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Helen sank deeper into the cold bath water feeling the tension in her muscles begin to ease. The scent of strawberry wafted up from the bubbles transporting her to a sense of serenity .

She closed her eyes letting the water support her weight and her mind drifted to the strange events of that day. The old lady, the book .' The book ' she said to herself when she remembered she hasn't yet thrown it away.

Helen's eyes snapped open as she sat up in the bath , water sloshing over the edges of the tub.She couldn't shake the weird feeling about the sudden meeting with the old lady.

With a sigh , Helen climbed out of the bath and wrapped herself in her grey plush towel.

She padded across the cold floor to her bed side table and picked up the book then strolled to the kitchen her mind still reeling with questions.

' ls she a witch?' . This even triggered her to throw the book away because her granny had told her alot of stories concerning witches and their cunning ways of driving young girls like her into their trap .

As she entered the kitchen, Helen's gaze fell onto a trash can in the corner where she tossed the book before moving to her fridge

for something to eat.

She prepared scrambled eggs with a glass of orange juice which she was to enjoy in her bedroom. However, as Helen made her way out of the kitchen , a sudden pang of unease struck her as if she had thrown away something precious.

' Huh, let me hope it's not as bad as l think it is.' She couldn't just leave it there though it was given to her in a creepy way, but she was a novel lover and reader.

With resting her meal on the table next to her , Helen strode over to the trash can , lifted the lid and retrieved the book then moved back to her bedroom and slid into her pajamas after enjoying her meal.

Helen settled into her cozy bed the soft blankets enveloping her like a warm hug. She opened the mysterious book and the slightly yellow pages crackled as she turned them.At first , the words seemed gibberish but as she read on , the story started to un fold like a dark , velvety curtain.

The tale spoke of ancient prince's, forgotten realms and long lost-love . Helen's curiosity was piqued;she couldn't wonder if the book was based on real events or mere fantasies.

Just as Helen was becoming fully immersed in the story, her phone jolted her back to reality. She hesitated for a moment before answering , knowing that the caller ID displayed her father's name.

"Dad..hi" Helen said , trying to sound cheerful despite the growing unease in her chest.

"Let me hope that you've not forgotten about our meeting with the Smiths tomorrow." Mr. Redmond reminded her , his voice laced with a hint of anxiety. " It's crucial that you make a good impression . They're very influential people and this could be a great opportunity for our family".

Helen felt a knot form in her stomach as she listened to her father's words. She had been dreading this meeting for weeks , knowing that her marriage with Kalai Smith was all her father's plan to gain more wealth since the Smiths have a very successful business and so marriage was the only relationship Helen's father could use to reach his goals.

" I know Dad, I'll be there". Helen replied trying to sound convincing despite her growing apprehension .

After what felt like an eternity, the conversation finally came to a close. Helen let out a deep sigh, feeling like she'd just been suffocated by an invisible weight .

She glanced at the book still open on her lap, and felt a great urge to escape into it's pages once more.

As she continued reading, the words started to blur together and Helen's eyelids grew heavy. Despite the late hour, she couldn't tear herself away from the story.

The characters seemed to come alive .

Finally, exhaustion claimed Helen, and she drifted off to sleep, the book still clutched in her hand.

What she didn't know was that this book was not a regular one but an ancient book simply a passage to any realm depending on one's heart's desire.

Helen often found trouble sleeping as nightmares of the past she tries to run from keeps drawing back to her . She started getting these the day after her mother's death at 8 years of age. Her father who was once loving and caring to her changed into someone else she' d never wished to see.

He even resorted to sending her off to her relatives because something about her reminded him of her mom.

Helen however didn't settle in one home as most of her relatives saw her as a burden while others just didn't have time for extra responsibility. At the age of 11, her aunt Drucella her father's step sister all of a sudden wanted to stay with her though she didn't share that kind of close relationship with Helen.

As any young girl, Helen was happy that at least someone wanted her .Little did she know about her unfortunate encounter with her aunt's rivals.

Drucella had asked a certain mafia group to help her out of the mess she had done which they did successfully. However the money they required was alot for her to give at once and just like that, she failed to pay . She knew that anytime they were coming for her so she sent her kid out of the country for sometime.

Turns out Helen was the on to fall into her aunt's mess when she was kidnapped till her aunt paid .

Drucella didn't want to pay because Helen didn't matter to her. But she had to because David would one day ask for her daughter back . It took her a couple of weeks to recover the money and take it to her lenders but it was however too late for poor Helen who had been harassed by those horrible men.

Helen said nothing to no one about what had happened to her in those weeks and chose to keep that story hidden at the back of her memory and forever kept one thing at heart which is her resentment towards all men.....