by Crymsyn Hart
Natalie stopped. “What did you say?”
“I celebrate both.”
“No about the day taking back the night?”
“It’s a time when the veil is thin between worlds. We give homage to our ancestors. I was hoping you wouldn’t mind having the tribe come here and perform a few ceremonies. I haven’t gotten a chance to ask you yet.”
“No, it’s fine if they come here. I figured I’d have to meet them eventually, dating you and all. When you took my hand at your house, that was what the spirit said. That is the night when I have to free Dustin.”
“We’re more than dating. We’ll figure out how to get Dustin out of the spirit world. Us coming together now is a sign that things will be set right. I just know it. And the tribe is going to love you.” He kissed her and ran his tongue over her lips. Natalie sighed when he pulled away. “I have to get to work. Go out and enjoy the day. By the time you get home, you’ll have a tree all set up.”
“Thank you.”
Scott got his things and left the kitchen. Sitting at the table, she wrote out a list of what she wanted to buy and what she was going to do. Today was a beautiful day to go shopping. Natalie was feeling good about herself, and she had two men who loved her and looked out for her.
After driving to the mall and looking around, Natalie lost herself in shopping. It was mind numbing, and it felt good to be among people again. It made her want to get back into the workforce. But with the changes she’d been experiencing, she wasn’t sure if she should wait or not. Her nest egg would last a little while.
While she perused the window displays all done up for Christmas, a man resembling Michael was reflected in one of the windows. When she looked back, he was gone. I’m just imagining it. My brain just can’t get him completely out of my life. I have to get over it. He’s not coming back. The judge said he was going away for ten to fifteen years for what he did to me. By that time, he won’t even know where to find me.
When she got home, the men were just about finishing up for the day. It had begun to snow again. Scott’s truck wasn’t in the yard. The crewmen waved to her while she got up and began carrying her packages into the house. Going inside, she was immediately hit with the smell of pine.
In her living room, was a freshly cut tree already rigged up in a stand. She ran her hands over the needles and smiled. He had kept his promise to her.
After getting the rest of her packages from the car, she took everything out and began to decorate the tree. While she did, Jeannie’s laughter filled the house. Dustin was around, but not showing himself.
The rest of the night, she spent working on the tree. While she did, the ghost under her stairs made it known he wasn’t too happy about her having a good time. Large thumps came from his hiding place. Natalie ignored them, knowing that her cowboy would keep the spirit in line.
Chapter Twelve
Over the next couple of weeks, the repairs on the house were completed. Natalie and her men fell into a routine of seeing one another. Sometimes she went to Scott’s house and spent the night or other times Dustin stayed with her. When she needed to be alone, they left her be.
If she needed anything, they were there for her. Ever since that night, she hadn’t seen any more trucks in the driveway and she hadn’t seen anyone else following her.
Scott took her out to the restaurants in town, and Scarlett told her that everyone was talking about the new couple. Natalie enjoyed spending time with Scott’s sister and was learning more about the Cherokee tribe they were a part of. What would her life be like if she became a wolf? She hadn’t gotten the courage up to ask his sister or him, but the more she mulled it over, the more she realized it didn’t scare her so much anymore.
That night she had invited her mates, Scarlett, and a few members of the Native American tribe to her home for Christmas dinner to introduce herself and give them a definitive answer that they could come onto the land whenever they wanted. The snow starting falling again. The weatherman had predicted that it wouldn’t stop snowing for two days.
Heading outside, she needed to restock on some firewood just in case she lost power. The one good thing about the large hearth was that she had gotten some cast iron pots to cook with in case the power went out. Once she got to the stock of wood, she saw footprints in the snow. They were all around the house and leading toward the edge of the driveway. Must be Dustin or Scott keeping watch on the place. Not giving it another thought, she went back inside and set the wood by the fireplace. More banging came from under the stairs.
When she went to investigate, she found the door open. A slice of dread went through her. If it was open, then Dustin’s father might be out and about. She went to close the door, but it wouldn’t budge. A cold draft of air blew in the face, so she stumbled backward. Her back hit something solid. At first, she thought it was Dustin, but when a hand came around her mouth, cold terror washed over her.
“Hush now! Don’t want to alert one of your beaus.”
The voice sounded similar to her ex-husband’s, but there was a different lilt to it that wasn’t his. She stomped her foot down as hard as she could on her assailant. He yowled in pain. Once she elbowed him in the stomach that got him to release her. Natalie bolted down the hall and into the kitchen. Her keys were still in her pocket. She struggled with the door, but it wasn’t opening.
“Dustin!” she screamed.
“You’re little lover boy isn’t in the house. He can’t come and get you.”
Natalie spun around. Michael stood before her. He was six three muscular frame blocked her way. Blue, piercing eyes bored into her soul. The hatred in them was his, but the smirk and the darkness hovering around him wasn’t. Her ex husband had been a disturbed soul, but something else was attached to him. Natalie could see its dark aura surrounding him.
“Michael, I know that’s not you.”
He wagged his finger at her. “Think again, Natalie. Do you know how long it took me to find you after I broke out? Smart move changing your name. But I knew eventually, I’d figure out where you were. Then I saw you with those two men. You just confirmed everything I ever thought about you. You’re a whore.”
She gritted her teeth. “You don’t know anything.”
His smile spread wider that humanly possible, curling into his cheeks. The darkness around him grew and stepped away from him. It took on the form of a man. The evil radiating from the being overwhelmed and choked her. This was Dustin’s father.
“What do you want?” she whispered.
A low chuckle sounded in the kitchen. “Why, you, of course. You’re ex-husband here provided the perfect vessel to free me. He’s been hiding under the stairs for a couple of days now. Snuck in while your cowboy was fucking you. We bonded over that time. We’re in agreement on the things we want to do to you.”
Her gaze flicked to Michael. He nodded. He enjoyed watching her suffering. “You have it coming to you. Once we’re done with you, we’re going to move on to bigger and better things.”
“Michael, no. He’s a dark spirit who’s manipulating you. If you ever loved me, let me go.”
“But I never loved you, Nat. You were just arm candy and barely worth fucking. You deserve what’s coming to you.”
The dark spirit came at her. The evil descended. The air was pulled from her lungs. Coldness wrapped around her flesh, causing goose bumps to rise on her skin.
Natalie tried to move, but was transfixed to her spot. The world around her had stopped moving. The entity reached out for her. The ghost’s fingers slithered around her skin and wrapped her in his grasp. A strangled gasp left her lips. Her vision began to blur. Her hands went to her throat while she tried to pry off the ghost’s hands. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jeannie peeking around the door. She tried to tell her to find her brother, but wasn’t able to.
Michael’s laughter filled her ears. All of her worst fears were coming true. He had threatened to come back for her and now he had. The darkness wrapped her
fully in its grip, bathing her in its presence. Natalie fought against the dark spirit, but his influence was like nothing she had encountered before. Without being able to stop, she followed the darkness down and lost consciousness.
The next time Natalie opened her eyes, she discovered she was tied to her bed, naked and spread eagle. She glanced around and didn’t see Michael or the dark spirit. The stuffed animals moved in the corner. Jeannie.
“Sweetie, I know you’re there. You gotta find your brother.”
Michael came into the room. The toys stopped moving. The sinister spirit wasn’t around. “Talking to thin air is never a good sign. Has all this time by yourself gotten to you? If anyone wonders where you are after tonight, I’ll just tell them you’d started talking to yourself. No one is going to believe your stories about ghosts.”
“Michael, untie me.”
He ran a finger along her inner thigh. Cringing, she wasn’t going to show him any more fear. Natalie had spent years doing that. For so long, she had lived under his shadow even if she had provoked some of their arguments.
It was all too late. The damage had been done. He had shoved her down the stairs. She had nearly died. When she had woken up in the hospital, there was a cop waiting to take her statement. Natalie had given it willingly. He had threatened her at the hearing. She never thought it would come down to him breaking out of jail and coming after her.
Glancing around the house, she noticed it was night.
Michael’s leering grin was the same one he had right before he pushed her through the glass window. That smirk told her he was going to do horrible things to her. She tugged against the rope as his fingers walked across her stomach and slid over her breasts. His touch disgusted her and turned her stomach. “How could you let that ghost possess you?”
He shrugged. “It was quite easy. We have a lot in common. I think we can work well together. It was very simple to break in here and hide out. I had to listen to you fucking one of your men. He warned me about the spirit in this place. The one you’ve attached yourself to. I guess that makes you a whore for the living and the dead. What’s it like having his cold prick inside of you? Does it make you feel all tingly? Does it get you hot? How does that work?”
Natalie gritted her teeth.
A car door slammed outside. The crunch of snow under heavy boots sounded outside. Scott. He was supposed to come and take her out tonight with his sister. Michael looked between her and the window. He hugged the wall and looked through the glass.
A knock sounded downstairs. Natalie’s looked longingly in that direction. Her ex-husband walked across the room.
“If you say one word, I’ll slit your throat.” He withdrew a knife from the back of his pants and held it up to the light. She winced, but it only bolstered her courage. No one was going to get hurt on her account.
Downstairs the door opened. She’d given Scott a key in case something happened. “Natalie, you here?”
Michael looked between her and the door. He held the knife up higher and made a slicing motion across his throat.
She took in a breath. “Scott! Help! I’m upstairs. He has a knife. Be care—” Michael covered her mouth and nose with his hand, suffocating her. Footsteps pounded up the stairs. He pressed his hand over her harder. Her attention flicked to the doorway. Scott was barely visible in her periphery vision. Her head was starting to spin. She struggled to take in air.
“One more step and your bitch here won’t be taking another breath.”
“Whoever you are, let her go. I’m sure we can come to a reasonable solution here.”
Michael laughed, but he didn’t remove his hand. He pressed it down harder. “Reasonable? I guess the little bitch never told you about us. I’m her husband.”
Natalie struggled to say something, but she was losing consciousness fast. Michael pushed the knife against her throat and pressed down. The sharp sting of pain sliced her flesh. He laughed. Scott said something. She saw a blur of movement, but after that, she was able to breathe. Snarling erupted around her. Michael laughed. She tried to see what was going on but her vision was growing dark. Her body was getting cold. And then everything was light. She found herself outside of her body watching Michael and Scott tussling in the corner. Her ex-husband had the knife and was slashing at a wolf.
Natalie was in awe at the magnificent wolf that stood there defending her. He was all muscle, silver and black in the moonlight his hackles were raised and he snapped at Michael. Natalie wanted to stay and watch, but she felt someone tugging on her hand. She glanced down and saw Jeannie. The little girl felt real.
“I found Dustin. Come on.”
Natalie looked back at the two fighting and realized that her body was on the bed. She was either dead or in the spirit world. Jeannie yanked again. She was dressed in a white gown. Following Jeannie down the stairs, Natalie saw Dustin pinned against the wall by his father. In this realm, the dark spirit was six feet tall, had a scruffy gray beard, and wild looking brown eyes. He was muscular with the beginnings of a belly.
Natalie went to rush at him, but Jeannie grabbed her hand. “You can’t. He’ll hurt you.”
“I can’t let your dad hurt Dustin. I have to do something.”
“You think you can win, son. After all this time, you’ve had me locked away. I’ve grown powerful.”
“You’ll never win. I’ll make sure you rot in hell before you hurt Natalie. I won’t let you kill anyone else.” He shoved his father into the windows. Glass broke. Jeannie pulled her away.
“I know someone that can help.”
Natalie glanced at the two of them fighting. She desperately wanted to assist them, but if she was dying then how long could she have? The little girl ran through the living room wall.
Here goes nothing. She closed her eyes and ran after her, feeling a small resistance of the wood when she passed through it.
The sensation was strange, but not uncomfortable. Once they were outside, Natalie saw dozens of other spirits gathering around the house. Some were deceased Native Americans. Others were those who had died on the land and remained because of the curse. Further back on the property she saw the outline of a barn and heard the horses neighing.
Jeannie pulled on her again. They wove through the people until she came to the same spot where she had run into the wise woman before. Only this time she was solid.
“You have come for our help.”
“Yes. I can’t let anything happen to them.”
The ancient woman handed her a dagger. There was writing etched into the handle she couldn’t read. “Plunge this into the dark one’s heart. Once he is gone, part of the curse on this land will be lifted. Those who wish to pass over will be able to. Some may choose to stay.”
“What about Dustin? He’s not really dead. He’s stuck. Scott told me I was the only one who could pull him out of the spirit world. How do I do that?”
The woman gave her a sly smile. “That is part of your destiny. Once you pull him from his world, he will resume his life. Now go.” The woman disappeared. Natalie spun around, looking for her, but she was gone.
What does that mean? She clasped the dagger in her fist. Nothing mattered at that moment more than making sure Dustin and Scott were safe.
She rushed back toward the house. Jeannie was right beside her. Natalie walked through the wall and found that her cowboy had his father restrained against the door underneath the stairs. A woman screamed. Jeannie rushed over to the woman in the kitchen. Natalie glanced between the woman and the girl and realized this was Jeannie’s mother.
“Dustin.”
He glanced over. His father took advantage of his distraction, swung his fist, and caught him on the underside of his jaw. Her mate staggered backward and hit the wall. He slid down and slumped to the floor, stunned. The dark spirit turned his sights on her and smiled.
“Thank you for that. Now it’s your turn. I’ll throw you in that pit and you can be stuck there forever.” He lunged at Natalie.
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She jumped back and held onto the dagger for dear life. He chased after her, but she ducked back into the kitchen. The dark spirit blocked her path. She dashed around the kitchen and then went back into the living room. Natalie glanced around for him, but she didn’t see the dark spirit. Jeannie and her mother weren’t there either.
Upstairs, there were more sounds coming from her bedroom. A cold draft whizzed by her. She spun around. Nothing was there. Laughter echoed in the room. He was toying with her.
“Come out, you bastard, and face me like a man. Stop hiding in the shadows like a coward. I bet that’s what you are. You had to kill your wife and your family to show that you were such a powerful man. Look where it got you. Stuck in this house for almost two hundred years. What kind of a man is that?”
“Shut up!” The yell blasted by her ear.
Natalie laughed. “I’m not afraid of you.”
“You should be.”
A bolt of pain went across her face, and her head was turned to the side from the force of the punch he’d dealt her. He pushed the weight of his body into hers and clasped her wrist. His painful grip twisted her wrist. He crunched the bones together in her wrist.
With a yelp, she dropped the knife onto the floor.
“Afraid of me now?”
Natalie tried to answer him, but he had her around the throat. His hard cock pressed against her thigh. She tried to kick him and aimed for his groin, but he pinned her with his body weight. “You’re still an asshole.”
“Maybe, but when you’re completely dead, you’ll be mine to play with. That will be fun. I’ll lock Dustin in the dark and torment you every day.”
“I don’t think that’s going to be happening.”
Behind them, Dustin had the dagger. He raised it over his head and plunged it into his father’s back. The dark spirit went rigid for a moment and then struggled to pull the blade out. Dustin’s father released Natalie.
She drew in a large breath. His father floundered around for a few moments and then he fell to the floor, motionless. Natalie rushed into Dustin’s arms. He embraced her tightly.