Darkly Devoted (Book 1, 2, 3)

Chapter 18

Chapter 18

VIVIENNE WAS on her way back to the party when she discovered that the door to the ballroom was locked. She calmly took a side stairwell down to the basement. From a window, she could see fireworks exploding in the sky. They reminded her of Lady Thorne's crystal chandeliers, dangling brilliantly from the trees, dancing in the fall breeze. The stairway was growing ever darker now. Vivienne could barely see the next step. She reached out with her hand and held it against the wall for support. With her other hand, she had to hold up the silky fabric of the dress to keep herself from tripping.

And then she felt it. Her fingers came away from the wall with a warm, wet substance. Vivienne shook her hand free of it. It must be mildew, she told herself. It was an ancient basement after all. As she continued to descend into the darkness an awful thought came to her. What if she had been locked in the tower on purpose? What if that wet feeling wasn't moss or dew? What if she had been trapped here for a reason? Could it have been blood?

Without even knowing it, her feet started to pick up speed. She started to flee down into the darkness, toward whatever destination laid at the end of the stairwell. Perhaps, in her sudden panic, her mind was playing tricks on her. Vivienne became aware of footsteps pounding down the stairs behind her.

She banged into a wooden surface. Grappling in the darkness, her hand found a doorknob. Vivienne turned it desperately and it opened into a bright corridor. She was breathing hard as she shut the door behind her. Suddenly, she felt very foolish. Vivienne was standing in an art gallery of sorts. The walls were lined with paintings of nymphs bathing in lily strewn lakes.

In one of the rooms nearby she heard a girl giggling. There were two half-empty flasks of champagne sitting by a door. Vivienne glimpsed inside to see a room filled with marble statues. At the center, sitting on a bench was a couple who could have been a pair of statues come to life. The beautiful girl giggled again. The girl turned her head while her handsome partner kissed her neck. Vivienne suddenly took a step as she recognized the girl. It was Wisteria. Her picturesque male companion must have been none other than the rakish Prince Mercury.

Vivienne walked away from the room, past a couple of elderly ladies who were sipping on champagne, absorbed in a painting. Vivienne went past them, she could hear a crowd just behind the next door. She decided that before she rejoined the party, she should at least smooth out her dress and attempt to brush a few strands of hair out of her face. She ducked into a dark corner of a sparsely populated room to do so when she noticed a man, dressed in black, standing at the far corner.

Even from a distance, it struck Vivienne that it was a gorgeous stranger. Tall, graceful, with blond hair. Vivienne couldn't help herself. She approached him. As she approached, she realized with shock that it was no stranger. It was far from a stranger. They always had a way of finding each other.

"Blake?" she asked. He didn't turn at the sound of her voice. He was standing in front of a painting of an old man holding a staff and a lantern.

"Enjoying yourself?" he asked with a coy note to his voice. "In our version of the underworld?"

"You're clearly not," Vivienne retorted. "Hiding again? Still can't stand the sight of happy people?"

"And you are happy now?" Blake asked, finally turning to her. "That you're free of me?" Blake raised his hand so that she could see the gold chain with the cameo around his wrist. "I gave you the peace you asked for."

Vivienne didn't understand what he meant by showing her the necklace. Did he make a wish on the necklace and order it not to connect their dreams at night anymore? Vivienne could only assume that was what he meant. What was Calbert doing with the chain he kept locked inside that wooden box?