The Strings Between Us

Shadows of Regret

For a long moment, Slappy just stood there in disbelief and regret of what he has said.

He stood frozen in the library, his hands clenched at his sides, jaw tight enough to crack.

The journal still sat open on the desk.

His words stared back at him.

Not spells. Not curses.

Feelings.

His shame — laid bare and read by someone who had every right to see them, and yet...

"I was stupid enough to let you stay."

The moment he said it, he knew.

He had broken something.

"I've ruined everything.." He whispered, quivering under his breath. "I always do."

Shaken with distraught, he place his hands over his face.

Maybe he did ruin a lot of things. But he wasn't going to ruin this. He wasn't going to let her slip away.

He spun around and bolted down the hall, nearly knocking over an old cabinet as he charged through the west wing.

"Belinda!" he called, voice echoing.

"BELINDA!"

Nothing.

Not a sound.

The castle had gone quiet again, like it was holding its breath.

"Belinda, I didn't—!" His voice cracked. "I didn't mean it like that!"

He checked the bedroom.

Empty.

The haunted courtyard.

Empty.

The main staircase. Her cloak was gone.

Panic threaded through his chest like icy wire.

She'd run.

She was out there somewhere in Horrorland.

Alone.

He immediately grabbed a coat and stormed into the front hall. The pumpkins who guarded the door tilted their heads as he passed.

"If you see her," he growled, "you stop her. If you touch her, I'll rip the seeds out of your skulls."

The castle doors creaked open, groaning like bones in the wind.

Fog poured in like a wave.

Slappy hesitated on the threshold.

He had ruled HorrorLand for decades.

Nothing scared him here.

Nothing—until now.

Belinda was far from a burden to him. She was his life. His motivation. His everything.

"Why did I say that," he muttered, voice low and angry. "Why did I—why do I always mess things up?"

The wind howled.

No answer came.

Only the knowledge that he had to move.

He stepped into the fog.

~~~

Meanwhile, Belinda stood silently as the wizard's hand extended toward her.

She didn't take it.

Not yet.

"You think you know him," she whispered. "But you don't."

"I know what he is," the wizard said. "A king of a broken kingdom. A tyrant afraid of love. And you... you're his one weakness."