Heart Of Darkness

Part 16

Eva combed Angelica's hair while she thought about her dream. A red-haired woman? Why? There weren't many people who had the same hair colour as her. The woman also predicted that Skender would be King, making her think this was something that had happened in the past. Something that was more than a dream. It felt like a memory as strange as that sounded.

The way they were dressed differed from how people dressed today, indicating that this was in the past.

Angelica shook her head, thinking of how crazy she was for believing this could be a memory of the past. Skender would look different today if it were a memory, and she would have been the woman or at least someone she knew. But the woman was unfamiliar to her.

Skender.

His clear blue eyes and vibrant smile looked beautiful in her dream. It was unlike the way he smiled today. In her dreams, he seemed genuinely happy until the woman rejected him. In reality, there was always a hint of sadness behind his eyes and his smile.

It made her think of what he had told her. He was looking for someone to save him, and even though he gave her a feeling of danger, she felt he needed to be saved. But from what, she didn't know.

That is when she remembered the monster chasing the woman in her dream. She had felt the woman's fear, and even though she was scared, she wished she had seen the beast before waking up. Now she was left with questions about who or what could have been chasing her.

It couldn't be a coincidence that she had a dream about a woman being chased by a monster, considering what had been happening in her town and her brother's nightmares. Or maybe that was what caused the dream.

While lost in thought, Eva finished making her hair, and Angelica looked at herself in the mirror to see how she looked.

"You look beautiful, my Lady," Eva said. She was always quick to compliment her.

"Thank you, Eva." Angelica smiled.

But Eva was frowning, and her lips were slightly down-turned.

"What is wrong?" Angelica asked.

"I am worried about you, My Lady and for all the young ladies in this town. What is happening is tragic. I thought it ended, but they found a dead woman again."

The killing started again?

Her thoughts went directly to the raven. It was a sign. Death came back to her town.

"It is tragic," Angelica said, feeling sad.

"My Lady," Thomas stood outside her door. "You have guests."

Guests?

"Lady Harris, Lady Alden and Lady Foster are here to see you."

So her friends finally decided to include her again? Angelica was sceptical about them coming here and suspected they came with gossip or to find out something about her and the King. Hilde must be curious.

"Welcome them and give them something to eat and drink while I come down."

He nodded and left.

What were her friends up to? Maybe she was suspicious for no reason, and they were here to bond with her now that women in their town were murdered. They needed to stick together. Angelica hoped that was the case.

Looking at her reflection in the mirror one last time, she went downstairs to meet her friends.

When she entered the parlour, Hilde, Natasha, and Vesna were already served tea and sweets.

"Good morning," she greeted with a smile as she approached them.

"Good morning," they replied, and she went to sit on the sofa next to Vesna.