Kisses From Death | Book 1

T W E L V E

T W E L V E
The Second Riddle

BY THE TIME of exactly 3:58 in the morning, most of my traveling group of merry men were asleep, snoozing their heads away into dreamland where everything was probably fine and dandy. Unfortunately, I was not part of that group of merry men and women. I did not have the fortune to be able to doze off as easily for my mind was too preoccupied with the now.

As far as I know, seeing that I had not actually walked over and checked, Lucius and Gabriel were both asleep, tucked into their separate corners of the room, heads probably drooping with saliva dripping like a bunch of slobs that I know Lucius was. Cassiel, on the other hand, was just a few feet away from me, his arm around Bella as she rested her head on his shoulder, snoozing her life away as Cassiel stared blankly into space. He seemed to have a thousand thoughts running through his mind, thinking madly about whatever topic but never quite saying it out loud. Minnie, however, was much like me. She was wide awake, her eyes never leaving the door as she stood watch. She too was unable to fall into the soothing bliss of sleep.

Probably around half an hour ago, I too had snoozed off into that blissful dreamland. That rest was sadly not to last for I was wide awake with attention once more. I did, after all, catch a few minutes' worth of rest after witnessing the death of the man that had attempted to feel me up on the dance floor. Even though that was a few hours ago and my body was a usually very lazy machine, the adrenaline coursing through my veins and my will to stay alive was enough to keep me awake.

I hope that man finds peace in the burning depths of hell.

The winds were howling outside of the window, shuffling whatever leftover leaves there were from autumn. Occasionally, I would imagine myself hearing the slosh of water from the river just right by the boathouse, but then be reminded that the water, for the first time in probably a century, was frozen solid. Such small noises weren't the ones keeping me awake, though. The real culprit would be the soft distant scream I would undoubtedly hear, followed by the echo of laughter that rang through the depths of my mind like a bell set to chime.

If I strained my hearing, I could even hear Death's cold voice, whispering right in my ear as though he was in this very room. 'Time is ticking, princess,' he would say. 'You don't have forever to find yourself, you know. Better hurry for your own sake.'

I shrugged uncomfortably, attempting to shake off the heavy weight on my chest as fear clouded my sight. A voice mumbled right by me, and it took all of me to stop myself from violently flinching away and run screaming 'bloody murder'.

Cassiel must have noticed my distraught behavior because I could hear him scoff whenever the floorboards creaked from my movement and shift of weight.

"What's wrong with you, Pilediah?" There was the familiar tone of a pre-set scowl, and true enough, when I turned over to face Cassiel, his lips were turned down in a frown.

His light brown hair caught the rays of the moonlight, almost shining a reflection as I twitched my lips. This boy pulled at all of my wrong nerves. He is definitely one of those I wouldn't mind seeing dead by the end of this weekend. Sadly, the chances of the rest of us dying because he was caught were incredibly high.

"Nothing. I'm perfectly fine."

"No you're not," he said, adjusting himself slightly, careful not to wake Bella up. He paused his movement when she stirred a little, holding his breath for fear of waking her up. Thankfully, she didn't. Bella had always been a heavy sleeper. "You're staring off into thin air like a damn nut job. What's bothering you?"

Irritation flooded my chest, causing me to frown slightly as Minnie peeked over as well from the sound of our conversation. Honestly, who did Cassiel think he is? He had no right to ask me such a question in such a disdainful tone, and yet still expect an answer.