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“You know nothing.”

“Keep telling yourself that.” He grins.

I know he’s only teasing me, but it’s true that I’m in uncharted waters here. I don’t understand why I’m so concerned about this woman’s safety. I try to push her away with my words, but I want her closer. I...want her.

Only her.

I look up at the stars.

I wonder how this will end. Because if there’s one thing I know for certain, it’s that for a man like me, all good things eventually come to an end.

19

EMMA

Iawaken in the middle of the night.

The wind is howling outside, rattling the windows with its force. The whole mansion seems like it’s creaking and awake. I cautiously sit up in bed.

The strangest sensation creeps up my spine.

Something woke me up.

I look around in the dark, even though I don’t know what I’m searching for. All of my senses are on alert.

That’s when I hear the footsteps.

My spine straightens as I watch a dark shadow appear outside my door. Someone is standing on the other side.

My mind immediately takes me to dark places.

My breath rattles in my lungs as I try to find a plausible explanation. It can’t be what I fear it is.

I’m safe here. Nothing can hurt me.

“Who is it?” I call out.

The shadow disappears. Once again, I hear the soft footsteps against the wooden floorboards.

I stare at the sliver of light below the closed door, waiting for the shadow to reappear. But it doesn’t. The footsteps also fade, leaving me wondering if I imagined the whole thing.

Before my nerves can get the best of me, I get out of bed.

I reach for the silk robe slung over a chair and wear it over my black nightgown.

A few months ago, I promised myself that I would never be afraid of anything ever again. I’d never live in fear again.

So even though it’s the last thing I want to do, I walk toward the door.

My hand shakes as I place it over the doorknob. The door creaks loudly as I open it. I glance down the corridor, but nothing is there.

I catch a faint hint of perfume—vanilla and nutmeg.

It takes me back to the abandoned room where I found the diary. In my head, I seethe portrait of Seraphina Sinclair. I see the blue-gray eyes that seemed to track my every move.

I don’t know if I’m losing my mind right now, but I can swear that something is watching me from the shadows.

The mansion is all moonlight and long shadows. It feels like the walls are trying to speak to me, on the cusp of revealing long-forgotten secrets.