Hearing wet footsteps crunching down on the grass around him, Brody stopped moving and lay still, hoping whoever it was would leave.
“Brody, where are you?” Hallie’s voice cut through Brody’s panic, and he forgot about her menacing eyes and wanted nothing more than to see that she was fine.
Fear and adrenaline swept through Brody as he feared that he might be going crazy. Had he really seen her eyes glowing wicked in the night?
“Hallie?” Brody questioned, still not sure what to do.
“Yes, Brody I am here,” Hallie called again, her voice gentle and calm, the way Brody had always remembered it to be. The scent of lavender and roses began to soar through the air, attacking Brody’s senses and stopping him dead in his tracks.
Feeling his body grow calm, Brody managed to stand and get back on his feet. Placing his hands out in front of him, he began to walk toward the sound of Hallie’s voice.
“Hallie, I don’t know what’s going on, but we need to leave here immediately. Maybe you were right; maybe this place is haunted,” Brody said, as he walked through the endless white mist. With every move, he felt himself growing closer to where Hallie could be heard heavily breathing.
Finally, Brody felt Hallie’s cold hands touch his and the impact sent sparks of electricity through Brody. Grabbing her, Brody pulled her in close to him so he could make out her face through the sliver of moonlight shedding a single ray of light into the desolate and darkened area.
“I am so glad to see you, I…” Brody suddenly stopped talking as he realized Hallie’s eyes were still glowing a golden yellow that resembled that of a cat; only now, they seemed to be filling with red. A dark, red blood.
Smiling back at him, Hallie began to cackle, her laugh piercing Brody’s ears and causing a numbing sensation to travel down his neck and arms. Her body began to shake, and she instantly started vomiting. Backing away, Brody let out a loud yell, as his body jumped into fight or flight mode.
Shaking his head, Brody tried to erase the haunting image from his mind. This couldn’t be real, he thought to himself.
“What’s wrong?” Hallie asked, her menacing tone and evil glare rendering Brody mute.
Staring at each other, Brody tried to think of what to do or say. Finally, his voice emerged and he found himself staring into the face of evil. “Hallie, what is wrong with you? Your eyes?” he asked, his body full of a tingling fear. A deep, crimson red tear was slowly dripping out of each eye. Her nose was bleeding as well and her body began to transform from the youthful and beautiful girl he had fallen in love with, to something frightening and Demonic.
Stepping even closer, Hallie’s face was merely inches away from Brody’s. He could feel her icy cold breath pricking his face. Her skin appeared like porcelain and not the light caramel he had obsessed over for years. Something was very different about Hallie and Brody feared what this could mean.
“Nothing is wrong with my eyes…anymore,” Hallie stated, her voice strong and rough.
“Anymore?” Brody questioned, trying to stop his body from shaking. His heart was pounding so wildly inside his chest, he feared it would jump right out and run away.
“Yes, after centuries of being trapped inside my grave, I am able to live again.”
Even though Hallie was standing before him, Brody knew the Hallie he knew was gone.
“This isn’t possible,” he muttered, as fear washed over him.
“I assure you it is. All I needed was a girl brave enough to find my grave and then I could take over her body,” Hallie sneered. “Now, I can live again and get revenge on those that sent me to this unwanted grave.”
“What are you?” Brody’s voice trembled, as he asked the question, already fearing the answer.
Laughing, the woman allowed her head to fall back so that the long strands of hair bounced wildly around her. “I am Esmeralda. I was burned at the stake by the people of this town. They didn’t understand my practices in witchcraft. They refused to believe the good I could do, so they burned me and my two sisters. Their fear for our powers took hold of their judgments and they condemned us to our graves. Knowing I would soon face a horrid death, my sisters and I placed a curse over this town as the town’s people mocked and cursed us, while we stood in the middle of the towns square. Even though our hands and feet were bound, they were never going to take away our power. All it took was a curious soul to stand over our graves for us to be able to take hold of a body and be able to live again,” she stated, her tone serious and sad.
With eyes wide with Fear, Brody took in the person before him. “So, if you are a witch who took over Hallie’s body, then where is Hallie?” he questioned, fearing the answer he would receive.
“Hallie is gone. She is locked away in my unfortunate tomb as will you too,” she stated, placing a cold hand on top of Brody’s shoulder.
Trying to move away, Brody found himself paralyzed by fear and something else. Trembling, Brody became overtaken with fear as the realization struck him like lightning. All these years, he had mocked the stories told to him about the three witches who haunted the local high school. He had dismissed the ideas as nothing more than fantasy stories; but now, he was living out his worst nightmares and the worst part was that he hadn’t believed Hallie.
Brody’s mind was reeling as the woman seemed to have Brody in a trance; a zombie-like state as she began leading him toward the other two graves. “Now, all you need to do is lean over the other grave and let my sister be free too,” she said, her voice piercing through Brody’s soul.
As Brody desperately tried to find a way to fight back, the woman led him over to the graves. Peering down, he realized this woman, this evil being that had stolen Hallie’s body, was going to steal his too. In his mind, through the fear and anger coursing through his body, he began to become curious. What would happen to him? Where would his soul go? Would this be painful?
As his body was forced to kneel down, Brody allowed a single tear to escape his glossy eyes. This was the end now and he knew it. Hallie had led him to his final adventure; a strange and complicated death. He was angry with Hallie for her insane curiosity and determination to bring truth to the horror stories that plagued their small town. He was furious with himself for allowing Hallie to lead him astray, and for the fact that he had not had the courage or will-power to stand up against his feelings for her and follow his gut instincts. But, more than anything, Brody was angry that his death would be at such a young age. There was so much he wanted to do in his life and now, he would never have that opportunity. He quickly thought about his family and friends who would mourn his absence and their faces were now ingrained in his mind. More than anything, leaving his younger sister Sadie would hurt the most. She had always looked up to him, and would need him as she traveled through middle school and into high school.
Now, kneeling over the graves, Brody took in one last deep breath. A dark, crimson blood poured from his mouth and eyes, as the life that held Brody soon diminished into a vacant corpse. The cold air stung his lungs but he didn’t care anymore. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain shoot through his stomach and down his legs. The world around him began to blur as sights, sounds, and images rapidly disappeared as he was swept into a world of darkness.
Falling limp, the woman in Hallie’s body watched as the metamorphosis took place and Brody was transformed from a young high school boy, to the living being of her sister, Mary. As Brody’s body began to regain strength, he stood and faced Hallie.
An evil smile swept across his face and his eyes were no longer a dark and rich brown color, but they were now gray as stone, as they peered into the face of Hallie.
“It’s been a long time, sister,” Esmeralda spoke through Hallie’s lips.
Looking around at the large trees that surrounded their unmarked graves, Mary only smiled. “Yes it has,” she replied.
“All we have to do now is wait for another lost soul to visit our grave and then our sister Alice will finally be able to
join us,” Esmeralda said, as she pulled Hallie’s hair away from her shoulders and began to inspect her new body. “Once we are together again, we will finally be able to get revenge on those that destroyed us,” Esmeralda finished.
“Yes,” Mary agreed, with a hint of evil sparking from her voice. “I think I know just the person we can find,” she hissed.
Together the bodies that once were Brody and Hallie walked away from the small graves and back toward the truck that was sitting alone in the darkened parking lot. As the sisters drove away in the form of Brody and Hallie, they laughed and rejoiced at the pure terror they were about to inflict on the small town of Shady Oaks. With their evil souls now intertwined with those of Hallie and Brody, they knew they could fulfill their demonic desires. With the town coming into view, the residents of Shady Oaks were unaware of the evil that now roamed the streets. The once thought of stories and myths were now walking and talking, living beings that proved true the idea that sometimes the truth can be far more frightening than fiction.
Be patient and just be sure of yourself,” he instructed.
“There’s nothing I am sure of anymore,” I said.
“Well, if there is one thing that you can always be sure of, let it be that I will always protect you,” Ace said, as he moved to the open window.
Before I could respond, Ace jumped out the window and flew away.
What just happened?
Chapter Sixteeen
Wicked Hour
R
aindrops pelted my bedroom window as I got dressed for school. I was used to the rain, seeing as though I was born in Massachusetts, but the heat that accompanied the rain here in the South was an entirely different beast to get used to. After the night filled with horror stories circulating around my new hometown, the eerie morning gloom seemed fitting. Before Ace left last night, we had made a plan to go to Camp Nelson and High Bridge soon. There could be clues to where the necklace was at one of those places. Hopefully.
I dressed in a pair of dark denim jeans, a mustard yellow top, and found my black boots.
Finding my parents already in their respective offices this morning, I greeted them with a good morning and then headed outside to wait for Maylee and Ace to pick me up for school.
I almost felt sorry for my old car sitting in the driveway. Maybe I would take it out for a drive later that evening.
As I sat on the front porch, I watched as a light mist of fog floated across the countryside. In the distance, a barn was very visible through the trees and fog, almost as though it were being concealed from the rest of the world.
Finally, I heard Ace’s car roaring into my driveway and I hated how my heart seemed to flutter with happiness at the thought of seeing him.
As the car came into view, I moved closer to the porch railing, splatters of rain soaking through my tee shirt and jeans.
I jogged out to the car, my body feeling as though I just ran through a heavy shower.
Freezing, I nestled into the back seat as Ace turned up the heater and drove off.
Walking through the halls of East High, I could still feel the dampness on my clothes as I headed for my first hour class. Sawyer found me as I waved bye to Maylee as she headed to her class.
“Hey, I tried calling you this weekend,” Sawyer said.
“Sorry, I was really busy with family stuff,” I lied. “How did it go with Garrett?” I wanted to change the subject so she wouldn’t ask what exactly I was doing.
“After you left with Maylee and Ace, Garrett and Kade took me out for burgers. It was fun, but Kade was clearly upset to be the third wheel. I think he’s really into you,” she winked.
“He barely knows me,” I argued.
“He knows enough to like you, I guess,” Sawyer shrugged her shoulders.
Kade was nice, but if he only knew the supernatural dangers plaguing me, he would run as far away from me as he possibly could. Sawyer, too.
“Oh,” I sighed.
“What? Don’t you like him,” Sawyer asked, stopping in front of me in the hall. She was causing a traffic jam as students had to maneuver around us.
“Sure, he’s really nice. But, right now I’m not interested in dating anyone. I’m still trying to figure out my place here,” I admitted, only half lying.
If I were being honest with myself, there was only one guy who captivated all of my attention, but I was more than certain that he didn’t think of me the way I thought about him. At least, I didn’t think so.
Just then, Ace made his way toward us and my eyes found themselves glued to his every move. He was like a magnet that drew me to him. No amount of will power would change that. Even the girls who acted afraid of Ace and Maylee, couldn’t stop watching him saunter through the halls.
Sawyer saw that my attention was drawn elsewhere and she, too, turned and saw Ace making his way toward us. A sly smile grew on her perfectly glossed lips and I hated how she gave me a knowing look.
“Maybe you just aren’t interested in Kade,” she said, before turning and leaving me standing in the center of the hall.
As Ace approached, I noticed mouths falling open all around me as my fellow classmates stared at us like we were a circus freak show.
“I need to tell you something,” Ace said, his voice dark and mysterious.
“Ok,” I barely managed to say. I hated having all eyes on us.
Leaning in, Ace’s lips were dangerously close to my ears. I could feel his warm breaths tickling my skin as he spoke. “There was another Demon sighting early this morning near the Chrisman Mill Cemetery.”
I shuddered and I wasn’t sure if the reaction came from his proximity to me or the message. Either way, I was filled with a strange mix of emotions.
“Was anyone hurt?” I asked, my voice barely audible.
Ace shook his head, giving me my answer.
“Well, we can talk more later. Am I still training?” I asked.
“Yes, I will pick you up at your house. I think we should go out to High Bridge and Camp Nelson tonight,” Ace said, then walked away as though the conversation never took place.
I headed off to class with my head buzzing.
By lunch, the whispers and stares were about to drive me crazy.
Sitting down at a table in the back of the large cafeteria, I took a moment to catch my breath.
Sawyer plopped down beside me, startling me as I was lost in my own thoughts.
“So, the whole school is talking about you and Ace,” she said, arching her brows mischievously at me.
I could feel my cheeks heating from embarrassment.
“Why would anyone care?” I asked, my tone way too defensive.
“Why would anyone care about what?” Garett asked, sitting down and wrapping his arm around Sawyer.
Apparently, they were a couple now. I felt like a bad friend not knowing everything going on with her right now.
“Nothing,” I said, shaking my head as I pulled my turkey wrap out of my bag.
Sawyer wasn’t about to back down now. “I was just telling Lizzie that everyone is talking about her and Ace,” she stated proudly.
Rolling my eyes, I watched as Garett took a massive bite of pizza before he placed his opinion on the matter. “Oh yeah,” he began through a mouthful of crust. “I’ve heard about that all day.”
Fed up, I slammed my hands down on the table. “Alright, just tell me what everyone is saying,” I demanded.
I was hoping my outburst would have deterred them; but to my dismay, it just seemed to amuse them more.
A spark was lit inside of Sawyer and that familiar twinkle shined as she began to gush the gossip. “Well, first of all, no one can believe that you were talking to Ace. Everyone knows that Ace and Maylee Creed stick to themselves. Their whole family hides away and never talks to the rest of us. I mean, I don’t believe the stories that they are zombies or Ghosts, something like that, but I’ve never seen them talk to anyone at school before.”
As I sat there li
stening to her spin the tales going around the school, I couldn’t help but notice the mindless stares from everyone around me. Their hushed whispers seemed to echo all around me.
I knew Ace was an enigma at this school, but now that made me just as much of a mystery as he was. I hated the attention.
“Yeah, everyone just wants to know why they decided to talk to you,” Garrett states.
Shrugging my shoulders, I look down and place my hands in my lap. My appetite is long gone now.
“I met them when I first moved here. Maylee is my friend and Ace is…” I'm unsure of how to finish my thought.
How do I explain the mystery of Ace? I can’t very well just say, hey he’s a Crow Shifter who protects our town from Demons. And, by the way, Demons are back because my great aunt decided to hide the necklace that can save all of us.
I doubt that would go over very well.
They both just nod.
Once lunch is over, we all scatter to the rest of our classes and I spend the rest of the afternoon ignoring the stares.
Later that evening, Ace met me at my house.
With my mom watching on with a big, cheesy grin, Ace and I took off for Crow Haven.
I knew my mom thought Ace and I were just hanging out or going to the movie. She knew enough right now, but I still wasn’t ready to tell her about the Demon. I just needed this one thing to be mine. To not live in the shadows of my mother.
“What’s on your mind?” Ace asked, as we were stretching on the mats.
I had been silent since we arrived at Crow Haven. Now in the workout facility in the basement, I hadn’t spoken a word until now.
“It’s nothing important,” I said, shaking my head.
“If it has you silent, then it’s something,” he said, causing a smile to form on my face.
“It’s just that everyone at school is talking about us. About how you and I talked at school. Plus, I still haven’t told my mom and dad about the Demon,” I admitted.
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