And What I Found There - Book Two

9. Losing My Mind

I shut yet another book. "So, all I'm learning is that either I get bitten by another Vampire which will dilute the venom and cure me, or we kill Vyndren, the OG Vamp who bit me in the first place to break the curse." I roll my eyes.

"Well, I wouldn't mind seeing him go..." Cornelius mutters as he flips through the pages of an umpteenth book. We're back in the library doing more Blood Dream research before bed.

I sigh in frustration. "We can't do either of those things. All the other Vampires are dead and Vyndren is not going to be killed for me."

"Then...? Let's just keep looking." He sighs.

"You'd think there'd be more books on Vampires in here," I say as I lean backwards off the latter I hold onto. "It feels like we've turned every page in here and have managed to come up with like, a paragraph of useful knowledge..." I heave another sigh as I push the latter along, slowly sliding around the huge room.

"I'm afraid not much is known about Vampires, my child. Before the Running Red Reign, most persons believed that Vampires were fables of the Dark Ages."

"What's the Running Red Reign?"

"That's what persons have dubbed the period of terrorism the Dark Riders unleashed on the Red Country eighteen years ago."

"Oh," I bite my lip, my heart feels heavy with guilt and pain. Sometimes I forget about Vyndren's treacherous history...

I suddenly feel dizzy and shakily climb off the latter, holding my hands to my spinning head. I faintly hear Cornelius asking if I'm alright, but I can't formulate a reply. I have the sensation that the walls are closing up on me, trapping me, caging me. I make a hoarse sound of panic as I look around. The walls all seem to be made of running paint, everything is getting blurry and disorienting. I stagger off to the side -

"Adara!" Cornelius catches me just as I fall. "Are you alright, my dear? What's wrong?"

"I..." I try to speak but it feels like a noose is cinching up around my throat. "Can't...breathe," I hiss with pain, squeezing my eyes shut, wrapping my hands around my throat anxiously.

"Is there anything I can do?" He asks quickly.

"It'll...pass," I wince. Hopefully.

"At least let me help you to your chambers," he gently takes my arm again.

"No!" I pull away, panting as I shakily rake my hands through my curls. "I don't wanna Dream!" I frantically exclaim, watching as all the shadows in the room come to life around me. "No! No, leave me alone!" I clear the desk full of books, the shadows effortlessly jump over them and slither back to me. "Stay away from me!"

"Adara!" The White Knight sounds alarmed. "Please -"

"Vyndren!" I hoarsely croak as I watch all the shadows gather together to form his silhouette. "No, this isn't happening!" I hide my face behind my hands. "No! Leave me alone!" I sob, wearily slumping down on my knees. "NO!"

***

Two huge white, snowy mountains loom before me... I stand in the long, narrow gorge that forms between them like a long alley... I can hear my breath echo against the frozen stone...

"Hello?" I timidly call...

The ground and the mountains themselves suddenly start quaking; I stagger backwards for balance... Now my eyes widen with horror as a huge wave of bright scarlet blood towers above the mountains like a tsunami...

"No!"

It suddenly crashes down and floods the gorge, barreling towards me with a roar... I scream and anxiously flee, I just glance over my shoulder in time to see the wave crash into me -

"Adara! Adara, wake up!" I feel someone shake my shoulders.

I sit up, still screaming and widen my eyes as I stare into a reflection of my own eyes. I blink, no wait, it's Cornelius.

He leans away from me and studies me with concern. "Are you... alright?"

I look around. We're in my room and the sun is starting to set - 

I scream at the sight of the bleeding sun making the sky red and wounded -

"It's okay, it's okay." Cornelius tries to sound calm, but I can tell he's freaked out. Hell, I'm freaked out. "You are fine now, Adara. I promise. Please, just calm down!" He grabs my hands and my scream is cut short.

Wait.

Everything's fine, nothing is really bleeding. I shakily exhale, now blush. What a wimp he must think I am. "Sorry." I say wobblily. "I am so sorry. I don't know how to control this!" I fall back down on my bed and cover my face with my hands. "I don't -" I break off in another scream as I see blood behind my eyes. I fly out of bed and wildly wipe at my eyes, they're perfectly fine again.

I'm panting as I desperately look around, now I notice my shadow isn't even mine, but rather Vyndren's. I scream and frantically snatch something off my nightstand and hurl it at the wall. The vase explodes and the shadow turns to mine again.

"These are getting horribly worse," Cornelius gently takes my arm and leads me back to bed, I am absently swatting at the shadows that keep trying to reach for me. "You must rest, Adara, please."

"Vyndren..." I weakly mumble. "I need him, please...please, just send for Vyndren," I stumble back into bed.

"Adara, I..." Cornelius sighs with pain. "My dear, would you like me to read to you for a spell? It might set your mind at ease or at the very least...distract you."

"Vyndren?" I wobbly call as I lift my head from the pillows, did he say Vyndren?

"Here, my child, settle down. Try to...relax." He gently tucks me in and now takes the chair beside my bed. "I'll sit with you tonight." He takes a book from my nightstand, glancing at me in concern as I keep tossing and turning, muttering Vyndren's name in a slur.

Cornelius quietly clears his throat and now cracks the book open, softly reading aloud.

At first I'm too restless and anxious to focus, but sometime later I'm lulled into a peaceful stupor as the words Cornelius reads quite literally comes to life off the page. I smile faintly as I watch butterflies lift off the pages he turns. A beautiful, peaceful forest sprouts in my room till there's nothing left but my bed and his chair as the other characters in the story come to life and interact around us.

His Talent is storytelling, I realize with awe.

I feel my heart flutter with amazement and captivation. I haven't felt this at ease since I've been at the Palace. I glance at Cornelius -reading gracefully and soothingly like a parent trying to comfort a kid that just had a nightmare- and I feel my heart swell with gratitude and affection.

My throat still feels too raw to attempt to speak, but I give him a thankful smile when he glances at me over the top of the pages, and now I peacefully close eyes.

And for once...bliss.