Blacken by Alandra Rankin (i love reading books txt) 📕

Something else was calling, and she had to find out what.

CHAPTER 5

The bitter night caressed her exposed skin, her body shivering upon walking out of her small apartment and into the streets.

Instinctively, Avie wrapped her arms around her frame to keep her core warmer if only a fraction. The young woman was disoriented, the drumming in her veins occupying her thoughts. She had to steady herself before starting to move forward.

Picking a direction at random, she started walking, turning down different streets to see what course her body may lead. It was just like when she was coming into Blacken; her body was her compass to where she needed to be led.

A fleeting voice of reason attempted to break through the overwhelming obsession to pursue, telling her to go to Owen first.

Of course, the thought was pushed away as soon as the pressure lifted a tinge when Avie turned down a set of streets, leading out of the town and towards the line of trees. It relieved her, the affliction lessening becoming her only interest.

Into the forest… Was she being led to where she had her accident?

She could very well get lost if she went through the tree line, unknowing where she could end up while being turned around and around by this thing in her body. However, she also didn’t want to continue to feel like this; to have the vibrating wrack her body, to have people she knew disappear never to be heard from, to be unsure of her fate if she was destined to be missing as well...

Avie took her chances, and she dipped into the line of trees to enter the woodland.

It was so dark, the only light she had was the moonlight above her, helping only slightly in its half phase as she tripped over roots and fallen branches. The cacophony in her simmered down the further she went, common sense instead taking its place to course through her.

“What the hell am I doing? I should go back. What if I run into a bear? What if I run into worse?” A mountain of ‘what if’ scenarios rushed into her mind, all the while her legs carried her further into the woods, contradicting her want for safety.

Up in her own mind between the vibrations and her paranoia of the forest, she almost didn’t register until a few steps in that she waltzed into a clearing. Her face scrunched in confusion, taking in the new surroundings with her adjusted eyesight.

There was, what looked to be, a small abandoned manor in front of her. It stood tall, narrow, and foreboding—absorbing the night around it. Only a few speckles of moonlight trickled through the trees and patched its worn wood, the dwelling easily camouflaged in the nature surrounding. It was an odd sight to see, but not unheard of. Yet Avie never heard anyone mention anything about it, not even Owen. She absentmindedly wondered if he even knew about it as she cautiously took steps towards the looming building.

It had seemed the perfect area for whatever supernatural activity happening in the little town to take place at. Either that, or a serial killer’s hideout.

Avie twirled the ring on her finger, eyes darting for any possible movement. She had to figure something out while she was here, she came all this way and if the sensation did keep coming back at this intensity, it would drive her mad. Or what if she was chosen next?

For some semblance of safety, the woman grabbed a small bough at her feet for protection; figuring it was a decent sized bat if anything got too close.

Her teeth chattered. Still, she approached the front door, a shaking hand reaching out for the handle. Please be locked. Please be locked. Please be locked! Avie was terrified to enter, the unknown inside outlined all kinds of danger, yet she couldn’t stop. Her rational mind and determined mind fighting out in an exhausting war.

The handle turned under her touch and the door opened for her.

The wood squeaked on rusting hinges, opening inside to reveal the dark space. Avie cursed for not having the foresight to have brought a flashlight with her, the moonlight having to make do once again as it streamed through the windows.

Jade eyes accommodated after a few long minutes of standing in the doorway. She took notice of a few graffiti tags and dusty open cans of food strewn about in the entrance, it looked like a few squatters had taken refuge in the past. A broken banister held the small staircase beside her, she was almost certain she may fall right through the steps if she tried them. Hesitant step after hesitant step was taken, the branch clutched tightly against her body.

The place definitely seemed abandoned, Avie couldn’t see any signs of inhabitants in the darkness as she moved through the level of the manor. She certainly didn’t want to announce herself, choosing only to blend into the creaks and moans of the wood, the lack of light perhaps a blessing in disguise. Moving through the living space, old furniture had been covered with sheets, books stacked all over and overflowed in the bookshelves. A grand fireplace stood to her right, reaching up high and mighty, drawing her sight to where almost every inch of the roof beams above her were covered with dust and cobwebs. She could feel as though she was close to a discovery for the source of drumming inside her, so close yet just out of her grasp.

It had to be here! It just had to...

Reaching the other side of the living room, a straight shot through the manor, she entered the kitchen, leading to a back door. There was a dining room adjacent that she eyed cautiously, unsure of the darkness emanating from it. Avie really didn’t have the ability to explore the other levels of the house; her heart in her throat with apprehension at just exploring the main level. Her rational mind won over