Chapter 58

*A light breeze drifted through the hallway twirling Seraphina’s skirt around her legs.

The marble floor was cold against her feet, she increased her pace to the garden, eager to get away from the freezing floor. She hopped over the threshold onto the grass of the garden, flexing her toes as she let out a small sigh of relief.

*Walking without a purpose, she let her legs take her through the expansive garden, stopping at the redwood tree to gently caress the faces of the twins carved into the bark.

*She continued on towards the far end of the garden in the direction of the opening that gave access to the vineyards.

As she reached the opening, she felt the sudden urge to walk through the clematis that covered the walls.

*With a furrowed brow, she placed her hands on the clematis and pressed her weight against it.

A small scream escaped her lips as she stumbled forward, through the flowers and into an unknown corridor.

*“What in the…” she mumbled as she stood to her feet. She looked around, waiting for her eyes to adjust to the darkness.

Her eyes didn’t need to adjust, sconces that were lining the walls suddenly came to life as flames roared inside them. Seraphina clutched her chest as she jumped back.

*“Hello?” She called out into the empty hallway. There was no answer, only her own voice echoing back to her.

She tucked her hair behind her ears as she tried to listen out for any sounds, any signs of life.

*Her brows furrowed together as she was greeted with only silence. She turned to walk back to the garden but stopped short of the wall of flowers.

*Curiosity eating away inside her, she turned back and began to walk through the corridor. It was bare expect for the wall scones, no doors, no paintings hanging, nothing.

*As she reached the end of the corridor, she let out a long sigh as she realised there was nothing hidden here. ‘Probably just a servant’s passage,’ she thought. She turned to walk back in the direction she came when, a sliver of light along the floor caught her attention.

*She took a hesitant step towards the wall and ran her hand along, parallel to the stream of light on the floor. Her breath caught in her throat as the wall moved out and edged open like a door.

*With trembling fingers; she gripped the edge of the stoned and pulled the ‘door’ open. She couldn’t help the gasp that escaped her lips as she stepped into the hidden room.

*The room was lit up with more sconces, the walls lined with shelves upon shelves of herbs, oils, flowers, crystals. The shelves seemed to go higher and higher up the walls, beyond her line of vision.

*She walked to towards one of the lower hanging shelves and ran her fingers along the spines of the leather-bound books. Her fingers danced over a large, weathered book again and again. Every time she tried to trail her fingers past, they drew back to it, almost as though it was a magnet.

*Pulling the book from the shelf, she placed it down onto the table before her, the book fell open landing on an age stained page, the words ‘Ut inveniet quod habet non fuit Perdita autem capta est’ written.*

*She trailed her fingers across the writing at the top of the page, “To find what has not been lost but taken,” she whispered.

Her eyes widened as her head snapped up.

Seraphina bolted up right in bed, the rays of the early sunrise poured through the window. She clutched a hand to her chest as she tried to calm her panting.

Turning to where Achilles lay sleeping, she shook his shoulder.

“Achilles! Achilles! Wake up, I had a vision, I know how to find the children! Achilles! Wake up!”

The bed rocked as she pounced on Achilles, dragging him out of his stupor.

“Ahh, is everything okay?” Achilles asked her, one eye barely open.

“I had a vision Achilles! I know how to find the children, how to find ‘what has not been lost but taken’.”

Achilles sat up furrowing his eyebrows at her.

“I don’t understand my love…” he shook his head groggily.

Seraphina rolled her eyes as she began tugging on his hand.

“Come, let me show you! Leonardo won’t be awake for a few hours, come, quick!”

She bounded off the bed and stepped into the first dress her hands touched. Achilles feet had barely touched the floor before she grabbed him by his hands and dragged him down the stairs into the garden.

“Seraphina! I am naked!” He chuckled at her.

She answered him with an eye roll, “Since when does that bother you my love?”

Achilles trailed behind her as she dragged him through the garden to the opening at the far end. They reached the wall of clematis, Seraphina stood and looked at Achilles, her eyes twinkling as a grin crept over her face. Turning to face him so her back was against the wall, she stepped backwards through the clematis and disappeared with a giggle.

“Seraphina? Where did you go?” Achilles pressed his hands against the flowers but, all he felt was a cold, stone wall.

Seraphina frowned as she saw Achilles palms peep through the flowers and stop as though he hit a wall.

She stepped back out causing Achilles to jump back, landing on his rear with a loud thud.

Achilles grunted as he rubbed the small of his back.

“Seraphina! I could’ve hurt you! Don’t jump out on me like that!”

She snorted as she tried to hold back a giggle.

“It seems as though you only hurt yourself my love… I wonder why you can’t enter…”

Achilles groaned as he dusted his self off.

“Well, your father was a mage… Maybe only mages can enter?”

Seraphina titled her head as she thought it over.

“Hmmm, it would make sense, it would also explain why I wasn’t made aware of this place when I arrived… No one else knew about it…”

Achilles frowned as he looked at Seraphina.

“What is in there?” He titled his head as he looked past her and at the wall covered in clematis.

“Well, I only saw it in my vision but, it was a room full of herbs, oils, grimoires!” Seraphina was almost shaking with excitement.

“Should I fetch Isobella?” Achilles brought his attention back to Seraphina.

She pulled on her lip for a moment before leaning forward and planting a kiss on Achilles lips.

“That would be perfect, thank you my love. Oh, could you also bring some coffee?” She looked up at him through her eyelashes as she pouted her lips.

Achilles rolled his eyes before kissing her forehead and heading back towards the garden.

“I’m the crown Prince and I’m being sent to make coffee…” she heard him grumbling to his self as he walked away.

Excitement coursed through her body and she stepped back through the flowers and all but sprinted to the hidden room.