Ethereal Slumber: ReTold Minis, #2

By Lucina M. Huff

17-year-old Pippa Hubbard dreams of being in a bustling big city, pursuing a glamorous career in fashion design. Instead, her mother drags her to Eidolon, a minuscule town in the middle-of-nowhere. Sure, a surprise inheritance from a family friend is nice. However, it does nothing to lessen her fears of being bored to tears in the tiny town.

 

But bored is the last thing she'll be in Eidolon. Secrets buried beneath the sleepy little burg are eager to claw their way to the surface in ways impossible to ignore.

 

A gust of wind where the air is still.

The whinny of a horse when she's all alone.

 

Instead of running from these oddities, Pippa makes the bold decision to investigate only to find herself face-to-face with a disembodied spirit.

He claims his name is Titus Zorana and pleads with Pippa to help him break free from a curse binding him to a local house. As unease prickles down her spine, Pippa asks herself the two questions that could alter the course of her life forever. Should she believe him and try to help? Or trust her instincts and run?

 

ETHEREAL SLUMBER is a short novella inspired by The Grimms' Briar Rose

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lucina M. Huff
• Release date: Dec 9, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201938673

Book preview

Ethereal Slumber

by Lucina M. Huff

Copyright 2021 Lucina M. Huff

D2D Edition, License Notes

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted in any form without prior written permission from the author.

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people.

The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination, or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales, is entirely coincidental.

Cover design by RK Creative Studio

Other Titles by Lucina M. Huff:

The Book of Memories

Peas for Princes

Table of Contents

Ethereal Slumber

About the Author

For my Aurora

Ethereal Slumber

D o you believe in magic ? Samson asks as he leans against my shoulder.

It isn’t the question one expects to hear standing in the open, gated drive of an abandoned house, but I’ve discovered over the course of the past couple weeks that my two new friends are a bit on the unexpected side. One might even go so far as to deem them odd, which I quite like.

He pinches my cheek. Well, Pippa? Do you?

I sidestep away from him, bumping into Meredith. We trip over each other. Sam tries to catch us both, but we end up in a tangled heap on the ground instead. Disentangling herself, Mer dusts off her frilly blue dress, ripped jeans, and well-shined combat boots. Fists on hip, her blue eyes spit fire at Sam, who still has his arms wrapped around me. The boy’s clueless. It had taken me a grand total of ten seconds to figure out that she has a thing for him, but maybe we all have blind spots where our best friends are concerned.

I shrug out of his arms, regain my footing, and dash to the other side of Mer. Do I believe in magic? A spring breeze blows a few years’ worth of autumn leaves along the drive, tugging a strand of my black hair out of my messy bun and across my view. I tuck it behind my ear and peer down the hedge-lined lane. I can’t see much. A weed covered fountain. Leaves collected against stone steps. A vine and briar covered wall. I shiver. Shouldn’t he be asking if I believe in ghosts? My foot edges forward and I reach out a hand.

Mer yanks me back. You can’t go in there; it’s cursed.

She’s tiny but ferocious. And dead serious. I fill my dark brown eyes with all the skepticism I can muster while holding back laughter.

A small snort escapes. Curses don’t exist.

She doesn’t believe in magic, Mer. Sam shakes his head.

I start to fold my arms, wincing as my finger rubs against my upper arm. No, and I don’t believe in ghosts, either.

I examine my injured pointer finger. There’s a tiny drop of blood. I wipe it away and another one wells up. Scowling, I suck on it a moment then rub it. My friends stare at me. In horror. I know it’s unsanitary, but really, this response is too much.

When did you get hurt? Did you touch the holly? Mer’s chin-length night-black hair seems to float as she grills me.

Sam’s reaction is even more bizarre. He circles me, lifting and dropping my arms, while on repeat, he asks, How do you feel?

I hold my hands up, backing away from my frenzied friends. Calm down, guys. I’m fine. I take one more step backward.

Pippa, no! they shout in unison.

Startled by the outburst, I lose my balance and, for the second time that afternoon, find myself on the ground. This time in a pile of spiky dead holly leaves. Sighing, I stand and start to pick the leaves off the back tail of my yellow high low blouse. It was the last thing I made at home before my mom moved us out to Eidolon, this little town in the middle of nowhere. All because of some inherited property from some friends I’d never heard of. Not that we needed it. Not like she doesn’t own half our hometown.

A rustling ripples through the hedges around me. I chalk it up to the breeze from earlier, until I realize my hair is unaffected. I still shrug it off. Probably a squirrel or mouse or rabbit.

Pippa, you need to get out of there now. Samson’s hazel eyes are adamant.

He’s never serious and I’m only a few steps away, so I ignore him. There’s one leaf I can’t pluck off.

Pippa!

I look up at Meredith’s shout. Sam’s tugging her arm, holding her back. She stomps her foot.

The vines are coming for you. You have to run. Now!

The rustling behind me is louder. I turn my head.

It’s just a snake, Mer.

I finally pull the last dead leaf off. It floats to the ground as I walk