Chapter 2: Whispers Beneath the Surface
Cambry couldn’t shake the feeling that something was watching her.
The familiar routine of her morning should have brought her some comfort—the warmth of her coffee, the steady rhythm of Aurelia’s chatter over breakfast—but everything felt... off. Even the house seemed to hold its breath. She stood by the kitchen window, eyes unfocused as she stared at the backyard, at the path they had walked the day before, at the well hidden in the trees. It was quiet now, too quiet.
The inscription on the door had stayed with her all night, playing on a loop in her mind, along with Aurelia’s innocent admission: I saw it too, the day Grandpa died.
Cambry shivered, the reality of her situation finally settling in. She wasn’t imagining things. This wasn’t just a passing dream or a figment of her grief. Her daughter had seen it too. And now, Cambry couldn’t avoid the truth any longer—magic, real magic, was at her doorstep, and it wanted something from her.
She took a deep breath, her fingers curling around the mug in her hand, as though its warmth could anchor her in the world she knew. “What now?” she whispered, feeling the weight of the decision looming ahead. Should she go back to the well?
She needed answers.
Aurelia slumped beside her at the breakfast nook, sliding across the window bench, closing in the gap between herself and her mother. “I know you are probably going to say no, but I was thinking we should go back to the well today, whatcha think?” Aurelia beamed, fully prepared to beg her mother, if need be. Cambry thought carefully about how she would respond. She wanted to, absolutely! But she didn’t want her daughter in danger. She would never forgive herself if she lost her too.She had already lost so much—her parents, her husband, and now the weight of the past threatened to take her daughter too. But could she really protect Aurelia from a world that seemed to be calling to her as much as it was to Cambry herself? "Aurelia, I …..” She looked up and instantly locked eyes with the determined teenager, “We need to set some ground rules before we even start speaking about this, I have lost your grandparents and your father, I could not live with myself if something were to happen to you” Aurelia’s face softened, her enthusiasm momentarily dampened by the weight of her mother's words. She knew how much her mother had endured—losing both grandparents and her father within a year. It was a pain she could only begin to understand, but her heart ached for Cambry, who had been the family’s pillar of strength through it all.
“I get it, Mom. I really do,” Aurelia said, her voice quieter now. “But you have to trust me. I’m not a little kid anymore. I can handle myself. Plus, we’ve been trying to figure this out for days. We’re so close to finding answers, I can feel it.”
Cambry sighed, pressing her fingers to her temples as if trying to push away the worry that gnawed at her. She had always prided herself on being a rational person, but the well... that well was different. The strange occurrences surrounding it had them both on edge, especially after what they’d discovered last time. The pull it had on Aurelia scared her, though she hadn’t told her daughter the full extent of her own concerns. There was something ancient, something dangerous about that place.
“I know you’re capable, Aurelia,” Cambry began again, her voice trembling slightly with unspoken fears. “But we don’t even know what’s down there—what we're really dealing with. If we go back, we do it on my terms. No impulsive moves, no touching anything without talking to me first.”
Aurelia nodded eagerly, the spark of excitement returning to her eyes. “Deal,” she said, quickly seizing the moment. “We’ll be careful. I promise.”
Cambry studied her daughter’s face for a moment longer, searching for any hint of doubt or fear. But all she saw was determination. The same fierce resolve that her husband used to have when he set his mind on something. Cambry’s heart tightened at the memory of him, but she pushed it aside. They needed to move forward now, not dwell on the past.
“All right,” Cambry relented, her voice firm but resigned. “We’ll go. But you have to stick by me, no matter what. Understood?”
Aurelia grinned, a wide, beaming smile that lit up her face. “Yes! I promise.”
Cambry couldn’t help but smile back, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes. She had an uneasy feeling, a nagging sense that something was waiting for them at the well. Something they might not be ready for. But for now, she had to trust her daughter—and herself.
As they finished their breakfast, the sun began to rise higher in the sky, casting long shadows across the yard. The air felt different, charged with an energy that neither of them could ignore. The well had been calling them for days, and today they would answer.
“Let’s get ready,” Cambry said quietly, rising from the table. “We’ll need supplies—just in case.”
Aurelia was already halfway to the door, excitement propelling her forward. Cambry watched her go, a chill creeping down her spine despite the unseasonal warmth of the morning. “Slow down there 10-speed!” Cambry chuckled, rerouting her daughter to the utility closet where they packed some flashlights, water and various other essentials just in case they found themselves in over their heads again. Cambry's mind raced with everything they might encounter, but she kept her composure. She had to, for Aurelia's sake. The last trip to the well had left them with more questions than answers—cryptic symbols carved into the stone, the faint whispers that had followed them like a bad dream, and the strange pulse that Aurelia had felt deep within.
They stepped outside, and the old farmhouse creaked as a breeze whispered through the trees. "Remember, no wandering off," Cambry reminded, her voice stern as she threw a backpack over her shoulder. "We do this together."
Aurelia nodded, biting back her excitement. As they walked toward the well, her eyes darted from the towering oaks to the sky, scanning for any signs—anything unusual. Cambry noticed her daughter’s restlessness, and a wave of apprehension washed over her again.
The well was old, its stone rim covered in moss and vines. Cambry had always thought of it as just a relic from another time, something forgotten and harmless. But now, standing in front of it, she felt its presence looming over them like a dark secret waiting to be unearthed.
"Ready?" Aurelia asked, her voice barely concealing her excitement.
Cambry took a deep breath and nodded. They investigated the well's markings and the property surrounding it, noticing intricately carved symbols matching the ones they frequently noticed throughout the house. “The symbols have to mean something,” Cambry spoke barely above a whisper, instinctively, the feeling they were not alone was heavier now. There were 4 pillars surrounding the well that looked like they had been part of some ancient structure, long since crumbled and overtaken by nature. The pillars were worn with time, but like the well, they were etched with the same strange symbols they had seen before—symbols that had become more frequent throughout their home as if they had always been there, hidden just beneath the surface, waiting for the right moment to reveal themselves.
Aurelia stepped closer to one of the pillars, running her fingers over the carvings. "These... they feel familiar," she muttered, her brow furrowed. "Like I’ve seen them in my dreams. But why are they out here too?"
Cambry’s unease grew as she inspected the pillars more closely. "They aren’t just random markings," she said, her voice tight with worry. "There’s a pattern. It’s like the house, the well, the land… they’re all connected somehow."
She crouched down near the base of the nearest pillar, her fingers tracing the grooves of the ancient stone. Aurelia knelt beside her, curiosity taking over her previous sense of caution. "Do you think this is some kind of ritual site? Like… a portal or something?" Aurelia asked, half-joking but half-serious. She knew better than to dismiss the possibility now.
Cambry hesitated before answering. The idea was terrifying, but it wasn’t entirely far-fetched, given the strange occurrences that had been plaguing her for months. "I don’t know," she admitted. "But whatever this place is… it’s powerful. And old. Older than the house. Maybe older than the town."
As the symbols flared to life, one by one, a gust of wind circled the clearing, kicking up leaves and dust in a whirlwind. The air around them seemed to hum with energy, growing warmer as if the well itself was breathing—alive and waiting, rustling the tall grass around them and sending a chill down Cambry’s spine. The symbols on the pillars seemed to shimmer for a moment, as though the very air around them was responding to some unseen force.Cambry felt a prickling sensation at the nape of her neck, a sudden awareness that they weren’t alone. Her fingers tightened on Aurelia’s shoulder as she scanned the trees, expecting—no, dreading—something to emerge from the shadows.
"Mom, look!" Aurelia’s voice pulled Cambry out of her thoughts. Aurelia had moved to another side of the well and was pointing to the ground near the base of the fourth pillar. A thin crack in the earth was visible, running from the pillar toward the well itself.
"That wasn’t there before," Cambry said, her voice shaky. She stood and moved toward it cautiously, the sensation that something—or someone—was watching them intensifying.
Aurelia crouched beside the crack, peering into the darkness below. "It looks like it’s part of an underground tunnel or chamber," she said, her voice tinged with excitement. "What if there’s more beneath us? More symbols, more answers?"
Cambry stared at the crack, her heart pounding. The pull of the well, the house, the symbols—it all seemed to lead back to this moment, as if they were on the edge of discovering something monumental. But there was also a growing dread in her chest, a fear that once they crossed this threshold, there would be no turning back.
Before Cambry could respond, a low rumbling sound echoed from deep within the well. The ground beneath their feet trembled slightly, as though the earth itself was stirring. The symbols on the pillars flared with a brief but brilliant glow, casting eerie shadows across the clearing.
Aurelia’s eyes widened in shock. "Did you see that?" she whispered, her voice trembling.
Cambry nodded, her gaze locked on the well. "We need to be careful," she said, her voice steadier than she felt. "Whatever this is… it’s waking up."
The rumbling stopped as suddenly as it had begun, leaving the air heavy with anticipation. Cambry pulled Aurelia back from the edge of the well, her instincts screaming at her to get out of there, but she knew they couldn’t leave now. They had come too far.
"We’re going to need more than flashlights and rope," Cambry said quietly, her mind racing. "If this is what I think it is… we need to prepare for whatever's down there."
Aurelia nodded, her usual bravado tempered by the gravity of the situation. "But we’re going back, right?" she asked, a hint of fear creeping into her voice. "We can’t just walk away from this."
Cambry squeezed her daughter’s hand. "We’ll go back. But not today. First, we need answers. We need to know what we’re up against."
As they turned to leave the well behind, the symbols on the pillars dimmed, returning to their quiet, dormant state. But Cambry knew they weren’t gone. Something had been awakened, and whatever it was, it was waiting for them.
“It’s the same.” Cambry muttered, her eyes wide. The same symbols that adorned their house, the same symbols that had silently watched over them all these years. How had they never noticed before? Her pulse quickened with both excitement and a tinge of anxiety. The house, the well—they were connected. But to what? Aurelia’s breath hitched as she pointed to the sequence of symbols. “The eye... the serpent... the triangles... the flame,” she murmured, barely able to contain the excitement bubbling up inside her. Cambry met her gaze and nodded slowly. The answer was clear—they needed to get that door open.
As they walked back to the house, the symbols faded into silence, but their glow remained imprinted on Cambry’s mind. She felt it with every step they took closer to the door—that same electric charge. Whatever was waiting for them behind it, she wasn’t sure they were ready to face it. But they had no choice now. The rumbling had stopped, but the air was still thick with something unseen, a presence that lurked just out of reach. Cambry felt it in her bones—the same way she’d felt the weight of the world shift when her husband died. It wasn’t over. Something was coming.
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