Eleos (Book two in The Empaths series)

Chapter Five

Lucy sat on the side of a dusty bed, staring at the sheer curtains blowing in a breeze that was coming from the open doors of her own personal balcony.

The bed she was sitting on rested in the middle of a giant room – the walls made of wood panelling and stone. Built into the far wall was a fireplace with warm and inviting flames already crackling away inside. There were large, heavy rugs on the floor and a scattering of other pieces of furniture strategically placed around the room, making it feel almost homely, except that it wasn't her home and it all felt quite foreign.

She was still trying to wrap her head around the events of the last twenty-four hours. Life had certainly taken a turn into what she could only describe as a dreamland.

Several times over the course of the day, she had to pinch herself – hard, in order to really allow herself to believe that she was standing in this weird and wonderful place. The people that they had met and the things they had seen were indeed unbelievable, in every sense of the word. The day had been overwhelming to say the least, and after everything, Lucy was really craving the opportunity to be alone.

Now though, with the door to her room closed, and the silence wrapping around her like a heavy blanket, she glanced at her surroundings and suddenly felt very lonely. The unfamiliar surroundings making it almost impossible for Lucy to relax.

Standing up and dusting herself off, she crossed the room and quietly opened the door. As she stepped out into the hall, she ran headlong into Lilith, a tiny squeak escaping from her mouth before she could stop it.

"Hey," Lilith said, stepping back and taking a second to get over the shock. She was also trying to console a frightened Teddy, who stood shaking behind her legs.

"Lilith," Lucy replied. "You scared the crap out of me."

Lilith grinned. "I figured, what with the weird squeaking sound you just made. What was that?" she asked, giggling.

Lucy rolled her eyes. "As I said, you scared the crap out of me." She took a moment to look up and down the hallway. "Where were you headed?"

Lilith's grin faded. "I was coming to see you," she replied, brushing her hair out of her face. "I just couldn't be in that strange room all by myself. And if I'm being honest, I was feeling a little..." she looked around, searching for the right word.

"Lonely?" Lucy finished. She could see in Lilith's eyes, the same feeling that Lucy herself was struggling with.

"Yes! Exactly," Lilith replied. "Don't get me wrong, I love this place and I have my little man here," she nodded her head toward Teddy, who had snuck out from behind her legs and was busily trying to get Lucy's attention, "but I'm really not feeling brave enough to be spending the night alone just yet."

Lucy smiled and knelt down to give Teddy a hug. "I know what you mean," she replied. "Come on, you guys can stay with me tonight." She took Lilith's hand and dragged her, along with Teddy, into the room.

Just as Lucy was about to close the door behind her, footsteps in the hall made her stop. She quickly stuck her head out to see who it was and silently laughed.

"Riley, in here," she whispered, waving to get his attention. He was standing outside of a door only a short way up the hallway when he saw Lucy. His eyes lit up and he quickly ran down the hall and into her room.

"I know I'm being a total baby right now, but seriously – I have no computer to play with, no video games and my stupid phone just died. There's nothing left to distract me from this... weird feeling I keep having."

"It's alright," Lucy replied. "Come in and join the party." She pointed to where Lilith was standing by the balcony doors. Teddy sat beside her, quietly waiting patiently and looking up at her every now and then as if he was checking to make sure she was okay.