Chapter 15: Whispers in the Mirror
1667 Words
Chapter Fifteen
“She’s dead,” Raphael said. His voice was flat, like he was reporting the weather.
“Are you sure?” Sable stood at the end of the mirror corridor, flipping a shard of broken glass between her fingers. It caught the dim light and flickered like a warning.
“I tore her apart myself,” Raphael replied. “But she wasn’t Elara.”
Elara leaned against the wall, fingers brushing the blood-pact mark on her wrist. It was still pulsing, faint but real. She closed her eyes and heard the echo again:
“You’ll never be her.”
She knew it was true. But Echo’s existence meant something else too: Lorenzo was close.
“Do you think he’ll come?” she asked.
Sable didn’t answer right away. She tossed the shard of mirror into the air. It spun once, twice, then clattered to the floor at Elara’s feet.
“He’s already here,” she said.
Elara looked up. At the far end of the corridor, a figure flickered—tall, pale, cloaked in black, like a shadow learning how to walk. She only saw him for a second before he disappeared.
“Lorenzo…” she whispered the name. Her throat felt like it had been cut with ice.
No one answered her. But somewhere in the air, someone was laughing.
----
They found a letter in the library. It was from Lorenzo. The handwriting was neat, almost surgical.
Dear Elara,
You’ve finally started to notice me. I’m glad. I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time. Echo was only the beginning. The real game is just getting started.
Do you know what I want? I want you to understand that you were never meant to exist.
We’ll meet soon.
— L.
Elara read it twice. Her hands were shaking by the second line.
“What does he want?” Raphael asked.
“He wants me dead,” she said. “But more than that—he wants me to become him.”
Raphael frowned.
“Become him?” Sable repeated softly. “What do you mean?”
“He wants me to believe fate is fixed,” Elara said, lifting her eyes. “He wants me to stop choosing. To stop fighting. Just like he did.”
Silence filled the room. Outside, the wind whispered through dead branches, like someone trying to speak.
----
That night, Elara dreamed.
She stood in front of a massive mirror. But the reflection wasn’t hers. It was a woman—dressed in white, hair falling like silk, eyes empty.
She reached out and touched the glass. The woman smiled.
“You finally came,” she said. “I’ve been waiting for you.”
“Who are you?” Elara asked.
“I’m you,” the woman said. “And I’m him.”
The mirror shattered. The woman vanished. In her place stood Lorenzo. He was behind the glass, smiling, eyes cold as snow.
“Welcome home,” he said.
Elara woke up, sweat clinging to her skin.
The room was silent. Only the wind outside.
But in the mirror across the room, she saw a shadow.
A tall, blurred figure standing in the doorway.
She didn’t turn around.
She already knew who it was.
----
“Do you think he’ll come?” Elara’s voice was soft, almost a whisper.
“He’s already here,” Sable’s voice was equally quiet, like she was talking to herself.
Elara looked up, her eyes searching the shadows. She knew she had to face this. She couldn’t let Lorenzo win. She couldn’t let him take her fate.
“We need a plan,” she said.
“A plan?” Raphael’s voice was tinged with sarcasm. “What kind of plan do you think we can make?”
“We have to try,” Elara said. “We have to find his weakness.”
“His weakness?” Sable looked up, her eyes filled with doubt. “Do you really think he has one?”
“Everyone has a weakness,” Elara said. “We just need to find his.”
“Do you really think that’s possible?” Raphael asked.
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to believe it is.”
“Why?” Sable asked.
“Because I have no other choice,” Elara said. “I can’t let him take my fate.”
“Your fate?” Sable’s voice was filled with confusion. “Do you really think you can control your fate?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Try?” Raphael’s voice was laced with frustration. “Do you really think trying is enough to control fate?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Why?” Sable asked again.
“Because I have to believe,” Elara said. “I have to believe we can win.”
“Win?” Raphael’s voice was tinged with sarcasm. “Do you really think we can win?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Try?” Sable’s voice was filled with doubt. “Do you really think trying is enough to win?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Why?” Raphael asked.
“Because I have no other choice,” Elara said. “I can’t let him take my fate.”
“Your fate?” Sable’s voice was filled with confusion. “Do you really think you can control your fate?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Try?” Raphael’s voice was laced with frustration. “Do you really think trying is enough to control fate?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Why?” Sable asked again.
“Because I have to believe,” Elara said. “I have to believe we can win.”
“Win?” Raphael’s voice was tinged with sarcasm. “Do you really think we can win?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Try?” Sable’s voice was filled with doubt. “Do you really think trying is enough to win?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Why?” Raphael asked.
“Because I have no other choice,” Elara said. “I can’t let him take my fate.”
“Your fate?” Sable’s voice was filled with confusion. “Do you really think you can control your fate?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Try?” Raphael’s voice was laced with frustration. “Do you really think trying is enough to control fate?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Why?” Sable asked again.
“Because I have to believe,” Elara said. “I have to believe we can win.”
“Win?” Raphael’s voice was tinged with sarcasm. “Do you really think we can win?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Try?” Sable’s voice was filled with doubt. “Do you really think trying is enough to win?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Why?” Raphael asked.
“Because I have no other choice,” Elara said. “I can’t let him take my fate.”
“Your fate?” Sable’s voice was filled with confusion. “Do you really think you can control your fate?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Try?” Raphael’s voice was laced with frustration. “Do you really think trying is enough to control fate?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Why?” Sable asked again.
“Because I have to believe,” Elara said. “I have to believe we can win.”
“Win?” Raphael’s voice was tinged with sarcasm. “Do you really think we can win?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Try?” Sable’s voice was filled with doubt. “Do you really think trying is enough to win?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Why?” Raphael asked.
“Because I have no other choice,” Elara said. “I can’t let him take my fate.”
“Your fate?” Sable’s voice was filled with confusion. “Do you really think you can control your fate?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Try?” Raphael’s voice was laced with frustration. “Do you really think trying is enough to control fate?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Why?” Sable asked again.
“Because I have to believe,” Elara said. “I have to believe we can win.”
“Win?” Raphael’s voice was tinged with sarcasm. “Do you really think we can win?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Try?” Sable’s voice was filled with doubt. “Do you really think trying is enough to win?”
“I don’t know,” Elara said. “But I have to try.”
“Why?” Raphael asked.
“Because I have no other choice,” Elara said. “I can’t let him take my fate.”
“Your fate?” Sable’s voice was filled with confusion. “
- Writer
