Chapter 8: The First Morning
504 Words
Morning sunlight slanted through the cracked stained glass windows, casting eerie patterns across the long dining table. The smell of burnt toast and strong coffee crept through the halls of HillGrave Manor.
Everyone except one had gathered around the breakfast nook an oddly cozy corner of the large, decrepit kitchen where a kettle hissed and mismatched plates sat stacked.
Elise stirred her coffee absent mindedly. “Where’s Dakota?” she asked, scanning the table.
“She didn’t show up yesterday either, during the ghost squad gathering,” Luca said, raising an eyebrow with a teasing smirk. “Maybe she’s haunting the bed instead.”
That earned a ripple of laughter. Even Yusuf allowed himself a rare, crooked grin.
But Arjun didn’t laugh.
He rose quietly, brushing crumbs off his shirt, and muttered, “I’ll go check.”
Upstairs, the long hallway was quiet. He reached Dakota’s room and gave a sharp knock. No response.
“Dakota?” he called again.
Still nothing.
He pressed the knob slowly it gave way just as the door creaked open.
A soft rustle Dakota appeared, rubbing her eyes. Her auburn hair was tousled, and her silk night robe clung lightly to her shoulders. In one hand, she still clutched her pill bottle.
“Oh… I was on pills,” she said groggily, blinking as if adjusting to the idea of being awake. Despite the haze, there was a natural glow to her like someone who belonged more in dreams than daylight.
Arjun gave a polite nod. “Just breakfast downstairs. Thought I’d check.”
She gave a lazy smile. “Thanks. I’ll be there.”
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Downstairs, the conversations were already brewing.
Yusuf found himself near Nina, who was stirring tea with a strange herb instead of sugar.
“Did you explore much of the manor?” he asked, careful not to sound suspicious.
She nodded softly. “Just enough to feel its pull. I leave the rest to the spirits.” Her fingers brushed a pendant on her necklace a carved obsidian talisman.
He tilted his head. “You’re… an occultist, right?”
“Of sorts,” she said, offering a thin, enigmatic smile. “I read signs, interpret symbols. Sometimes, they whisper back.”
Across the table, the air was much lighter.
Rosa and Elise were now practically inseparable, giggling at Luca’s latest comment about Zen’s “ghostbuster gadgets.”
“I swear, if Zen pulls out a proton pack, I’m leaving,” Luca said dramatically, to which Zen gave a sheepish grin.
“Hey, if the house screams, I want proof,” Zen replied. “Besides, someone has to keep track of spectral activity.”
Rosa leaned closer. “Or you’re just scared of the dark.”
Laughter again.
Zen just smiled, glancing between them. For the first time, it felt like something resembling a group was forming.
Whatever had happened the night before thunder, screams, eerie shadows this morning offered a false sense of calm.
But HillGrave Manor had just begun to wake up.
- Writer
