Page 21 of Halloween Haunting
Anna and Olivia, who had been following close behind them, slipped ahead to eagerly join in a chaotic dance in the center of a ballroom. Caroline steered them inside, pointing toward the woman who stood within the middle of the dancers. Grace followed her finger, her eyes widening when she realized what was happening.
A woman loomed ominously over a smoking cauldron, where a glowing green liquid seemed to give her skin a sickly tint as it reflected against her. She tossed random things into the pot, stirring as she went, and the dancers only picked up speed. Whatever she added sent a spray of fireworks into the air above the cauldron, and the music grew louder, even though there weren’t any speakers around to do so. And high above their heads, near the tall ceilings, were glowing bubbles that shone with the reflections of the party happening below them. The bubbles glided and danced over their heads, twirling around each other as though they were synchronized swimmers.
Grace leaned closer to her friend’s ear. “Is this all real?” she shouted over the music.
“As real as the sunrise,” Caroline replied, her grin beaming. “Believe it now?”
She paused and looked over the party again. How could she deny what was directly in front of her? But how could she also accept things that couldn’t actually be true? It was as though there was a battle happening within herself, where the carefree side of her begged to be set free in the world of magic, and the other logical half demanded a better explanation for everything she saw. And yet, there was no other explanation. No glinting string holding the bubbles up, no remote controls causing the cauldron to spout fireworks or change color. There weren’t even any drugs around to explain it.
There was only what was happening in front of her.
Caroline ducked away for a moment, and returned with four long vials clutched between her nimble fingers. The liquid within glowed an otherworldly blue beneath the dim party lights. As Anna and Olivia returned, breathless and panting, from their dancing, they greedily swiped vials for themselves. Caroline kept one for herself, and placed the other in Grace’s fingers.
“Go on,” Caroline urged.
Grace sniffed it and jerked back. “Good lord, that smells like the most sour thing I’ve ever smelt.”
“It sure is.” Caroline downed the shot in one go, her face contorting sharply as it slid down her throat. She shook her head and beamed. “And it’s probably the best thing you’ll ever taste.”
“What is it?”
“Pearl Elixir,” Olivia explained after downing her shot. Instead of having the same reaction as Caroline, she only rubbed her belly and grinned, her cheeks flushed as it settled into her. “The best drinks are made below the sea, in case you didn’t know.”
Anna winked and Grace quickly remembered seeing the woman transform into a supernatural creature in town square’swater fountain. Anna bumped her elbow into Grace’s side encouragingly. “It won’t bite, Gracie. We promise!”
Grace bit down on her lip as she looked at the blue liquid. Her friends nodded her on encouragingly as she raised the thin vial to her lips. She squeezed her eyes shut and took the plunge, downing the shot in one go. The liquid was shockingly cool when it hit her tongue, and only fostered a great chill within her chest as it sank down to her stomach. Suddenly she felt as though she had been submerged by a tidal wave and brought into the cold ocean, wispy tendrils of seaweed ensnaring her by the ankles and dragging her down, down, down.
“Holy crap,” Grace blurted as she opened her eyes. The shot hit her as though she had already taken five, causing her balance to jerk and sway. “Good lord. What’s the alcohol content in that thing?”
Caroline squealed and grabbed Grace’s hand eagerly, pulling them back into the soiree. “Nevermind that, silly! We’ve got some partying to do!”
All inhibitions were thrown out the window as Grace allowed herself to be dragged into the energetic party. The lights and colors meshed together as she was lost in the music, circling around the brewing cauldron with the rest of the party goers. Grace didn’t have a clue as to what the woman was doing at the center of the dance, but she was beginning to no longer care. There was only the rhythmic beat, the feeling of letting go, drifting through the air without a single thought holding her back. Grace couldn’t remember the last time she was able to lose herself amongst a crowd, to forget her name and live as though it would be her last night on earth.
Hours or days could have passed and Grace would have never known as she stumbled out of the dancing circle. Her legs were as numb as rubber as they wobbled and trembled beneath her. Caroline groped at her arms, shouting something about thebeat hitting thebest part,but Grace waved her off, pointing over her shoulder and mouthing over the music. Grace was wandering through the mansion's halls by the time she realized she had told Caroline she was going to get some fresh air.
The shrouded hallway echoed with an untold darkness as Grace dragged her fingertips against the peeling wallpaper. There wasn’t an exit in sight but she had gone too far to try and retrace her steps back to the ballroom. The halls grew less crowded the further she went, till there was only a single man dressed in a monstrous costume passing her by. Grace’s balance swayed from right to left and she jerked, her shoulder coming into contact with the man as they waded by each other.
As Grace caught herself against his arm, white flashed across her gaze.
The vision began with a sweeping image of an ancient library. The walls reached high into the domed ceiling, with bookcases lining every possible area. Tomes with leather bindings and peeling spines filled the shelves, giving Grace the sense that great knowledge was kept there. But as the vision continued, the focus was not on the beautiful library at all, no matter how much Grace wanted it to be.
A pair of figures wrestled on the floor till one overpowered the other. It was obvious that the person slumped against the rugged ground was dressed in an elaborate dinosaur costume, with the characteristic spikes trailing down their back and up their head. The other attacker straddled the costume wearing victim, holding a dagger high in the air before bringing it down – once, twice, and a horrifying third time.
The victim’s limp hand smacked against the ground.
Grace gasped as the mansion came back to her, the man she bumped into nowhere to be seen. She stumbled forward as the bright lights lingered across her gaze, moments away from falling face first to the ground.
Arms shot out just in time, snatching her by the waist and straightening her back up. Grace’s head rolled back as she peered up at her knight in shining armor, only to see that he wasn’t a knight at all, but a handsome pirate that smelt faintly of pine.
“Bryant,” Grace managed to force out between panicked breaths.
“We havegotto stop meeting like this,” he murmured.
“I –” the words stopped short as she began to hyperventilate. “I saw – there was – he did – they are – he isn’t –”
Bryant’s hands clasped down on either side of Grace’s face, entirely engulfing her cheeks. “Breathe, Grace. You’ve got to breathe.”
She grasped at her chest as spots danced over her vision. “I – can’t –”
