Yvaine remained where she was for another moment, then her hands rested lightly on the steering wheel.
She watched the red taillights grow smaller and smaller until they vanished into the darkness.
A gentle smile touched her lips and she whispered, “I’ll always help you.”
She turned the key off.
The road fell completely silent.
Yvaine stepped out of the car and quietly closed the door behind her.
She turned towards the abandoned house, and then approached the entrance.
For a moment, she simply stood there, staring into the darkness beyond the darkness.
A low voice emerged from somewhere inside, “…acting all sensitive in front of him?” A lock of mockery dipped in the voice, “Same like your mom!”
The darkness swallowed the rest.
Yvaine’s expression didn’t change.
She didn’t reply, either.
Instead, she slipped both hands into the pockets of her coat and pulled something out.
The same small black mouse that frightened her before.
Its body hung motionless, as she held it by the tail.
Yvaine looked at it for a brief moment, as a faint smile crossed her lips, “I’m not that ten year old anymore.”
With a flick of her wrist, she tossed the dead mouse through the doorway.
It landed somewhere inside the darkness with a dull thud.
Without waiting for another word, Yvaine pulled the door shut tightly.
The silence took place around her.
This time, she started the engine and disappeared into the night.
The iron gates slowly opened as Yvaine’s car entered the estate.
The mansion stood illuminated beneath the night sky, its countless windows glowing warmly against the darkness.
She parked the car and stepped out.
A maid immediately bowed, “Welcome back, Miss Prescott.”
Yvaine nodded as she walked through the entrance hall, she noticed servants carrying stacks of documents and trays of tea.
“Are they having a meeting?” she asked.
The maid answered respectfully, “Yes miss, they are still in the study room.”
“I see.”
Without another question, she headed toward the staircase.
Her footsteps echoed softly through the silent corridor.
Reaching the end of the hallway, she stopped before a white door.
Yvaine stepped inside her room and shut the door behind her.
The gentle smile she had worn throughout the day immediately disappeared.
A voice spoke, “Does he remember you now?”
She lowered her gaze, throwing herself on her bed, “…Not yet.”
For several seconds.
Nothing happened.
Then suddenly the temperature inside the room dropped.
One of the talismans hanging from the ceiling, began swaying, as its edges started darkening.
The unseen voice grew colder.
“Not yet? After an entire month, I made you enter his dreams. You stood before him, AND THERE IS STILL NO PROGRESS?”
Yvaine sat upright, she noticed the floor started glowing.
Ancient symbols appeared one after another.
“You can not perform another ritual?!”
A dozen unfamiliar markings forming a circle, started activating.
“Please, don’t do it—”
Before she could react further, an invisible force struck her.
Yvaine was thrown across the room.
She directly landed inside the glowing circle.
Pain shot through her body, the symbols lit up with a crimson light.
“Remember her, Remember Yu—”
A sudden knock echoed through the room.
The crimson symbols flickered.
“Miss Prescott, is everything alright?”
Yvaine reacted instantly.
Her gaze landed on a fountain pen lying nearby.
Without hesitation, she grabbed it and drove it into her thigh.
The sharp pain exploded through her body.
Her hand immediately flew over her mouth to stop herself from screaming.
Tears gathered in her eyes.
The ritual circle beneath her flickered violently.
The symbols began breaking apart one after another.
The voice hissed in anger.
The more pain the host suffered, the weaker the ritual became.
Yvaine’s entire body trembled.
“Miss Prescott?” the maid called again from outside.
Swallowing the pain, her voice came out surprisingly steady, “I’m alright. I will be studying tonight.”
A few seconds of silence followed, then the maid replied, “Would you like me to prepare some midnight snacks for you?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, Miss Prescott.”
The footsteps gradually faded away.
Yvaine collapsed onto the nearby sofa.
The ritual circle had now vanished completely.
The room returned to normal.
She tightened her grip around the pen, her breathing became uneven.
Tears slid down her cheeks. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
One, two, three.
She pulled the pen.
It came out all at once.
A strangled cry escaped her lips despite her efforts to suppress it.
Blood immediately stained her clothes.
For several moments.
She simply sat there, hissing in pain.
The voice came, this time whispering into her ears, carrying the evil in the tone, “You think by hurting yourself, you can save him?! I won’t leave you so easily. Neither you nor him.”
Yvaine clenched her jaw.
The wound began healing before her eyes.
The bleeding slowed.
The torn skin slowly knitted itself together, as if the injury had never existed.
Her phone vibrated on the table.
A notification appeared on the screen.
For a moment, she considered ignoring it.
But it buzzed again with a notification, which made her look.
Dean: Are you up?
Dean: I can’t fall asleep.
The screen lit up briefly in her hand.
Before Yvaine could reply, another knock echoed through the room, “Miss Prescott?”
She slipped the phone beside her, “Come in.”
The maid carefully entered while carrying a tray.
A plate of sandwiches, a plate of mini pizzas, a plate of mini desserts along with a packed juice, a cup of Cascara and a soda can.
She placed everything neatly on the table, “I made all the arrangements for your midnight snacks, Miss.”
“Thank you.”
The maid gave a small bow before turning toward the door.
“Wait.”
The maid paused.
Yvaine looked toward her, “Is the meeting over?”
The maid nodded, “Yes, Miss. Actually after the meeting, they left with their bags, around ten minutes ago for a business trip.”
“I see.”
The maid waited politely.
“You can go and rest for today.”
“Thank you, Miss Prescott.”
The maid quietly left the room, closing the door behind her.
Yvaine remained seated for a second, but then she picked up her phone.
Her thumb moved quickly across the screen.
You are sharing your live location for an hour.
She sent a text to Dean.
Meet me at the back door!