Carpathian 00 - The Scarletti Curse

cannot find us." There was more giggling just ahead, so Nicoletta slowed her walking further so she wouldn't catch up too quickly.
    "I am right behind you," she called, attempting to block out everything sinister and frightening about the palazzo to enjoy this moment with the children.
    The two girls shrieked with delight. She could hear their shoes pattering along the ground as they ran farther through the twisting labyrinth. "Stay together," she cautioned, unable to prevent the admonishment Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    from escaping.
    Often the passage through the labyrinth was narrow and led to a dead end or backtracked in long, looping circles. Nicoletta was now deep within the maze, following the children solely by the sounds of their voices. At times she could hear them quite close by, as though she would be able to touch them if she reached through the thick hedges. At other times they seemed some distance away. The soldiers'
    boots thunked hard on the path as they ran to catch up with her.
    Startled by all the unfamiliar activity, birds rose into the air, flapping their wings and shrieking protests, their beaks gaping open. At first Nicoletta laughed at them, but then she began to find the darting creatures frightening. She glanced up at the sky. A shadow was passing over the labyrinth. A draft rose up from the ground to envelop her. At once she felt the cold.
    Nicoletta stopped moving abruptly and went very still. Wings fluttered overhead. Taking a deep breath, unwillingly she glanced up. The black raven was perched in the branches of a thick shrub at the end of the passageway where an sharp bend hid the rest of the path. It seemed to be growing darker in the maze. She swallowed the sudden knot of fear blocking her throat. "Not you again. Where are the girls?"
    She raised her voice, very frightened. "Ketsia! Sophie!" Her voice sounded shaky. "You have to find me now. Come to me!"
    The fear in her voice alarmed the guards. "Donna Nicoletta, stay where you are. We will come to you,"
    Francesco offered. "Are you in trouble?"
    Yes, she was in trouble. The bird told her there was trouble. Yet she felt no injury, no sickness. The wind carried no tales of accidents. The children were still laughing joyously. So why was the raven there, warning her of misfortune somewhere close by? Nicoletta couldn't very well tell the guards that. She reluctantly began to walk toward the bird. It watched her approach intently with its round, beady eyes.
    Nicoletta expected it to fly off in one direction or the other, but instead, as she moved closer, it spiraled to the ground, folding its wings and hopping to the edge of the bush that formed the bend in the maze.
    Nicoletta could feel her heart pounding hard, and her mouth went dry in fearful anticipation. Shadows were creeping from the palazzo into the labyrinth. Grotesque demons reached out, the guardians of the cursed palazzo seeking to keep its secrets safe. She watched the bird as it hopped purposefully along the ground.
    Reluctantly she followed it around the bend. The maze gave a choice of right or left, both abrupt turns, one slightly narrower than the other. The bird chose the narrow, more overgrown path. The bushes here weren't as well kept, and small branches poked at her skin as she slowly walked along. She heard the giggles of the children as if from a very great distance. The noise should have been reassuring, but it sounded mocking, as if the labyrinth had taken the joyful notes and twisted them into evil laughter. The soldiers called to her, both of them. They were running, and she could tell they had split up as they searched for her. She wanted to answer them, but the fear choking her prevented her. She was cold, even shivering, yet her skin was damp with perspiration. The bird swung its head back toward her, staring with a touch of the malevolence she associated with the windows and gargoyles of the palazzo.
    "Just show me." she snapped, her fists clenching in the pockets of her skirt. She didn't want to know more trouble; she was struggling to find a place in her new home with a man she barely knew. A man who mesmerized her. Tempted her. She shoved a trembling hand through her hair in agitation, tears filling her eyes. She didn't want to know trouble. She didn't want to be afraid anymore.
    The bird croaked at her, an ugly, accusing tone. She dashed the tears away, her chin rising in challenge.

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