Chapter Two: Into the Cellars
Leonora awoke with a start, covered in a cold sweat and gulping for air. She looked around, terrified, making sure that her nightmare was over and she was back in reality.
Sighing with relief, she edged quietly out of her bed and slid across the floor to a mahogany table. She gripped a pitcher and began to pour some water into a small glass cup.
As she was lifting the cup to her lips, she heard a faint sound emerging from the walls like a ghost, twisting around her and lifting all of her fear away. It was a soft melody that led Leonora into the hall, glancing around to see if anyone was there. She listened to it and marveled at its beauty that carried her through the corridor as if she were attached to an invisible string.
She found herself in Cornelia's empty dressing room, staring vacantly at a large mirror upon the wall. The music seemed to come from there…but how?
Leonora reached out to the mirror, feeling the cold glass between her fingertips and running her other hand along the side. It was an old mirror, covered with dust and some of the frame chipping off. But, strange as it was, Leonora had a thought implanted in her mind that this mirror held a dark secret, forbidden to be talked about in the opera house.
All of a sudden, she felt a small crack at the side of the mirror…It was a door! She opened it slowly to reveal a dark passageway, inhabited by many burnt out candles. The music was drawing nearer with every step she took down the hallway…
Was I meant to find this place? She thought, excitedly. Was I meant to uncover a special secret?...
Leonora stopped at the edge of a lake, staring into the dirty waters, nervously. The music seemed to be coming from around the corner, growing in a crescendo of frustration and pounding the walls, furiously.
"This is fate," Leonora assured herself and stepped out into the lake. It wasn't very deep; only up to her knees as she wallowed from the edge, peering around the caverns.
"Hello!" She called. "Is anyone there?"
She could practically reach out and touch the melody, wrapping her in a cocoon of curiosity.
One more turn, she told herself. One more turn and I'm…
Her thoughts trailed away as she stood in the water, staring at the sight in front of her with a dumbstruck look about her face…
There was a gate…and behind the gate, an organ…and at the organ sat a man…