Chapter 1
(Celeste's POV)
The ticking of the old clock echoed through the walls, sharp and cold, like the rhythm of my fear. My hands trembled slightly as I poured the coffee into his cup.
“Two sugars,” I whispered to myself, careful not to spill, “just the way he likes it.”
When I turned around, he was already there. Luther. My husband was standing in the doorway, like a shadow that never left.
“You’re late,” he said simply, his voice calm to - calm.
“I’m sorry,” I replied softly, bowing my head. “The kettle–”
He took a sip. Silence.
Then he smiled. “Perfect.”
My lungs released the air I didn't realize I'd been holding.
He kissed my forehead before leaving the room.
I watched his back disappear down the hallway.
—--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The clock ticked again. 8:17 Am
I moved through the house doing house chores- dust, sweeping, washing. The windows were wide open, letting sunlight flood in but nothing felt warm ambiance.
Until something outside caught my attention.
Across the street, a man stood by the lamppost, hands in his pocket, wearing a dark coat. I couldn’t see his face clearly, but there was something familiar about the way he watched, steady and unflinching.
Our eyes met for a split second.
My heart stuttered.
Luther's voice cut to the moment.
“Close the curtains.”
I obeyed; the sunlight vanished.
That night, I couldn’t sleep. The glimpse of the past kept crawling me back. My mother’s voice. My father’s last words before he disappeared. The sound of the rain on the roof the night everything changed.
“Celeste,” I whispered to the darkness, trying to remember how it felt to be her before she became me.
The woman who used to laugh.
The daughter who believed in forever.
The wife who thought love could fix anything.
A soft click echoed from outside the room like a camera shutter. My body froze slowly; I turned toward the window.
The curtains fluttered slightly.
Was it the wind?
I walked closer, heartbeat echoing in my ears. My fingers brushed against the fabric when I saw it, just for a heartbeat a figure in the distance holding something that glinted under the moonlight.
And then he was gone.
—---
The next morning, I found something on orch
A single white feather.
I stared at it, frowning.
Was it from a bird…. or was it a message?
When I turned it over, my pulse stopped.
There written in faint ink on the stem were four words.
“You’re not alone, Celeste.”
I looked around wildly, and no one was there. The street was empty. The air is still.
“Who’s there?” I called out softly, but my voice only echoed back.
My fingers shook as I hid the feather in my apron. Luther couldn’t see it.
He couldn’t know.
The night, as thunder rolled across the sky, I heard another sound - a soft knock on the door.
When I opened it, there was no one there.
Only a small envelop resting on the step.
My name was written on it in neat, clean handwritten.
I tore it open, heart pounding.
Inside was a single line.
[ “If you want to know the truth about your father…meet me at the old chapel. Midnight]
My hands went cold.
My father? He’d been dead for fifteen years.
Or so I thought.
The clock struck twelve in the distance - and I didn’t even notice the shadow moving at the end of the hallway.
To be continued………
