All Chapters of The Curse Of Our Ninth Life : Chapter 1 - Chapter 7

The car suddenly felt too small, too quiet, too cold, and I could barely hear anything except my own breathing. It came in short, painful heartburn as I stared at the man sitting in front of me. I wiped at my tears with trembling fingers, but they kept falling, and my chest ached so badly I wondered if my heart was breaking apart inside me. Then his last words replayed in my head “My twin brother won’t be happy knowing that his bride is a pathetic weakling...” Twin brothers Bride?? The words didn’t make any sense. I slowly lifted my head. “What... Did you just say?” He didn’t answer. He simply looked out of the windshield as though I wasn’t even there. My fingers curled into the fabric of my wedding dress. “I asked you a question,” I said, but he still remained silent. I swallowed hard. “If you’re not my husband...” My voice shook. “...then who are you?” Still nothing. I stared at his reflection in the rearview mirror. “You stood beside me at the altar. You exchanged vows with m

The car came to a smooth stop. My fingers stayed locked around the door handle as I stared out the window. The forest stretched endlessly beneath a blood red moon. The trees were taller than any I’d ever seen, their black branches twisting together like skeletal fingers clawing at the sky. Thick silver mist rolled across the ground and swallowed the narrow stone road behind us. This couldn’t be real. It had to be a set. Or maybe... maybe I’d finally lost my mind after watching my parents die. I squeezed my eyes shut. When I opened them again, nothing had changed. The crimson moon still hung above us. The forest was still there. The air outside looked darker, heavier, wrong. “Out.” Kai’s voice was calm, almost emotionless. I didn’t turn. “No.” Silence. A few seconds later: “Get out of the car.” “I said no. I’m not stepping into whatever this place is.” Draven let out a quiet laugh from the driver’s seat. “I like her.” Kai ignored him. “Maya.” “No.” “You’ll be safer inside.” I la

The diary was still on the floor where I'd dropped it.I stared at it for a long time before I made myself move. My hands were shaking so bad it took two tries to pick it up again, like some part of me already knew that once I opened it, I wouldn't be able to close it again and pretend I hadn't seen what was inside.I opened it anyway.The handwriting looked like mine. Not similar. Mine. The same slant, the same way I loop my Y's too big."This isn't possible," I whispered.The next page started with a date that meant nothing to me.Day One.If you're reading this, then we failed again.Don't panic.I know you don't remember me.I am you.My heart slammed once, hard, against my ribs. I laughed this short, broken, nervous sound that didn't feel like it came from me."No," I said, out loud, to an empty room. "No, that's not possible..."I turned the page anyway. I couldn't stop myself.The diary didn't explain anything. It just kept going, like whoever wrote it assumed I already knew e