A Legacy of the Damned: Daughter of Astaroth

Chapter 52 - The Sealed Door

"Daughter of Astaroth..." someone whispers from the other side of the door and I jump back.

"What is it?" Katherine is looking at me with concern.

"Didn't you hear that?" I ask her, staring at the closed door. I'm curious to see what's behind it but I have a feeling that I'm not supposed to open it.

Katherine briefly closes her eyes and when she opens them again, the lights in the hallway flicker. She turns to look at the light fixture on the wall and frowns. "Come on," she says, grasping my arm. "I think it's time for us to leave."

I watch the door for a bit longer but I can't hear anything else. There's no more whispering. Maybe I just imagined it. "Okay, let's go," I say finally, squishing the pull that I feel toward it. I turn on my heel to follow Katherine.

"Demon child..."

I jerk my head back and my eyes shoot to the door. There it is again. It's so much clearer now that I can't pretend that it's just in my head.

"What's inside the room, Cat?" I ask her. The look on her face tells me that she could hear it too this time. "Something in there knows that I'm here. What's in there?"

"Nothing! Let's go, Danica."

She tries to pull me away but I refuse to budge and try to extend my hearing beyond the door. I can't hear anything but I'm pretty sure there's something in that room. Whatever it is, I have this feeling that it has been waiting for me.

"Danica..." Katherine protests when I pull my arm out of her grasp and take a step toward it.

I put my hand on it and the moment the palm touches the door, I feel it- the zapping sensation that starts at the tip of my fingers to creep across my palm. I feel it transferring from my hand to the door and suddenly the wood carving starts to move. The vines slither to wrap around my wrist like a serpent, the thorns are piercing through my skin, drawing blood.

"Danica! Stop!" Katherine yells but I don't stop. I can't stop. My heart is racing. Zapping energy runs through my body and my head is full of visions. My ears are filled with dark sinister whisperings, drowning Katherine's voice.

The vine carvings are moving, rearranging themselves. The roses are wilting and the petals are dropping one by one.

I don't know what happens immediately after that, maybe Katherine had pushed me but the next thing I know, I'm on the floor and she is standing before me.

She has her palm flat on the wooden door and the vines have stopped moving. "Seal!" she commands and instantly, the carvings are reversing, snaking, and twisting back into their original positions. New roses bloom, replacing the wilted, fallen ones.

When she's done, she glares down at me. "How did you do that?" she demands to know. Her face is cold and furious. Her chest is moving up and down from her heavy breathing. "Why did you do that? I keep that door sealed for a reason. Why were you trying to unlock it?"

I frown. How did I do it? Why? I don't know. I didn't intend to do anything. I wasn't even aware that I was unlocking it. "I don't know," I reply before glancing down at my hand. It is bleeding and burning hot. The veins are dark and pulsing against my pale skin. Then I look back up at Katherine's enraged face. Her eyes are narrowing. "I don't know," I repeat. "I really don't know. I was curious but I wasn't even thinking of opening it. I just...touched it and it...happened."

She stares at me a while longer as though she's trying to reach into my mind and read my thoughts. Finally, she sighs. By the time she offers me her hand to help me up, her expression has cleared but thoughtful. Then she's inspecting my hand with gentle touches. Her eyebrows are furrowed. "Does it hurt?"