Stolen Souls

chapter eight

The hard thing is not
making the decision.
It's thinking about the results
of what you have decided.

chapter eight

We were all crammed into James' small car. James was driving, and Kylie was giving him directions to where my Soul was suppose to be. I was sitting in the middle of the backseat with the other two on each side.

Earlier, Camden had asked Courtney if she wanted to sit in the middle in the back. However, she responded with, "And have a front row view of them? No thanks."

That's how I was thrown into having the 'front row' seat. I couldn't blame Courtney for what she said, it really wasn't the best. James had this stupid smile plastered on his face the whole ride, and Kylie was very flirtatious.

I knew they have all been together before I came, and it didn't take a genius to realize old drama was crawling back into the picture.

After ten minutes, James parked the car a short distance away from three cottages. Kylie had said that the Soul was in one of the three.

"If you happen to see the Soul while you're in there, don't touch it," Kylie said, mostly for me to hear. "If you don't touch it at the right time in the right way, you'll die."

"What does a Soul look like?" I asked, figuring it would probably be beneficial to know exactly what I was searching for.

"It's like a colorful glowing and floating orb," James described as he stared out the side window.

"Sounds stereotypical."

"Yeah, well, so is the King."

Courtney pointed out the next detail, "There's three houses and five of us. One of us has to go alone."

"I'll go alone," I said. This all felt so adventurous, and I wanted to prove to them I could be like them. I know I shouldn't have felt like that, but I did.

"Are you sure you want to go alone?" Camden said. His expression was hard to read.

"I can do it alone," I said. To be fair, I really didn't think the Soul would be hidden in these houses. And even if it was, there's only about a thirty-three percent chance of it being in the one I was in.

"If anyone finds anything, come back to the car and wait," Kylie spoke. "Let's go."

After we got out of the car, they paired up and started walking towards the houses. James and Kylie were together, which didn't help Courtney's mood.

I stepped towards the middle house. It was a pretty cottage, and it reminded me of the stores in the village. Everything here was so nicely and delicately decorated.

I've never actually broken into a house before. I stood in front of the door as I tried to remember what I've seen on TV and in movies.

There were no lights on through the windows, so maybe nobody was home. I gently turned the doorknob, squeezing my eyes shut. The knob turned all the way, and I slowly pushed the door open. Thankfully, it didn't creek at all.

I stepped into the entryway, and I was instantly blown away. Our house was nothing compared to this cottage. Everything was clean and new. The dark hardwood floors were polished, and the walls were a bright white.