Page 33 of Curse of Immortality
Maeve saw how close Althea was to the flames of the burning building but in her deranged state of grief and anger, she no longer felt a bond with her twin. All she saw was yet another person who had rejected and disappointed her. Raising her chin, she shouted, “If you want to protect the people who burned Rose, then you are no better than them. They would burn you as well.”
Not even when Althea’s dress caught on fire did Maeve try to help. Tears ran down her cheeks as she turned and continued her rampage.
Chapter 12
In the Ashes
Once Althea opened her eyes again, it took her a moment to catch up to where she was. The smell of smoke, burned wood, and flesh hung in the air but there were no more screams. With a head pounding in pain, she moved slowly as she sat up and looked down at her body. She was naked and covered in the same ashes that lay all around the ground along with large amounts of something sticky that had to be dried blood.
Her lips parted as she remembered how Maeve had thrown her through the air. Above her, the wall she had collided with was gone. Smashing against a wall with that much speed should have killed her instantly, and Althea struggled to understand how she was still alive and where her clothes were.
Carefully, she tried to get up, and that’s when she saw a bit of fabric on the ground in the ashes. The pattern was from her dress. Blinking her eyes, she tried to put the pieces of the puzzle together. Her dress had burned, and she had been smashed against a wall. But if her dress had burned, then why didn’t she have any burn wounds?
With her hands, she felt her neck and face and it wasn’t until her fingers touched her eyebrows that she stopped. There was no hair. It was the same with her eyelashes. Quickly, her hands rose to her scalp and her eyes widened when she realized she was bald.
Pivoting, she stared at the ruins around her. This was the town square, but now that all buildings were burned down, she could see the forest.
No one moved. No birds sang. Everything was black and incinerated.
Althea’s logic told her she had burned as well, but except for a headache, she felt no pain. Searching for an explanation, her thoughts brought up the crystal Maeve had given her that was supposed to bring them strength.
Maeve.
Opening her mouth, Althea tried to call for her sister, but it was as if her throat was rusty and dry, and only a croak came out. Moving her legs, she walked stiffly across debris but quickly had to stop when she realized that among the burned buildings were dead people.
Lifting her hands to cover her mouth, she took in the devastation around her. Althea didn’t know how long she had been unconscious, but there was nothing left of the small town other than the black ash on the ground and the corpses of the people who had once lived there. With tears of shock and horror, she looked at the hundreds of bodies lying dead on the ground covered by the black ash from their homes.
Althea mourned for the people as she walked through the town, careful not to step on any of the burned corpses. What had become of Maeve? She searched for her among the dead but most of the bodies were burned beyond recognition.
Memories of seeing Maeve burn down the town played in Althea’s mind. Never had she imagined that such darkness could lie within her sister.
When she saw the small boy who Maeve had set on fire lying on the ground with dead eyes and his face black from ash, Althea stopped walking and collapsed to her knees in pained sobs. Rose’s life had been stolen, and that was something Althea would mourn for the rest of her life, but this boy’s life had been stolen too, and so had everyone else’s in the town that Maeve had killed.
For twenty-four years, Maeve had been Althea’s closest confidante and they had shared the tightest of bonds. Now, that bond had been ripped apart in the most brutal of ways for just like Maeve, Althea had lost everyone she cared about and was all alone in the world. Maeve thought Althea was dead and Althea didn’t know if Maeve was alive either.
Rose’s death had spiraled the sisters onto different paths. While Maeve wanted to destroy all humans, Althea in return became determined to avoid any more unnecessary suffering and death.
It was a tragic day, one where far too many lives were lost. But it was far from over because Maeve had one more person to add to the list.
Chapter 13
Cat Got Your Tongue?
The contrast between the first time Maeve had approached the Felton Hill Estate and now was like night and day. The first time, she’d been so full of hope for the future and her heart had been full of love for James. Like a young seed, ready to burst through the soil, she had longed to see the sun and grow into a beautiful flower.
Now that her heart was filled with hatred, she was like a withered rose with a stem full of thorns that would hurt anyone who came close.
It had only been a month since she’d last walked up the entranceway of the manor, but it might as well have been years. Back then Maeve had been a curious and loving girl who was light on her feet. Now her steps were full of purpose, and she walked like a predator with her head high and her gaze steady.
Her large, pretty eyes had turned cold, leaving Maeve to appear older, bitter, and cynical.
James didn’t see Maeve walking up the long entranceway because he had his back turned, but Maeve saw him through the window. She didn’t announce her entrance by knocking on the door. Instead, she let herself in and stood for a moment looking around the quiet home. Everything was stylish and expensive from the grand chandeliers to the portraits on the walls and the murals on the ceiling. The wallpaper had golden hues and every piece of furniture looked like it was a piece of art.
Although Maeve had loved her childhood, she found it utterly unfair that swine like James were lavished with such luxury while innocent Earthens like Rose were driven out of society to live in isolation and poverty. Spending so much time with James had left Maeve with the mindset that materialistic wealth meant success and happiness. She didn’t understand that Rosehadbeen happy and wasn’t hung up on wealth the same way Maeve was.
The sound of a small bell made Maeve look to her left and listen as James yelled in his obnoxious entitled way, “Oh, hurry up with the tea, will you?”
“Yes, sir,” a female who was out of sight answered. Maeve didn’t pay attention to any of that. She walked to James’ study where he sat by the window unaware of how his life would drastically change in mere moments. Maeve had bought into all his lies about them living a privileged life together with fine gowns and jewelry. She had dreamed of attending wonderful balls and living in the finest castle in town. Now those dreams seemed foolish and naïve, making her feel repulsed by the house she stood in. The thought of how living here with James had once been her dream made her taste vomit in her mouth.
