THE LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS - BWS

twenty-three

The two days that followed my chat with William were as exhausting as the last few. We spent our days in the training room, Veronica calling me all sorts of names, Caelan laughing at my reactions to her name-calling, and William's patience thinning as the days went by. I could tell he was upset with me by the way he had distanced himself since we talked. He didn't stay around after our training sessions, disappearing God knew where, leaving me with Dee, Caelan and Veronica. I secluded myself to my room as often as I could to not have to spend another moment with that snake of a girl, or I would have ended up trying to kill her, and I knew that wouldn't be a great idea.

So far, I had only managed to fix a few pieces of the glass together, and my despair only grew the more time passed– time that we didn't have.

Training was cut short today, interrupted by an urgent call William had to take. After ruminating in my room over how I would probably never be able to fix that damn glass, I decided to go get some fresh air and explore the gardens with Dee.

Sneaking out of the vampire household proved a lot easier than I expected. I managed to cross the long hallway that led back to the staircase, walk down the stairs and cross many other rooms to reach the gigantic entryway without encountering a single vampire. I knew Caelan was out with his sister, and William was on the phone somewhere, probably still on the other side of the castle where we trained, but I wondered where Peter and Isla were. I had barely seen any of them since I arrived a week ago.

    As soon as I was standing out on the front step, I inhaled a deep breath. The summer sun warmed my skin, the scent of freshly cut grass tickling my nose. For the first time in a while, I smiled. Because at that moment, I felt free. Free of vampire oppression, free of a bullshit destiny burden, free of any responsibilities. It was just me, Dee and the possibilities that the afternoon offered.

    "Come on Deedee, let's see what treasures this place is hiding," I told her and she barked enthusiastically. I quickly shushed her, determined to keep our outing secret for as long as possible.

    We followed a stone path that led to the back of the house where green grass and lush forest could be seen for miles. We strolled along the path to the stables where the grass ended and the forest started. I wondered how big the property was. Was the forest theirs? I felt like a schoolgirl skipping school, and I found myself looking around before daring to enter the small barn. When I didn't see anyone, I entered, Dee close on my heels. The smell of hay and horses hit me as soon as the door opened, bringing back memories of my childhood. There weren't many activities to do in Blue River growing up, except horse-riding. I spent most of my weekends on a horse with my dad, my mom being terrified of the animal. My lips curled into a sad smile at the memory. I missed them so much.

I pushed the thoughts away and looked at the barn. It was bigger than I expected with walls painted in red and four box stalls that seemed all occupied. A black stallion was looking at me from his stall, and I went to pet him.

"Hello, handsome," I said as I scratched his head and he neighed in response. A brown steed popped his head through his stall, quickly followed by the two other horses. They all looked as beautiful as their owners, and were clearly spoiled.

"What are you doing here?"

I jumped at the unexpected voice, nearly falling over the stack of hay at my feet. William caught my arm before I embarrassed myself and helped me keep my balance.

"Jesus Christ," I said, bringing my hand over my racing heart. "Don't sneak up on me like that."

"You shouldn't be out of the house," he answered, now standing right before me, his jaw set and eyebrows furrowed. He was mad.