K. D. Phillips, Author

An uneasy feeling settled in my stomach as I made my way up the narrow staircase.

“Sweetheart?” I called out, trying to mask my fear. I hesitated at the threshold of Maddie’s room, feeling a bone-chilling cold unlike anything I’d ever felt before. 

“Maddie?” I whispered softly, my breath visible in the cold air.

There was no response, no familiar laughter or playful banter to fill the silence. Maddie’s bed looked curiously untouched, neatly made up as if it had never been slept in. My chest tightened… my motherly instincts on high alert as I tried to make sense of it all.

“Maddie?” I called again, my voice quivering with urgency. I turned toward the adjacent bathroom, thinking I would find her there. The cold intensified as I moved closer, a frigid chill that seemed to gnaw at my soul. Dread coiled within me, tightening like a vice around my heart, yet I forced myself to continue.

“Please be okay,” I muttered under my breath, worried that Maddie’s illness had taken her from me.

The quaint bathroom embraced me as I stepped inside, my gaze lingering on the vintage tiles beneath my feet. Each one seemed to tell a tale of decades long past, their faded beauty a testament to the history that had unfolded within these walls. 

My eyes were drawn to the large, ornate mirror dominating the room. An image stared back at me from its slightly fogged surface, and I was startled to realize that it was my own reflection. My eyes betrayed a mixture of anxiety and tiredness… a mother lost in her own fears, searching for answers. I swallowed hard, fighting back emotion.

“Come on, Maddie,” I muttered under my breath, revealing my frustration. “This isn’t funny. Where are you hiding?”

As if in response, there it was—a flicker of movement, a fleeting shadow that darted across the mirror’s surface. My breath hitched, my heart skipping a beat as disbelief warred with the undeniable truth before me.

In the mirror, a young girl appeared—pale, ethereal, and transient. Her hair, dark as midnight, cascaded in loose waves down her back, the strands seemingly defying the laws of gravity. Her eyes, large and hauntingly deep, held a timeless wisdom that belied her youthful face.

My heart pounded in my chest, echoing the wild drumbeat of fear and awe that coursed through me. The girl moved with a grace I had never witnessed before, her lithe form dancing effortlessly through the cramped space. I held my breath, watching her every movement. Tension knotted within me, a tightly wound spring just waiting to snap. An airy gasp escaped my lips as it dawned on me—this little girl was not my Maddie. 

“Who are you?” I breathed, my voice barely there. “Are you… real?” 

The girl said nothing, but her gaze seemed to bore into my soul, as if she could see every hope and fear that lay hidden within my heart.

“Please,” I whispered desperately, my eyes brimming with tears. “If you know anything about Maddie, tell me. I need to find her.” 

In that moment, our gazes locked, and I felt an inexplicable connection to this spectral figure. It was as though we shared the same heartbeat, our lives intertwined by some unseen force.

“Are you here to help Maddie?” I pressed, desperation giving strength to my voice. Still, the girl remained silent. My heart ached with the need to understand, to find some semblance of meaning in this spiritual encounter. The girl’s gaze never wavered, and for a moment, I thought I saw a flicker of compassion in her eyes. As quickly as she had appeared, she began to fade, her ethereal form dissolving like mist beneath the first rays of dawn. 

“Wait!” I cried out, my hand reaching out instinctively to touch the mirror’s cold surface, but it was too late. The girl had vanished, leaving behind only a lingering sense of loss and the echo of a whispered word:

“Believe.”

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I hope you enjoyed this brief excerpt from my latest book, “Fireflies”. I’ll be posting more excerpts from the book for you to enjoy. Please leave your comments!

Enjoy!

K.D.