Total pages in book: 142
Estimated words: 134501 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 673(@200wpm)___ 538(@250wpm)___ 448(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 134501 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 673(@200wpm)___ 538(@250wpm)___ 448(@300wpm)
‘Go for it,’ Emberlyn invited. ‘Better yet, I’ll give you a tour.’
As she led the twins through the first floor, lamps turned on by themselves. Fires roared to life in the hearths. The overall temperature adjusted, becoming not too cold nor too warm.
It was the manor’s way of taking care of its owner.
As they walked, Emberlyn ran her hands over the rich fabrics of the sofas, the ornate fireplace mantels, the intricately detailed woodwork and the smooth surfaces of the stunning antiques. She drank in the nostalgic sights of the patterned wallpapers, lush drapery, opulent rugs, interesting artwork, gilded wainscotting and the chandeliers hanging from the high ceilings.
There was an abundance of large-scaled rooms throughout the manor, including the living area, parlor, study, dining room, kitchen, utility space, music room, two-floored library and multiple bedrooms with en suites. The rich color schemes of each room featured reds, blues, greens, black and even pomegranate.
Weirdly, though . . . ‘None of her personal touches are around. No altars, no jar spells, no broom, no nothing.’
Kage blinked. ‘Huh. Could the manor have put them away somehow to make room for your witchy touches?’
Emberlyn pursed her lips. ‘Maybe. Though I wouldn’t have thought so.’ Shrugging it off for now, she asked, ‘Ready to see the first floor?’
‘Are we not gonna look at the basement?’ asked Paisley.
‘Nope,’ Emberlyn replied simply, smoothing her hand along the banister as she ascended the winding staircase.
Paisley followed. ‘And you’re not going to explain why?’
‘Nope.’
‘You’re only making me more eager to check it out.’
Emberlyn snorted. ‘It won’t let you in, anyway.’
‘Wait, what?’
As they reached the landing, she turned to the twins. ‘This house . . . it’s special, but not always in warm and fuzzy ways. Some parts of it are better left unexplored, trust me on that. Now, come on, I want to go see my old bedroom. I left a few things behind, like furnishings and stuff. I hope they’re not in a crumpled heap on the floor.’
After a long walk down a hallway, Emberlyn arrived at her destination. She swung open the door. And sighed, her shoulders slumping. It was empty. Nothing that had once remained of her room was here. ‘Millicent probably burned it all,’ she mumbled.
‘Uh . . . Emberlyn?’
The odd note in Paisley’s tone had Emberlyn snapping her gaze to her friend. ‘What is it?’
Paisley didn’t look at her, but focused on the end of the hallway. ‘We ain’t alone.’
‘What?’ Kage tracked his sister’s gaze, swore beneath his breath and then pointedly looked away. ‘I don’t see dead people, I don’t see dead people, I don’t see dead people.’
‘You’re totally seeing a dead person.’
Peering down the hallway, Emberlyn noticed a partly transparent dark-haired woman in an old-fashioned blue gown, pointing at a certain door. She smiled. ‘Don’t worry, that’s just Betty. She’s one of the nice ones.’
‘Nice ones?’ repeated Kage. ‘So there are bad ones? Hey, you never said this place was haunted.’
‘Because it isn’t,’ Emberlyn told him. ‘Mostly. Some ghosts do hang around, but none are bad. It’s the others that you have to watch out for.’
‘Expand,’ he urged.
‘Millicent summoned many dark entities. Whenever Betty told me to hide, I’d know that Millicent was up to something not so good. I’d head straight to my room, and the house’s magick would keep any entities out. Though they left shortly after being summoned, some were able to return via whatever rip she made in the veil between our realm and theirs.’
As they began walking down the hall toward Betty, the spirit faded from sight.
‘So this house, amazing though it is, wasn’t always a safe place to be for you growing up,’ Kage surmised.
Stopping in front of the last door in the hall, Emberlyn confirmed, ‘No, it wasn’t.’
‘What is this room?’ asked Paisley.
‘The master.’ Emberlyn twisted the knob, pushed open the door and stepped inside. She double-blinked, caught off-guard.
‘Ooh, I love all the different shades of deep purple with splashes of teal,’ said Paisley as she pushed past her. ‘It gives the room a moody, witchy look. Totally. Adoring. The vibe.’
‘Look, there’s a reading nook built into the turret,’ Kage said to his sister. ‘My God, the woman had a lot of books.’
Paisley gasped in delight. ‘Aw, there’s a little velvet footstool and built-in sofa in the nook – I could sit here for hours and just be. Oh, and those silk drapes are fabulous.’
‘They are,’ Emberlyn said absently, skimming her fingers over the weathered French dresser. It was constructed of the same rose wood as that of the nightstand, wardrobe, four poster bed and dressing table.
Moving further into the room, she ran her gaze over the nearby shelf. A gold candlestick stood either end of it, bordering a collection of crystals, stones and ornaments.
Kage sank onto the chaise longue that was propped up against the foot of the bed. ‘Your grandmother had good taste.’