Chapter 70: What Is My Fate?
Chapter 70: What Is My Fate?
Ebony Winters POV:
I couldn't help it as I held my eyes closed for a moment as I rolled my head over to the side, fearing the worst. Where was Nic as I was surrounded by these three random strangers? All I was doing was trying to eat something for the first time since I got here, but Nic was quickly called away, no sooner than he placed me in that chair. Who was that one woman, the one who had me taken out of that large hall, if that's what it is even called? I know I didn't know Nic all that long, but something about him told me that I could trust him. I just wish he were here right now.
After some time, I finally managed to stop coughing, but the last thing I wanted was to look at the man who was about to be the key to my undoing. The hood was still being held there, right above my nose, as I was panting after the coughing spell I just had. I was thirsty and even needed something to drink, which might help, but I'm afraid that if I asked any of them, they might try to drown me.
As I ran over the last time I was taken away, I recalled what the other two men looked like. It was the first night I, right after I arrived here in this strange land. I wish I knew what year it was. There was a woman involved then, too. Ramona, I think it was. I'm not sure what she had against me, but nothing would have called for what those two men with her did to the night I was first taken from the castle. I even remember what happened to them, but that was only after they hurt me in ways I never thought possible. They were,... well,... they, were...
I couldn't even finish my thought about what happened to them. I knew what the fate was of those who placed their hands on me. I didn't care about the expressions on their faces, so what was the point of looking at this one, older man, then? I didn't want to see any sort of precarious expressions on his face, either. Just then, I thought I heard something. What could it be? I could still hear the dripping water, and that didn't help the fact that I thought I was in some sort of trance, as my head didn't feel quite right.
That's when I heard it again, but this time, it seemed to be a lot closer than before. In the far-off distance, I thought I heard the sound of a wolf starting to howl. Wait, could that be? Did I really hear that right? Where could a wolf come from, or was that a large dog? No, wait, dogs didn't howl like that, well, not that I ever had a dog. I wasn't allowed such a luxury. I never had a pet, so all of this was new to me. More so, new in the sense that I shouldn't even be here in the first place, but still couldn't come to terms with how I ended up in this time frame as it was.
Suddenly, the older man seemed to lose his patience and just ripped the hood off the top of my head. It made my head partially lift off the table and slam back down as I tried to bat my eyes about, as I tried to look around and see what was around me. When he yanked the hood off, dust filled the air as debris and other particles fell onto my face and got in my eyes from the soot of the hood.
After a moment, I could finally see. The room I was in looked like a cave of some kind, not at all like the lower levels of the first castle I was taken from. However, when I looked at the older man, he wasn't even looking at me as he wanted to do previously. Instead, he was looking at the two other men who were standing on either side of my head at the head of this table I was lying on. The look on his face wasn't very pleasant either, as he looked back and forth between them.
"Did you do as you were previously instructed?" He asked both of them, demanding an answer, his voice harsh.
I rolled my head back and forth, still batting my eyes about as he continued to hold me in place, when they finally released my arms as she stood there with blank expressions. I moved quickly to wipe my face as I closed my eyes briefly, waiting for them to respond to the older man.
"Well?" The old man harped in an even louder voice.
"I had Clay close the door back as I carried her here," said the one man who was standing on the opposite side of the table from the older man. "If that helps, that is."
"When you closed the door, did you ensure that it got a good seal on the door?" The old man asked this time, his tone serious, and now there was an edge to it, almost as if he was concerned about something.
Why? Why would he be concerned if the door wasn't closed all the way? None of this was making any sense to me. I guess I could find out more if I remained quiet. My hands were tucked into my chest, and I even reached up and began to rub my throat as we were waiting for Clay to respond to the old man's question. When I looked at him, he wasn't looking at me as he was looking in a different direction altogether.
I swallowed hard, and that even hurt my throat from all the coughing I did. The air in here was so thick that I was having a hard time breathing. With each breath I took, all I managed to do was take in another breath full of this musty air. Never have I smelled such musty, dirt-filled air. The stench burned my nose with every breath. How could they stand to breathe air such as this?
"Dylan, you must tell me if you closed the door all the way or not?" The man shouted as he turned to the side and grabbed him by both of his shoulders.
"Yes," he finally spoke as he looked the older man dead in the face. "Yes, I closed it all the way back. I did."
"You're sure?" The older man asked again.
"Yes, I am sure, I did," Dylan said this time as he turned to look over at Clay.
All this while, none of them looked at me. What was the reason why the older man was so worried about closing the door again? It's not like it had some kind of spell on it or anything, right? Wait, is that why I am not able to communicate with Nic? I inhaled sharply as all three men looked down at me.
This was the first time my eyes met the older man's gaze.