Page 96 of Frozen Hearts and Death Magic

A pretty girl, no older than fourteen, with brown hair, appeared in front of her. “Who are you looking for?”

“Isofel. The Umbraar prince. Is this… Are the dead here?”

“Take my hand,” the girl said.

For some reason, everything in Leah screamed no. “Can’t I just follow you?”

The girl nodded and pulled back her arm. “Come with me.”

“You know where Isofel is?”

The girl was walking ahead of Leah now. “Come with me.”

There was something odd about the situation, but Leah would like to see Isofel one last time, perhaps to say goodbye, perhaps to understand what had happened, perhaps even to yell at him for having rejected her. That was why she followed the girl, and maybe it had been the right call, as soon she was out of that darkness and walking on a rocky path among mountains. There was something gloomy and desolate about that place, but Leah couldn’t put her finger on what it was. This mountain range seemed taller than the one in Aluria, so this was somewhere else, probably the place where the dead went. And still, Leah felt that there was something wrong.

“Where are we going?”

“You’ll see,” the girl replied while still facing straight ahead.

“Are you taking me to Isofel? Is he here?”

The girl stopped and turned. “Why do you wish to see someone who doesn’t love you? Someone who never wanted you?”

“That’s none of your business. Maybe I want to yell at him.” She did want to yell at him, knowing well it wouldn’t make any difference, knowing well it wouldn’t change anything or change his mind. And still.

The girl had a smirk. “You’re such a sad, unloved girl.”

“For sure.” She didn’t roll her eyes because there was no point. “Are you taking me to Isofel?”

“I’ll give you something better.” The girl then opened her mouth, revealing teeth as sharp as long metal nails, teeth that didn’t belong in a human head, which indeed got distorted as the gap where the mouth should be got bigger and bigger.

Leah turned to run back, but felt arms around her.

“Why run?” the girl asked. “I’ll end your pain.”

This was a dream, and Leah could control it. She pressed her hands together—but they didn’t cross. What? That didn’t make any sense. This had to be a dream and she was going to leave it now. The arms were now squeezing her. Pain shot through her body as something sharp punched her shoulder. Nothing made sense, and Leah didn’t know how to get out of this. Hopefully this wasn’t real and she wasn’t going to die, even if the pain didn’t feel like an illusion.

Leah shut her eyes, dreading the worst, but then the arms and teeth let go of her.

“Be gone.” That was another woman’s voice.

Leah opened her eyes and saw a beautiful dark-haired woman standing in front of her. The girl—or creature—was no longer there.

Right when Leah was about to thank her, the woman spoke again. “That was foolish, Leah. You should know better than to try to reach the dead.”

“You know my name?”

“I do. And we have to leave. Now.” She extended her hand, and Leah flinched and stepped back, remembering the girl from earlier.

“Now,” the woman repeated. “Unless you want to join your former company.”

Well, between someone who had tried to eat her and someone who was apparently saving her, Leah had to pick one. She took the woman’s hand.

Soon she was back in that black place, then in her pink room. It was strange to dream about something as ordinary as her room.

“You’re safe now, but don’t do that again. And don’t try to find Isofel. He’s not in the land of the dead, and even if he was, you shouldn’t try to disturb him.”

That meant… “He’s not dead?”

---