Free Glimmer by Vivi Anna Page A

beautiful.
    But my stomach clenched at what had been painted behind the young woman. A blanket of shadows hovered behind her and above her head. Shadows that had a distinct shape. A sweeping whimsical shape.
    That of wings jutting from her back.
    And just like that I lost my appetite.
    ***

Chapter 9
    Darkness surrounded me. The sensation was thick and oppressive, and I subconsciously wiped at my arms, hoping to slough off its weight. I was in a forest; the trees pressed together, twisted limbs intertwining and reaching for me. Moonlight barely passed through the heavy canopy overhead. I could see my hands and my feet as I walked, but not much else.
    But I could hear and smell everything around me.
    Branches snapped underneath my feet. The popping echoed, bouncing off trees and scraggily bushes, sounding much louder than it should have been. The strong odor of wet moss and leaves wafted upward on a puff of cool night air—and underneath that was the smell of rot and decay mingled, making my nose twitch.
    Other noises and scents swirled around me. Things I couldn’t discern or identify. Fear crept over me like a bunch of baby spiders scurrying along my skin, and I wrapped my arms around my body, shivering. I didn’t know where I was or when I was but somehow the sights all seemed familiar.  Like I’d run through these woods before.
    A groaning sound from my right gave me pause. I turned toward the noise, not sure of what I’d see. Then came another and another, as if someone old and stiff was pushing out of a rocking chair to stand and having a difficult time.
    I took a step to my right, frightened but curious at what might spring out in the dark. I kept walking until I came to an enormous oak tree. Even in the gloom, I could see how huge it was, both tall and wide. I didn’t think I could wrap my arms around the trunk.
    Something about the tree called to me. I leaned closer, inspecting the patterns the rough bark made along the base, questioning what I’d see. Splaying my hand wide, I pressed it to the wood. Unexpected warmth radiated from it.
    Startled, I snatched back my hand. My palm was still warm and tingly. I peered down at it to see if I’d accidentally touched something toxic. But the skin was clear and pale like it always was. Nothing visible was burning me.
    Another groan sounded. It was much louder and seemed come directly from the tree itself. I took a step back and glanced up the towering length of the massive oak. Thick leafy branches were moving, slowly sure, but they were moving, and I didn’t feel a wind strong enough to do that. They swayed on their own.
    I took another distancing step back from the tree. Heart hammering and whole body shaking, I watched transfixed as the tree trunk split open like a peapod. The tearing sound was like a crack of lightning had struck nearby. A sizzle of something electric in the air skimmed over my skin, causing the little hairs to stir.
    Sap ran down in rivulets along the bark—like blood running from an open wound. I had an urge to reach out and press my palms to the opening to stop the tree from bleeding, thinking somehow that my gesture would save it from what was about to happen.
    Pieces of bark moved and twisted, forming some kind of pattern. At first, I couldn’t discern the shape. It was foreign and alien to me. But after another minute of turning and forming and molding together, I knew what I was staring at.
    A face.
    The surface of the tree stopping moving and I leaned closer to get a good look at the face formed in the wood. Two horizontal slits that had been formed in the shape cracked open. And they blinked. “Nina…”
    The voice came from the tree, from the mouth forming in the face. Astounded, I stumbled backwards, tripping over a large rock and landing on my ass on the hard dirt ground.
    “Nina…”
    The tree face burst from the tree and with it came a wooden body, twisted and malformed. A limb reached