Chapter 13
Priscilla sat quietly on a bench by the lake, staring blankly at the water. The small boats on the lake rocked gently with the waves, slowly settling into stillness. I was just like her wandering heart, which would always eventually find its calm..
Without realizing it,
sun began to set. The evening glow stretched across the horizon like a brilliant painting.
Priscilla walked along the edge of Millstone Beach, where the sand beneath her feet had tumed a golden hue under the sunset. Her shadow stretched long in the fading light, as if this chapter was a new story fate had begun writing for her.
The matter with Josiah and Brittany was already behind her. The memories now seemed velled in a light mist–faint, distant, and unclear.
Eventually, Priscilla arrived at the ancient town of Lindow.
The central square was bustling with life, and both sides of the street were lined with all kinds of ornaments and trinkets. She strolled along the charming, old- fashioned streets, admiring the intricate handmade crafts and soaking in the rich ethnic atmosphere.
Elderly locals, dressed in festive attire, danced joyfully in a circle, their faces lit with smiles of contentment. The joy was contagious as Priscilla found herself swaying gently to the rhythm.
By nightfall, the ancient town gleamed under the lights. The glow reflected off the narrow river, casting a shimmering, dreamlike scene.
She sat in a small riverside pub, listening to the soft, lingering melody while sipping the local wine. Her heart was just brimming with contentment and joy.
It had been a long time since she last thought about Josiah and Brittany and that, in itself, was a good thing
Slightly tipsy from the drinks, Priscilla felt light and unanchored. She decided to step outside and walk it off. As she reached the entrance of a small cottage, a light rain began to fall.
The drizzle swept diagonally past the dark–tiled caves as Priscilla leaned against a weathered wooden doorframe. The alcohol coursed through her veins, turning the Thickering Lanterns along the stone–paved street into a blur of glowing halus.
She reached out to catch a droplet hanging from the edge of the roof. The cold sensation jolted her fingertips, sobering the warmth that still lingered from the wine. Suddenly, a soft orange wall lamp lit up in the comer. The cottage gate, wrapped in rose vines, was left slightly ajar. A plaque above the entrance was inscribed in delicate gold script with the words “Rainwatch Haven, glistening under the rain
Priscilla stumbled forward and pushed the door open. From behind a bush of hydrangeas came the faint clink of porcelain.
“Priscilla? Do you need a towel?” A low, husky male voice startled her into stepping back as a strikingly beautiful hand reached out toward her.
Under the soft glow of the porch light, a man lounged in a weathered armchair, dressed in a cream–colored linen shirt. His pale fingers rested casually on the rim of a ceramic mig
The mist and rain softened the edges of his f face, blurring his features like watercolor on damp paper. He reminded Priscilla of a sculpture she once saw in a quiet comer of an old gallery–serene, refined, and somehow achingly breakable.
“How do you know my name?” she asked, tightly clutching the drenched cashmere shawl around her
A gentle breeze stirred his hair as Maddox Sinclair pushed himself up, coughing softly. His wrist, exposed where the sleeve had slipped, was so s faint blue veins beneath the sld were visible.
“Law you dancing at the freshman welcome party in college,” he said, his fingers nervously tightening around the hem of his clothing.
“You were so full of life. It was hard to forget.” His ears flushed red as be finished speaking.
A crack of thunder tore through the clouds, and only then did Priscilla notice that his ears were already bright red
slender that the
Beindrops dripped from the wisteria trellis onto the inkstone, the wet ink swirling into deep gray toples. Framed by the night, Maddox looked like some otherworldly creature meant to lure one into desire.
Priscilla Lound herself drawn to him almost involuntarily. She took the towel from his hand and followed him into the house.
was essentially a stranger.
Only after sitting inside did she realize that she was alone, in an unfamiliar room, in an unfamiliar ancient town, with a man who w The silence between them camed a subtle undercurrent of intimacy. Flustered, Priscilla hastily blurted out a question to bieak the tension. “You’re a student at Visia College too?”
then, I come here around this time every year to rest and recover”
He hummed in confimation before saying, “I got into a car accident in my junior year. Since th Noticing her discomfort, Maddox instinctively talked more, trying to put her at ease.
“A car accident?” Priscilla thought to herself. She found it unsurprising that he gave off that delicate, almost ethereal aura. “Yeah Backthen_”
Maddog was so happy when he saw how interested people were in his story. She might not remember him, but he had never forgotten her. All these years,
the Hayed in his heart.
The only stopped following her lite atter he learned she had fallen in love, been proposed to, and eventually gotten manied.
