Chapter 36 Chapter 36

Chapter 36 Chapter 36
_Anya’s POV_

I froze in complete shock.

The room was empty.

My hand tightened painfully around the flashlight while Jacob slowly stepped inside first. The light moved over the cracked stone walls, the broken ceiling beams and the dusty floor while my eyes searched every corner desperately.

But there was nothing there.

My breathing turned uneven immediately. “No…”

The candles had disappeared completely. The blood-covered symbols were gone as if they had never existed at all. The massive pentagon on the floor had vanished without leaving behind even a single stain. The severed head of the little boy was nowhere to be seen and the horrible black robes, bowls, bones and glass bottles had all disappeared too.

The room stood empty and silent now, looking like nothing more than an abandoned storage chamber hidden inside the ruined west wing.

Even the horrible rotten smell was no longer there. And worst of all….Mom Jess was not there.

My pulse started racing harder and harder. I quickly grabbed the flashlight from Jacob’s hand and pointed it wildly around the room again.

“No… no, this is impossible.”

There was no sign that any ritual had happened there at all. There was no melted candle wax on the floor, no blood stains covering the stones and no human bones scattered around the room. Even the severed head had disappeared completely as if it had never been there in the first place.

Maya sounded shaken inside me. It was here. We both saw it.

“I know,” I whispered silently.

My chest tightened painfully. How could everything disappear so fast?

Jacob stood silently near the doorway while watching me carefully. His expression looked unreadable beneath the dim flashlight.

I walked deeper into the room desperately. “It was here.”

The words came out breathless. “I saw it.”

Jacob frowned slightly. “Anya…”

“There were candles everywhere.” My voice trembled badly now. “Black candles. Hundreds of them.”

I pointed wildly toward the floor. “And blood symbols right here. There was blood all over the floor.”

Jacob stayed silent.

“And there was…” My throat tightened painfully. “There was a severed head.”

The silence inside the ruined room became suffocating.

I turned toward him desperately. “Your mother was here. She was doing some sort of black magic ritual.”

For a second Jacob simply stared at me. Then suddenly, he laughed. The sound echoed strangely through the empty room. I blinked at him in complete disbelief.

Jacob shook his head while laughing softly. “Oh, Anya.”

His voice sounded amused now. “You are so funny.”

My stomach dropped.

“But you should not make jokes like this so late at night,” he continued while rubbing one tired hand across his face. “You know I was exhausted today.”

“Jacob…”

“I had meetings all day.” He sighed dramatically. “Then patrol reports. Border issues. Training schedules. I finally fall asleep for a few hours and suddenly my terrified little mate drags me into a haunted ruin because my mother is apparently summoning demons.”

“Jacob, I am serious.”

He smiled faintly. “Mmmm....”

“You think I am joking?”

“I think you are stressed and overtired.”

“No.” I shook my head quickly. “No, you have to believe me. I really saw it.”

Jacob’s amusement slowly faded. He studied my face carefully now.

“This is not some sick joke,” I continued desperately. “I am not lying.”

His eyes softened slightly. “Anya…”

“I swear I saw it.”

He glanced slowly around the empty room again before looking back at me. “There is nothing here.”

My breathing became uneven. “Because she hid it.”

“In less than ten minutes?”

“Yes.”

Jacob raised an eyebrow slightly. “And she somehow removed hundreds of candles, blood drawings, human remains and an entire ritual setup without making noise?”

“I do not know how she did it.”

He sighed quietly. “Little wolf…”

“I am not hallucinating.”

“You are frightened.”

“I know what I saw.”

Jacob stepped closer toward me now. His expression looked calmer than mine. He was too calm. “No, Anya,” he said gently. “You imagined it.”

The words hit me painfully.

“I did not imagine it,” I whispered.

Jacob reached for my arm softly. “Let us get out of here.”

I stared at him helplessly. “Jacob…”

“This place has bad energy.”

His voice lowered slightly while he guided me back toward the doorway.

“Ever since I was a child, there have always been rumors about the west wing.”

I frowned shakily. “Rumors?”

Jacob nodded slowly while leading me through the ruined hallway.

“Many guards refused to patrol this area at night.” His flashlight moved across the cracked walls while he spoke. “Some claimed they heard strange noises.”

“What kind of noises?”

“Children crying...whispers...laughter.”

Cold chills crawled across my skin.

“Some servants even claimed they saw strange apparitions wandering through these halls.”

Maya growled softly inside me. I do not like this place.

Neither did I.

Jacob continued walking beside me while his hand remained wrapped securely around mine.

“I never truly believed in ghosts,” he admitted quietly. “But this part of the mansion has always felt wrong somehow.”

The flashlight beam flickered across the broken floor.

“It is old, dangerous and unstable.” Jacob glanced toward the cracked ceiling above us. “That is why I warned you never to come here alone.”

I swallowed hard.

“But maybe…” He paused thoughtfully. “Maybe there is some truth to those old stories.”

I looked at him quickly. “What do you mean?”

Jacob’s eyes moved slowly around the ruined corridor.

“Perhaps there really is something strange here.” His voice lowered slightly. “Something that affects people when they stay too long.”

My chest tightened. “You think I hallucinated?”

“I do not know.” He sounded careful now. “But you were already stressed after the nightmare.”

“That does not mean I imagined a severed head.”

Jacob sighed softly. “The human mind is complicated, Anya.”

“No.” I shook my head immediately. “I know what I saw.”

Jacob looked unconvinced. But suddenly, an idea hit me.

“We should check your mother’s room.”

He blinked. “What?”

“If she is really sleeping there, then maybe I am wrong.” My voice came out rushed now. “But what if she is not?”

Jacob frowned slightly.

“I really did see her going toward the west wing,” I insisted quickly. “What if she is still trapped somewhere in here? What if she is hallucinating too?”

He stared at me silently for a moment. Then finally he sighed heavily. “Fine.”

I felt relieved instantly. “Let us check.”

We left the ruined hallway and walked back toward the modern side of the mansion. My heartbeat stayed painfully fast the entire time.

Maya sounded uncertain now. Something feels wrong.

Everything felt wrong. The mansion corridors seemed quieter than before somehow. Even the air felt heavier.

Soon we reached Mom Jess’ bedroom door. Jacob knocked softly first. There was no answer. Then he knocked louder.

A few seconds later, movement sounded from inside the room. My pulse spiked instantly. The door slowly opened and my entire body went cold.

Mom Jess stood there wearing a pale silk nightgown. Her gray hair looked slightly messy like she had truly been asleep. Her eyes blinked tiredly beneath the dim hallway light.

“What happened?” she asked softly.

Shock crashed through me so hard that I almost stopped breathing. No....that was impossible.

Jacob immediately looked apologetic. “I am sorry for disturbing you, Mom.”

Mom Jess yawned softly while holding the door partly open. “Disturbing me for what exactly?”

Jacob answered smoothly, “Dominic caught two rogues trying to infiltrate the mansion grounds.”

Mom Jess frowned with concern immediately. “Rogues?”

“Yes,” Jacob replied calmly. “We came to make sure you were alright.”

“Oh.” She pressed one hand lightly against her chest. “I did not hear anything at all.”

She looked genuinely sleepy. “I was sleeping so deeply until you knocked on the door.”

My stomach twisted violently. No....this made no sense. I had seen her. I knew I had.

Jacob nodded apologetically again. “Sorry for waking you.”

Mom Jess smiled gently. “It is alright. I am fine.”

“Goodnight, Mom.”

“Goodnight.”

Then Jacob slowly turned toward me. “You see? She was sleeping.”

I stared at Mom Jess speechlessly. Her expression remained calm and motherly. Nothing about her looked strange now. Nothing about her looked evil. If I had not seen the ritual myself, I would never suspect her of anything.

Heat rushed into my cheeks from embarrassment and confusion. “I…” My voice shook slightly. “I am sorry.”

Jacob’s expression softened immediately.

“Maybe…” I swallowed hard. “Maybe I really was imagining things.”

Mom Jess smiled kindly at me. “You poor thing. You care so much about me.”

Guilt twisted painfully inside my chest. “I am very sorry for disturbing you. I thought that you were in danger so I forced Jacob to come with me to check on you.”

“It is alright, dear,” she said softly.

Jacob gently took my hand again. “Come. You need sleep.”

I nodded weakly. He began leading me back toward our room. But something made me look back one last time.

Mom Jess still stood inside the doorway. The door remained slightly open beside her. And this time, she was smiling differently.

The kind expression had vanished. A cold chill crawled slowly down my spine. Her eyes locked onto mine with something dark hidden deep inside them. The smile on her lips looked wrong somehow. It was not warm and gentle.

My breath caught in my throat. Then my eyes lowered slightly by accident. And I froze.

At the very bottom edge of her pale nightgown, there was a dark red stain. It was small but I noticed it.

Blood....

The world around me seemed to stop. Mom Jess noticed exactly where I was looking and her smile widened. It was as if she knew...she knew that I had seen the truth.

Maya growled violently inside me. We were not hallucinating.

No, we were not.

Before I could react, Mom Jess slowly closed the bedroom door.

Jacob looked down at me with concern immediately. “What is wrong?”

I forced myself to look away from the closed door. “No....Nothing.”

But my hands had started trembling again. Jacob gently rubbed his thumb against my knuckles while guiding me back toward our bedroom.

“You are freezing.”

“I am just tired.”

“You need rest.”

I nodded weakly even though my thoughts were spiraling wildly now. How had Mom Jess removed everything so quickly? Had she somehow known I was watching her? Had she hidden everything before I returned with Jacob?

But how?

There had not been enough time. Unless…unless there was another exit inside that room. Or maybe someone had helped her.

My stomach tightened painfully. And the biggest question of all terrified me the most.

How would I ever prove this to Jacob?

By the time we returned to our bedroom, my head felt like it would explode from fear and confusion.

Jacob gently pulled me toward the bed. “Come here.”

I climbed beneath the blankets silently while my mind continued racing. Jacob wrapped both arms around me immediately and pulled me tightly against his chest. His warmth surrounded me completely.

“You are safe with me,” he murmured softly against my hair.

Those words should have comforted me. Instead, they made my chest ache strangely. Because I no longer knew who or what was dangerous inside this mansion.

Jacob brushed his fingers slowly through my hair while holding me close. “Try to sleep now.”

“I will.”

But sleep felt impossible. After several minutes, Jacob’s breathing slowly became deeper beside me again. He had fallen asleep quickly from exhaustion.

I remained completely still in his arms. Then slowly, I opened my eyes. Moonlight spilled softly across the dark room while my thoughts spiraled endlessly.

Mom Jess’s creepy smile would not leave my mind. Neither would the blood stain on her gown. I knew what I had seen. I was not crazy.

Something evil was hiding inside this mansion.

And somehow…

I had the horrible feeling that this was only the beginning.