The demon stood a few feet away, sniffing the air like a trained bloodhound, as if it were trying to capture my scent. I hurried behind a tree and gasped for breath. I knew the thing would see me if it turned the corner, but I had no energy left for another sprint. I began to wonder where my ghostly knights in shining armor had gone. Massaging my temples, I forced my attention back to the situation at hand. I knew if I didn’t come up with a plan soon, I’d never reach the portal.
I hoped the ice dragon would eventually lose interest and go on its way, but something told me not to raise my hopes too high. It was like a heat-seeking missile, homing in on its target. Bolting in the other direction through the towering ferns, I sucked in huge lungful of air. I swerved around a couple twisted trees, but a blow hit me in the back at full force, sending me toppling forward, completely off balance. I crashed to the ground and fell, facedown, in the dirt, and the impact knocked the breath out of me. I gasped as a stabbing pain shot through my body. Scrambling to my feet, I spit out earth and turned to look at what had caused me to fall. I shouldn’t have, for the dragon met my gaze, its eyes wide like it was ready to devour me and my soul at any given second.
I shrieked as a stream of sticky saliva rained down on me. I grabbed my sword and waved it about frantically as I pressed my mouth tight. Looking up, I stared straight into the dragon’s eyes. I could barely reach its middle, as I was so small by comparison, but I refused to be afraid anymore—at least not until I lost a limb or two.
I blinked the dust out of my eyes and screamed. My breath caught in my throat as my mind raced. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move. Every muscle tensed as I gripped the sword with all my might. The beast’s long, menacing claws slowly passed by my face as it flapped in the air, screeching. I gasped. I was the star of my very own horror movie, and I only hoped it wasn’t going to turn out to be a slasher flick.
As it let out a loud bellow, a horrible stench filled the air, like that of rotten meat. Cowering on the damp ground, I froze as I stared into the eyes of the ice dragon. My heart hammered against my ribs. Suddenly, a stream of fire moved toward me at lightning speed. I dodged and rolled to escape the dangerous flames. Sword ready and drawn, I rushed toward the dragon. The beast lashed its tail again, crashing into the tree trunk above me, bark exploding all around me. Blinking the dust and dirt out of my eyes, I tried to survey the situation.
I darted toward the creature, stabbing tentatively at its body with my sword, as if engaging it in combat. I lifted my blade and swung it at the fierce monster, fighting like a valiant knight. A giant slashing claw came just inches from ripping my stomach in shreds as it tried to gut me like a fish. Sheer terror overcame me, and I let out a long shriek.
Suddenly, a group of yellow glowing orbs flew around the dragon’s face. The beast fluttered its eyes shut, as if distracted by the lights. I plunged my sword into the dragon, and it dissipated into a million little white dots.
“Zoey!” Alexander called as he ran toward me.
“I-I think I killed it,” I said, “with help.” When I glanced up to take a better look at the lights that had helped me, I dropped the sword, my mouth agape.
“Zoey,” a female said. She was wearing a billowing dress, and her black braids swayed in the wind. Her black skin glowed. There, right before me, absolutely beaming, was my best friend who’d been killed in Hurricane Katrina.
“Lashar, is it really you?” I asked, holding my hand out to her. Since the day the hurricane had torn her away from me, my heart had ached over her loss.
“It’s really me, Zoey.”
It felt like a dream. I suddenly relived being trapped in the building, screaming her name as her head ducked under the water. I shook my head. Emotions overwhelmed me as I wept in her arms. “Oh, Lashar. My life hasn’t been the same since you left me,” I said between sobs. “I should be dead, not you.”
“Girl, that’s the craziest thing you’ve ever said. Hush now.”
More tears flowed down my face as I hugged the friend I’d lost that fateful day. I couldn’t let go, and I held her tight as more sobs erupted from me. There was no way to hold back the emotion.
Lashar looked so happy as she told me about the lives they were all living now. “I’m here to tell you to move on with your life, girl,” she said. “You were destined to survive that flood, so quit whining about it and go make something of the chance you were given.”
I stared at her, choking back tears.
“We must make haste!” Alexander said.
Lashar grabbed my hand and led me toward the portal. “That’s your cue, girlfriend. C’mon.”
We zigzagged through the trees and came to a blue circle that was hovering in midair. The portal was across the pond. Through the mist, I saw a trail of stepping stones.
Alexander stepped on one to test it. “They will hold our weight,” he said.
We started across, and I sucked in a deep breath. Almost there, I thought with great relief.
Suddenly, a long purple tentacle burst from the water. Droplets sprayed my face as the thing wrapped around my ankle. I drew my sword and cut the tentacle off in a brilliant burst of light, then ran across the rocks to the other side.
“This is the portal,” Lashar said. “Go on, girl. It’s all you.”
I ducked as dark shapes and shadows buzzed over my head, entering and exiting the gateway. “How does this work?” I asked.
“Your friend must go,” Alexander said, looking at me. “Then, let your necklace touch the red ruby, and the power from the necklace will do the rest.”
I saw a swirling control box to the left, about waist-level. Inside was a glittering red ruby, at what looked like easy access. “This shouldn’t be too hard,” I said.
Lashar gripped my hand and smiled. “We’ll see each other again.”
Another tear rolled down my face. “Without you, I’m merely surviving.”
“You shouldn’t feel bad, Zoey,” Lashar said. “I am here to give you closure. We’re all doing wonderfully, so let go of us and embrace your life now. You have a fine future ahead of you. Think of the great times we had, but don’t hold on to them so tightly that you don’t make more of your own. You should be at peace, girl. We are.”
“Thanks, Lashar,” I said. “I’ve needed to hear that for so long.” I embraced her in a tight hug, and she smiled and turned to leave.
“Shut the portal down now,” Alexander said.
I nodded and touched the ruby inside the swirling control box. My hand burned, but then it felt ice cold. The portal hummed with powerful energy, then turned colors with blinding speed, glowing like a laser light show. Blue, green, red, and yellow filtered down around us like a psychedelic kaleidoscope. Bolts of yellow energy shot high in the air, sizzling through the streams of smoke. Then, just like that, the portal disappeared.
“Is that it?” I asked.
Alexander let out a sigh and turned slowly to face me. “Yes. You’ve done it. My men and I will slay whatever creatures were foolish enough to get trapped here…and we shall enjoy every moment of it.”
“Hmm. I see I inherited something else from Isabella too,” I said with a grin.
“What is that, milady?”
“A thing for bad boys.”
A few minutes later, we met up with the other knights and headed back through the forest.
“Zoey!”
I spun to face Isabella, and she hugged me tightly.
“I know not how to amply thank you, my dear,” she said.
I smiled. “There’s no need to thank me. It will help us all. I’m tired of playing piano in my sleep.”
“No more enchanted dreams,” she said.
“Nope.”
“I’m so sorry my brother acted a fool and believed that foul teacher of yours. He acted out of pure desperation, and he regrets it now. When it seemed to take too long for the prophecy to be fulfilled, he was…well, as impatient as he always is. I love William, but he too often takes matters into his o
wn hands and tries to make his own fate.”
“He didn’t realize it would hurt us,” I said. “When he found out, he stopped and tried to stand up to her. Sometimes you want something so terribly that you’ll do anything to obtain it. His mind was clouded, not thinking straight.”
“You are very forgiving, Zoey, so very merciful and compassionate.”
“Yet another thing that runs in our family,” I said with a smile.
When I glanced up, the other castle spirits surrounded me and broke out into a chorus of cheers and applause. I was humbled by it, but I knew I’d done something wonderful, something that had helped all of us. Many of them approached me and pulled me into a grateful embrace, and I vowed that I would free them all, no matter what it took.
When I walked back into my world, the others were waiting there for me. Tears streamed down Pam’s face, and Shantal and Eric gave me the tightest hug ever.
I’d never seen Hunter so scared, but his face lit up the second he saw me. When Shantal and Eric finally let go of me, he wrapped his strong arms around me and held me in a comforting hug of his own. “Did it work?” he asked.
I grinned. “Yes.”
“Woo-hoo!” He spun me around, shouting and laughing.
We had yet to free the spirits, but we had closed the gateway and stopped the haunting. It was a big step in the right direction, but now I feared we’d have to face Miss Shila’s wrath. We’d shut down her operation, and I knew she would retaliate. As scared as I was, I had to face her, because I needed to know more about the possessions. I had to get to the bottom of it, and she needed to pay for her part in hurting Margaret and Joseph. I was sure that she had the same plans for us, that she wanted to use us until we had nothing left to give. She was evil, and she knew the energy would eventually harm our bodies and put us into a comatose state, but she couldn’t have cared less.
Hunter’s lips brushed against mine in the softest of kisses. In that moment, more than ever before, I realized I never, ever wanted to let him go. I couldn’t bear to imagine anything happening to him, because he was my knight in shining armor, my enchanted dream, and I loved him more than anything in the world—in any world.
To be continued…
Thank you so much for reading Zoey’s story. Did you enjoy My Haunted Fairytale? If so, I’d love for you to consider writing a review. And it doesn’t have to be big or long. A line or two would be awesome! Thank you so much for your support. I appreciate it more than you’ll ever know.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I’m beyond grateful.
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BOOK TRAILER: http://youtu.be/Ysb6uzIdsEk
Enchanted Dreams - Book 3 (The Enchanted Castle Series) Page 21