus, still clutching his hand. Everywhere she looked she saw darkness. Decay.

  Smoke filled the foyer, thick and black. A burning smell reached her nostrils and she realized the manor wa
s on fire. She couldn’t see flames — not yet, anyway — but embers swirled up from below. They looked like orange fireflies, circling lazily as they rose from the first floor to the second.

  “It’s on fire!” Melody shouted, but Lucus didn’t seem to hear her. “What do we do? Where are we going?”

  She’d been scared before, but her experiences had mostly included being spooked. Now, with the rising heat, and the swirling smoke? For the first time she was genuinely afraid.

  They reached the bottom of the landing. Melody could barely see the openings into the other rooms now. The house was being consumed, not only by flames, but by a churning, rolling chaos. The smell of the mist was back again too, thick and heavy and electrically charged.

  “OH!”

  Pain shot through her foot as she stepped on something — a hot cinder maybe, or something else. There was no time to look. Lucus was practically dragging her over to the double doors, pulling her along through the ash and smoke.

  He pulled open one of the doors, and Melody’s heart leapt into her throat…

  The mist was right up against the house now.

  “It’s here!” she shouted, glancing left and right. “It’s all around us, Lucus! We can’t get out!”

  She was still looking for an escape — an avenue through the mist maybe, or a break in the fog — when Lucus grabbed her. He turned her so that she faced him, squeezing her shoulders tightly.

  “You can get out,” he said. “But you have to go now.”

  The roar of the flames was getting louder. Melody looked back at him in confusion.

  “Go where?” she cried. “There’s nowhere to—”

  “Into the mist.”

  Her entire body went stiff. She cocked her head as if she hadn’t heard him correctly.

  “But… But you said—”

  “The fog will take you,” Lucus shouted over the noise. “It’ll take only you. You’ll be safe in it.”

  “Since when?” she yelled back.

  “Since always,” he smiled.

  Why the hell is he smiling?

  Melody locked eyes with him, trying to delve into his mind. She didn’t get far. There was worry and concern, but also relief… even pride. Lucus was smiling because he knew she’d be safe. And to him that’s all that mattered.

  He pointed, and Melody looked down. Slung low between her breasts, her pendant was glowing again, as it had before. This time it was brighter and hotter than ever, throwing off a beautiful, pulsating violet light.

  “This will protect you,” said Lucus, closing his hand around the Heart of Isolomara. He held it up between them. “This is why you can go.”

  She swallowed hard, past the lump in her throat. All at once she realized what he was saying.

  “And what about you?”

  His smile broadened, though it seemed more forced now. His expression was bittersweet.

  “Evermoore has me,” he said with a sigh. He shrugged.

  “No!”

  Lucus immediately shook his head. His eyes hardened. “You don’t understand,” he said. “You don’t belong here. I do.”

  “Come with me!” shouted Melody. “This place can’t keep you! It can’t just—”

  “I wish I could,” he smiled. “But that’s not how it goes.”

  She glanced down at the amethyst, beating with a life all its own. Beating like a heart…

  “Maybe this can protect us both,” she said, shaking it at him. “Come with me, Lucus! At least try.”

  He shook his head again, sadly. “It doesn’t work that way.”

  The mist was around them now, swirling against their bodies. The smell of electricity was palpable. It practically choked the air.

  “Goodbye Melody Larson,” Lucus smiled. He pulled her against him, clenching her tightly one last time before letting go. “I wish you—”

  Moving quickly, Melody reached behind her head and grabbed the heavy gold chain. Throwing her arms around him, she lifted it from her neck…

  “Melody no!”

  In one fluid motion she flipped the pendant around and dropped it back over both their heads. There was barely enough slack. Only by hurling herself into his arms — and pressing her body tightly against him — could she even hope to do it.

  “IT’S NOT—”

  She yanked down on the chain… hard, with both hands. It pulled impossibly tight. She could feel the soft precious metal giving way, the gold links straining against one another.

  Threatening to break…

  “MELODY!”

  She launched herself backwards, into the mist. It engulfed her completely. Thrown off balance, and with her entire body weight hanging from his, Lucus tripped forward, sprawling into the fog. They fell together, spinning into the nothingness.

  Weightlessness…

  There was a ‘pop’ as the chain made it past her ears, slipping down around both their necks. They continued falling… falling without hitting the ground. It seemed like forever. Forever in a single moment.

  Never take it off…

  Xiomara’s voice rattled angrily through her brain. Her head spun dizzily, as her mind slowly emptied of all thought. Everything that ever mattered slipped away, fading until nothing mattered at all…

  Never…

  It was the last word Melody heard before blacking out.

  33

  She woke in a bramble field.

  Melody found herself flat on her back, staring upward, to where a blazing orange sun still hung low in the sky. It cast long, mid-afternoon shadows over everything around her. The vine-choked trees, the shattered husks of ancient mangroves… these things stood everywhere in a tremendous, random mess.

  She sat up, squinting at the light. Instinctively Melody reached around her neck. Her fingers searched frantically for the heavy, familiar weight of the pendant on the golden chain…

  The Heart of Isolomara wasn’t there.

  She leapt immediately to her feet. Spinning in a circle, her mind flooded with relief as she spotted it, not ten feet away, draped over some marshy ground. The chain was broken, the jewel face down in the mud. But the pendant, thankfully, was still intact.

  And just beyond it…

  Oh my God…

  Lucus lay on his side, his face half-embedded in the soggy earth. He body was caked in dried mud. His long hair plastered over his chiseled, stubbled face.

  He stirred. Groaned…

  “Lucus!”

  She sprinted immediately to his side. The blacksmith was rolling slowly onto his back, wincing at the sudden sun. She held his face in her hands. Gasped as his eyes fluttered open.

  “Lucus! You’re…”

  He bolted upright and looked around. They were still at the plantation… only the plantation was gone.

  “What… what…”

  His throat was too dry to even speak. Melody jumped up and and spoke for him.

  “We’re here!” she screamed. “We made it back! YOU made it back!”

  “B—Back?”

  “It worked!”

  She hugged him, flinging herself upon him like she had on the steps of the manor’s front porch. His body was warm and firm, his heart beating slow and steady in his massive chest. Lucus stood and lifted her easily into the air with him, his mouth dropping open in utter disbelief.

  “YOU… YOU BROUGHT ME WITH YOU?”

  She nodded. Smiled. Kissed him hard on his mud-streaked mouth.

  For several moments all he could do was spin a slow circle, holding her, taking everything in.

  Then Lucus’s mouth split wide in a broad, white-toothed grin.

  The house was there, only it wasn’t. They were still exactly where the porch would be, looking up at a half-dozen or so broken columns that used to make up the magnificent face of Evermoore manor. Other than that, nothing else remained of the once-great mansion. The walls, the roof, the tall windows and wide balconies — all of these things had collapsed inward and sunken into the soft earth. Here and there, a
blackened beam or a piece of something man-made jutted up through the mud and muck. But otherwise…

  “It’s… It’s…”

  “Gone?”

  Lucus nodded mechanically. Everything — including the carriage house and barn, up on the hill — had completely and utterly vanished.

  “But how?” he swore beneath his breath. “How could it all just—”

  “Lucus it’s been two hundred years,” said Melody. “Whatever happened to the manor… that’s what happened. Time took it back. Nature took it back…”

  She gestured with one sweeping arm. Evermoore’s wide, reaching fields were now dotted with forests. The road leading up to the manor’s front doors was mostly gone, but enough of the great oaks remained to show where it once had been.

  “Look,” said Melody pointing. “The gardens.”

  In the back of the house, the once-beautiful gardens were completely grown over. Even so, a few pieces of marble and statuary still remained. She imagined she could make out the place where the hedge maze had been. Maybe even part of the fountain…

  “It’s all gone,” he said. “Everything. Gone forever.”

  Melody nodded and took his hand. She squeezed it tightly.

  “Are you sad?”

  Lucus shook his head. “Not even a little bit.”

  “Good,” said Melody.

  She turned her back to the house and held one hand over her eyes, shielding them from the sun. After a moment of searching, something glinted brightly near the edge of the trees.

  “Come on,” she said, pulling him in that direction. “We’re getting out of here.”

  34

  Trekking back across the plantation field was a lot harder the second time around. Gone were sprawling, well-manicured lawns. Everything was disgustingly overgrown. Vines and brambles pulled at Melody’s bare feet.

  “There,” she said as they neared the edge of the taller tree-line. “Right where I left it!”