Page 594 of Flirting with Darkness

Ghost had never heard it before.

He listened to his father speak each sound in a guttural voice, raising his hands higher.

Slowly, the trench around the center of the room filled with blood.

The smell of blood filled the cave.

Ghost glanced to either side of where he stood, grimacing.

He held up a hand and a coat sleeve, covering his nose.

None of the faces he examined to either side of him appeared to be bothered by the dense, coppery smell, or the impression of death it implied. All of them stood utterly still, with worshipful, vapid expressions on their blank faces. They all clasped hands in front of their chests, almost like they were praying.

Maybe they were praying.

They listened to the Count speak.

None of them tried to approach the circle.

None of them tried to answer his words.

After yet another line of text spoken by Ghost’s father, servants began to approach the circle again, this time holding lit torches.

As one, they lowered those torches to the trench that demarked the boundary around his father’s twisted ritual.

The blood ignited, rising with fire and smoke.

The smell of burning blood was definitely worse than the smell of not-burning blood.

His father appeared unperturbed. Raising his hands higher in the air, he spoke louder, in nearly in a shout. As he did, Ghost noticed the clock’s face begin to glow still brighter. Its illumination continued to strengthen, growing in intensity as Ghost watched.

His father continued to chant.

Under the arch, Ghost abruptly saw a woman.

He blinked, rubbed his eyes.

She was still there.

What in the Almighty?

But he knew who she was.

It was the woman from the train.

“YOU MUSTN’T LET HIM TAKE POSSESSION OF IT!” she called out, standing under the black stone arch. She wore nothing but a blue nightshift, her feet bare. “HE IS WAKING UP THE CLOCK. HE IS ACTIVATING IT NOW… BUT HE HAS NOT YET POSSESSED IT, DARLING. ONLY HE WHO RIDES TIME OWNS TIME…”

Ghost frowned.

He looked to the men standing on either side of him.

No one else was staring at the woman.

None besides Ghost seemed to know she was there.

None besides Ghost seemed to hear her words.

His father wasn’t looking at her either.

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