"My dear Amara, you have no choice. Either you enter the room and retrieve the book, or your brother dies. The choice is yours," the mysterious man replied with a chilling laugh.
"B-but..." I hesitated, eyeing the snakes that slithered and hissed within the room. How could he expect me to step into a room swarming with snakes?
"Amara, go inside. They will not harm you," he assured.
"How do you know that?!" I almost yelled out loud.
"You don't need to know that. Now, stop wasting my time. Go inside!" he commanded, slight anger in his voice.
Knowing my brother's life was at stake, I gritted my teeth and took a deep breath. I had to do this for him. With trembling hands, I gathered my gown and carefully stepped inside. The snakes immediately hissed and slithered towards me, but to my surprise, they didn't attack.
