Page 21 of Deadly Obsession

SIXTEEN

JAMES

I hadn’t seen anything myself, but Jade didn’t seem the type to hallucinate and she wasn’t drunk yet either.

“Stay here. I’ll check it out. I’m sure it was nothing.

Just the weather playing tricks on your mind,” I said in an attempt to comfort her.

I patted her on the shoulder before stepping past the others.

Brian motioned towards the door as if he intended to join me, but I held up a hand before he had the chance.

“Stay here with the girls. Do your shot and get back to the live. I’ll just take a look around and be right back. ”

“Be careful, James!” Jade cried out.

I peered over a shoulder to see Sera handing Jade a shot while rubbing at the girl’s shoulder. Our eyes locked, and I recognized the concern painted on her face. I gave her a wink and turned away before she could tell me to stay inside.

Sliding open the door, I stepped out into the storm.

The rain was practically sideways in the wind, cutting through my hoodie like razor blades.

I held up my hand, shielding my eyes as I scanned the area.

The growing darkness of the night made it near impossible to see much farther than the perimeter of the cabin between the frequent flashes of lightning .

Back home, this sort of storm would immediately raise concerns about tornados as we sat around the ranch, waiting for the sirens to start wailing. But this wasn’t a tornado zone.

I slowly crossed the deck to peer over the railing, but all I saw was the outer grounds of the cabin now being assaulted by the rain.

When I reached the top of the stairs, something finally caught my eye.

A set of muddy footprints trailing up and down the wooden steps.

Apart from a few thicker clods of dirt, the prints quickly vanished as they washed away in the rain.

Fuck, someone was out there .

“Robert, you fuck…” It had to be him or some lost hunter, or maybe the owner was a creep and wanted to see what his guests were doing.

Anything was possible but my mind kept pulling back to the idea of a pissed-off Robert camping out somewhere in the woods, perhaps joined now by Lyndsey, trying to play tricks on us.

I started carefully down the stairs, my eyes darting along every surface as soon as my feet hit the landing.

Including the area beneath the deck against the house, out into the tree line, and then over to the water’s edge.

There was no one in sight but what I did find were more sunken pits filling with rain in the shape of footprints, leading away from the stairs towards the stream.

“Well, fuck…”

Whoever this was had the common sense enough to cover their tracks.

They knew how to avoid being followed. This made me doubt it could be Robert, as he didn’t seem too high on the common-sense scale.

However, I knew better than to underestimate anyone.

There was one other possibility that had crossed my mind.

A possibility that would escalate the situation far worse than any stupid prank.

Point was, they were gone now and any attempt to try to pick up the tracks on the other side of the stream was useless in this weather .

A muffled chorus of screams came from behind me.

I glanced back and noticed that the interior of the cabin had gone dark.

I spun around and realized that every light both inside and outside had gone off.

Not surprising given the storm, but pair it up with our mystery guest and I wasn’t taking any chances.

I did my due diligence, though, and made a 360-security check around the perimeter.

Hopefully, the storm would pass and the power would be restored or perhaps the owner had a backup generator somewhere on the property.

Surely the boathouse. As I approached the sliding glass door, it slid open, revealing Sera, who was holding her phone’s flashlight in my direction.

“Thank God! I was getting worried. Come inside!” she called out, raising her voice to combat another clap of thunder.

I stepped past her and she slammed the door shut before throwing a towel around me. She instantly began trying to dry me off. “I’m fine and way too wet for just the towel, but thank you, baby girl,” I told her.

She smiled and raised up on her toes to plant a kiss against my wet lips.

I peered over the top of her head and saw multiple flashes of light dance across the walls, accompanied by the sounds of cupboards opening and shutting as the rest of the group tried to navigate the cabin with the help of their cellphones.

“Found some!” Jade called out from the kitchen, and a moment later, she emerged with a handful of candles pinned to her chest. “James! Thank God you’re back inside.

Was anyone out there?” She placed a few candles around us.

Then Danielle appeared behind her, a lighter in hand, and with their combined efforts, the room was well enough illuminated.

“Nothing but the storm. Though I’m afraid it may be some time before the power returns.

Up in the mountains like this, the power lines are typically above ground, meaning someone will have to locate and fix them,” I answered, stepping over and taking a candle from her arms. “Thanks for finding these. I suggest everyone bed down for the night. And be sure to put your phone’s battery saver on. ”

“Danielle and I were thinking maybe we should all just camp out here in the living room. Could be a lot safer…” Jade’s expression was pleading, her voice laced with fear.

Before Sera or I had a chance to respond, Lola and Brian returned with another handful of unlit candles from downstairs.

“Found some more. I think the idea of us all camping out here sounds fun. There’s plenty of space.

James and I can bring up a couple of the mattresses, and between those and the couches, we’ll be set,” he said.

Lola quickly parted from Brian and plopped onto the couch. “Right, well, dibs on this one.” She smiled brightly, a hard contrast to Brian’s frown.

I shook my head and chuckled. Keeping my thoughts to myself, which were along the lines of how he looked like a wounded puppy. That boy was head over heels for our resident goth girl, and it was getting sadder and sadder as time went on.

“Oh, that does sound fun!” Sera said, to my dismay.

I didn’t want to share her presence with the others for the remainder of the night.

I had every intention of fucking her as much as possible before this trip was over.

“Doesn’t it?” She beamed up at me, those big doe eyes breaking down my hard outer shell.

“Loads,” I replied.

“Well, first thing’s first. I need to get out of these cold, wet clothes before I catch my death. And have a hot shower.” I look to Brian, locking eyes with the man. “How about we grab one of those mattresses from downstairs first? We can take Robert’s.”

“Yeah, mate. You don’t want to shower and change first?” he asked .

“No, let’s get the girls situated as quickly as possible,” I said, before turning to Sera. I kissed her on the forehead. “Harps, I saw some extra blankets and pillows in the closet near the front door.”

“Of course,” she responded like the good girl she was and, taking Jade with her, headed in that direction.

Not long after, Brian and I were downstairs, folding up Robert’s bedding. I pinned him with a glare. “I need to tell you something but you need to keep a cool head. Do you understand?”

“Yeah, mate, what is it?”

“Someone’s out there. I believe Jade was right when she said she saw a face.

When I went outside, I spotted what I’m pretty sure were muddy footprints coming up the stairs and then back down, leading to the creek.

Not sure what else it could have been.” I paused, watching Brian’s face, curious as to how he’d react.

The guy wasn’t exactly alpha male material.

He sold insurance for a living, and I was fairly confident he’d never been in a true high-stress situation before.

To his credit, the only sign of nerves I could detect was a slight twitch of his jaw. “Robert, you suppose? His message about the liquor in the TikTok live would make sense then. Think he’s out there trying to spook us? Perhaps holding a grudge for you kicking his teeth in?”

“It’s one possibility. Either way, just keep your wits about you.

I’d ease up on the drinking tonight. Try to keep the girls where you can see them, and for fuck’s sake, don’t let Lola take any more shots.

Best they all bed down. You and I will go around the cabin, ensure everything is locked, and pull all the blinds and curtains closed. ”

“Better safe than sorry, right?” Brian said. “In that case, let’s get everything sorted quickly.”

With a nod, I picked up the mattress on my own and directed Brian to grab the bedding. I didn’t need help with a full-size. I just needed a passable excuse to get him alone for a few minutes.

Rejoining the women on the main floor, we moved the coffee table out farther and set the mattress down in the center.

Between the two couches, the loveseat, the lounger, and the mattress, there would be enough room for the four of them to sleep comfortably.

I had no intention of staying here with Sera.

Brian would be able to keep an eye on the girls on his own just fine.

And the sounds in this cabin carried well enough away that if there were any disturbances, we’d likely hear it upstairs, despite the storm.

“I’ll grab a few more pillows and be back,” Brian said before heading downstairs as cover for what he was really doing, which was ensuring the doors and windows were secured. He returned a few minutes later, offering a subtle nod of his head.

The girls continued their conversation around the liquor table, not paying either of us guys any mind. Besides Lola, who was sitting on the couch she’d claimed earlier. A White Claw in one hand, the other beneath the blanket as she stared at me.

The woman had made multiple attempts to hit on me in the past, going as far as sending unsolicited videos on Snapchat. I’d eventually had to delete her on the app for her to get the message. But judging by the way she was biting her lip and looking at me right now, my guess was she hadn’t given up.

I turned my back and shook my head before I grabbed some kindling and firewood from the rack beside the fireplace. The added warmth would likely help the girls relax as well as provide some illumination till it died out. But by then, I expected all would be asleep.

As I brought the lighter to the kindling, I heard Lola call out from behind me. “Oh, that’s a great idea, James. You’re going to make it so nice and warm in here.” She laughed, slurring her words.

I glanced over a shoulder to see that she’d pulled the blanket higher on her lap.

Her legs spread wide beneath the fabric.

It was hard to make out what she was doing.

At the same time, it was no mystery. She was holding her shorts off to the side, as the fingers of her free hand worked up and down her slit.

Her eyes burning into me, drunk as they were.

Any other man would leap at the open invitation to fuck her.

Brian would be the first in line. Perhaps he would get lucky tonight after all.

Me, on the other hand? All I felt was disgust. Not only because of how pathetic I thought it was, but also because I wanted one woman and one woman only, and she was in the room with us.

I turned back towards the fire and spat into the flames, my repulsion so strong it needed some sort of release. “Right then, I should shower and get out of these clothes,” I said, gritting my teeth as I pushed up and made my way over to where Sera stood at the liquor table.

I had half a mind to call Lola out, but she was drunk. I could continue to ignore her advances just fine. It wasn’t worth causing dissention within the ranks. She’d sober up, and her hangover would be enough of a punishment tomorrow.

“Right, yes. Let’s get you into a nice, hot shower. Girls, we’ll be back in a bit!” Sera said, accepting my arm and picking up one of the candles.

I grabbed a candle of my own before looking to Brian. “Don’t wait up, and don’t let Lola drink anymore,” I commanded softly.

“Got it, mate.”