“I’m not. Like I told you before, if they wanted me dead, I would’ve been dead the first day.”
“What are you saying?”
“They don’t want me. They might mess around with me a little, but I’m convinced they’re friendly.”
“Friendly? They locked us in the attic!”
“Only because we were messing with their stuff.”
“I was locked in the bathroom.”
“It might’ve been a prank—a horrible one, I know, but maybe they didn’t mean to scare you so bad. I bet they feel bad about it.”
“It didn’t feel like a practical joke to me. I felt this intense evil, Hunter, and it really scared me.”
“Has anything scary happened in your room?”
“No…not yet.”
“In a sense, they must respect you.”
I shook my head. “You know, I don’t even want to think about this haunted castle right now. If I read another word or talk about it for one more minute, I’m not going to be able to sleep in my room alone anymore.” As horrified as I was at what was going on in the castle, I couldn’t bear to leave Hunter, the one person who made me feel safe. I set my history book down on his dresser, then inched toward him, grinning. “Moving on to better things, I’ve been dying to spend some time with you all day long.”
“I’m all yours.” He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me onto the bed, tickling my sides and belly and under my ribs.
“Wh-what are you doing?” I asked foolishly. I knew he was flirting with me or torturing me, or maybe both. My mind was fuzzy just from being touched by him. I shrieked, bucked, and squirmed as he tickled me. I even giggled; it’d been so long since I’d made that giddy little-girl sound that I’d forgotten what it sounded like. Giggling in such a carefree way was nice, something I wasn’t accustomed to. At least not since…well, for a good long while.
I laughed as I stared right up into his blue eyes and gleaming smile. I was flattered by his attention. Those cute jeans he wore and the fact that he was shirtless would have put Marky Mark’s Calvin Klein ad to shame. He was so gorgeous and daring. Then a thought struck me: If we got caught up here in his bed, one of us topless…
I knew if he didn’t stop tickling me, I was going to start crying from laughing so hard. I grabbed the closest weapon I could find to defend myself, a dark pillow, and started hitting him with it.
He laughed, then grabbed my wrists and asked in my ear in that adorable faux Scottish accent of his, “Milady, wouldst thou accompany me to the charity costume ball?”
“No way!” I said, laughing. “Stop tickling me! Isn’t this supposed to be a study date?”
“We’ll study later.”
“Stop!” I kidded.
He shook his head and refused, then tickled me again.
I smiled wider. “Then don’t get mad at me when I kick you in the royal jewels!”
He laughed that deep, smoky laugh that I couldn’t get enough of. He was sure of himself, and his self-confidence was yet another turn-on. “Say you’ll let me escort you to the dance, and I shall unhand thee.”
“Fine! I’d be honored to go with you to the dance,” I said, “if you’ll just stop tickling me!”
He finally stopped and smiled. “Gotcha! I knew you couldn’t play hard-to-get forever.”
I grinned. “Hunter, you’re such a—”
Crash! Before I could respond, a glass of water flew off the bedside table and smashed into a hundred wet shards on the floor.
“What the heck?” Hunter asked.
“It’s your fault,” I said. “You’re shaking the bed.”
“But the table’s not even touching the bed.”
I stared into his eyes. “See? You totally shook my world.”
He smiled, and I almost smiled back at him, but the grin was quickly wiped from my face and replaced with horror when the bed began shaking inexplicably.
“Right, and I suppose that’s me rocking your world?” Hunter said, wide-eyed.
“I-I don’t think so,” I whispered, petrified as the shaking continued.
“Earthquake?” he said, helping me off the bed.
“I wish.”
“Let’s get out of here,” he said.
“Wait!” I stared at the shaking bed and touched it, thinking about Shantel’s suspicions. Maybe I’m just having a hallucination. “You’re seeing this, right? I’m not imagining it.”
“You’re definitely not imagining it.” He gripped my hand, and we bolted out of the room.
“Hey,” I said, pulling my arm away. “We gotta go back.”
“What? Why?” he said in disbelief. “You go back in that possessed room, and I will think you’re crazy, Zoey!”
“But you’re half-dressed! How’s that gonna look? Plus, I want to take video of the shaking bed. I’m sick of people not believing me. I want proof.”
He ran a hand through his hair. “Fine. I’ll go get a shirt. You stay here.”
“No, Hunter. I’m going with you. Nobody will believe us without evidence.”
“Fine. C’mon.” Hunter slowly opened the door and glanced around. “It stopped.”
“They must be camera shy,” I said, walking in and seeing nothing out of the ordinary.
He rushed over to his dresser and grabbed a black t-shirt, then slipped it on. Curiosity got the best of him, and he walked over to the bed and touched it, but nothing happened. “What the heck was that all about?” he asked, dumbfounded. “Why did you think you were hallucinating?”
I filled him in on Shantel’s conspiracy theories.
“Government experiments and spiking our Kool-Aid with hallucinogens? I highly doubt that’s what’s going on, Zoey,” he said.
“I know, but it’s a lot more logical than ghosts and goblins.”
“Something paranormal is happening. Shantel just doesn’t want to confront her fears. She wants everything to be black and white, so she stays in denial, but life doesn’t work that way. You and me are more open-minded than that.” He smiled. “That’s one of the many things I love about you.”
I smiled. “Hunter, are you trying to tell me you respect me for my mind?”
“Among other things,” he teased, smiling wickedly.
“Well, in any case, it looks like the spirits are trying to get your attention too,” I whispered.
“Our attention,” he said, nudging my arm playfully. “I was here alone for over an hour, but nothing happened until you stepped through that door.”
I smiled, then bit my lip. “Maybe I’m haunted.”
“Nah, I just think you brought your ghost friends here with you,” he kidded.
“Wanna skip the study date?” I asked.
He grabbed his coat. “At least the study part, but I could do for a good, long walk with a pretty girl.”
“All right,” I said.
After I hurried back to my room, I dropped off my book and slipped into my coat. We made our way outside, and the cold air felt great on my face.
“We should tell someone,” I said. “The paranormal activity is getting…well, more active.”
“So you’re going to tell the teacher that you were in my bed with me half-naked and things started shaking? I’m not so sure that would sound right.”
“It was completely innocent, Hunter.”
“I know that and you know that, but do you think they’ll believe it?”
“We could leave that part out.” I turned around and gazed back at the castle with its arched buildings and sweeping windows. From that vantage point, that safe distance, it looked so beautiful and enchanting. Most people refused to believe it was haunted and dismissed the strange occurrences as coincidences with perfectly logical explanations, but I knew better.
A sudden blur caught my eye, and my focus sharpened. I could see a little girl in the second-floor window, dressed in a flowing gown.
“Look!” I pointed to the window.
“What?” Hunter asked.
&n
bsp; “Is that Elizabeth?” I asked, completely stunned.
He squinted. “Where? The throne room or the banquet hall?”
“Look to the left.”
“Whoa! I see it!” he shouted. “It’s a little girl. No flippin’ way!”
I was so relieved that he could see it too; that meant I wasn’t crazy. Then, as suddenly as it had appeared, she was gone.
“Let’s go check it out,” I said.
“She’s in the royal lodgings for the king and queen,” Hunter said.
I bit my lip. “We’re not supposed to go up there.”
“Right, and we’re not supposed to be bunking in a ghost-infested castle either. Forget the rules, Zoey, and let’s go. Or are you more scared of detention than you are of figuring this mess out?”
“The only thing I’m scared of is losing you,” I admitted.
“That’s one thing you don’t have to worry about,” he said, then grabbed my by the hand and hurried away with me.
Chapter 11
I’d only been in the king’s royal quarters once, on the tour they gave us when we first arrived. After that, we were told to stay off the fourth floor and not to enter the rooms. Each suite had four spacious rooms: a luxurious, huge outer hall, an inner hall, a sitting room, and then the bedroom, what Miss Duball called the bedchamber.
I found it funny that we were actually bolting inside a castle to chase a ghost. When I’d been confronted by the orbs, I’d run away as fast as I could to get away from them, but with Hunter, I was brave enough to face things head on. I’d already met the little girl in my vision, and she was the one thing I wasn’t scared of.
We ran up the winding staircase and burst through the massive, studded oak doors and glanced around. The decorative scheme was amazingly elaborate, from fancy tapestries and handmade furniture to carved portraits in the oak that adorned the ceiling. Fabrics covered the bed and walls, and the deep ruby, sapphire, and purple jewel tones were nothing short of rich and amazing. I’d read that fifteen carpenters had spent five years working on the woodcarvings in the king’s bedroom alone.
I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary and certainly no ghostly apparitions, so I rushed to the window, moved the heavy velvet curtains aside, and looked out, standing in the same spot where the girl was just standing moments before. “This is the right room, isn’t it?”
“Definitely,” Hunter said.
When I glanced down, I noticed strange symbols under the window, carved deeply into the wood. “Hey! What’s this?”
Hunter ran his fingers over the strange carvings. “It’s an inscription of some sort.”
“Weird. I wonder what it means.”
He shrugged. “We can always ask Elizabeth.”
“Elizabeth,” I beckoned, “come out! I need to talk to you.”
No answer.
“Did you shake the bed in Hunter’s room?”
A tiny, ghostly voice echoed through the air. “Yes.”
Hunter and I exchanged shocked glances. I’d never heard the voice of a ghost and had always scoffed at those who’d claimed they had, but the castle was quickly making a believer out of me.
“Why?” I said.
“To make you leave.”
“Why would you want us to leave?” Hunter asked, spinning in a slow circle.
“The bad man was coming.”
“You were trying to warn us?”
“Yes,” said the quivering voice.
“Show yourself,” I said. “Please. We want to see you. You know we mean you no harm.” I waited a minute, and when I saw no sign of her, I asked another question. “Elizabeth, what do these symbols mean? Who made them?” I spun in a slow circle, but I didn’t sense her presence anymore.
“She’s gone,” Hunter said.
“Great. Now I’ve got more questions than I had before, and no answers for any of them.”
“Who do you think this bad man is?” Hunter asked.
“I’m guessing he’s the guy who locked me in the bathroom.”
“Yeah, Eric told me all about it,” he said slowly.
“I didn’t give Eric too many details,” I responded.
“Well, Pam did.”
“Right. I should’ve known.” I let out a breath. “Maybe we’re getting in over our heads, drowning in all this paranormal crap. Maybe it’s time we talk to the principal.”
“Maybe. But what dark secrets do you think these walls hide?” he asked.
“Whatever they are, they’ve been hidden for hundreds of years. Maybe we shouldn’t mess with the past.”
“This place definitely has secrets,” Hunter said. “Can’t you feel them?”
I really could. “I feel like there’s more to it than just the castle getting attacked in 1296.”
“I’m beginning to think that too.” He cocked a brow, as if in thought. “When Elizabeth died, she should’ve gone to heaven, right?”
“Yes. That’s what I believe anyway, that young children go to heaven.”
“Then why is she trapped here?”
“I don’t know, but I’m sure she’s not the only one.” I looked again at the strange markings on the floor. “Hunter, do you think we’ll ever find the answers?”
“It’s hard to say.” He wrapped an arm around me. “Listen, I’m gonna head back to my room and do some thinking and Googling, but I’ll walk you back to yours first.”
“I’m supposed to meet Pam downstairs. We haven’t spent any time together in a while.”
“Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He kissed me on the cheek, and we parted ways.
I spent some time with Pam in the lounge area. We talked for hours, drank tea, and she told me all about her and Eric, who were hitting it off as well as Hunter and I were.
“Love the outfit,” I said. “You’re always so stylish.” I did love the way Pam wore her long, blonde hair in a French braid. She was dressed in a ruffled, sheer shirt, paired with a fashionable pair of jeans. As always, her makeup was flawless. She was a hopeless romantic, and that was echoed in her fashion choices. She was always frilly, feminine, and full of flair.
“Thanks, Zoey, but I’ve gotta give my mom the credit. She’s been putting me in pageants since I was old enough to smile. I guess I just kind of fell in love with all the glitz and glamour.”
“What?! You’re a pageant girl?”
“Yep. I know it’s kind of a weird lifestyle for a kid, and there are all those insane pageant moms out there. But despite it all, I learned a lot. The poise, confidence, and discipline is priceless, and I’ll carry those with me forever. Oh, and there are all those crowns and trophies too,” she joked.
“Wow. I had no idea,” I said. “Do you still do them?”
“Well, my mom wants me to try out for Miss USA when I’m eighteen, but I don’t want my life to be about that, you know? I just wanna sing and play my guitar. Strutting around in a bikini in front of a million people and a panel of judges just isn’t me.” Her face suddenly lit up. “I’ve got a million songs bouncing around in my head, and I want to write them, play them, and sing them.”
“I get it,” I said. “Big dreams, huh?”
“Yeah. We’ve all gotta have them. What are yours?”
“Hmm. I guess I dream of the day when I can take pictures for National Geographic.”
“That’d be awesome! Dream big, I always say,” she said. “If I’m gonna be onstage, I only want to do it in my own concert.”
I shook my head, amazed. “I never thought I’d know a famous pageant queen-turned-musician,” I said, smiling.
She playfully nudged me. “And your photos are going to rock the front page of National Geographic.” Changing the subject quickly, she added, “We oughtta set up a double-date with the guys.”
I smiled. “I’d love that.”
“Maybe we could make them take us out to dinner some Saturday. There are a lot of really cool restaurants around here.”
“Pam, we don’t have a car, and we can’t expe
ct one of the teachers to act as a chauffeur. If that’s what you’re thinking, you’re really dreaming big!”
She laughed. “Hmm. You have a point. If we were back home, I could drive us. I have a little red convertible that my dad gave me for my sixteenth birthday.”
“Sounds nice.”
“So, since we can’t leave the castle, what can we do for a double-date?” she asked.
“Let’s keep it simple. How about a picnic outside in the maze…by the water fountain?”
“I love it,” she squealed, “and you’ve gotta let me do your hair and makeup. That’s my specialty.”
“Pam, it’s only a picnic. It’s not like we’re going to the opera.”
When another friend walked up to us, I smiled. “Hi, Shantel.” She was dressed in the cutest, most sparkly red sweater and a pair of blue skinny jeans. Her long black braids were pulled back in a ponytail, and she had a bottled water in her hand.
“Hey, Zoey. Hey, Pam.”
I grabbed both their wrists and told them my stunning story about Hunter’s awesome bare chest, the glass breaking in Hunter’s room, the bed shaking, the little girl, and the eerie conversation we’d had with her.
“You really saw her?” Shantel said. “Because I keep hearing her. Sometimes I think I’m losing my mind.”
“She’s real. Hunter saw her too.” I cocked a brow as I pondered.
“I asked the cooks and housekeeping if they’ve seen her, and they said they haven’t,” Pam chimed in.
Shantel shot me a hard look. “Maybe because they’re not eating the food here.”
“You’re back to that again?” Pam said.
“You know what I think?” Shantel said, taking a sip of her water.
“What?” I asked.
“We should start monitoring everything the teachers and principal do.”
“You mean spy on them?” Pam squealed.
“I wouldn’t call it that,” Shantel said. “I call it investigating the enemy. I refuse to be used that way for any reason.”
“We don’t know for sure that they’re using us,” Pam said. “I love you, girl—you know I do—but I think you have an active imagination when it comes to conspiracy theories.”
Shantel smiled. “This, coming from the girl who claims that a million orbs darted all around her and that she was locked in an attic.”
My Haunted Fairytale - Book 2 (The Enchanted Castle Series) Page 10