Genevieve Violet: Lady in Magic

Chapter Thirty Seven

Corby and I searched the darkness with our hands. Once we found each other, we helped each other upright. My wound ached and Corby yelped as we stood to our feet. I let him lean on my shoulders to help him steady his walk. The knife awkwardly jutted out from in his shin; It had wedged in very deep, and I knew if I removed it he would lose blood even quicker. We both hobbled over to the door like an elderly couple.

"You better not be lying to me Genevieve...Hestia... she was my..."

"I know, Corby. I'm not."

My heart ached as I thought of the 'dream' once more. Was it really just a dream? Something in my heart told me so...and I needed to trust my instincts, no matter how wonderful my life with Julian, my mother and Angus - my 'father' - had seemed. I prayed Corby would trust me long enough until we could find a way out of the house.

I slowly turned the handle, making sure to hold onto the door in case it creaked. Our plan was to reach the staircase, place the necklace on the steps...and hope for the best.

But, we had to do all of that without alerting Sweetest and Amanda of our whereabouts. Judging by the feral screams, they were out to attack. We had to be as quiet as a couple of mice.

Stepping into the hallway, we stood still and silent for several minutes to make sure that no one was upstairs. There was no noise, only the sound of the creaking walls surrounding us. We took a few more steps towards the staircase, feeling our way there. Eventually, we made it to our destination. Downstairs was still pitch black, indicating that the main door was still shut. Corby leaned against the banister as I untied my necklace and held it in my palm.

"But it's so pretty...why do we have to give it away?!" Corby whined in my ear. Sometimes he could be so childish. I chose not to reply, instead I felt my surroundings until I confirmed the whereabouts of the closest step. It felt horrible being directly at the top of the stairs, like I was a sitting target, even if it was pitch black. I placed the necklace on the step and quickly moved backwards to the side of the banister that Corby was leaning against. We both crouched down and waited for any sign of the house accepting our gift.

There was nothing; the necklace lay on the closest step and all was quiet.

"...Please, we've left you a gift...take it instead of our lives... it's pretty and is worth a lot of money..." I whispered to the house. I cringed instantly after I had spoken. My words couldn't have sounded more immature.

There was no way of telling whether the house heard me or not. Maybe it could hear our thoughts and desires... otherwise how would it of known to show me such personal wants?

Something made a loud sound downstairs. Someone had either fallen, or dropped a heavy object. I gulped back my fear and forced myself to concentrate. I kept repeating in my thoughts: take the necklace, let us leave. Take the necklace, let us leave. Take the necklace, let us leave...

I could hear the sound of thick blood oozing from the cracks in the wooden stairs. The sound became more intense as it dripped from the railing, falling onto our fingers. We withdrew them quickly. 

"What's going on?" Corby whispered to me quietly. I could say nothing, only listen as gallons of blood poured thickly down the stairs. Then the sweet, beautiful sound of song filled the house.

It echoed and swam in my mind, making me forget about the situation and the surroundings that I was in.

"That's Sweetest's voice..." Corby whispered. "She's probably trying to lure us into a trap. Ignore it." I nodded as we both covered our ears with our hands. The singing seemed to become higher and more pure, and then suddenly, it came to a halt.