Shadows and Pumpkins

**Elara’s POV**

My heart had been hammering against my ribs since the moment I opened my eyes this morning, a relentless, suffocating rhythm that threatened to choke the very breath from my lungs. Every time a floorboard creaked in the massive manor house, every time a heavy set of footsteps echoed down the hallway, my entire body seized up in paralyzing terror. I was absolutely terrified that th