Black Enigma 1 (Mythical Dark Fantasy Adventure Collection)

  Chapter Five

  THE FIRST PINK fingers of dawn inched their way over the horizon, breaking apart the streaks of night that continued to linger and illuminate the soft, rolling mist that blanketed the ground.

  Tall, bare trees swayed overhead as the car driving me towards my great grandfather's manor crunched over the gravel. The branches reached out thin, groping fingers to snatch at the windows as we passed by.

  In the back of my mind, I'm sure I felt the nagging urge to leap from the moving vehicle and make a mad dash back to the nearest town. And yet, I ignored it. I was determined to find beauty in this barren estate no matter what the cost. Besides, I reasoned to myself, I'll only be here for a few more years before I'll be off to college.

  I rested my chin on my palm as I tried to make out the property that was about to become my home. Upstate New York was so different from the parts I was used to, it was almost like being in another country; a nearly obscured one.

  My eyelids drooped and I leaned my forehead against the cold window, watching as my breath made little puffs fog on the glass.

  "There's the gate." Blu's voice was oil on steel, luring me into alertness with a nasty stab of something to my gut. My lashes flickered and I saw the enormous iron-wrought gates looming over us.

  They were twisted, barred and spiked, with heavy chains securing them firmly in place. I wondered whether my great grandfather was trying to keep something in or out.

  The car rumbled to a stop and Blu stepped out, producing a large key ring he used to unlock the chains. The gates swung open at his touch, and the car rumbled into the round driveway.

  I couldn't help but give an audible murmur of astonishment as I stepped out of the car. My recollections of this place had not done it justice by any means. The mansion was enormous! A masterpiece made of brick with at least a hundred darkened windows and a plethora of ivy plants fighting for dominance over the walls.

  "Allow me to take your bags," Blu murmured as he stepped out of the car.

  "No, that's fine," I jumped in, grabbing my things before he could get to them. I didn't want to be parted from the only remnants of my old life I had left. Blu's mouth tightened but he didn't protest, instead he gestured towards the mansion and led the way to the front door.

  As we approached, it began to creak open slowly, startling me. I half wondered if it had done so of its own accord, but that ridiculous notion was dropped seconds later when a young maid stepped out from the other side.

  I hadn't had much experience with girls, my condition always made me shy and self-conscious. This girl was beautiful. I felt my cheeks burn when she looked at me with her soft brown eyes. Her own creamy skin took on a slight flush. I could see a few silky flaxen strands of her hair peeking out from under her cap and I quickly looked away, lest she caught me staring.

  "Master Judas, allow me to introduce the manor's housekeeper, Bast," Blu said mildly. "Say hello, my dear."

  Bast dropped her gaze and gave a quick, jerk bow, never once allowing her eyes to leave the ground. "Hello, Master Judas," she was barely audible.

  "Just Judas," I corrected. I could feel my ears reddening with embarrassment at the formal title. "It's nice to meet you, Bast." I extended my hand and she stared at it as though she had never seen anything quite like it. I withdrew it awkwardly and tried a different tact.

  "So have you both worked for my great grandfather long? I don't remember you from when I was a child. I remember there were a lot of servants back then. Is Isadora still here? She was so kind to me."

  "Isadora?" There was the smallest hint of amusement in Blu's voice as he tongued the name. "No, she isn't employed here any longer. In fact, none of them are. Bast and I are the only servants the house needs."

  "What? Just the two of you?!" I gasped in astonishment at his casual statement. The manor was bigger than any I had ever seen, and I was convinced that it was ludicrous to imagine it being managed properly by only two people.

  Even then I remember being struck by the sheer oddness of not just my situation, but the entire scenario. It was so fragmented from reality that it was almost like the events were happening not to me, but to someone else and that I was merely an observer of my own existence.

  Meekly, I followed my great grandfather's servants into the manor, and I was struck with the overwhelming feeling of childhood nostalgia. Nothing had changed.

  The foyer was exactly as it had been years ago with its rich oxblood upholstery and matching mahogany furnishings that probably dated back several generations.

  As I walked down the hallway behind Bast and Blu, I felt my consciousness blurring and my entire body going numb. I was a child again, keeping close to my mother, clutching her skirts as we were led inside by a very different pair of servants: a plump, smiling Spanish woman named Isadora and the short, shriveled, ancient butler named Logan who had been at my great grandfather's side since they were boys.

  "Your grandfather is expecting you, Miss Ella. Why don't you leave your son with me? I have something he'll enjoy in the kitchen, I think!"

  "Thank you Isadora, I'm sure he'll be thrilled!"

  The scene broke, and as it melted away, I could almost feel my mother's warm hand guiding me to Isadora, and once again my heart broke.

  "Master Judas?" Blu's voice brought me snapping back to the present. "Here is your room."

  My eyes widened as I entered through the massive double doors. Never in my life had I seen such an extravagant room, though it was severely outdated. The bed the tripled the size of any I had ever seen, and was surrounded by black velvet curtains.

  There was an enormous bay window overlooking the courtyard and a collection of nautical equipment, no doubt collected by my great grandfather from his traveling years. The ceiling of the room was not flat, as one would expect of a ceiling but instead was curved like a dome. I watched as Blu set down my bags and I instantly moved closer to them.

  "Where is my great grandfather? I want to see him."

  Seemingly startled at my forwardness, the butler stepped back and pivoted his gaunt body towards me. His face was completely void of expression but his eyes snapped maliciously.

  In the shadows of the room, I almost imagined that they flickered from ice blue to deep red, but when I blinked, they had returned to their normal, piercing selves.

  "Your relative is not available at the moment," Blu informed me curtly. "He is currently...indisposed."

  I had no idea what that meant but I had a sneaking suspicion that he was mocking me in some unknown way. I felt a spark of fury in my chest.

  "Why can't I see him?" I demanded.

  Once more, Blu's face was unreadable but he offered a low bow and stepped artfully backwards, both hands resting on the handles of the double doors. "Bast will bring you your dinner shortly. Rest now, Master Judas, you must be very tired after your experiences today. Tomorrow you will be renewed."

  "Just Judas!" I tried to correct him, but before the words even left my lips the heavy double doors had been slammed shut and I was alone in the room. Well, almost alone. I slowly relaxed my aching body against the bed and closed my eyes, concentrating on evening out my breathing with slow, even measures. It was a trick taught to me by my mother when I was just a child and used to suffer from severe attacks of anxiety.