A Twist of Fate

Chapter 1

Once upon a time, there was a man named Eliott. He was once known to be a very lucky man.

It was hard to pinpoint exactly when Eilott's luck had turned to shit.

It could have been when his beautiful and loving wife passed, leaving him to raise six children all on his own.

Or when his fleet of trade ships were lost at sea, ending his fortune as a merchant and forcing him to move his family to their small summer cottage deep in the woods.

Who knows. What he did know was that after spending years forcing his entire family to work for a living wage, he'd received word that one of his ships had returned to port.

He was sure his luck was about to turn for the better. How naive he'd been. At the port, he had been notified that the ship's cargo had been seized to pay for his debts. And now, on his trip back home, he's been caught in the middle of a vicious storm. Just his luck.

The rain was coming down in thick fat drops, pelting his skin and surely leaving bruises on his poor balding head, the blustering winds regularly throwing him about. Eliott had been trekking through the storm for quite a while, having lost his horse and small wagon what felt like hours ago.

Unbeknownst to him, his horse was on its way home thanks to his innate sense of direction. Eliott, on the other hand, was traveling farther and farther away from his little cottage.

He slugged through the mud and rain for ages, sustaining scratches and tears on his skin and clothes. The cold ache in his bones from the freezing rain was overwhelming. It was almost a guarantee that every other step was going to be a slip on the uneven ground and every other breath would be full of water thanks to the onslaught of rain. The farther he went, the more gnarled the forest got around him, branches leafless and twisted.

Just when he thought there would be no end to the storm and he would surely perish in it due to his waning strength, there was a break in the wood. As soon as he breached it, he could just barely make out the faint shape of what must have been an abandoned castle if the overgrown grounds meant anything.

With deliverance from the storm at his fingertips, he felt a newfound energy surge within him. His gaze was firmly locked on what he could only assume was the door, and he happily ignored his missteps and bumps along the path and through the gate.

Fumbling his way up the ivy overgrown stairs, he raised his hand to knock, out of habit. Just before his knuckles hit the door it opened a smidge all on its own. Startled, he stood there for a moment wondering if maybe it was a result of the wind before the door swung all the way open. Eliott hesitates for just a moment before a crack of thunder sounds and he rushes in.

The door closes on its own, leaving him in darkness. All is still and quiet until a tall candelabra lights up near the center of the room. He approaches cautiously, rightfully so, for when he is but a foot away it goes out once again. As he debates sleeping in the entryway outside, regardless of the downpour, another candle in a sconce on the wall to his left comes to life. A bit of fear strikes him, for who could be controlling the fire? He approaches that one as well, and as he gets closer it goes out and then another candle farther away turns on. And so the process goes, through hallways and echoey rooms.

Just when Eliott believes the candles are leading him nowhere, he sees a strip of light at the end of the hallway. Not just the faint aura of candle light, but the glow of a fully lit room. He rushes forward, hoping to meet someone on the other side who could perhaps answer the questions rising in him.

Now that he's closer to the light he can hear the tinkling of cutlery and he can't quite figure out what scents are flooding his senses but whatever they are, they're making his mouth water.