Shattered reflection

Chapter 4: The name of the shadows

Mia flipped back a few pages, looking for more context. There had to be something here, some clue as to why her father had marked this place. As she skimmed the journal, more mentions of the estate began to surface, scattered like breadcrumbs throughout her father's erratic notes.

"It's where it all started," one entry read. "The estate holds the key—Lucien's legacy. I'll find him there, or at least the truth about who he is. I'm close, but I'm being watched. If I don't make it, Mia must never go there."

Her breath hitched at the last line. Her father had wanted to keep her away from the Roanoke Estate. Why? What had he been so afraid of?

Jake must have noticed the change in her expression because he placed a hand on her shoulder. "You okay?"

Mia swallowed hard, nodding even though she didn't feel okay at all. "He didn't want me going to the estate," she murmured. "But it's the only lead we've got. There's something there—something Lucien is hiding."

Jake's face hardened. "If your father was afraid of it, we should be too. This isn't just some abandoned building. It sounds like it's tied to everything—The Raven, the Syndicate, and whatever Lucien's really after."

Mia shut the journal, gripping it tightly in her hands. She could feel her pulse racing beneath her skin, her thoughts swirling like a storm. "I know," she said softly. "But we don't have a choice. If we don't figure this out, we'll always be running, always one step behind The Raven. We need to face this head-on."

Jake didn't respond immediately, his eyes scanning the room as if searching for an answer. The silence between them grew heavy, the weight of their decision pressing down on them both. Finally, he spoke, his voice calm but resolute.

"Alright," he said, standing up. "But we don't go in unprepared. We'll need to gather whatever we can—supplies, information, weapons if we can get them. We're walking into a lion's den, Mia. We have to be ready for anything."

Mia nodded, feeling a surge of determination. She wouldn't let fear stop her. Not now. Too much was at stake. The estate might be dangerous, but it also held the answers she'd been searching for—about her father, The Raven, and Lucien. If they could just get inside, maybe they could finally start to piece everything together.

"We'll leave at dawn," Jake continued. "Stay here tonight, get some rest. We'll need our strength."

Mia agreed, though the thought of sleeping seemed impossible with everything swirling in her mind. She stood and moved to the small window, gazing out at the darkening sky. The forest outside was quiet, the trees swaying gently in the breeze, but she knew better than to trust the calm.

Somewhere out there, The Raven was still hunting them. And Lucien—this man who seemed to be at the center of everything—was watching from the shadows, waiting.

"Do you think my father ever found him?" Mia asked suddenly, her voice barely above a whisper.

Jake stood behind her, his reflection just visible in the window's cracked glass. "I don't know," he admitted. "But if Lucien's as dangerous as your father believed, then maybe he didn't want to."

Mia shivered at the thought. The idea that Lucien had somehow eluded even her father—who had been so deeply entrenched in this world—was terrifying. What kind of man could hold that much power over both The Raven and the Syndicate, and still remain a ghost?

As the night deepened, the sense of foreboding only grew. Mia wrapped her arms around herself, trying to shake the cold that had settled into her bones. She couldn't stop thinking about the estate, about what they might find there. Was it just another dead end, or was it the place where everything would finally make sense?

One thing was certain: whatever awaited them at the Roanoke Estate, it would change everything.

The fire crackled softly in the hearth as Mia and Jake settled in for the night, the cabin's old walls groaning under the pressure of the wind outside. Neither of them spoke much, both lost in their own thoughts as they prepared for the journey ahead.

Mia couldn't help but glance at the journal every few minutes, her mind racing with questions. There had to be more clues hidden in her father's writing, something she had overlooked. But she was exhausted, both physically and mentally. Her body was demanding rest, even if her mind refused to quiet.

Finally, after what felt like hours of tossing and turning, Mia drifted into a fitful sleep. Her dreams were haunted by shadows—figures watching from the darkness, eyes glowing with malice. Lucien's name echoed in the distance, like a whisper she couldn't quite grasp.

When she woke, it was still dark, the early morning hours cloaking the world in an eerie stillness. Jake was already awake, packing the last of their supplies into his bag.

"It's time," he said, his voice low but steady.

Mia nodded, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She felt the weight of the journal in her hands as she slipped it into her pack. Today, they would head to the estate. Today, they would finally confront the darkness that had been looming over their lives for so long.

With one last glance at the cabin, they stepped out into the cold dawn, the forest around them shrouded in mist. The Roanoke Estate awaited them, its secrets buried deep within its walls.

And whatever they found there, Mia knew, would change everything.