Terrifying Love: A Halloween Anthology

by Serena Nova

  Other BDP books by Isobella Dunn

  Red Coat

  Echappé (His Dancer, Book One)

  LA SIGUANABA

  by Everly Taylor

  I am awash in the freezing fires of Hell

  The night blazing as I near my goal

  Revenge has never tasted sweeter

  But I mourn my innocence lost

  The hopes and dreams forgotten

  Only rage left as burning embers

  My mind is set for the end

  My heart crushed

  Into an unsolvable puzzle

  Vengeance is mine

  The deserving will soon suffer

  Before I lay my head to rest

  I hunt the bright beacons

  That have done wrong

  A last task for a tired soul

  By Helle Gade

  Prologue

  During the times of Gods and Men...

  “Yari, you are the son of a God. There are men to fight these wars for you. Must you leave me alone, yet again?” I pleaded with my husband.

  “Sihra, we have been through this, time and time again. I must fight with my people if I am to show them I am a great leader. One worthy to rule this land, by action, not by birthright,” he replied, moving me to the side so he could lift his weapon from the table.

  “That’s just it, a great leader leads. Provides a future for his people, and yet you rush off into battle and leave the people, leave me, without such.” I struggled to hold my composure as was expected of me. I did not want my husband to leave me again for months on end, to lands that we knew nothing of, simply to fight beside his people. I was his wife, I needed him here, too.

  “My Queen, we have a lifetime to ensure that you give birth to our future king. I will return safe to you. As you said, I am the son of a God, I am destined for greatness.” He gave me a chaste kiss on my forehead.

  “Maybe your greatness is to return peace to this land? To end these pointless wars?” I reasoned, knowing that it would only fall on deaf ears, but I had to try anyway.

  “I know you do not agree, but you are a mere woman. You cannot understand these types of matters. Do not fret, our nation will be great, and peace will reign before we know it.” He nodded his head to me curtly before leaving me staring after him as he left our bed chamber.

  I turned and sat on the window seat, watching as he mounted the horse that waited for him in the courtyard. The men around him wore the bright red and yellow of our nation and surrounded him as he called out to them, exciting them for the upcoming quest and battle.

  Loneliness washed over me as the hooves thundered across the yard and the entourage disappeared down the road. He had returned for two short days before riding again for the far border in his conquest to make our nation larger, keeping our people constantly in a war that was unnecessary.

  I may be a mere woman, but I also understood that war was not the only way. If only he would care for me more, try harder to leave me with child, things could be different. This would secure our nation's future, not larger borders.

  A small knock sounded on the door, and quickly, I swiped at my cheeks as I called out for them to enter. I looked up as my husband's valet stepped into the room. “My Queen, I have come to see if there is anything you need in the wake of the King’s departure?”

  I looked at him for a moment, studying the fine muscles showing through his linen shirt, the handsome features of his face as he looked at me curiously. If my mother had not been so determined to marry me into a position of power, perhaps I would have married someone like him. Someone handsome and attentive. “No, Izel, thank you. If you would please just send my maid in to help me ready for the day?”

  “Of course, My Queen,” he replied with a slight bow before taking his leave.

  As I waited for my maid to return to assist me, I thought of how different things would have been if my mother had not moved me up the lines in society, going so far as to seek out a witch and her evil brew, so I eventually caught the eye of the King himself, for his son. Ours was not a marriage of love, but one of station and appearances. I knew I was chosen for my looks and for my willingness to fulfill my duty and bear a handsome son for our nation. Chosen based on a potion that was given to my mother for a price.

  Even so, I longed for more. Though I knew it was impossible, as I would face the wrath of the Gods themselves.

  Maeve tapped on the door, and came in, a small smile on her face as she knew how upset my husband’s departures left me. “My Queen,” she gave me a small curtsy before walking with me to my vanity to help me twist my hair atop my head before dressing for the day. The summers here were sweltering hot, and it was much better to have my long, black hair off my neck.

  She worked quickly and efficiently, securing all of the loose tendrils as I looked at myself in the clouded mirror. “Beautiful as always, My Queen,” she smiled reassuringly.

  “Not that it matters, Maeve. My husband is not here to appreciate it, now is he?” I replied bitterly, quickly apologizing for my rudeness.

  “It is not your fault, My Queen. It is normal to have these feelings when your husband leaves for a long time.” She helped me stand and slide my morning gown off my shoulders and to the ground before assisting me with stepping into a new, lighter one for the heat of the day.

  “You’re married, Maeve. What would you do?” I asked as she cinched the last tie on my back.

  “My Queen, what I would do, would not be good for the Kingdom,” she met my eyes in the mirror as I studied myself.

  “Please, speak freely, Maeve as I do not know what you mean,” I pressed.

  “My Queen, if my husband left me for months, sometimes years on end, barely touching me as yours does when he returns, I would find solace in another,” she stated quietly.

  My eyes widened, “You mean, treason?”

  “It is not treason, if you are not caught,” she stated boldly as silence fell between us and she pushed a jeweled pin into my hair. “As I said, My Queen, what I would do is much different, as I am not married to a king.”

  “Thank you, Maeve, that is all,” I swallowed hard at her insinuation. Could it be so simple? To find solace in another while my husband was away? Afterall, I knew that he took mistresses while he was on the battlefield. Was it any different if I did the same?

  Chapter One

  Present Day…

  The door to the bar opened and light poured through, the music that pulsed inside coming out to reach me across the street before it swung shut again. The man was here, I could feel him. I could sense his darkness, even with the walls separating him from me.

  A couple passed by me, not knowing that I stood right in the shadows of the large tree they walked by, shrouded by the veil that most no longer believed in. They laughed as they held hands, lost in their love for one another. For a brief moment sadness filled me. I had that once. I had that, and it was ripped away. I fought back the anger. It was not their fault I was stuck. I would not take it out on them. Instead, I would wait for the real culprit here. The one I had tracked down for days.

  The door opened again, and a tanned woman strolled through, her dark hair swinging behind her as she laughed and called out a goodbye one last time before stepping into the night. I knew it would not be long now. Not long until he showed himself.

  The woman barely reached the sidewalk when the door swung open once more and a man with glassy eyes, and a sickening smile across his face, stepped through. He scanned the sidewalk before his hungry eyes locked on the woman and he fell into step behind her. I could tell the moment she realized she was being followed as her pace quickened, and panic crossed her features.

  His breath came out heavy and excited as he stalked her, increasing his pace to keep up. I followed them closely on the opposite side of the street, hating the fear I saw on her face as she passed under a streetlight, but I needed to be certain.

  The woman ducked down a narrow alley as she tried to escape, her quick foot
steps sounding off the stucco walls, followed by the dull thud of the man's heavy ones. I crossed the street as they disappeared from view, knowing I needed to be quick, but not too quick if I were to catch him in the act. After all, it would make me no better than them if I struck too soon, or against the wrong man. Though, I had little doubt this was the guy I was after.

  A shrill, terrified scream filled the air and I darted down the alley, closing the distance between us in no time at all. Being able to slip in and out of the veil had its bonuses, at least. The woman stared at me, panicked, over the man's shoulder as he gripped her tight and pinned her against the wall. His large, rough hands already pushing her skirt to the side.

  “Sir, I don’t think the lady is looking for that kind of company tonight,” I called out, making him drop her as he spun to face me.

  “Mind your own business, bitch,” he slurred out, the tequila on his breath as rancid as the thoughts, I was certain, were rolling through his head. It needed to be now, or I knew he would be too far gone, and I would lose him.

  I let my beauty shine through, knowing it was all this shallow man was after, all most men were after. It was all he had sought night after night as he took innocent lives, simply because they refused him, and he blamed it on his entitled good looks. Tonight, he would face the same fate.

  “I would like to,” I sauntered toward him, letting my voice drop seductively low. “But you see, I have a problem. I would like to make you my business.”

  His eyes shot up at my words, and went from the glossy drunk, to more of a dream like state as he stared at me. “Would you now?”

  “I sure would. Let’s have some fun, big guy,” I trailed my finger across his chest, the revulsion of even insinuating I wanted to spend time with this prick rolled through me. I glanced over his shoulder to the woman who stood still pressed against the wall, the terror coming off her in waves as she watched our exchange.

  “Go, get home safe,” I told her firmly. She squeaked and nodded her head furiously before skirting around us and down the alley, the man never removing his eyes from mine as she hastily retreated.

  “So, what kinda fun did you have in mind tonight, sweetheart?” he sneered.

  “You know,” I stepped closer and he took a step back. “The kind that involves you, and me. Your desires.” I took another step and his back hit the wall. Still, he didn’t register his fate as he stared hungrily into my eyes, unable to break away.

  I reached between us and grabbed his dick through his pants, squeezed until he was fighting back a groan of pain. Tonight, for him, there would be no pleasure. Only the realization of what his selfish ways would bring him.

  “Like that, huh?” I grinned. “Or are you having trouble finding words because it feels so damn good?” I emphasized each word separately as I squeezed harder and he let out a small squeak, his eyes still fixed on mine, unable to tear away from me now that I had him under my spell.

  I tugged his pants over his hips, and his cock fell limply into my hand. “What's wrong? Having a little trouble performing, now that you are the one in pain? What about all of those women you raped, and killed? Do you think they liked the pain you brought them? Do you think it aroused them?”

  At last he moved, shaking his head furiously and I reveled in the panic that started to well up in him, even through his tequila induced drunken state. My gaze intensified on him as I sent the fear and helplessness, the pain and terror that he had caused each one of the women he had brutally raped and murdered over the past week, rushing into him.

  A scream tore from his throat. One that was long and terrified as it echoed through the night. There would be no help for him tonight though, just as there was no help for the others.

  I slipped my dagger from my sleeve, one of the very few things I was able to carry in and out of the veil with me. A blade blessed by the Gods themselves. Even in the darkened alley, the eternally sharp blade glinted in the small window at my right, and his terror rose.

  I pressed the blade to the soft underside of his dick, making a thin slit at first as he screamed out his pain, gasping as he struggled to remain upright. “I will not allow you to take this into the afterlife, as you have used it for such vile things.” I gripped the soft tip and with a clean slice it flopped to the ground at my feet. Only sobs of pain and anguish came from him now.

  “Look at me, see what you have become yourself.” A long guttural scream came from deep within him as I felt my face transform, and I saw my mirror image in the small window next to us. Nothing but a bare skeleton, sharp features harsh as I glared at him, loose sinew tearing off my face, reflecting his inner darkness back at him.

  They always wanted beauty, yet the last thing they would face was what was truly in their hearts. I raised my blade and ran a thin, long slit along his neck, and he crumpled to the ground, his useless cock next to him in a puddle of blood.

  “La Sigunaba,” he garbled in surprise as his breath came out ragged and harsh and he struggled to hold onto the last thread of his life. They grew up thinking I was a myth, a thing of legends. I was very real though, and as the light faded from his eyes, the monster that was his heart stared back at him, taking the things of his nightmares into the afterlife with him.

  Chapter Two

  His life left him as I re-entered the veil, the quiet of the other side soothing my anger at his vile actions as I left the alley behind me. I used to hate the veil, hate the quiet that was never ending, to the point that it was almost deafening.

  Since I had found a purpose though, it became more of a solace than anything. One that I used as an escape from the reality that faced me every day. I wandered the span of space that separated the humans from the other side, nothing more than a thin tendril separating the two. One that they often disregarded too callously.

  One that I, myself, had disregarded easily.

  Before it was all taken from me.

  Now, I was cursed to wander the earth, forever in search of my stolen child. Forever mourning the loss of the only man that had ever shown me love. All because of the greed of a demi-God. The greed to have more, take more and never actually give anything in return.

  I felt my anger rise again as I recalled his determination to make the Kingdom great, barely taking time to be with me. Though when he did, he took what he wanted as far as that was concerned. Eventually, I had found solace in another, and over the years it became more than just that. It became love. Deep and resounding. I knew what it was like to be cared for, to have pleasure from a man’s touch, instead of recoiling from it, and fearing it. It was nothing like I had ever experienced with Yari before. When he returned at last, I begged him to release me from our vows, to allow me to live my life as a happy, free woman with the man that I loved.

  Yari would have none of it though, not that I had expected any less. After all, his infatuation with me was one created by a very powerful witch. One my mother had ensured was unbreakable. Something like that could not simply be undone. In his eyes, I had committed the very worst kind of treason, and though he may have been right, he was not innocent in any of it either.

  So, he spread vile rumors that I had plotted against him in a plan to take his throne for my lover. That we had a bastard child together, one who must be dispatched of before he threatened to overthrow the Kingdom as I was accused of.

  The Kingdom rose against us, demanding our deaths for justice. I watched, hiding my son’s face from sight as my lover was beheaded before us, his head held proudly and eyes never leaving mine until the blow was struck.

  In that moment, I had called upon the very Gods themselves. Not knowing how it would work for me, but willing to try regardless. Willing to do anything to save my child. Yari was favored by them, being a demi-God himself, and I pleaded with them to spare my child's life.

  They saw the innocence in him, understood that he had not asked to be brought into this turmoil, and as Gods, they could see the true intent of his heart. Seeing no deceit, they agreed to spare
him, even agreed to spare my life as well, though I had not asked for as much. I had grasped at their offer, thinking only of being able to be with my child, not remembering the Gods never did anything without a cost.

  In doing so, I was cursed to a life of wandering, endlessly searching for my child and mourning my lover as my penance. And my child was cursed to a life where he never grew older, a prankster in his own right, loved by the people, but not knowing the love he deserved.

  A tear streaked down my cheek and I recalled the anger, the hatred I had felt. The senseless loss, all for the purpose of a man's pride and desires. For millennia, that scene played over and over again in my head, and I was unable to do anything to shake it. That was until I stumbled upon someone doing the very thing I loathed my husband for. I took that man’s life, and with that, I found a new purpose.

  I lifted my chin. It was not a night for sadness, instead, it was a night of celebration. I had ended the life of yet another miserable man. One that sought pleasure only in his own satisfaction, regardless of what that meant for another. Tonight, I would spend walking the living side of the veil, I would enjoy the goodness that the humans still had in their hearts. Even if it was few and far between. I would remind myself why my suffering had been worth it.

  The veil flickered before me and I lifted my head, surprised as I normally felt the thin barrier rather than seeing it. On the other side, a human stood, his gaze fixed on me as I stared back at him in disbelief. There were only a few humans that could actually see beyond the veil, and they were well known to us, for reasons both good and bad, but this man, this human, was not one of those people.