House of Royals by Keary Taylor

Author:Keary Taylor [Taylor, Keary]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: clean paranormal romance, pg13 paranormal contemporary fantasy, southern gothic vampires, unique vampires
Publisher: Keary Taylor Book, INC
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT THE PAINTING in Henry’s—my—bedroom. It’s a huge, nearly floor-to-ceiling masterpiece of a village with a river that runs through it. A still life, I suppose, a landscape? There are no people in it. Just the buildings, old, ancient. There’s a small boat tied to the side of the canal. But it isn’t the lack of life in the painting that’s bothering me.

It’s how it seems off. Not quite set right on the wall. Like it’s just barely angled away from it on the left side.

When I woke in the morning, I did feel better. But I just laid in my bed long after the sun came up, just being. Not really thinking. Not really feeling. Just existing.

I hadn’t really realized my eyes were fixed on the painting until I started to feel annoyed with it. And eventually I realized it wasn’t the painting itself that I was annoyed with.

Climbing out of bed, I pad over the wooden floors to it. Preparing myself for the heaviness it must weigh, I grab either side of the frame to straighten it.

But the second I touch that left side, it swings just slightly toward me.

All the blood in my body falls to my feet as a cold draft wafts out from behind the painting.

I pull on the left side, swinging the door wide open.

Behind the painting lies the opening of a narrow passageway.

The walls are lined with old wood and stone. There’s no light to lead the way, but what little spills in from my bedroom shows that it cuts sharply to the left and then drops.

The discovery of a hidden passageway is amazing. It’s every little kid’s dream. But I know the history of this house and what lurks in the dark in this town. I’m both fascinated and petrified about where this passage leads to.

I grab my cell phone and turn the flash on for a light. With the cold air licking over my body, I start into the dark.

It does indeed cut immediately to my left. This wall is an outside one, with windows looking out over the river just to the side of it. It’s impressive there’s room enough to house the passage. It runs for two yards, and immediately drops down into a set of steep stairs.

Down, down, down I go. The darkness makes the stairway seem longer than I think it actually is. The air grows cooler, the moisture in the walls thicker.

I level out into a tunnel.

Dirt walls, dirt floor, and dirt ceiling make me fairly sure that I’m underground. Wooden beams brace the tunnel every ten feet or so, but they don’t look particularly stable, like they’re beginning to rot out.

When I suddenly step in a shallow puddle, I understand why.

I’m probably ten feet underground. This secret tunnel is not far from the river at all. I’d bet it floods in the winter and spring when the rains raise the level of the river.

I walk and walk. It feels like forever. A mile?

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.