Page 4 of Devious Nightmare

a sacrifice

an offer of life

surrounded by darkness

i call to him

I wait for something — anything — to happen. The wind rushes through the trees, and the sound of the rustling leaves grows so loud that it’s nearly deafening.

But almost as soon as it began, it ends, leaving the cemetery in an eerie silence. There isn’t a single sound in the vast expanse of the cemetery.

Not a cricket.

Not a rustling.

There is nothing.

The cemetery around me is shrouded in absolute silence. I can’t remember if there was a complete lack of sound before I read the incantation or if this is the sign I was looking for.

Suddenly, the clear, star-filled sky is clouded over with unnatural swirling clouds of smoke. Is this a tornado? Wraith Valley hasn’t experienced a tornado in decades; since before I was born.

Searching for answers as my long dark hair whips around my face, I eye my surroundings, but the rest of the cemetery is still and unmoving. This is my sign. I did it.

Holy crap! I did it!

Almost instantly, the fear and dread set in. The swirling vortex of smoke grows darker, an inky shade of black, as it descends toward the ground on feet away from me.

I should run. I should gather my things and get out of here as quickly as my legs will allow. But, I can’t. My body won’t move. I’m stuck, frozen in place, as I watch the dark storm in front of me begin to slow.

Before I can calm my racing heart, a figure forms at the eye of the storm. Not quite a man. It appears… skeletal. Dirty off-white bones move with ease, only covered by a bloody white shirt, leather jacket, jeans, and boots.

This can’t be real.

As the figure approaches, stepping out of the spinning clouds of darkness, muscle and flesh sliver over the bones. The way they wind around the battered bone, like snakes around a new victim makes me sick to my stomach.

I can’t look away.

A loud gasp rips from me as the face of the creature finally appears and familiar dark eyes look back at me. It’s not possible that it worked. The only logical explanation is that I am hallucinating. I inhaled too many fumes from everything I burned, and now, I’m passed out in the cemetery.

My racing heart calms momentarily, clearly believing the lies I’m telling myself. However, the sight before me is hard to discredit.

Blaze Dubois stands before me, still just as damn attractive as he did ten years ago… when he died. He takes intentional steps toward me, not at all confused by what’s happening, not like me.

I wait for him to stop when he’s a good distance away, but he doesn’t. Blaze keeps approaching me, and I panic. Before I can calculate my next move, I’m on my feet and fleeing the scene of my ritual.

“What do you want?” I call out, not bothering to look behind me as I run. I will not become a movie cliche. I won’t.

He doesn’t respond to my question. The deranged murderer actually doesn’t say anything. His loud foot falls behind me letting me know that he’s still there, and he’s now chasing after me.

Fuck. Damn. Shit.

What did I get myself into?

I see the entrance of the cemetery up ahead. I’m so close now. If I can get out of here, I can make a mad dash back to the house and forget this ever happened.

Relief sets in too soon. A moment later, pain seers my scalp as his hand tangles in my hair, and he yanks me bad to him by my delicate strands. When the forceful tug throws off my balance, he shoves me to the muddy cemetery floor and glares now at me.

I look up at his paint covered face. It’s almost hilarious that the pain portrays him as a skeleton. Just moments ago, he actually was one.

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