Whispers Beneath the River

The sun dipped below the hills, casting long shadows across the riverbank. The laughter had softened into low conversations, and the children, exhausted from running and swimming, lay sprawled on mats, their bellies full of sweet rice and jack fruit fritters.

Roxanne sat near the edge of the gathering, her gaze drifting to the water. It glowed orange, reflecting the sky above—but in its depths, something stirred. She saw it only for a moment: a ripple that moved against the current, like a hand brushing the underside of the surface.

No one else seemed to notice.

Behind her, a voice broke her trance. “You found it, didn’t you?”

It was her cousin Ashlyn, her voice hushed. Of all the younger generation, Ashlyn had always been the quiet one—the observer. Roxanne turned, forcing a smile.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

Ashlyn narrowed her eyes. “Don’t lie. I saw you leave with that bag. I saw the red cloth.”

Roxanne hesitated, then gave a short nod. “It’s not what you think. I’m just trying to understand why everyone is so afraid of it.”

“Because we have good reason,” Ashlyn said, her voice tight. “They don’t tell us the full stories, but I’ve heard the whispers. That the book is cursed. That the last time someone tried to use it, a child drowned in the river.”

Roxanne looked back at the water. “Maybe it wasn’t the book. Maybe it was just the river.”

Ashlyn leaned in. “Don’t be so sure. My mother told me something once—after she caught me trying to find it. She said the river remembers. That it’s tied to whatever is in that book. Every time we bring it close to the water, something wakes up.”

Roxanne said nothing. But the words lingered like smoke in her mind.

That night, the family spread out their bedrolls under the open sky. Stars blinked overhead, and the forest hummed with crickets and the occasional cry of a night bird. The river, ever faithful, whispered in the dark.

Roxanne waited until the camp was quiet. Her heart thudded in her chest as she slipped away, the old book pressed against her side. The sky had shifted—clouds rolling in like bruises, the moon veiled.

She walked to the edge of the river, where the oak trees arched overhead like sentinels. There, she laid out the ritual items: a bowl of cow’s milk, black sesame seeds, a piece of red cloth, and a small bronze mirror—objects described in the margins of the Book.

She flipped to the page again. The script seemed darker now, pulsing faintly as if it knew it was being read. Her lips moved soundlessly, and then, when the time felt right, she began to chant.

The words scratched at her throat—rough, ancient syllables she barely understood. As the last line left her tongue, the surrounding wind dropped to stillness.

The river stopped.

Not slowed—stopped. Like someone had taken the breath out of the world.

She stared at the still surface, and her reflection stared back. But it wasn’t hers. The eyes in the reflection were black, deep as tunnels. The mouth twisted in a cruel smile she didn’t make.

Then it whispered.

Not aloud—but in her head, a voice like rusted iron.

“You have called. I have come.”

Roxanne stumbled backward, but her feet felt rooted. Her body froze, her breath short and sharp.

“You are blood of the line,” the voice continued.

“The debt is yours. And the door is open.”

“What door?” Roxanne whispered, eyes wide. “What do you want from me?”

A low laugh rolled through her mind. “Not from you. Through you.”

Suddenly, the river surged upward in a silent wave—then dropped back, as if exhaling. Roxanne fell to her knees, heart pounding.

The wind returned. Crickets sang again. And the river flowed as if nothing had happened.

The ritual was done.

Far behind her, Lillian sat upright in her bedroll, eyes wide open. Her old bones ached, but it wasn’t age—it was memory. She had felt the shift. The same cold she’d felt when her brother had drowned fifty years ago. The same stillness.

She stood, wrapping her shawl tightly, and looked towards the trees.

“She did it,” she whispered to the dark. “God help us… she did it.”

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***