28
Filled with utter disappointment, I stared at the heavy, locked doors. What was I supposed to do now? I had a key, I painstakingly made it myself with blood, tears, and sweat. If this wasn’t enough, then what was wrong with it? Or was it not the key that was the problem? Was it… Me?
I pocketed the brass key, the weight of failure heavy in my pocket and in my heart. I really thought I was going to do it…
“Ylva?” A familiar voice drew my attention and tore me out of my sombre thoughts.
I looked at the source of the voice, my eyes widening. “Mamma?”
Stately as ever, she climbed the last of the steps and approached the Gates. A second figure appeared behind her, a woman with a faint glow and an innocent smile. A soul.
“What are you doing here?” my mother asked, confusion knitted betwe
