An excerpt from my next novel, The Perilous Journey:
Taking his first step onto the cabin stoop, Chip bit back a curse as the wooden plank beneath his boot creaked. Gripping the pistol beneath his coat, he waited for Stymie to come racing out the door. To his surprise, the moment passed without any sounds or sudden movements. Instead, an eerie voice from within the cabin reached his ears, singing the same lyrical tune over and over again.
“We should not be here,
Though we must be somewhere.
So here we be,
Doing the deeds of the one,
That shall set ye free.
Be not burdened by yer fate,
Yer blood shall be used to clean the slate.
For I shall always bring to slaughter,
The sheep me Master bids me offer.”
The sing-song rhythm made his skin crawl. Worse though, came a sound that pierced his heart. A woman’s voice, weak and pleading, interrupted the demonic song.
“Please … please doth not do this!”
“Ah, but alas I must. Me Master would not reward me if I did not obey. Ye can stop this though. Ye can end yer suffering. Beg for me to end yer life. It be all that me Master requires of thee.”