Morning had come, though Ava could not tell. The room where she was held was pitch black, cold, and suffocating. She hadn't slept all night, too restless, her mind spinning with fear and frustration. The eerie silence of the place amplified every small sound, making her hyper-aware of every creak and shuffle.
Suddenly, the sound of a door creaking open broke the silence. Ava's heart pounded in her chest. She hoped it might be Lian or someone familiar, someone who might help her. But as her eyes adjusted to the faint light creeping in, she realized it was just an old maid, dressed in plain clothes, coming in to clean.
Ava sat quietly, observing the maid’s slow, deliberate movements as she worked. The woman seemed harmless, even fragile, as she went about her chores. Ava’s mind raced with ideas. Maybe this was her chance. She couldn’t stay here any longer.
As the old woman finished her task and turned to leave, Ava couldn’t hold back any longer. "I want to go out," she blurted, her voice raw with desperation.
The maid paused but didn’t respond. She continued her slow shuffle towards the door, seemingly ignoring Ava’s words.
"I said, I need to go out. I’m suffocating in here!" Ava’s voice grew louder, edged with panic.
The maid stopped again, but this time she turned, her face expressionless. "Miss, I have no permission to take you out. I don’t have any valid reason to allow it," she said softly, her voice almost mechanical.
Ava’s frustration bubbled over. "I could die in here!" Her voice broke, the pain in her eyes flashing through the dim room.
For a moment, the maid’s face softened, but she quickly turned away, beginning to shuffle out again. Ava wasn’t ready to give up. She rushed after her, her words tumbling out in a desperate plea. "Please, I had a family. I was born into a wonderful, peaceful home... I don’t belong here. I don’t deserve this."
The maid didn’t show any emotion, her face cold and distant. "If you don’t..." she began, her voice trailing off.
Ava barely heard her. Her eyes had caught sight of a metal rod leaning against the wall. Without thinking, she acted. Desperation had stripped away her caution, leaving only the raw need to escape.
The maid was still talking when Ava grabbed the rod and, with trembling hands, swung it as hard as she could. The sound of metal hitting bone echoed in the small room. The old woman gasped and crumpled to the ground.
Ava stood frozen for a moment, her breath shallow, her heart racing in her chest. But there was no time to waste. She dropped the rod and bolted from the room, her legs moving faster than she thought possible.
Her mind was blank, her body operating on pure instinct. She didn’t look back. She didn’t think. All she knew was that she had to get away—far away from this dark, terrifying place.
YOU ARE READING
ECHOES OF TIME
Historical Fiction**Trailer for Echoes of Time** In a world where the past holds the key to the future, Ava Chloe is a brilliant computer science engineer haunted by a tragedy she can't remember. Driven by a relentless desire to uncover the truth, she builds a time m...
