Page 44 of Ravaging Red
I ran into her arms, and for the first time in what felt like a lifetime, I felt the warmth of home again.
Inside, my mother cried out when she saw me, pulling me into a hug so tight it knocked the breath from my lungs.
"Where have you been?" her voice cracked, and my heart sank. I shouldn’t have left them this long.
"I'm okay," I said softly, eyes wet. I didn’t know what to say to her, so I lied to save her from the truth. "I got a job. It's out if town.”
My mother’s brow furrowed. “Out of town where?”
"It's nearing the city, Mom, but I promise it's safe. There’s no need to worry.”
“Safe? Do you have any idea what happens to single women who are alone, Red? Especially pretty ones,” she brushed her hand through my unruly red curls.
“I’m okay, Mom. I promise you I have never felt safer. I just can’t stay long; I have to return before nightfall.”
“Why?” She asked, concern etched in her eyes.
“I have a huge project I'm working on. They need me tomorrow but I wanted to see you both and make sure you were alright.”
My grandmother wandered inside. “She seems well,” I whispered.
“She’s been in good spirits although sometimes she forgets where she is and gets scared.”
I looked at my mom. “I love you. You know that.”
She smiled, cradling my cheek. “Of course we know that Red. We love you too.”
I smiled as my grandmother approached. “You're glowing," she said quietly, touching my cheek.
I didn’t respond, simply leaned into her touch. “Just got a good night’s sleep is all, Nana.”
She stared at me, and I had this feeling she knew where I had been. “Be careful,” she warned. “Evil things always want to take beauty’s light.” I stared at her, a small tendril of fear curling in my gut.
“When will we see you again?” My mother interrupted.
“The job is pretty intense, Mom, but I promise I will be back as soon as I can.”
“Oh dear,” she pressed a hand to her chest, and I hugged her tight. “I’ll be alright, Mom. I’ll contact you as soon as I can.”
She hugged me tighter. “You better.”
When I hugged my grandmother goodbye, she leaned in close and whispered, “Good for you, my girl. I know what you've found. Don’t you dare let it go.”
“It’s all because of you, Nana.” I squeezed her tight before leaving.
I stopped at Dulce’s once again, but everything was eerily silent at the bakery. When I knocked on her apartment door, no one answered. I sighed, and figured I’d sneak across the Veil again in a few days and call her. I ten stopped by house once more, made sure to grab my cell phone which I’d lft charging, hopefully it would last a while. Grabbing the bag I’d left by the door, I took one last look at what was my home, and headed back toward the edge of the woods, every step echoing louder in my chest.
As soon as I crossed back through the Veil, the world quickly changed. The trees weren’t welcoming this time. They loomed in the thinning light. The air was colder, and it felt heavy, making it difficult to breathe.
The path back to the cabin just felt darker and I wondered if I’d made a wrong turn somewhere. Suddenly the wind picked up taking dried autumn leaves with it, swirling around me. The breeze carried something sharp and bitter, and it smelled rotten.
I felt it before I saw anything. Just a chill down my spine, like dead fingers tracing my bare skin. I stood there, frozen, clutching my bag to my chest as the silence thickened. It wasn’t quiet, it wasstill. The kind of stillness that indicated somethig in the woods had forced it to stop breathing. No sounds of leaves rustling, no animals in the distance, just silence.
Something was watching me, and not in the way Rael had.No.This was different, morbid. And then the smell hit me, a metallic, bitter, putrid smell, that made me gag. Then there came the whisper.
“So pretty, yet so stupid.”
I swirled around quickly, searching between the trees as my breath got trapped in my throat.
