Behind The Pages

Chapter Four: The Strange Door

“Let’s go, child. I’m taking you back to the city,” Granny said the second I took my last bite of breakfast.

I instantly dropped my fork and headed straight for the door. My wounds had healed two weeks ago, but this same exchange had played out every single morning since, embedding itself into me like a daily drill.

The moment we stepped outside, the clear morning vanished. Dark clouds rolled in from nowhere, and a torrential downpour slammed into the earth. The gentle breeze turned into a howling gale, sunlight was swallowed by lightning, and the quiet rustle of nature was drowned out by deafening cracks of thunder.

“Get back in here, now!” Granny yelled from behind me.

I looked over my shoulder. She was standing in the doorway, both feet firmly planted inside the cabin. My eyes widened. Dark unnatural storm clouds swirled around us like an impending apocalypse.

“D—Did I do this?” I stammered.

“Get back inside!” Granny grabbed my arm, yanked me backward, and slammed the door shut.

The instant the latch clicked, the storm vanished. The sky cleared and birds began chirping as if nothing had happened.

“That’s the fifth time this week,” she muttered, staring out the window.

“Did I do that?” I pointed outside, my hand shaking.

“No, it’s just the weather—”

“It is not just the weather, Granny! I did that!” Tears welled in my eyes. “Am I cursed?”

Granny’s eyes went wide. She lunged forward, grabbing me by both shoulders and shook me. “You are not a curse! It just doesn’t want you to leave. It wants you back—”

She froze, took a sharp step back, and slapped a hand over her mouth as if she’d blurted out a forbidden secret.

“What do you mean?” I asked, wiping my eyes. “What wants me back? Back where?”

“Forget you heard that,” she snapped, her tone suddenly cold. “I’m going into the forest to gather herbs.” She snatched a woven basket off the table and headed for the door.

She stepped outside. I watched closely, but nothing happened. The sky remained bright; the breeze stayed gentle.

“Whatever you hear, ignore it. If you see a strange door, never enter. Never touch a book—especially not a glowing one,” she warned before closing the door behind her.

She repeated that exact lecture every time she left, to the point where I had every word memorized. As if there were any extra doors in this tiny cabin besides the front door, her room, and mine.

I turned back to the table, gathered the dirty dishes, and washed them in the sink before retreating to my room. A plain wooden bed, the only piece of furniture, greeted me. I flopped down and stared up at the wooden rafters.

The cabin was small and smelled constantly of drying herbs, but it was peaceful. It felt more like home than anywhere else I’d ever been. For the first time in my twenty-seven years, I felt like I belonged somewhere. Granny could be cold and secretive, but I knew she cared. I felt it.

“If only there were something to read…” I muttered, growing restless.

Then, a faint lullaby drifted through the air. It felt warm, and strangely familiar. I’d heard it every time I was left alone in the cabin, and just as Granny had ordered, I’d always ignored it.

I closed my eyes, and a vision flashed in my mind. A woman looking down at me with a soft smile. She had flowing silver hair and glowing blue-white eyes that looked at me with pure adoration. She looked like a goddess. Gently, as if I were made of glass, she reached out to brush my cheek.

“Close your eyes, don’t be afraid. Sleep with Mama…” she sang, her voice like velvet. “Close your eyes, don’t be afraid. Sleep, my princess…”

The melody.

My eyes shot open, and I sat bolt upright. The lullaby floating through the cabin was the exact song the woman in my dream had sung.

I stood up and followed the melody. With every step, the music grew louder, until it seemed to originate right outside my bedroom door. I reached for the knob, then froze.

The old, rusty metal was transforming, turning into a brightly polished gleaming diamond.

I stumbled back. “Am I dreaming?”

The knob flashed with white light. Sparkles cascaded across the plain wooden door, forming intricate, glowing vines made of gold and gems.

I reached for the handle again, but Granny’s warning echoed in my head.

“If you see a strange door, never enter.”

“It’s just a dream,” I convinced myself with a shrug. “Dreams don’t count.”

I turned the knob and pushed. Blinding light flooded my vision. I shielded my eyes with my arm, and when the brightness faded, my jaw dropped.

“Definitely a dream!” I stepped through the threshold, inhaling the rich scent of old paper and leather.

Towering bookshelves stretched upward as far as the eye could see, packed with countless volumes—some thick, some thin, some plain, others ornate. I didn’t even know where to start, but I couldn’t stop the massive grin spreading across my face.

“I am never going to be bored again.”

I ran along the shelves, trailing my fingers over the spines until I pulled one out at random, and found a quiet spot on the floor.

The cover was plain silver without a title, etched only with weapons—swords, spears, armor, and shields. I opened it, and the very first page brought tears to my eyes. A dying mother begged her only daughter to hide her identity, lay down her sword, marry a simple warrior, and live a normal life away from the wars that had taken her father and brother. I didn’t have a mother, but the warmth in those words hit me as if it had been written for me.

I devoured the rest of the book in one sitting, practically forgetting to breathe through waves of grief and fury. Finally, I slammed it shut.

“You are so stupid, Aether Seraphim!” I yelled at the main character. “You’re a formidable general of the Celestial Warriors, and you let a good-for-nothing man drag you into slavery and death? For what? Love? You i***t—ouch!”

I clapped a hand over my mouth, having just bitten my tongue mid-rant. Was someone bad-mouthing me?

I shook my head and looked back down at the book. I shouldn’t blame the character; I should blame the author. Who writes a badass female lead only to let her get trampled on and die in the end?

“Where is the revenge? The redemption? At least give us an identity reveal!” I muttered, frantically searching the pages for an author’s name.

Finding nothing, I took a deep breath to calm myself down, put the book back on the shelf, and grabbed another.

The next story was great, but I couldn’t stop thinking about Aether Seraphim. Her tragic ending made me irrationally angry. I tried a third book—the plot was tight, the twists were amazing, the characters were great—but nothing gripped me like Aether’s story had.

I closed my eyes and pressed my hands together. “Please, just give me something to erase the trauma Aether Seraphim gave me. Please, please, please…”

I reached for another spine, but a strange glow from the highest, farthest corner of the shelving caught my eye.

“Are you kidding me?” I put my hands on my hips, squinting up at the glowing book way out of reach.

I spotted a rolling ladder at the far end of the aisle. Dragging that heavy wooden monster across the room took so much effort it felt like I could have read an entire novel in that time.

Panting, I climbed. It felt like an endless ascent, but I finally reached the top shelf and grabbed the volume. The moment my fingers wrapped around it, the light faded, leaving behind a worn black cover bound in gold with red gems.

I glanced down, and my stomach plummeted. I had climbed so high that the floor below was swallowed in pitch darkness.

I squeezed my eyes shut and took a slow breath. Tucking the book tightly under my arm, I began to climb down, step by agonizing step. One wrong move, and I’d either break my neck or wake up and lose access to this place forever.

“Child? Where are you?” Granny’s voice echoed from nowhere.

My heart leaped into my throat. My foot slipped off the rung, my grip gave out, and I plunged into the dark.

I pulled my arms inward, bracing for impact. Seconds ticked by. I kept falling. My brows furrowed. Why hadn’t I hit the ground yet? Why hadn’t I woken up?

I pinched my arm hard.

“Ouch!”

Panic hit me like a physical blow. This wasn’t a dream. And worse? I was still falling.

“Granny!” I screamed, closing my eyes tight.

Suddenly, my downward momentum snapped to a dead halt.

There was no pain, no crushing impact. I opened my eyes and found myself held effortlessly in the arms of a man with glowing red eyes, long white hair, and fluffy, cat-like ears.

“Put me down!” I blurted out.

He didn’t budge. Instead, his lips curled into a sharp, predatory smirk, flashing his razor-sharp fangs.

He leaned in close to my ear and whispered, “Mate.”