Chapter 136: A Familiar Nightmare

Della immediately looked up at the door.

That was Annelise’s signal for them to go.

God, she really didn’t want to leave anymore. But there was no way she was going to make a decision that would end up putting Lian in danger.

"I have to go," She said, pulling back to stare at his face.

"Go? Now?" He had a look between horrified, sadness and disappointment.

"Yes," She nodded, gripping his shoulders again.

"I don’t want you to,"

"Shshhhh, it’s fine, it’s fine," She pulled him to her chest and ran her fingers through his hair, "We’ll meet again someday. When everything is better,"

He wrapped his hands around her back, holding on for dear life, "Are you sure?"

"I am," She nodded once, wiping her ears.

Annelise knocked again, a little more frantic this time.

"I have to go now, okay? The maid looking after you will return, and I will too, someday. Make sure you focus on your health, it’s all that matters to me, Lian. Remember to be strong,"

"I will,"

"Good," She cupped his face, "I love you, ok?"

"I love you too,"

She grabbed the lever, and then turned the chair around. The tyres rolled against the floor and away from him, watching her as she went for the door.

Della turned back to him one last time, and then she smiled. Annelise had no idea how much this gift of seeing Lian had meant to her.

Pulling the doorknob open, she finally left the room.

"I’m here, let’s go," Della whispered to Anne standing there, and then they were off.

Anne threw on her cloak and also helped Della with hers and they were both moving down the corridor as fast as they could.

But the moment they left Lian’s chambers, a certain figure that had been silently hiding behind the far end corner peeked out, and her annoyingly coffee-brown eyes looked wickedly excited at what she’d just found out.

Meanwhile, Della and Annelise were on their way out of the Castle.

Annelise kept one hand firmly on the back of Della’s wheelchair as they hurried through the corridor, while the other remained beneath her cloak, ready to reach for the small dagger strapped to her thigh.

The wheelchair rattled softly beneath her, every uneven stone sending a dull ache through her battered body. Her hands were wrapped tightly around the wheels, helping Annelise whenever they had to turn sharply.

They couldn’t use the main corridors.

They couldn’t use the gates.

And they certainly couldn’t be seen.

Annelise suddenly pulled the chair into a narrow passage and pressed herself against the wall, quickly silencing her wolf and dulling her presence as much as she could.

Footsteps echoed somewhere ahead, and Annelise quickly crouched behind the wheelchair, pulling Della’s cloak higher around her face.

The footsteps grew louder, and both women stopped breathing as one guard passed the opening.

Then another.

Luckily, neither looked their way.

Annelise waited several more seconds before grabbing the handles again, "Come on."

They reached the western end of the castle, where the polished stone corridors gradually gave way to an older section of the building. This part was barely used anymore. Dust gathered along the walls, and several ancient portraits had been covered with sheets.

Finally, Annelise stopped before what looked like an ordinary stone wall, and Della frowned, "Where’s the exit?"

Annelise glanced around before pressing three fingers against a particular stone. The instant she did, something clicked and Della’s eyes widened as she watched a narrow section of the wall shift inward.

"The secret route," Annelise whispered.

"Whoa!" Della was still astonished.

Annelise pulled out a tiny lantern hidden behind the bushes and lit it, aiming it toward the passage. From the looks of it, it was barely wide enough for the wheelchair.

"How exactly are we supposed to get this thing through there?" She asked.

Annelise looked at the chair, and then she shrugged, "We improvise."

"That doesn’t sound...nice,"

"Do you have a better one?"

"No."

"Then let’s go."

Annelise pushed, and the wheelchair’s sides scraped against the stone walls almost immediately.

"That’s so uncomfortable. My shoulders!" Della groaned.

"I’m being careful!"

"Ouch!" She cried again.

"Sorry!"

"My other shoulder!"

"Della!" Annelise bit down on a laugh despite everything and they continued deeper.

The passage descended gradually, forcing Annelise to hold the wheelchair tightly so it wouldn’t roll ahead of her. Della occasionally reached down and dragged the lever backwards whenever they moved too quickly.

Suddenly, footsteps came from above them and both women froze. Annelise immediately extinguished the lantern, and they were swallowed by darkness once again.

Neither moved or breathed, and after a few minutes, the footsteps passed and eventually, they faded.

Annelise waited for many seconds, till she was extremely sure that they were in the clear before she relit the lantern.

"Still alive?" She whispered with a teasing edge to her voice.

"Unfortunately." Della replied, releasing the breath she’d been holding.

Annelise almost laughed again.

Eventually, the passage widened enough for Annelise to walk beside her rather than behind her. They kept going till Della felt something cold brush her cheek.

Wind!

She snapped her head up and a faint strip of moonlight appeared at the end of the tunnel. They were definitely close!

Annelise pushed harder, and the wheelchair shot forward. They finally burst out into the forest, and the cold night air slammed into their faces.

They both inhaled sharply, but the relief of having escaped successfully didn’t come because, the real hardship was just beginning.

Nowhere is truly safe!

Annelise immediately turned around and shoved the hidden stone door closed behind them. Then she grabbed Della’s cloak and pulled the hood over her head.

The moment Annelise started to move the wheelchair forward again, Della felt it.

That suffocating, heavy feeling that always indicated that something was terribly wrong, or something was about to go terribly wrong.

The moment the feeling came, she felt the tiny shift in the air pressure against her face. She started to look around immediately, and Annelise immediately noticed the tension and stopped moving too.

A thin line stretched between two trees caught between the Moonlight, and Della narrowed her eyes at it. What the hell was that?

Annelise slowly tightened her grip on the dagger, while her claws began extending out of both hands. If anything whatsoever came out of those trees, she would slit its throat before it even got close.

As expected, a tall figure finally stepped out between the two trees. The moment Della saw him, her breath caught somewhere in her throat. Her fingers began trembling against the wheels, then curled tightly around them until her knuckles went white.

She knew that face.

She knew that wicked face.

She was very familiar with what they’d put her through all her life.

Jaime.

Jaime Barrett.

What the hell was he doing here?!