Chapter 37

I slipped from Kade's hold to go talk to the others. They were waiting patiently out in the hall and all gave me expectant looks.

"He's in there asleep," I whispered. Then I told them what he said about his absence. They all seemed satisfied with the excuse, but no one was reassured when I explained why he was asleep. They were worried, that was obvious. I was too, but I was the only one who knew the real reason behind his sudden sickly feeling.

The next thing that happened was a little group meeting down in the kitchen. We started discussing the warding of the castle again, but it seemed that no one had an idea of what to do. Delilah tried her best, and I listened as intently as I could.

"I could lead you guys to the castle. I've been there myself but I've never been in, of course," she said.

"What's the point of going there if we can't get to Galendale?" Odis asked.

"I could try a few witch spells... but no promises," Maeve added hopelessly. No one seemed determined but Delilah.

"It's worth a try, right?" she insisted. "We can always figure out another plan when we get there." Her round face even carried an encouraging smile, while her fists clutched with hope.

"I've never been up against angel warding... but I have a spell that might be able to take it down," Vivian mentioned. "Of course... I've never tried it so there's no guarantee."

"Do witches have a spell for everything?" I groaned.

"Just about," she answered. "You saw it yourself, I have a whole bookshelf full of em'." Vivian was very helpful, but I doubted her plan probably more than anyone. Something told me doing that would be too easy. These were angels for crying out loud.

"Well, if the spell doesn't work, like Delilah said: we can always try to figure something else out," Odis grumbled.

"I'll go get you the book," Vivian said standing up.

"Wait! You're not going with us?" Maeve asked surprised. Her aunt stopped and looked around the room.

"Nope... I've got to stay and watch this old joint," she answered. "So that means you'll have to cast the spell." Maeve didn't try to argue anymore, she just shifted awkwardly and watched her aunt leave the room without another word.

"How long will it take to get to the castle, Delilah?" I asked the ghost.

"Probably a day or two. It depends on if we take the shortcut," she responded.

"What's the shortcut?" Odis questioned.

"A nearby forest. The castle is on the other side." Delilah then paused and bit her lip with apprehension. "But it's also the dangerous route. I've heard rumors of strange creatures and rogue supernaturals that take shelter amongst the trees." I hated the sound of that but time was something we didn't really have, not Kade at least.

"It's worth the risk," I insisted.

"She's right. We don't know when Salazar's next attack could be. If we waste time... things could get worse," Maeve agreed. Odis nodded his understanding just as Vivian returned with the book. She handed the leather covered work over to her niece and pointed out the red ribbon serving as some sort of bookmark.

"That's the page," she said. "There's not much more than that." Maeve glanced at it momentarily, only to nod afterward which left us with more awkward silence.

"I think we should leave as soon as possible, at least before nightfall so we can get some distance," I eventually said. The others agreed and for some reason, after a bit more chit chatting, we settled on leaving now. I didn't think it would be so soon but it worked for me; it meant getting closer to my ticket home quicker.

"I'll pack you kids some things for the road," Vivian said as she once again left the room.

I got up to go wake Kade. I honestly didn't want to but he was apart of this journey. Though he was sick, it wasn't like we could leave him behind.

I quietly made my way upstairs and peeped through the door of the bedroom, only to find him still knocked out like a baby... an ill baby.

He was sweating even more, not even wrapped under the quite comfortable covers. He shifted frequently and groaned in his sleep with anguish. When I went over to the bed to shake him awake, he instantly woke and sat up panting.

His eyes were red and irritated as he looked at me. The blue had dulled into an almost grayish color, giving me the impression of a stranger's eyes.

"Bella," he breathed with relief. It seemed as if he was having a nightmare and I just saved him.

"Hey. We figured out a second solution," I said, afterwards explaining the whole plan. He was barely listening and instead busy wiping the sweat from his face. "Kade, are you sure you're okay?" It was stupid of me to ask that question because I already knew the definite answer.

"Y-yeah," he lied. "I told you I'll be better in no time." He scrambled out of bed before I could scrap together a faulty response. I followed him as he rushed out the door and down the stairs. I was curious as to why he was hurrying but decided not to bring it up. It was best not to cause anymore confusion or commotion.

Just as we met up with the others again, Vivian returned with a couple of bags and handed them to the guys. "Don't say I never did anything for you," she said. Maeve gave her a final hug and smiled gratefully.

"Thanks, Viv. You're a really great aunt," she said. After we all shared our thanks to the lady and finally left (in a weird hurry I must add) Delilah took the lead in broad daylight and turned to us with a smile.

"There's a road that leads to a path into the woods not too far from here," she said. Then slowly, her grin started to fade. "Are you sure you want to go that way? Like I said, it's very dangerous."

"It's the quickest route, right?" I asked. She nodded. "Well, that's where we're going, then. The faster the better."

We all stepped onto the dirt path in front of the BnB's doors, which led into a crowded part of town already flowing with pedestrians. No one seemed to notice the ghostly girl that led us, maybe because they weren't "chosen" or whatever. I wasn't sure how that whole thing worked but I didn't really care. There were more important things to think about.

I watched how Kade strived to keep himself standing straight, blinking heavily to hold his eyes open. The others either didn't notice his paleness and red eyes or they just decided not to say anything about it. When I told them he felt a little ill, that was probably not what they expected.

We continued on anyway, brushing past people and willingly following our young ghost guide. It wasn't until too much longer when the bunches of townsfolk started to clear out and the tops of trees came into view. They were eerie and quite unsettling, even amongst the gleaming sunlight that was sure to disappear later on. Delilah didn't stop, however, and neither did the others. Being at the back luckily prevented them from seeing my apprehension. It would be stupid of me to back down from something I strongly encouraged.

We entered the forest, and it was like a wave of darkness crashed over us. The amount of sunlight greatly decreased and there was the sensation of eyes watching us... me, at least. The others didn't show their fear like I did, though I could still feel it radiating from them. We all came closer together without even knowing it until we started brushing arms.

"Guys, wait," Delilah eventually said, stopping us dead in our tracks. "I'm sensing more ghosts. I think they're curious about you." She looked around and so did we, everyone most likely holding their breaths... well, those of us that could. Amongst the dim light and shadowed forest floor, I saw nothing, but I knew that Delilah wasn't lying about the ghosts.

I've learned more than anything lately that just because you don't see something, doesn't mean it isn't there.

A sudden chill passed through my body, goose bumps over my skin. I saw movement out of the corner of my eye but couldn't act fast enough to catch the presence. It was gone the instant I turned.

"Delilah, is there something we're supposed to do? Do we just stand here?" I whispered yelled to her. She nodded quickly and stared off into the distance.

"Yes. Nobody usually cuts through this forest so they're just a little suspicious. Just don't try to make any deals with them or anything like that, even if they plead on their knees. These spirits are untrustworthy," she said. She didn't have to tell me twice, I wanted to leave as soon as possible... and we hadn't even been in the forest that long.

Something tickled my neck and chilled the back of my arms. I squeezed my eyes shut and prayed that what I turned around to wouldn't be as bad as I imagined. When I did, I jumped back into Kade and replaced my terrified scream with a loud gasp.

There stood a ghostly man, my height, with a face that had been burned half off. It was the left side: jaw, cheek muscles, and skull revealed. The whole left side of his mouth, lips and gums, were scorched and gone, displaying his crooked sets of teeth in a horrifying way. His left eye was bulging, while the other fit perfectly into the good side of his face and stared intently at me as I placed a hand over my heart and panted.

He had a hunch in his back as he bent over slightly and made no attempt to hide his zombie-like appearance. "Don't wake the baby," he warned in a raspy whisper. His beady eyes watched all of us for awhile until he finally faded into thin air and took his chilly presence with him.

"What does that mean?" Odis asked Delilah. She only shrugged and gave the same baffled look we all held. After awhile, we started moving again. Then, once again there was another spawn of ghostly presences. This time, however, music accompanied them.

We came across a couple... a dancing couple. There was a tall man joined by a shorter lady, both dressed formally like they'd been at a fancy ball when they died. Nearby was a small band, more like a mini orchestra that played beautiful classical music. The only thing about them, though, was that the instruments didn't have performers. I could see them being operated but it was like they were playing on their own, even standing without any support.

I focused more on the couple, how they gracefully danced and swayed to the music without ever stumbling or missing a step, even with the woman's poofy dress. The man held her with determined strength and guided her, enabling a passionate dance to partake. Even though they were dead, I could see into their eyes. They held a strong love and a hungry lust, but nothing unhealthy that could ruin a relationship. The two smiled and watched the other like they were the only thing that existed, uncaring of anything that might happen to them. The way they held each other and the good vibrations that radiated from them made me smile.

The scene was so romantic. The couple... they were so excited... so passionate about each and their dancing.

For some reason, an obvious reason, actually, my eyes drifted to Kade since he'd also been watching with awe. But when I looked, he was actually gazing at me. His eyes, although a bit red and irritated, were thoughtful... lost as he studied me. My chest fluttered as I thought about what he could possibly be thinking about.

The music continued to play but the couple stopped dancing. Their eyes looked over at our group and their smiles grew bigger. The woman left her partner and approached us with one of the most friendly aura's I'd ever felt, then she clasped her hands together and motioned us closer. "Come, come! Dance with us, if you will. It's been awhile since we've had company," she said in a silky voice.

"We've no time, miss. An important destination awaits us," Delilah responded. The woman was disappointed but she did an excellent job at hiding it.

"Very well, I shall not hold you back. But I must warn you," she whispered, her smile fading. "Don't wake the baby."

"What does that mean?" Delilah asked quickly. It was too late, though. All at once, the lady, the man, and the ghostly orchestra disappeared in a blurry fog, leaving no sign of them behind and taking the remaining excitement with them.

Almost instantly, three more ghosts appeared: two men and one lady. They all had grim expressions, staring at us like we had murdered them. "Don't wake the baby," they all growled at once, then disappeared like the rest.

Following them were two more spirits, both ladies. One was missing an arm and the other was missing a leg, but they stood perfectly straight and held the same grim looks as the last. "Don't wake the baby," they said in unison, repeating it as they faded into nothingness.

I was getting genuinely scared when more spirits started surrounding us and saying the same thing, some deformed and some in perfect condition. It became so crazed that we started running as fast as we could. Trees and limbs got in our way but it was like we connected as a team and managed to dodge everything without a single stumble. Delilah, of course, just passed right through everything and continued to lead the way in our frantic escape.

Eventually, the ghosts stopped following and we slowed, pausing to catch our breath as the trees above rustled. The unnatural silence that proceeded the chaos we just witnessed made me uncomfortable. Apparently, everyone else noticed the same thing because we all exchanged suspicious looks and looked around at the shadowed forest grounds.

"Come on. We need to keep going," Delilah whispered as she continued. Reluctantly, we obeyed and went on.

Nighttime came sooner than I'd wanted. We'd all been silent the whole time we walked but our surroundings weren't. There were constantly whispers coming from unknown directions and bushes we were nowhere near rustled as we passed them. Eventually, things went silent again when we settled into a clearing of trees.

The moon was bright but it only made the night sky eerier. Stars twinkled but our eyes didn't. Everything was just too unsettling to feel relieved or happy. When we laid out the blankets Vivian packed us, none us even tried to sleep. We stayed sitting in the dark and staring at the empty middle of our circle. It actually started getting chilly after awhile, but I wasn't the one to point it out.

"Maybe we should start a fire," Kade said. "But we'll need firewood." The others nodded but no one offered to do anything about our lack of supplies. Although scared, I raised a shaky hand and sighed.

"I'll go look for some twigs and dead leaves," I volunteered, forcing myself to stand up. Kade stood up too.

"I'll help you," he said. I let out a breath of relief and nodded as we went somewhere to the right and left the others behind all the trees we passed.

We should've said goodbye to them because that was probably the last we were ever going to see them.

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Gory ghosts are creepier than regular ghosts. So... more gory ghosts. ◑v◑

Also, Kella's a great ship. I'm just in love with the two of them. Credit to my amazing friend for the ship name. ≧∀≦