Chapter Seven
The Water Wakes
Amelia ran.
She didn't pack a bag, didn't leave a note—she just grabbed the pendant, threw on her hoodie, and left the house before Edward could catch up. Before he could try to stop her again.
The lake in her veins was humming now, pulsing to a rhythm only she could feel.
She took the first bus out. Her hands shook the whole ride.
⸻
Crescent Hollow was nearly empty by the time she arrived, the streetlights flickering like old memories. The library loomed like a lighthouse in a sea of quiet shadows.
Amelia banged on the back door. "Marah! Please—open up!"
A long pause. Then the door creaked open.
Marah stood in the doorway, already dressed in a deep navy cloak, as if she'd been expecting her.
"You felt it, didn't you?" Amelia said breathlessly. "The pendant—it lit up, and the house—it froze, and she was there. In the mirror. My mom."
Marah's eyes softened, though her expression stayed unreadable. "Come in, child. There's something you need to see."
⸻
They went deeper this time—not just the back room, but through a hidden spiral staircase Amelia hadn't noticed before. The air grew cooler as they descended, the walls etched with ancient markings. Water trickled somewhere in the distance, like a heartbeat.
The space below was glowing.
Crystals floated mid-air, spinning slowly. Scrolls covered in strange glyphs floated open without being touched. A pool sat in the center of the floor—black as ink, yet glass-smooth. It pulsed softly with a blue light.
Marah guided Amelia to the edge of the pool.
"This is the Echo Well. One of the last living memories of the Reflection Line. It shows only truth. Sometimes past. Sometimes future. Sometimes what lives inside you."
Amelia held out the pendant. "This—what is it?"
Marah took it gently, running her fingers along its smooth surface.
"This isn't just a key," she said. "It's a binding. Your mother poured the last of her power into this to protect you. That's why the lake hasn't consumed you yet."
"Consumed?" Amelia echoed, stomach turning.
"If your will isn't stronger than the water's, it will take everything from you. Your memories. Your voice. Even your name."
Amelia stared down at the pool. "And if I am stronger?"
Marah looked at her, really looked. "Then you'll unlock what even Elvira couldn't."
The pendant pulsed in her palm, responding to her thoughts like a heartbeat.
Suddenly, the Echo Well began to shimmer.
The surface rippled—
And images appeared.
A woman, Elvira, standing at the edge of a cliff.
A hand reaching out from beneath dark water.
A white mask floating through mist.
And a voice, faint but sharp, whispering from the depths:
"The gate is breaking. The heir has awakened."
The images vanished.
Amelia staggered back. "What does it mean?"
Marah's voice was grave. "It means you have less time than we thought"
"The gate is breaking. The heir has awakened."
The voice still echoed in Amelia's ears, even though the visions had faded. The Echo Well was still now—calm on the surface—but it didn't feel calm. It felt like something underneath was holding its breath, waiting for a moment to rise.
Marah knelt beside her, face unreadable. "Do you know what a gate means in our world?"
Amelia shook her head, clutching the pendant like it might anchor her to reality.
Marah's gaze flicked toward the well. "There are places where the veil between this world and the next thins—mirrors, water, even dreams. But the lake... the lake is a gate. A passage between what is and what was forgotten. It guards things. Secrets. Creatures. Even souls."
Amelia's mouth went dry. "And it's breaking?"
"Yes. And if it breaks completely—" Marah hesitated. "It won't just call your mother back. It'll call everything that's been sealed behind it. The good. The terrible. The cursed."
The pendant pulsed once, deep blue. Then again—stronger.
Marah's eyes snapped to it.
"It's responding faster now," she said. "It's syncing with you."
"Why?" Amelia whispered. "Why now?"
"Because the water's chosen you," Marah said quietly. "You're not just Elvira's daughter, Amelia. You're the next Seer in the Reflection Line."
Amelia stumbled back. "I'm just... I'm just a kid."
"You're a key," Marah said. "And you're running out of time."
Suddenly, the library above them creaked. A strange chill spilled down the stairs like smoke.
Marah stood swiftly. "We're not alone."
She grabbed a carved staff leaning against the wall and motioned for Amelia to stay behind her. The blue crystal at the top of the staff flickered to life.
From above—
A low hiss.
Then the sound of shattering glass.
Amelia turned toward the stairs just as a figure descended. Not human. Not ghost.
Its body shimmered like a broken mirror—its face featureless, save for a single glowing white eye.
Amelia's breath caught.
The figure stopped at the edge of the circle surrounding the Echo Well, unable to cross.
But it raised a long finger and pointed straight at Amelia.
"The heir bleeds.
The gate cracks.
The water will drown what defies it."
Then it vanished into a burst of shattering reflection—gone, but the air still tingled with its presence.
Marah turned to Amelia.
"You've just been marked."
Amelia's knees nearly gave out. "By what?"
"A Watcher," Marah whispered. "One of the lake's oldest messengers. It only shows itself to those it fears... or those it's ready to take."
Amelia's heart thudded. "So what now?"
Marah stepped closer, pressing the pendant back into her hand. "Now we train. We have to awaken your Sight before the lake sends something worse."