The Black-Hearted Ninja (The Dark Triangle #1)

Leading Up To This

Nya's POV
The moment I awaken I know something is wrong.

I'm cold. When I fell asleep I was warm and safe but not anymore. Now there is just a sick sense of dread, a dropping feeling in my stomach, my throat closing up with anxiety.

This is the feeling I get when Jay is in danger.

Where is he?

I sit up abruptly and am hit with a wave of dizziness-apparently I haven't returned to full strength from the spell. I don't care. Shaking it away, I survey the room and something catches my eye in the dim light from the lamp.

On the blue bedcovers is a wilted, shriveled, reddish thing. It's a dead rose petal.

A trail of them start at the bed and make their way to the door, leading somewhere.

On the wall is painted a scarlet red arrow, pointing out of the room in the same direction as the petals. The arrow isn't solid, in fact, some of the red is still oozing down the wall like it was just made.

It's drawn in blood.

My heart almost stops.

No, no, no, no.

I fling the covers back and flip to my feet. There's an unsteady moment where I have to catch my balance, placing my hand against the wall. Unwittingly I touch some of the blood. It's still warm.

Putting one foot in front of the other, I follow the trail of rose petals out into the hall and am met with a horrible sight.

It's as if the walls are bleeding. They're coated with red. It drips down, pooling on the hardwood floor, trickling in rivulets between the boards. The blood isn't just there. It's spelling out words. Of course.

Better come quick!

Birdie's in trouble.

I missed you.

One last chance.

I did it for us.

You want my black heart.

I am not a monster.

Jay deserved it.

And everywhere, the same phrase. The one thing that makes me feel so sick I can't look at it. The thing I hear over and over and wonder why it's so disturbing.

Love, Cole Love, Cole Love, Cole Love, Cole Love, Cole

Love, Cole

The rose petals lead me farther into the nightmare but I can't help but follow them. What lies in wait for me at the end of this line? Whose blood is staining the walls?

Where is Jay?

I see the end of the petals. They lead me to a door, the door of the training room, the only thing in the hall unstained with blood. Instead, scratched deep into the wood is a heart with an arrow through it. In it are the initials CB + NS.

I stare at the carving for a second. I feel nauseous.

Time seems to stretch as I reach out my hand and slowly, creakily turn the doorknob. I don't know what I'll find in here but it isn't something I want to see.

I watch as the door swings open, almost by itself. The dark varnish glints in the flickering lights.

This isn't real. I am dreaming. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.

In a way, it's picture perfect. Everyone is here, everyone dead. They all stare at me accusingly with lifeless eyes, but their corpses look freshly killed. Like each one of them died only a few minutes before, the warmth just leaving their bodies, the intelligence draining from their eyes. Each of the bodies has its own place, meticulously organized, and together, laid down, they form a large shape on the floor.