Graveyard Watchman (Book 1)

Chapter 51

Thankfully, I'm still wearing my skinny jeans and gray sweater and as I take a step forward, I trip over something next to the bed, watching it as it scoots across the slate floor. Relief washes over me when I realize it's one of my sneakers and I reach for it, quickly slipping it on as I hop in place to keep my balance.

Check.

Pushing down into my front pocket, I wedge my hand lower, quickly touching the warm metal of the Volvo keys.

Bingo! That was easy.

Tip-toeing over to the door as if I'm already being watched, I slowly open it, carefully peeking my head out to the left and again to the right. My heart is pounding so hard, I'm pretty sure if there actually were anyone around, they could hear it loud and clear.

The hallway is lit with torches all the way down in each direction which beautifully enhance several proudly hung tapestries evenly spaced, one after the other. The dancing light gives an almost magical appearance of what look like landscapes and portraits of rolling hills with white doves, and people I don't recognize. I'm mesmerized and it takes a second to shake it off. I can't lose focus now. I need to find the way out, and fast—before anyone knows I'm missing. Luckily,  no one's around so I walk out as quickly as I can, trying to keep calm when a flash of what feels like electricity pulses through my body. Like warning me to stay, but it's gone so quickly I'm not sure if it was my nerves or something else.

I'll go with nerves for now.

Picking up the pace, I decide to only run on the balls of my feet as I try stay as quiet as possible. The hallway seems to go on forever and I'm about to devise another plan when suddenly; I see a corner and abruptly stop to peek around. My hand automatically goes to my mouth to hush my breath when I see two men sitting across from each other at a candlelit table. They're talking quietly and are dressed in cloaks similar to Dominic's but they look different somehow. Theirs are dark brown not a pure black like his, and neither of them looks as nearly as big.

I hold my breath and dart past the door, sprinting as fast as I can until I finally get to what looks like an enormous archway at the end of the hallway. It's totally black and I can only see a few feet beyond.

This doesn't look good.

My mind races with thoughts of running back to my incredible room and burying myself under those amazing, silk covers. It wouldn't take long and I know the way back. If anyone asks, I'll just say I was looking around. They'll believe me...I'm the Queen, right? I can do whatever I want.

What am I thinking?

I have to get out of here. I have a life, a family—shit, I have to graduate.

Mustering every ounce of courage I have left, I take off in a dead run through the blackness and immediately notice the air begins to change and is thicker somehow. It's getting harder to take a breath and I have no choice but to slow down. The blackness continues to surround me even when I try to adjust my eyes. My heart is pounding and I can feel the edges of panic creeping in when out of nowhere, something yanks me around the waist and my feet are no longer hitting the ground. I struggle like hell to get free, twisting and turning but the hold gets even stronger. I can no longer take a breath, the air is gone--and I'm fighting in a whole new way.

This can't be it—this can't be how I die...