Page 148 of Evil Hearts

Chapter Three

W hen I roll over in my sleep, I gasp when I feel something warm on the other side. No one lives with me, I don’t have any pets, and no one has a key.

I jerk upright, scurrying out of bed and flicking on the lamp.

But the bed is empty.

My heart pounds as I look from corner to corner to find the person who was in bed with me. I know I felt someone. They were warm and definitely there. Could it have been a dream? If so, that’s the most vivid dream I’ve ever had.

Blinking a few times, I glance out the window and see it’s still dark out. I look at the clock next. I’ve only been sleeping for three hours. I run a hand through my hair and take a trip to the bathroom—since I’m awake, I may as well.

As I walk down the hall to the bathroom, I swear I feel someone watching me. I stop in the doorway of the bathroom and look over my shoulder, but all that’s there is the dark hallway, the faint glow of yellow light spilling out of my bedroom and into the hall.

I reach into the bathroom to flip on the light, do my business, wash my hands, and turn the light off as I walk out of the room to go back to bed. For my own peace of mind, I check round the side of my bed and under it. Nothing is there. Obviously it was just a dream, so I get back into bed, shut off the light, and go back to sleep. I shove my hands under my pillow, and that’s when I notice the mirror still there. It’s supposed to be there all night, so I leave it be, close my eyes and go back to sleep.

So pretty

So sweet

So mine.

I jerk away, my heart pounding again as I reach for the light. I look around my room, noting I’m still alone. Looking at the clock, I was asleep for only twenty minutes. What the fuck is going on? For the first time, fear crawls up my spine over what I did. I felt stupid about it, but now… what if I did something very wrong? I don’t know anything about otherworldly things. Demons. Ghosts. Who knows what else? What if it’s all real? What if I just attached some demonic being to myself and it’s going to feed off my soul for the rest of my days? What if it possesses me and destroys other people’s lives? Makes my friends hate me? Fuck, why didn’t I consider any of this before I did it?

“You’re being stupid, Ethan. This shit isn’t real.”

I huff an annoyed sound, shut off the light, and fall back into my bed.

“Ethan…”

The voice is like a breath of air right in my ear, and my heart pounds harder than it ever has before.

“So pretty…”

Fuck, fuck, fuck. This is real. It’s fucking real!

My breathing gets quicker, and I swear I feel something beside me this time. It’s there. I feel the heat and I heard it. I slowly lift my arm to reach for the lamp. I’ve never been afraid of the dark or ghosts, and I won’t start today—even if there is one here because I called for it.

“No!” the voice hisses and something grabs onto my arm. I yank my arm away and scramble out of bed, getting tangled in my sheets and fall to my hardwood floor with a loud bang. My hip aches and a sharp pain shoots up my back.

“Ah, fuck!” I cry out, scrambling toward the hallway.

“Light is bad,” the voice hisses.

“Who the fuck are you?!” I scream when my back hits the wall, my eyes frantically moving left and right even though the room is pitch black and I can’t see anything.

“I am yours,” it says, sounding like the leaves on a windy day.

“Mine? I don’t want you!”

“You called for me, sweet Ethan. With the spell.”

The spell… fuck. No. No!

“That wasn’t real!” I blink, hoping for my eyes to adjust to the darkness, but it’s no use. It’s too fucking dark over here on this side of the house.

Until a slight shadow moves across the ceiling, telling me a car is working its way down the road, and as it closes in, I make out the enormous shadow of something standing on the opposite side of my bed.

“No fucking way,” I breathe out.

The room goes dark again, and my chest aches as I pull in a breath. I can’t see a single thing in this room, but I feel that thing.

“There is no reason to fear me,” it says, closer than it was before. I kick my feet out, trying to get further away, but I’m already against the wall and there’s nowhere to go. “I will not harm you.”

“I don’t believe you!”

“Well, you better believe me,” it says, this time right in front of me. I squeeze my eyes shut, covering my face in my hands. “Because I am here to stay.”

I jump to my feet and dash out of my room, slamming into the wall across from my room and take the stairs two at a time. I grab my keys from the hook and bolt out the door and into my truck. Fumbling with my keys, I finally get it into the ignition, and once it’s in, I start the car and the tires squeal as I rush out of the driveway and slam on the pedal to get as far away from my house as I can.

“What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck!” I slam my hands on the wheel as I drive, my heart pounding so hard I think it may explode. I have no idea where I’m going or what I’m going to do. I can’t go to my friend’s house and tell them there’s a monster in my room because I summoned it. That’s insane and they’ll have me committed.

Fucking hell, what am I going to do?

I make my way down the winding roads, still frantic and freaking out about what the hell I’m supposed to do. Then I get an idea. I turn around in a dirt lot and race to the other end of the city, to the carnival. I saw their RVs set up in the back; I know they live there. Time works slowly as I make my way through the town. It takes much longer than it normally would even though I don’t pass even a single car on the road.

I park my car in the empty lot, then race through the small section of trees that opens up to the field where the carnival is. Only… it’s empty.

“No,” I mutter, patting myself down and realizing I left my phone at the house. Not that it’ll matter. The full moon is enough to see by out here, and it’s empty. They’re gone. All of them are gone. I spin around, scrubbing my hands down my face until I drop to the ground, fighting back tears. What the hell have I done?

Then the worst thing of all happens.

The voice is back.

“You cannot run from me, Ethan,” it whispers in my ear. “We are one now. You are mine. I am yours.”

“No,” I cry, shaking my head. “No, no, no.”

“Oh, yes.”

Something akin to a finger drags along my arm and I flinch but can’t find it in me to run anymore. Maybe I should just give in to it… see what it wants.

“You are more beautiful than I ever could have imagined,” it says.

I suck in a sharp breath. I’ve never been afraid of much of anything. Now won’t be any different. I drop my hands and get to my feet, looking around.

“Where are you?”

“Here,” it whispers to my left, and I look that way.

“Why can’t I see you?”

“Light is bad.”

I glance up at the bright moon, wondering if perhaps I can just spend the rest of my life in the light. Then maybe it’ll leave me be.