Dark Hauntings: A Paranormal Times Novel

by C C Solomon

  Monica straightened up in her chair and gave her best sympathetic face. “Your mother, the demon,” she said that with distaste, “is still in the human realm. Her last location was Boston, and then we lost her. We are still working on it.”

  Felix frowned, shaking his head. “Why would she keep moving?”

  “That is the mystery. Who is to say she’s been in the human world these past ten years? She could come and go. Who knows the motives of demons? They are much harder to track, like Francesca’s father. For all we know, this could be part of her punishment for falling in love with an angel.”

  “Except she didn’t get killed,” Felix stated gruffly.

  Nice. Way to push back.

  Monica blew out a breath. “They may not know of what she did. I honestly doubt any angel reported their findings to a demon.”

  Felix turned his upper lip up slightly in an uncharacteristic look of anger. “Well, lucky me, she got to stick around so I didn’t become an orphan.”

  I pressed my lips together and tilted my head as I looked at Monica for her reaction. I liked seeing Felix be a smart ass. When he acted that way, I better understood why we were supposedly besties before our minds were wiped.

  “Kind of makes angels seem like dicks in comparison to demons,” he went on, crossing his arms.

  Faith put a fist over her mouth. “Damn,” she cried in an instigating, heavy voice.

  “Not helping,” Azrael muttered out of the corner of their mouth.

  No, seriously, why did Faith hate me again because I was really starting to like her more and more. She really had that giver of no damns bit down perfectly.

  Anger flashed across Monica’s face before she rose. “You’re entitled to your feelings. However, it won’t win you any awards. You are still half-demon, and you are asking the angels to find your demon mother. We’ve actually completed all that we owe you. Your memories are back in full. Any additional work we do for you is only in relation to the services you provide us. Such as protecting the town of St. Michaels.” She looked over to me. “Sometimes, I wonder if letting you two remain together was a good idea.” She then turned away. “I’ll be checking in on your progress.”

  Wait, she was blaming me for Felix’s clap back? Did she not see his best friend with the dynamite temper and foul language?

  “I thought she was paying the bill.” I stared after her as she left the restaurant, watching as she passed by the floor-to-ceiling windows and out of sight. I really didn’t like—

  My mind froze as I lay eyes on a person across the street looking in my direction. Except this wasn’t just any person. She was a woman with a caramel complexion, long brown hair and topaz eyes. She looked exactly like me. Not even the slightest difference. Did I have a twin?

  I shot up and ran out of the restaurant to find out.

  Chapter 11

  I almost got hit by a car as I charged across the street.

  The woman stepped back and began to walk, turning left down a dark alley.

  Of course, she would go to the most suspicious area ever. Without hesitation I turned down the alley and stopped as the woman stood there in the shadows looking at me. Even in the darkness I could see clearly that she was the spitting image of me.

  “Who are you?” I shouted.

  The woman, who looked like me, pointed at me.

  I turned around but saw nothing. Turning back in my look-a-likes direction, I pointed to myself as well. “Me? You’re me?”

  The woman nodded.

  I put my hands on both sides of my head utterly confused. “No,” I said more to myself than anyone else.

  The woman nodded again.

  “Do you mean you’re my twin sister?” Could I really have a long-lost twin like some type of Parent Trap?

  She shook her head, those same eyes almost mischievous.

  Monica had said I looked like Dalia. Perhaps, I was actually the spitting image of her.

  “Are you my mother?”

  Again, she shook her head.

  I was getting frustrated with this bogus question and answering period. Clearly this was some sort of shapeshifter. Or it was a spirit, but why would it be my spirit?

  “Fine, don’t tell me. What do you want?”

  The shapeshifter—that’s what I decided it had to be because it made the most sense—ran at me with lightning speed quickness.

  I caught her by the neck and was shocked to feel how icy she was. Shapeshifters weren’t known to be uniquely cold.

  Before I could register what had happened, I felt a stabbing pain in my gut. I looked down and saw the hilt of a sword sticking out of my stomach. I looked back at the woman but she was no longer there. However, I could barely register her sudden disappearance because the pain from my wound began to overtake me. I grabbed the sword and dropped to my knees, feeling woozy. Falling sideways, a chilling dizziness washed over me as blood poured over my hands.

  In the distance, or perhaps it was closer, I heard familiar voices calling out to me.

  Felix’s large body soon appeared.

  He knelt on the ground beside me. “How’d this happen?” he yelled, his face full of worry and fear.

  I scrunched my face in pain. “I’ll tell you all about it, but first, can you heal me?”

  He was already pulling the sword out before I could finish my sentence.

  I let out a pained scream as the sword resliced its way out of me, deepening any wounds to my insides. It felt like fire was scraping my organs.

  He tossed the sword to the side and immediately began to heal me, hovering his hands over my injuries. I gritted my teeth as the warmth of his magic knitted my muscles and skin back together.

  From the corner of my eyes, I saw Azrael pick up the sword. Instantly it disintegrated in their hands. “Huh,” the angel said, rubbing their chin in curiosity. “I’m more concerned about why someone would use a conjuring weapon. Not many beings have that kind of power.”

  It felt cold like a spirit demon, but those weren’t the only beings with a cold touch. “Maybe it was a shapeshifter?” I coughed into the pain. Fast healing was a great thing, but it hurt like hell.

  “Even more curious. Shapeshifters don’t possess that type of power.”

  Faith looked up and down the alley. “The bigger question is why it tried to kill you.”

  “Did I mention that it looked like me?” I added. “So basically, I tried to kill myself.”

  Faith paused her alley inspection and looked at me with a frown. “Is that why you took off like a madwoman without saying anything?”

  “In retrospect it was not the smartest thing to do, but in my defense, I thought it could have been my mother.”

  Felix lowered his hands, the healing done, and helped me to sit up. “Do you have any enemies who would want to take you out?”

  I snorted. “Probably a lot. Maybe people from my past I can’t remember. Now that Misandre and Alister are gone, they might think it's a good time to finally get rid of me. Could be another Unseelie faerie vying for the throne who wants to off the competition. Or who knows what kind of enemies my mother had as a Queen. Maybe that’s how I ended up in the human world. We had to go in hiding, and now I’ve been found. Who knows, really?”

  Felix ran a hand through his hair before picking me up in his arms like I wasn’t able to walk, his face full of worry. “Well, until we find out who’s behind this, we can’t leave you alone. I can’t have my future wife getting gutted in the streets again.”

  I wiggled and kicked my legs out. “Is there a reason why you are carrying me? I’m all healed up.”

  He gave me a lopsided smile that looked a tad bit sly. “You don’t get healed up that quickly. Let’s get you back to the hotel so you can properly rest up. And Faith and I are switching rooms. I personally want to keep my eye on you.”

  I twisted my lips again and rolled my eyes. “How’d I know you would see this as an opportunity to get on in.”

  He shrugged, tightening his
grasp on me. “Eh, you secretly love it.”

  Azrael cleared their throat as they dusted their hands from the residue of the conjured weapon. “Pause the flirting for a moment. How did a random shapeshifter find you here? Did it say anything?”

  I shook my head. “No, it wouldn’t talk. I asked if it was me, and it nodded yes, then stabbed me with a sword. It acted like it couldn’t talk. Oh, and it was cold to the touch.”

  Azrael narrowed their eyes. “Like the child demon.”

  “Yeah!”

  “Are you sure it’s a shapeshifter?”

  I laid my head on Felix’s shoulder. Maybe I was still weak. I certainly felt like I needed a rest. Healing was always an energy sucking activity. “I mean, what else could it be?”

  “Many things, Francesca. Many things. I think it might be time to give Carlos a call.”

  My eyelids felt like weights now, and I struggled to keep them open. “Why him?”

  “Because he’s an older angel, and he knows things.”

  Made sense to me. I had to admit, I was kind of excited to see my guardian angel again. It had been a while since we talked. I was still a little peeved at him for deceiving me about his role in my memory wipe all this time but other than Nadia and now Felix, he was the only friend I had. And since the world was clearly trying to kill me. It was important to keep what little allies I had around.

  Carlos was away on a mission so he couldn’t come right when Azrael rang the angel hotline, or what they used to communicate, but he agreed to come later that night. I decided to take that time to take a healing nap. The sword hadn’t killed me, but it sure hadn’t been a love tap.

  When I woke up that evening, Felix was already settled and had moved into my room. I still thought his reasonings for switching rooms was a joke. For a guy who claimed to want to take things slow until I regained my memories, he sure liked to put himself in situations that didn’t help that cause. Perhaps he really didn’t believe I’d be a fae Queen or maybe he was hoping I wouldn’t go that route and stay with him. I would only end up hurting him if he really thought that way.

  He walked out of the bathroom with only a towel wrapped around his waist.

  Oh, come on.

  He looked momentarily surprised to see me awake and sitting up before he walked over to his suitcase on the bed to rummage through his things.

  I couldn’t take my eyes off of him. He really was a nice specimen of a man. His hair hung damp around his broad shoulders, and his well-defined chest still glistened with water. He had a strong physique, which I noticed as his arm muscles flexed as they moved through his bag. I stole a peek lower at the deep V of his pelvis. I was very open to the idea of his towel dropping. Maybe if I could make a strong wind happen…

  “Did you sleep well?” He asked, interrupting my thoughts.

  I forced myself to glance up at his face and he looked at me with a slight knowing smile again. Oh, he knew what he was doing coming in here like that.

  “Yeah, I had a great nap. If you are going to insist on walking around half naked, we cannot be roommates.”

  I got up off of the bed and stretched. I probably needed a shower as well.

  “Oh, come on, you’re a big girl. You can handle it.”

  I put my hands on my hips. That didn’t feel like a Felix way of talking. Well, I’d show him. I walked over to him and gripped the top of his towel, the back of my fingers resting against his smooth skin. Damn, he smelled good. And his skin looked so buttery, I wanted to lick it. Girl, get a hold of yourself.

  “Seems to me you have a lot of talk.” I looked down at the towel. “Keep playing and this towel will be on the floor.” Of course, I was kidding. That was our thing, that was our banter.

  So, when he gave me a confident smirk, grabbed my hand on the towel and then pulled it up, I nearly grasped at the imaginary pearls around my neck. However, since he was showing, I was definitely going to take a gander.

  And he had on smiley face boxers.

  I glared up at his chuckling face and punched him in the arm. He was solid. Seriously, his biceps were like rocks. “You tricked me.”

  He touched his stomach still having a hearty laugh at my expense. “You’re a perv, my love. I just put a towel on because I thought it would be disrespectful to walk around in just my boxers. But perhaps you like that?” He wiggled his brows.

  I shrugged, trying to regain some footing. “If they were tighter, perhaps.”

  “I like to leave a little to the imagination.”

  I waved a dismissive hand and turned to walk away. “Eh, imagination is overrated. As I guessed from the start, you’re just in here to tease me.”

  Felix grabbed my wrist and brought me back to him. The playfulness in his eyes died and he gave me an all too serious look. “I’m staying here with you because I love you. You know that.”

  Oh, God. He’d dropped the L-word. And he did it so casually. “Don’t keep saying that.”

  “It’s the truth. All the flirting aside, you know that. If you don’t get your memories back, that won’t mean anything different to me. Maybe I was being silly by waiting for that to happen.” He grabbed my hand again. “You could have died today. And I have you, right here, in my reach, and we’re just bidding time. Waiting for this right moment.”

  I was getting tired. Not physically but emotionally. I wanted this man. That was never the question. Felix was practically perfect. However, I couldn’t see how we could fit in each other’s lives. The more we ignored that part, the harder it would later be when we had to face it. We could focus on the now and have fun and it would feel great, but there would come a moment when the music would end and it would destroy me. Just thinking about it now tightened my heart. However, the idea of losing him now hurt just as much. He brought me into his arms, and I rested my cheek on his chest. I tried to prevent myself from rubbing my face on his smooth skin like a purring cat. “Stop running from me, Fran. You deserve to be happy. Despite our differences, I think we can make this work. We can break barriers in the fae world.”

  I moved my head so that I could stare up at him and he dropped his arms to my waist. A sincere glint hit his eyes. He was looking at me as if I was the most precious thing to him. My stomach fluttered and I tried not to reach out and touch him. He passed a hand gently over my hair before leaning forward and kissing me. As always, it was breathtaking, and the slight taste of mint from his toothpaste brought a welcomed sweetness. I placed my hand on his naked chest as we deepened our kiss, his tongue playfully touched mine and sent zaps of excitement to my core.

  He moved his mouth to my neck, and I was sure I’d fall over as his hot kisses sizzled on my skin. “I don’t think the fae are that understanding,” I said in a barely audible voice as he continued to kiss me. “Especially Unseelie. We can be jerks sometimes. I can admit thaaaaat.” He twirled his tongue on my neck and my knees really did get weak at that moment.

  “If they won’t accept me,” Felix began between kisses. “Then I will fall back.” Another kiss. “I don’t want to be in the way.” And another. “Of your goals.”

  Damn it, why was he so understanding? And so good at kissing?

  He continued. “I just want you, Francesca.” He gave more kisses, and the way he was whispering on my neck, I was sure I’d have to wring out my undergarments. “I just want…” kiss. “…you to…” more kisses. “…let me…” more. “…love you.”

  I believe my eyes must have fluttered. I wasn’t seeing so well now. I wanted to climb this man and let him have his way with me.

  But if I did, it would mean something. However, I did not know what to do with the connection he was offering. Ever since our first meeting in the woods, well, the meeting I could remember, he had confessed how he felt about me. There were never any games with him. Even when he didn’t have his memories, he knew he loved me. His feelings for me were that strong that he knew we were meant for each other without any real reason. It wasn’t easy to find a mind like that. He wou
ld offer me security of the heart. I wouldn’t have to worry about his loyalty.

  I, on the other hand, wasn’t certain at first. Although I found him attractive, I thought he was crazy when we first met. And Felix didn’t know if I felt romantic feelings towards him when we worked together in the past as hitmen for Alister. Nadia believed I had loved him back then but that I just would not admit it. All I knew now was that I cared deeply for this man, but those feelings were terrifying because I didn’t know how to fit them into my world. I didn’t want to ruin his kind heart, and I didn’t want to lose myself in another man.

  But as his large hands pulled me tighter to him, so close that I could feel him come alive, losing myself for just a little bit didn’t feel so bad.

  And because fate hated me, we heard a knock at the door at that moment.

  “Ignore it,” I whispered.

  But it was like the knock brought Felix to his senses because he groaned and pulled away from me. “That’s probably the others since we have to meet up with Carlos.” He gave me a peck on the lips. “Can you answer it while I get dressed?”

  I sucked my teeth and reluctantly left to answer the door. Azrael stood there and looked me up and down. “You aren’t ready,” said the angel in their always annoyed tone with me.

  No, I’d been stabbed to almost death and needed to rest to heal fully, so I did not have time to get ready. “Come on in. Let me jump in the shower, and I can meet you all at wherever we are meeting Carlos.”

  “He’s in our suite now with Faith.”

  I nodded. “Okay, well I’ll meet you there in ten.”

  Felix appeared beside me, fully dressed, his hair pulled back in a low ponytail. “We aren’t leaving you alone. I’ll stay.”

  Azrael raised their hand and the front door opened. “Would you mind going ahead, Felix? I need to talk to Francesca in private, please.”