She stood in front of the door, her body hunched over with age, her joints riddled with arthritis that was nothing but a ghost her body couldn’t shake, a prison her mind had built. Her hair was wispy, hanging limply to her shoulders, and the skin on her face sagged, sinking her chin into her neck. Everything about her was tired and worn, except her eyes, which shone bright and alert. And afraid.
Eliza stood in front of the door and she was deathly, deathly afraid.
She wasn’t alone, she knew. Countless souls had come to her, wanting to know the secrets of this place, how to get back, return to the real world. Countless souls, and not one had ever had the nerve to do it, to open the door… until recently. Until one frightened but fierce girl had found the courage to risk her soul for the one she loved.
That girl made Eliza feel like a coward.
And so here she was.
Heart thudding in her chest, hand trembling, she reached out for the doorknob. In her mind’s eye she conjured up the vision, the picture she held dear in her heart. Her husband, who she’d thought lost for ever, twisted and warped and turned into one of those wretched beasts. Her husband, who she’d abandoned to that fate. No longer, not with the knowledge those four young people had brought with them. Not with the knowledge that there was a chance.
She gripped the circular handle, took a final breath, and twisted.
Eliza expected nothing to happen. She thought she’d meet an immovable force, a lock she could never unpick. She honestly believed she’d have to stand there for hour after hour, searching for her courage, her conviction, until she was sure, utterly sure, that she wanted to do this.
But the door opened easily in her hand.