Behind Closed Doors: Ghostly Memories, Whispered Lies and a Forgotten Life

Behind Closed Doors: Ghostly Memories, Whispered Lies and a Forgotten Life CHP 1

Copyright © 2011 Steffi

Bereft of light, one stumbles in the darkness,

Open to the fantasy of death.

None can grasp his being but by faith,

Nor can one see but by its candlelight.

In faith there is both fantasy and will.

Each must choose: to know or not to know.

CHAPTER 1

I run through the marble corridors, with fire surrounding me and screams echoing through the palace and I beg my legs to go faster. I make a sharp left and run towards the great staircase, where I can hear the fighting happening and where the screams are the loudest, hoping to find my family somewhere along the way. When I finally reach it, I lean against the banister and look down upon the fighting occurring in my home. As my gaze weaves through the thousands of beings in the great hall, trying to catch sight of my family, I see many different species. My gaze rests on a large group huddled on the far left of the great hall and I see Papa at the head of the group with winged guards surrounding him and mama behind them with my brothers and sisters.

“Mama! Papa!” I scream, tears welling in my eyes. Mama looks up towards me, along with the rest of those who had heard me over the fighting. Suddenly, I feel a presence behind me the same time I see mamas’ eyes widening. I quickly turn around and come face to face with a man with a feral grin and his two large canines fully extended. I lean back against the banister in a futile attempt to get further away from his advance towards me. Just before he can take another step and close the distance between us and seal my fate, an arrow tears through his chest, forever freezing a look of shock on his face. Taking a deep breath, I push the corpse away before it could fall on me, then I turn back around and my eyes instantly land on a cloaked hooded figure with a bow clutched to his side. His electric blue eyes meet mine and he bows his head down in salute before turning away and weaving a path between the fighting and going out of sight. Shaking my head, I quickly direct my attention to where my family lay trapped and my mouth opens in shock as for the last time I meet my fathers forest green eyes before a dagger is pushed through his heart and the fire engulfs the last of my family.

“PAPA!” I scream, clutching the necklace on my throat and sitting up in bed, with tears streaming down my face and sweat drenching my body. I sigh, collapsing back on my hard bed, breathing hard and bury my face in my pillow, as I realize I'm still in the orphanage. What is with that dream? I think to myself. It's the third time I’ve had it and I still wake up screaming, even though I have no idea what it means. I turn my face to the side to look at my alarm clock on my bedside table and see it's 5.57am. Just three minutes before the alarm was going to go off. Sitting up on the bed, I turn to look out the window and see the sun just above the horizon, making the sea in the distance glisten like crystals.

“This is the day,” I sigh. Yep, today's the day I turn 18 and get to leave this orphanage and this little village in Greece and make my way to Athens, just like I’ve always wanted. I catch sight of my reflection from the mirror across the room as I stand up. My hair is long and has a slight wave to it as it reaches down to my mid-back and is a dark brown colour with a slight coppery tint to the ends. My cheeks which usually have a rosy complexion are now flushed dark red from the nightmare, making my high cheekbones and dimples even more pronounced. My lips are plump and are a baby pink colour, and “apparently” very kissable. I reach my eyes last, and the redness from the tears I cried while I was sleeping make my forest green eyes stand out even more. Those eyes are an exact mirror image of those I saw in my dream. I sigh and ruffle my hair, turning away from the mirror. I look around my room and feel a sense of sadness that this is the last time I will sleep in my room. I’ve been here since I was 13 and according to one of the maids, Annie and (after much begging on my part) I found out I was brought here unconscious, by a boy no older than 15 and left here with just a necklace, the boy nowhere to be seen again. I don’t remember anything from before I was brought here; I just woke up remembering small flashes from my past that have absolutely no meaning to me and other tiny bits of information. I have no idea who my family is or what happened for me to get separated from them and brought here. It's a mystery I plan to solve by travelling to Athens. You may be wondering, why go to Athens of all places? Well, let’s just say I have a hunch.