Bloodlines (ON HOLD)

Chapter Twenty

Hiya, Guys! Sorry for the delays! Hope you like the chapter, don't forget to vote and like if you enjoyed reading. It's an eventful chapter!

Also, Check out the 'Bloodlines' trailer done by the lovely ylouise if you haven't yet

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=F18OxKQzIkM)! 

-Always, Caitlin 

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Taryn

Breath escaped my lungs.

I froze involuntarily at the sight unfolding in front of me. The air around my body swirled. Atira fell, or rather stumbled, into me. She held my shoulders and squeezed tightly as crows swung violently in all directions. I attempted to cover my face with my arms and let out a shriek with each cut made on my uncovered legs and hands.

Black goo spurted and bubbled viciously on the ground.  Crow feathers began to form a clear figure that soon hovered above us. The woman it formed stood tall in a deep black cloak that spread from the very soles of her feet to the tip of her chin. Her grotesque face became clear.

She began towards us, then suddenly turned sharply back around. Beside me, Atira jumped from the sudden movement. Beyond the open door, past the end of the gravel and farther into the uprooted grass that was lightly covered in a film of delicate snowflakes, Ladon and Nate appeared as little moving figures against the tall trees.

Faintly, I could heard their voices calling.

All of of a sudden they were gone again. The woman thrust her arm towards the door and it slammed loudly, the boys shut behind it.

Everything remained slow and petrified, as if all was sitting in a terrorized silence around the woman. My body, however, took to a survival instinct within me. With some kind of mechanical movement, I silently got to my feet. Atira snapped out of a daze and joined me. We slid backwards, her hand tightly squeezing mine.

When the woman turned again, Atira and I had already reached my bedroom and tightly shut ourselves in the room. The large armoire that sat next to the door was immediately pushed in front of the closed doorway to barricade us in.

We scurried to it and pulled up the glass and framing. Her fingernails pried underneath the screen until it popped out and she threw it over her shoulder.

“Atira...” I attempted to put my foot through the window; it stopped at the end of the window pane. As hard as I tried, my shoving did nothing. I removed my foot and placed my hands against what seemed to be empty air, pressing with all my weight. My hands didn’t move through the window. “It’s like an invisible brick wall.”

Atira put her own hand to it. Her eyes squinted and she gave one firm push. Nothing.

“It is a spell.” Atira dropped her shoulders and put her face in her hands. “She doesn’t want a way out.”

“No.” I gave another shove to the window. “There is always a loophole, right?“ I put my shoulder to the invisible wall inside of my window and pushed determinedly.

Atira shook her head, “If there is a loophole, we would never find it. Odds are, it is not even in this room.”

I took a deep breath and sat against the wall. I thought hard. If my window is sealed, then rest must be. And the exterior doors too. There is no way out. We’re barricaded in my room, with not a single source of something consumable. Ladon and Nate, they aren’t here. The old woman is a closed door and an unreliably-built armoire away.