Dance Of Desire

by Sweet

  Her last thought after a glance at the time was: It’s the Witching Hour somewhere.

  The clock’s mechanism made a slight swish, which she didn’t hear, just as it struck three a.m.

  Chapter Ten

  AACK! Aaack! Eeeewww!

  She opened her eyes in a place that had no pleasure, no sun and fun. This place reeked of blood, both old and new, and of decaying flesh. Human flesh, she knew. There was no cold or even cool here.

  Dim lightings shone… faint, reddish, and glowing, as if from distant, unseen flames bouncing off the irregularly shaped walls of the cave. Or an underground cavern?

  Where the fuck is this? How’d I get here?

  Lava, there is lava here, too, burned through her frantic thoughts when she saw the room lit with the scorching orange-red of lava, like living light somewhere near but out of direct sight. Hot sweat was already pouring from her body, trickling from her brow to chin, down her neck, from her armpits and from her very sides, and below.

  It slid down her body from every pore, like salty tears.

  Her sweat converged as if drawn together down to her toes before dripping off. The hot ground far below hissed and hungrily consumed every kiss of sweat it received. No visible source of white light was in this place. Only the faint, hellish red glows upon the misshapen walls.

  No. She was wrong, she realized, as three hazy moving orbs of dark red with fiery bright accents which had been on the periphery of her vision before, now zoomed in and out of her line of sight.

  "Aaaaarrrrggg," Cassie screamed as pain struck her body. And she remembered. As if she could truly forget such pain. "Stop! Please!" she pleaded.

  How long have I been here? When did I get here? How is this happening again?

  All she knew for a definite certainty was the pain—it grew sharper, hotter, and more painful. But, she didn’t know why or how.

  A mist of multiple grays she hadn’t realized was surrounding her disappeared and reappeared without any apparent pattern until it eventually seemed to linger in front of her, gathering itself together into something more solid.

  Not to be forgotten, the three fiery ruby orbs had brightened and now arranged themselves in a downward-pointing triangle to loom near her face. Her impression, between the moments of excruciating pain, was that the orbs were watching her.

  No. Not again. Control it. Control—

  She wretched again at the smell of putrid rotting flesh, and much of what she’d retched up – chocolate sprinkles and other chunky stuff she didn’t recall eating – disgustingly slid down her nude body. The only saving grace was her sweat, which was so profuse, ran in torrents down her and rinsed it down and off.

  Oddly, Cassie didn’t actually recall that she had puked before, but somehow she knew she had vomited, again and again, for like the hundredth time.

  How long could I’ve been here to do that, so many times? she wondered, her mind fuzzy with exhaustion, heat, and dehydration. How could I actually still vomit from an empty stomach?

  What was it?! The fiery dark red orbs and the multi-layered grayness now abruptly formed a wraith-like figure with tentacled limbs before her. It spoke. To her. Its voice was painfully reverberating through her.

  "Your reshishtansh ish foolishhh..." the tentacle wraith hissed, the sound slithered around painfully inside Cassie’s cunt. "I willsh break you!"

  Cassie thrashed, cutting and bruising her wrists. Her shoulders felt disjointed, completely snapped apart. It was like her arms and shoulders were no longer a part of her abused body. Her battered shoulders were tightly stretched beyond their limits as they took the heavy strain of supporting her entire physical frame from the cave's slick ceiling as she hung suspended, entirely exposed and naked, drenched in her own sweat.

  Her head and body again resonated to the monstrous monster’s mouthless voice."Shpare yourshelf, foolishhh girrrrl," it taunted. "Giiive yourshelf to me!"

  Cassie could hear her ragged panting, also hearing in her head its “voice”, piercing her mind with every syllable. She distinctly heard a slithery "ushhh" instead of "me."

  "Giiive yourshelf—to ushhh!" the voice repeated.

  Is… Is this a d-d-demon…?

  Before her question could fully form in her mind, the mist rapidly lost its solid-like form, dispersing before it completely disappeared. The pointy, nail-like tips of its octopus-like, sucker tentacles the last thing that trailed out of her view. Even its three fiery red orbs disappeared, all in the blink of an eye. Her eyes darted about as best she could in her painful suspended position, trying to see if the monster, demon, or whatever it was reassembled to the side of her.

  A sudden pain shot deep into the base of her spine, making her fingers and toes splay out in unbearable pain.

  "Giiive yourshelf to meee!" the creature howled from behind her. Another wave of pain pierced through her and consumed her, from her shoulder blades to her tender ankles.

  "N-N-Noooooooooo… never!" she managed to scream hoarsely, more from the fear of the worst thing she could never imagine happening to her if she gave in. If this was what she got from not giving it, what more when—

  She flinched when she heard screams—other screams. A man and a woman, their hysterical screams in counterpoint, from either side of her, like some sadistic musical phrase. They weren’t far away though Cassie couldn’t see them. The place was so large and filled with utter darkness that she wasn’t certain if they were even in the same cavern or just in adjoining cavern “rooms.”

  Both of them screamed again. “Aaaaiiiii—” And then their tortured voices were cut simultaneously, abruptly. It made her wonder not just who they were. Why they, like she, were here. But also, why had they both stopped screaming at the same damn time? To terrorize her further? As if this wasn’t enough?

  Cassie flinched again and shivered when the grey mist abruptly reassembled itself and reformed in front of her. She could feel its cold presence, its “body” taking up space. This time, its triangular dark ruby orbs were brighter and larger. Some sickening feeling inside her decided without any other reasoning that it’s bigger and brighter because it has fed.

  From the others, it’s fed. That’s why they’re silent now.

  The Wraith aggressively pulsed with dark hues of jeweled flames and blood in its ruby red eyes and multiple shades of gray form, as it undulated on its tentacles.

  Not understanding clearly what it wanted increased her terror. It poured from her like her sweat, hot and relentless, exhausting her in the oppressive heat. The creature growled. And, finally, she understood what it meant. As if the meaning had been transmitted directly into her mind and flesh.

  “Fuck,” she muttered, then braced for more pain.

  "Shtupid girl! We will break you, you will shurrender. You shhhall giiive yourshelllff to uuussh," the creature declared with utter conviction.

  Us? How many…?! There. Are. More? If only one creature causes this much pain…!

  Her eyes darted about as her vision filled with tears and sweat. She looked hard, but she saw nothing certain in the reddened, grayish and inky black shadows. Like the trapped animal she was, all her thoughts scampered wide and far from her, while her pain magnified tenfold, making her body tighten and bend taut as a bow with its demand. It was so painful that she could not scream. If she had, her ears were so numbed by her own raw shrieks and the demon’s “voice” that she hadn’t heard her own voice screaming.

  The voice was frustrated with her and the creature's manic howling filled the cavern, filled her with such throbbing pain, like explosions of knives from different parts of her body, all at once, to center deep in her core. Not once did she ever bleed. Her sweat poured out in hot rivers down her body, dripping and sizzling to the ground, the steam rising back to her to make her boil all the more in the heat.

  Cassie's vision dimmed and became small and pointless. She panted for each smothering breath as her body became dehydrated. Each breath was coming shorter and shorter, gasp after gasp
, as wave upon wave of unbearable contraction of pain cut into her ability to stay awake.

  But she did not succumb to the nightmare. For some reason, Cassie managed to fight the desire to surrender, as the beast said, and give herself to them. She somehow knew that whatever would come after her surrender would never be as worthy as what she would give up. But she could not know where she had find the strength to stay alive.

  Until finally, miraculously, Cassie fainted away.

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Read the next book by Lily Green:

  If you like this book, you will also like Nightmares and Illusions...

  THEY STARTED LIKE THE WILDEST DREAMS WITH THE MOST ARDENT LOVER SHE'D EVER MET

  BUT WHEN THE DEMONS START TO CALL...

  Cassie’s dreams are horrible nightmares where she is bound and tortured by demon monsters in their hellish dimension, and they want her soul. How long can she hold out? She has no control and can’t reason her way out of their power. She’s weakening with exhaustion, and every good thing that she has is being siphoned away.

  Her girlfriends and neighbors are having exhausting nightmares, too. Isn’t that strange? And who’s the “secret hottie” one girlfriend won’t stop talking about but refuse to name?

  Can a chance meeting with her gorgeous dance partner from the club, Paulo, become more than loving sex? Can he be her refuge and protection against her nightmares?

  Or is this magical man, with the strange and frightening tattoos that resemble much of the monsters in her nightmares, a part of it all?

  Unravel more of this fascinating book, continue reading Nightmares and Illusions...

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Recommended Books

  Did you enjoy this book? I recommend reading these related books, available on All Romance Ebooks:

  A Taste of Grace

  Thwarting Demons

  Bent Over Screaming

  Mistaken Identity

  Lily Wants to Give You a Gift!

  Do you want a free book?

  Thank you for reading, Dance Of Desire. If you feel this story was the perfect little treat you needed, please leave a review at All Romance Ebooks

  I'm always looking for feedback and will provide anyone who completes a review about this book with a free book, passionately written and fresh from my tiny writer's enclave. Here's how to get it:

  1. Write a short review at All Romance Ebooks

  2. Email me at lily@pubcirc.com with a link to your review and I'll reply with my favorite book for free!

  * * *

  Get a free book now, write a short review on All Romance Ebooks

  Free Bonus:

  Nightmares and Illusions

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  * * *

  Turn the page to read!

  CHAPTER ONE

  CASSIE WOKE UP slowly, a dreamy lethargy about her. She pushed the smothering pillow from her face. She was glad to have been able to sleep despite all her apprehensions the night before. She stretched to get the sleep out of her bones.

  Searing, white-hot pain shot through her body.

  “Ow! Fuck! Oww!”

  Every single part of her was painfully sore. She felt banged up, like she’d been tortured.

  All at once, her mind cleared. Everything came into sharp focus. She would’ve shot straight up from bed but she could barely move. She felt heavy, her muscles and bones felt thick and incapable of proper movement. Her sheets felt damp and uncomfortable.

  Gingerly rolling her body to the side, she gradually got herself upright until she was seated on the bed. Every movement hurt. Inch by slow inch, she finally was able to swing her legs and plant her feet on the rug. The familiar texture of it between her toes and under her feet put her at ease.

  It may be an ugly-ass rug but it sure makes me feel at home, she thought.

  As she stood up, her thighs all the way to her ankles felt stiff and strained—it reminded her of the first time she tried to do Cross Fit.

  Rolling her shoulders back was painful, stretching her wrists and arms were painful; so she moved as little as possible.

  However, none of the muscular tenderness she felt had prepared her for what she saw when she turned to make her bed.

  On the bedspread was a large damp spot in the shape of her body that took up the middle of where she had just laid. She stared at it dumbfounded.

  What the hell? Night sweats? I’m decades away from freaking menopause! Was it that hot last night? I could never sweat that much, could I? At least I hope it’s sweat…her thoughts trailed off as she landed on another possible explanation to the unusual wetness on her bed.

  Curious and anxious to prove to herself that she did not just urinate in her sleep, she reached out to touch an edge of the stain. She pulled her fingers back as soon as she was able to. Not only was the bed wet, but the spot was warm to the touch.

  “No. No-no-no-no-no!” she said to herself over and over.

  Her face was a mixture of disgust and embarrassment as she bent over the bed. She inhaled and immediately felt relief wash over her for a second when she determined that she didn’t pee on herself while sleeping. Still, the volume of the liquid that took up her bed sheets was very unsettling.

  She shook her head as if to clear her mind of the incident and move on.

  “Okay, Cassie,” she started telling herself aloud. “It’s there. It’s done. Better to just clean up, grab something to eat and down a couple painkillers. Might have been a hot night but who knows and who cares. Let’s just get on with the day.”

  Her pep talked cheered her spirits a little. And then flashes of horrible, half-remembered memories resurfaced in her mind. She recalled her wrists being bound over her head. She remembered the absolute terror that she was feeling.

  She stared at the disgusting wetness of her bed and rationalized that it was the clammy wet spot in her bed that had caused her inner fears to run wild in her dreams.

  “Ach, I’m disgusting!” she admonished herself.

  She made her way to the bathroom. A quick shower would snap her out of this funk. Right, it’s just what she needed. And she’d have a good day.

  The water was delicious, running from the top of her head and down her body with soothing freshness. It felt like her worries were being washed away. It felt so good that Cassie even began humming. Then when she felt a twinge somewhere, she looked down. She gasped at what she saw and finished her shower as fast as she could.

  She wiped the mist off the mirror and stared in horror at the reflection.

  “Oh my God…”

  Large circular bruises dotted every inch of her upper torso, her front and her back. These new ones weren’t even a bit subtle. They looked too perfectly round to be hickeys.

  “Damn.”

  There was no running away from it. Something was wrong with her nightmares. But they couldn’t be real… yet… of course… something must explain why when she was tortured by monsters in her dreams, marks were left on her body when she woke up. She supposed she should be grateful that she even woke up. She felt lethargic. Even her brain felt rustic. But somehow… somehow she knew, if she even dared think she could succumb to the monsters when they say surrender, she would be in a lot more trouble.

  Like not waking up?

  This is impossible, she thought as she shook her head. This must be psychological, a reaction of her brain to the new changes that were happening to her life.

  But if it were so, weren’t they too much? Like… like it was almost paranormal. Like she was being hunted?

  Again, she remembered that menacing presence she felt when she woke up after a forgotten nightmare two nights ago. She closed her eyes very tightly, and convinced herself that it was impossible. There couldn’t be supernatural creatures in a building built just recently.

  But her body had started to shake uncontrollably. Same thing as happening to her hands even as she put on her clothes. She needed to get out of here now!


  Without checking what she’d grabbed, she stormed off for school, slamming the door behind her.

  * * *

  CASSIE was earlier than usual, hoping she would find a temporary relief in the logic and clarity of class by being among other people. The normalcy was a far cry from the vivid living nightmare she had been suffering through the past couple of days.

  Any other time she’d have dismissed it all as absurd. That she was probably hallucinating with all the stress she’d be going through at school. But there had been absolutely no other explanation for it. She was being haunted. Or maybe her new place at the apartment complex had been built over an old graveyard or a burial site, like in horror flicks. Absurd, she thought as she shook her head.

  Then it occurred to her that some of those films were supposedly based on true events. Stranger things have happened to real people living real lives day by day.

  Cassie's hope of a temporary reprieve from her turmoil proved short-lived since her thoughts of a possible haunting wouldn’t let up. Her growing paranoia was starting to seep into her day-to-day. She was skittish, easily startled by sudden loud sounds, and she cowered at shadows. Her body was having a visceral reaction towards her residence.

  “You lost a few pounds since the weekend, Cassie?”

  Cassie was startled by Lauren’s comment. It was her second class of the day. While it barely registered that Lauren was addressing her, just the sound of her voice was enough to make her jump. Clearly, Lauren had gotten over her hangover and she looked impeccable as always.