I scanned the room for any semblance of escape. A red silk curtain hung on one wall, I didn't stop to think as I pulled it open. I assumed that behind it would be a curtain... I was so, so wrong.

I took a few steps back in shock, but then spun around as a low, rumbling growl shook the very floor I stood upon came from behind me.

***

It was her.

It was me.

It was us.

The girl in the painting had hair so pale it looked white, like a ghost of what once was. Her hair only made her faded lilac eyes stand out more.

It was me.

A small smile tugged at the corners of her lips, I couldn't look away.

That was, until his roar so loud it shook the very ground I stood upon.

"Get out!" He boomed.

My eyes darted around like a bird trapped in a cage, there was no escape except the doorway he was blocking. I couldn't look away from his glowing gold eyes, lips pulled back in a vicious snarl, revealing straight white teeth and pointed canines.

He stalked forwards, seeming to cover the ground in seconds. I stumbled back until my back collided with the wall, a small whimper left my lips as his face was so close I turned away, unable to look him in the eyes.

I knew the exact distance between us, six inches, his warm and laboured breath fanned my neck, I could almost feel his chest heaving against mine he was so close, part of me wished he was closer, the deepest most primal and sinful parts of me that I buried deep down.
A shiver ran down my spine and the hairs in the back of my neck stood on end at the thought. If it was so wrong, but why did it feel so right?

I expected him to shout, to scream, to tear me to shreds. I braced myself for the chaos to come, squeezing my eyes closed and preparing myself for my imminent demise.

But when he spoke his voice was deadly calm and that was what scared me the most. "How did you get in here?"

The calm before the storm.
He was a ticking time bomb, just waiting to explode.

"The door was unlocked." I whimpered. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-"

"Enough." He barked.

Maybe I was suicidal, I don't exactly know what came over me but bravery seemed to swell in my chest as I found the courage to ask the question that hammered my mind.

"Who is she?"

His usually stoic face broke, only for a second but I caught it, I held it, I savoured if. The second of softness, one second was all it took for me to see how hurt this man was.

"You know who she is." He said carefully.

His guard was up and stronger than ever when he pushed away from me, slumping down at his desk and pulling out a cigarette from one of the draws, lighting and taking a long, drawn out inhale with trained fingers. How many times had he done that? I wondered.

I let out a breath of relief, maybe I would live to see another day.

"Mare." I whispered.

But why would he have a picture of her. My heart clenched painfully in my chest as Marus' words replayed over and over and over in my mind. A broken record that had been playing on repeat since he told me.

My parents, my sister. My family. Torn apart in a blaze.

"How did she die.." I asked sheepishly, I already knew but I needed to hear it again to make sure I wasn't dreaming. I hoped I was. I hoped I would wake up from this nightmare and be back in my old bed, Mare and my parents beside me.

"A fire." He said coldly, holding his head in his hands. I watched as a thin trail of smoke spiralled from the cigarette. It was beautiful in a way, I watched the pale grey wisp as it travelled upwards, sky bound. It never made its destination before it faded into nothingness. The inevitable oblivion.
"We lost almost half of our people."

"But how did it even start?" My chest ached. Everything within me ached. I ached.

He looked up, taking another deep draw of the cigarette and reached into one of his desk draws, pulling out a bottle of amber liquid and two glasses.

"Mare." He said bluntly, pouring the golden water into each glass, before pushing one towards me and keeping the other for himself. "Mare killed them."

***
Sorry again for another short chapter😬
Would you guys be interested in my inserting a short extract of one of the story's I am working on that isn't out yet in the A/N of the next chapter?
Any thoughts? Theories?
Anyways...
Don't forget to vote and comment!
-🍟