Chapter 24: Chapter 24

“Pass me the salt.”

“Huh?”

I look up to see a glaring Gwen.

“Pass the salt.”

I look around in confusion, “There’s no salt here, Gwen. We are in your bedroom.”

She shrugs, “I know. It was the only way to get your attention. What is happening in that brain of yours anyway?”

I shake my head, hoping my thoughts will run away as I drag my fingers down my face.

“Nothing, I just have a lot of things to do.”

“What things to do?”

“Huh?” I look back at her, “Sorry that came out wrong. I mean that I need to rest. Yeah, that’s what I need.”

She stares at me like I have suddenly gotten two heads. Have I?

“I think the mark is affecting you mentally.”

“I think that it’s affecting me in every possible way.”

I fall back on the bed with a sigh and she towers over me with her usual strange smirk.

“You mean, sexually affected too, don’t you?”

I ignore her speech as she wiggles her eyebrows at me.

When I don’t respond as she expects, she scoffs.

“I can’t believe that you have been so calm. If I was in your shoes, I would have been running for the hills right now, crash that, long ago.”

I laugh as the image floods my head and then, I turn to her, “The hills are outside this gate.”

“Damn it,” She curses, “I would be fired before I can get there but it’s better to go out with a bang. Bang, bang, bang!” She forms her fingers in to a gun and shoots the air with one eye closed and her mouth making the effect.

“So you would do…”

She stops her action, “Hell no, I ain’t that crazy.”

“Did you just say ain’t?”

“Yeah, I am actually learning some slangs, yo!”

I groan and cover my eyes with my palms, “I need to get out of here. I need a break from you.”

I feel her breath on my ears and I push her away, uncovering my face.

“But you’re the one who came here. I am doing my best to entertain you.”

I sit up straight as I push my hair out of my face, “You are creeping me out, not entertaining me.”

“Creeping you out counts as entertainment in my book. Now, face me so that I can practice.”

She turns me in her direction and I frown as she gets up to look for something in her drawer.

“Practice wha- no way, no. I made a promise not to let you touch me with that thing again!”

I jump off the bed as she holds her cosmetic set in her hands, moving closer.

“What thing? This is my baby. You can’t call her a thing.”

I breath in deeply.

Slow and steady breaths, slow and steady.

“Why don’t you take me on a tour instead,” I roll my eyes in sarcasm but what I don’t expect is for her to jump up in excitement.

“That’s actually a great idea,” She grins, “Thanks, Minerva.”

“Why do I just love putting myself into trouble.”

“You really have a big mouth, Minerva,’ She drags me out of the door, “This is the hallway, that is a door, those are doors and wow, that’s a place.”

“I’m sure that you don’t know what you’re doing.”

“Of course, I do,” She stares at me blankly, “Okay, let’s go to the picture hall.”

“What’s a picture haaallll- slow down!”

She laughs as she drags me through many corners and open the door to a room, correction, a huge room.

Certain portraits are hanged on the beautiful walls but I don’t admire them yet.

The light pattern catches my attention, pulling me to take several steps as I twirl around.

“Wow.”

Gwen smiles, “It’s gorgeous right?’

“It’s amazing.”

The frames portraits are hanged elegantly on the wall as the light shines brightly on them

A portrait grabs my attention and I walk towards it with my lips pulled apart.

“Is that the first wolf king?”

“Yeah?”

My fingers reach out to it and slide down the ever so soft body.

“How is it still clean and so… new?”

“We have it repainted every year. There are possibly a billion of those.”

I don’t turn to her direction but I can’t imagine her rolling her eyes at me, as she folds her arms across her chest and it turns out that I am right.

She is doing just that.

“You are serious… that’s a first.

Immediately I turn away from the portrait, a shock rushes through my body and I pull back with speed.

“Goddess! That picture just shocked me,” I hold my hand to my chest and Gwen frowns.

“Did you accidentally step out of the gate?”

“What- no. I have been here the whole time. What is wrong with you?”

“I am talking to your ghost, Minerva. Your spirit! There’s some weird shit going on with it. It doesn’t want to come back to your body.”

I just stare at her with ultimate blankness, “I am being serious here and I am taking back what I said about you being serious too.”

“Take it back all you want, at least I got my spirit stuck in my body,” Shem smirks, “Goddess, look it is coming back in. Okay, your spirit is back.”

I shake my head at her, “How did I know you?’

“I think it was through my jackass of a brother. You know him right?”

“Can we just get out of here,” I respond to her comment by hugging my body with my hands, “This place is getting creepy.”

“You always get creeped out.”

“Just show me the way out,” I pause, “Hey, that rhymes.”

“That’s because you don’t know how to think. The way out is the way in. It’s called a door, ever heard of it?”

I ignore her but start rushing out of the room with my two feet and she follows behind me.

“I have to get out of here.”

Looking at the place, my surroundings, a chill goes through me.

“I actually don’t know why you are acting like you’re in a film. This isn’t a horror film, Minerva.”

“I know that this isn’t, Gwen. Could you be serious for once? I can handle count how many times I have said that today.”

“How am I supposed to know? But I think it’s twice.”

I take a deep breath and decide to fully ignore her this time.

Walking to my bedroom, her voice becomes muffled out.

I do believe that she is still talking even as I leave.

The hall becomes too calm at some point and I stop, turning behind me.

When I see no one I continue walking, almost crying out as I see my bedroom door.

As I get in to the safety of my room, I calm down but I can’t keep my mind from shaking out the thing that lurks within these walls.

I think it scares me.