A Ruin of Roses (Deliciously Dark Fairytales 1)

“Good. That’ll keep you out of there.”

“I want nothing more than to be kept out of there.”

“The day is dying,” he said, going back to his book.

“In other words, get out of your hair and do something useful?”

“Yes. This is a good part.”

“Where are the kids?”

“With their friends.”

They’d be home soon. The setting sun was curfew for children, no exceptions. Even if a creature didn’t wander out of the Forbidden Wood, there were still the demons that lurked in the village after dark. Since the curse, the night was too dangerous for children.

I peeled myself off the couch and headed outside to tend to the everlass.

Time passed in a series of familiar movements. At some point, Dash brought out a bowl of stew and then hung around, listening as I described what I was doing. Working with plants—this one especially—calmed me in a way I couldn’t describe. I enjoyed the careful finesse it required. The way its properties changed with its environment.

In a few hours, I finally finished my tasks and shoved Dash inside so he could go to bed. This harvest would last for a while, thanks to the strong, healthy plants the leaves had come from. By the time I needed more, my plants would hopefully be thriving in the spring sun.

Glowing golden eyes stared at me from the trees. Terror pounded a steady beat in my body. A roar sliced through my bones while also yanking on my middle.

I jerked awake, snapping my eyes open.

Damn that beast’s glowing eyes. I was sure I dreamed of other things, but the only thing I ever remembered upon waking was those accursed glowing eyes, and now the roar, apparently.

A low, menacing growl curled through the air. Cold flowed through my veins.

Please say I’m still dreaming. Please say I’m still dreaming.

I was afraid to move, to turn my head to the side and look for the source of the noise.

The growl sounded again, deep and low, from the same place.

Right outside my bedroom window.

Dread pierced me, and I sat up slowly, fighting the fear freezing my joints.

This couldn’t be what I thought it was. It couldn’t be. The beast couldn’t pass the boundary of the Forbidden Wood. Or at least that was what people said.

The deep growl sounded for the third time, rolling through the dense night air.

“Finley!” Sable lay on her side facing me. Through the hazy moonlight I could just see her wide eyes. She’d heard it too. It was no dream. This impossible situation was happening in real time.

The moonlight through the window flickered…and then went dark, something enormous blocking the light.

“Goddess help us,” Sable said with a quivering voice. “The beast has come for us.”

“It’s fine. It’s going to be fine.”

How was this possible?

I threw myself down and rolled onto the floor. It might be able to see in the dark, but it shouldn’t be able to see much detail through our shades, even as worn and flimsy as they were.

“Don’t move,” I whispered.

On elbows and knees, I crawled to the rickety dresser in the corner. The light resumed streaming in through the window. The beast had moved on.

I pushed up to standing and grabbed my dagger off the top. A moment later, I hurried to the door and ripped it open.

A scream tore through my throat, cut off quickly by a hand clamped to my mouth. Hannon put a single finger to his lips.

I swiped his hand away and pushed past him. I wouldn’t have needed the warning if he hadn’t surprised the shit out of me.

Father coughed behind his closed door, his chest rattling.

Let’s not worry about that now, folks. Let’s work on keeping the whole family alive first.

In the front room, I reached the front door and made sure the heavy wooden beam had been lowered. Its end rested in the metal cradle that secured it in place. Moonlight flickered against the white wood. Then the light dimmed…before it mostly went out.

I closed my eyes as my heart stuttered. Every nerve ending was pinging with electricity. Adrenaline had flooded my system.

Beside the window overlooking the porch, we had three windows in the front room. The two that faced the backyard were close together, and a third looked out onto the side yard between our house and another. Judging by the difference in lighting, both back windows had just been obstructed.

We didn’t have shades on those windows.

Time slowed down as I turned. I knew what I would find.

My nightmares had come to life.

A large, glowing golden eye took up residence in one of the windows.

It was hard to breathe. That strange feeling in my chest rolled outward, fire leaking out from my center and into my limbs. But even as my body burned, my blood had turned to ice. I couldn’t move from fear.

That eye wasn’t more than fifteen feet away, much closer than the last time I’d seen it. Much closer. Through my fear-induced paralysis, I couldn’t help but take in every detail. A thin, vertical oval took up the center, the pupil similar to a cat’s but rounder. A deep, brawny gold outlined the black before exploding outward in a sunburst of color, lined through with streaks of lighter gold, orange, red, and yellow. Along the edges, darker patches shone through, making the sunburst that much more dramatic.