Nefarious

C155 - Murderous

I left the room not long after Xylan had, mostly because of the atmosphere. Xylan had indeed frustrated Vera, but along with that, he'd also sharpened the group's concentration and focus. He'd reminded them that he could end up as their leader one day, something which they unquestionably didn't want. No one should want that, but sadly, a number of people are affected by intimidation, persuasion and manipulation. I'm well aware that numerous are working insidiously for Xylan, disguising themselves to be Alex's supporters or neutral ones. I can't trust anyone for certain because realistically, we have no way of knowing if a person speaks the truth or not.

It felt like my knowledge of the castle had suddenly vanished into thin air. Of course, my memory had held onto the small and insignificant details, but that's about it. I could remember the basics, but had somehow gotten lost when trying to return to Alex. "This is so typical of me," I whispered to myself, sighing loudly afterwards.

Out of all places, I'd managed to find the room where I'd once knocked out Jace. It was considerably colder there this time around, and some of the furniture had been moved, but the room was still recognisable. It seemed like one of the most peaceful places in the castle. Frankly, I'd always thought of it as just that. Well, that was until the lights went out, leaving me with nothing but darkness and my memory of the room. Standing in the middle of the room, I knew there were two sofas not far from me, yet I couldn't get myself to move closer to them. I was all too distracted by the fact that the door had been opened and closed in a matter of seconds.

My own breathing had never felt louder to me. I wasn't moving, wasn't talking, yet it felt like I was making louder sounds than an orchestra. An unsettling feeling began stirring to life inside me, causing me to take a step back unintentionally. I felt nothing against me, no resistance stopping me from moving further backwards. Nevertheless, I stopped walking as I'd come to the realisation that I was moving closer to another person. It wasn't my breathing alone that had sounded so loud. Another person had doubled the sound effect, a person who was perilously close.

Inches, at some point, he or she had stood inches from my face. Thankfully, a rush of adrenaline had helped me reach the light switch, but I hadn't dared turn around. The room had been rid of its darkness. Still, I stood motionless right beside the door. An all too familiar voice broke the prolonged and nerve-wracking silence, saying: "Hm, I must say you have quite decent reflexes." Oh, how I feared I would hear that exact dark voice with its icy undertone. Reluctantly, I faced him, though my eyes didn't meet his when doing so. "Thought it was you wandering around. I've heard you do that a lot," he said. "Mhm," I nodded as a response, fearing he would get angered if I hadn't. "You're oddly calm, Pennington? At least your heartbeat is," he pointed out. "Yes, it is," I stuttered. He approached me all too quickly, causing me to stagger backwards in shock. Before I got the chance to react further, he gently moved a part of the sleeve of the t-shirt I was wearing. I flinched badly, which only caused him to frown down at me. "Of course Jace is behind this. A type of drug with a calming effect so that your heart rate wouldn't give it away when you're lying," he said, shaking his head. "Are you going to kill me right here?" I blurted out impulsively, not taking a second to think first.