Chapter 1820

Before Jude could question him further, a loud crash came from the shared house.

The front door slammed shut.

Every window turned black.

Then the bell rang again.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

A pale light appeared in the windows.

The women outside began backing away.

Susan called, "Jude!"

He turned.

The house had begun to change.

Its wooden walls stretched upwards. The roof rose above the surrounding trees, and the windows multiplied until there were dozens of them.

The structure was no longer the house they had built.

It was becoming something much older.

A vast wooden building stood where their home had been.

Its walls were covered in roots.

Its roof was tangled with branches.

And from its upper windows hung hundreds of little wooden birds.

Jude stared.

"Everyone, get away from it!"

The women hurried towards the central path.

The ground beneath the house cracked.

Thick roots emerged from the soil, spreading across the garden.

They moved slowly, searching.

One root reached towards the well.

Another wrapped around the wooden fence.

A third stretched towards Stella’s flower garden.

"Get back!" Jude shouted.

Stella stumbled away.

Rose caught her arm.

The roots stopped moving.

Then every wooden bird hanging from the roof turned its head.

All at once.

They looked towards Sol.

The boy stepped behind Jude.

A voice came from the house.

"THE CHILD HAS RETURNED."

The windows began glowing blue.

"THE KEY HAS RETURNED."

Jude felt the wooden key grow warm in his pocket.

"And the house has remembered."

A deep rumbling shook the ground.

The front door opened.

Inside stood the woman who looked like Layla.

But she was no longer alone.

Behind her were twelve figures.

Each looked like one of Jude’s wives.

They stood in a straight line, dressed in pale clothing, with their hands folded in front of them.

Their faces were expressionless.

Jude counted them.

Twelve.

Then he noticed the figure at the end.

It was Layla.

Her face was pale.

Her eyes were closed.

She stood completely still.

Jude rushed forward.

"Layla!"

The figure opened her eyes.

For a moment, she looked directly at him.

Then she shook her head.

"No."

The woman beside her smiled.

"She belongs here."

Jude took another step.

"Let her go."

The woman tilted her head.

"Why?"

"Because she’s not yours."

"Everything here belongs to the house."

The roots began moving again.

This time, they moved faster.

They spread across the village path, cutting off the route towards the houses.

Serena shouted for everyone to move towards the eastern fields.

Scarlet and Sophie helped Grace and Emma across the wooden walkway.

Natalie pulled Zoey away from the garden.

Lucy grabbed Stella’s hand.

Susan and Rose stayed near Jude.

But the roots were spreading in every direction.

The village was being surrounded.

Jude looked at Sol.

"Can you stop it?"

The boy shook his head.

"Not here."

"Then where?"

"Under the tree."

The house groaned.

Its upper windows opened.

Hundreds of wooden birds flew out.

They were not alive, yet their wings moved.

They circled above the village, filling the sky with a strange rattling sound.

The woman at the doorway lifted her hand.

"Bring the child."

The birds suddenly dived.

Jude grabbed Sol and pulled him beneath a wooden shelter.

Serena ran towards them.

"Jude!"

A bird struck the ground beside her and shattered into pieces.

She stumbled.

Jude rushed forward and helped her up.

"Are you hurt?"

"No!"

Another flock swept over the roofs.

"Get everyone to the eastern path!" he shouted.

Serena ran back.

Jude turned towards the house.

The woman was still standing in the doorway.

The figures behind her had begun moving.

They stepped forward one by one.

The first looked like Susan.

The second looked like Rose.

The third looked like Serena.

The fourth looked like Layla.

Jude felt a terrible coldness spread through him.

They were not simply copies.

They were memories.

Every movement was familiar.

Every expression was one he had seen before.

But none of them were alive in the way he understood life.

The figure resembling Layla stepped onto the path.

She looked at Jude.

"Come back," she said.

Jude shook his head.

The woman behind her raised her hand again.

The roots stopped.

The wooden birds froze in the air.

Even the wind disappeared.

Then the woman spoke.

"Choose."

Jude looked at her.

"What?"

"One house. One memory. One keeper."

She gestured towards the figures.

"You may take one."

Jude stared at the twelve figures.

"Let them all go."

The woman smiled.

"That is not how the house works."

"Then change the rules."

"I did not make them."

"Who did?"

The woman’s smile vanished.

For the first time, she looked towards the northern mountains.

And in that moment, Jude saw fear in her face.

A deep bell rang from somewhere beyond the forest.

The woman’s expression changed.

She stepped backwards.

The figures behind her stopped moving.

The wooden birds fell from the sky.

One by one, they struck the ground and shattered.

The roots withdrew.

The windows went dark.

And the enormous wooden house began sinking into the earth.

Jude watched as its roof disappeared.

Then its walls.

Then the doorway.

The woman remained standing until the very end.

Just before she vanished, she looked at Jude.

Her lips moved.

He heard her clearly.

"It’s awake."

The ground closed.

The village became silent.

For a long moment, nobody moved.

Then the women began gathering near the central path.

Susan looked towards the place where their house had stood.

"Where is it?"

Jude had no answer.

Rose looked around.

"Where are we supposed to stay?"

Scarlet glanced towards the other wooden houses.

"We still have the others."

"That’s not what I meant," Rose replied.

Jude looked at the empty ground.

The shared house was gone.

The house they had built together.

The place where they had eaten, talked, laughed and rested.

Gone without leaving even a piece of timber behind.

Sol walked towards the spot.

He crouched and touched the soil.