Darkness Rising

CHAPTER [ 22 ] A TOKEN

This was about the hundredth time Lenore had read her mother's pilfered letter. She closed her eyes, settled her head back against the high back chair and tucked her legs up onto the stiff cushion. The soft, elegant scrawl of the letters floated through her mind. It made her imagine the woman behind them to be graceful and proud.

She mumbled the words to herself, having practically memorized the letter in its entirety. The letter didn't have much value beyond sentimentality, at this point. Although, Lenore was curious about the person to whom her mother had written the letter to. A person outside of the family—someone who her mother must have trusted and respected deeply if she were going to leave such a valuable item to their care and protection.

Maybe it was someone like the humans that worked alongside Kaiser and the fiends; the ones he wanted Lenore to pretend she had no knowledge of. She breathed deep, releasing a soft sigh as her thoughts once again drifted back to Kaiser. 

After their interaction yesterday, Lenore spent the night tossing and turning, before giving up on rest all together. No one bothered her this morning at breakfast. None of them mentioned anything about training. In fact, the trio had disappeared almost as soon as she sat down. Lenore suspected everything was going according to Kaiser's plan, just as he had told her it was.

In only a night, they would be attacking the Gillard family. One more night and they would either have become god killers or they would be dead themselves. She thought she would be more unsettled by that thought but it was relieving. Soon all of this would be over, and she'd be able to rest (one way or another).

Lenore turned her face toward the wide window, enjoying the view of the hazy city on the horizon. There was something satisfying, yet lonely in the sight. Remembering all the days and hours she sat in this very chair, looking over the city and dreaming about the future. That poor girl had no idea what lay ahead. She was a simple, pure hearted child that wanted nothing but love and a place that felt like home.

There was nothing simple about her circumstances now. And her dreams never went beyond surviving day to day. Strange how things ended up, or maybe it wasn't strange at all considering how they started.

The sound of heavy, rushed footsteps had Lenore turning from the window. A faceless knight burst through the door and she jumped up from the chair, heart thundering in her chest. Were they caught? The shadows began to creep towards her—Blessing pulsing in tandem with her frantic heart.

The knight lifted their mask to reveal Emilio's face. Lenore breathed a sigh of relief, shoulders dropping. Camila squeezed in past him, dressed in the same attire but there was a white, lacy fabric draped over her arms. Her eyes were wide and her lips pressed in a grim line.

"Get dressed. Be quick. We have visitors." She tossed the puddle of fabric at her.

Lenore caught it. She unfolded it and got a good look; she had worn something similar when she took her vow as a Gillard when she reached puberty. It must be what Dahlia was expected to wear for her week of prayer and solitude.

"Who is it?"

"An Apostle," Emilio said, pulling the mask back down. "With his knights."

Lenore froze, then her body was moving. This was the worst possible timing. The need to survive took over. She began to strip out of her clothes, not caring who was in the room. Her mind was a million miles away.

"Where is Kaiser?" she heard herself asking as she slipped the unflattering dress over her head.

"Not here." Camila's swift but dismissive response did not fill her with confidence. But she understood that they were alone. They would have to solve this problem themselves.