After reading that journal, I was not myself. I couldn't stop thinking about everything I had read. I had gone directly to Carina after reading it but not to tell her what I saw but to eat dinner. After that, I had gone straight to my room even though Carina tried to convince me to take a walk.
When night had come, I couldn't sleep. I had lain in bed for what felt like hours, staring at the ceiling while my mind refused to quiet down. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw the hidden room.
The portrait, the journal, the last entry on the journal before Lydia died was stuck in my mind.
I wish I had more time with him.
The words haunted me because they felt real. I looked around the room, Lydia had also lived in this room. I chill ran down my spine.
The curse was real. Lydia's journal was proof of that. It wasn't just a story people whispered about. It felt like a wound, a wound that never healed.
One Hades carried every day. I turned onto my side.
