Chapter 5 - The Phantom Name
Alistair didn't hear the woman. He stepped directly up to the piano, falling heavily onto one knee so his eyes were level with the child’s filthy face. His hands shook so violently he dropped his glass entirely, letting it crash onto the rug.
The room went dead silent, save for the heart-wrenching melody that continued to pour from the girl's fingertips.
"No one has ever heard that song," Alistair said, his eyes drilling into the child's soul, searching for any trace of a lie. "I know every note of it, because it was never published. It was never written down. It existed only in one place."
The child slowed her tempo slightly, her small chin trembling as memories flooded her mind.
"My mother used to hum it before she disappeared," the girl whispered, a tear finally spilling over her lash and cutting a clean path through the dirt on her cheek.
Alistair’s heart slammed against his ribs like a trapped bird. He reached out with a trembling hand, hovering inches from the child’s shoulder, terrified that touching her might shatter the vision.
"What was your mother's name?" Alistair asked, his breath catching in his throat.
May you like
The little girl struck the final, lingering chord of the melody, letting the echo fade into the vast emptiness of the silent hall.
"Elena," she whispered.
