Page 56 of Nightshades

I stand in the doorway, shivering from the cold draft drifting in through the open window. The original frayed curtains sway and dance. Leaves trickle in, sliding onto the hardwood floor as if this is a ballet and I’m the spectator.

Roots have made their way through the window, veining across the wall, overtaking the ceiling with their long twigfingers, with small dark blue berries growing amongst the lengths.

“Qué carajo?”I whisper harshly to the empty room, wondering what the fuck is happening in my house.

Gripping the window, I push it down just as another cool breeze brushes my cheek, carrying a song that I’ve been hearing all day.

“Lula-lala-la-la-laa.”

What was that?

“Hello?” I peek my head out of the window, my curiosity getting the best of me. “Is someone there?” Glancing left and right, all I see is pitch black night.

The darkened shapes of the tree line come to life, playing tricks on my mind like a ventriloquist tugging the string to cause the shadows to move.

“Nothing is there,” I say to myself, swallowing the lump of unease building in my throat.

An owl hoots in the distance, a lonesome, eerie note carrying across the yard. A creak coming from the side of the house makes me peer to the left, another trick causing me to see what clearly isn’t there.

The roots are moving, stretching, becoming longer, and continuing to grow through the window. I rub my eyes, blaming exhaustion when it comes to the environment coming to life.

Pushing myself back inside, I clutch the lip of the window to close it. A few roots snap in half from the pressure, but the thicker ones don’t budge.

“Come. On.” I grunt, using all my weight and strength to close the window. “Fuck.” Stepping back, I place my hands on my hips and stare at the problem I can’t seem to solve.

Even being a detective, there are some things that don’t have solutions.

“I could get a knife and cut them. God, that’s going to take forever. And a ton of clean up. So much for my night off,” I grumble, lacing my hands and placing them on top of my head while blowing at a breath.

Groaning, I bend down and pick up the berries that have fallen off the roots, wondering if they are edible.

“Lula-lala-la-la-laaa.”

I freeze when the deep voice slithers down my spine. The gravel to the edge has goosebumps peppering over my flesh, my body’s natural way of telling me that I’m in danger.

“Lulaaa,” he breathes the end of my name, a haunted hiss mixing with the wind howling through the window. The floorboards creak under his weight when he takes a step forward, his shadow swallowing my own.

This can’t be real. This can’t be real. This can’t be real.

I chant over and over again in my head. The feeling of being watched lately comes to mind, and the same sensations overcome my body. The same sense of danger, the same yearning to know who is responsible for awakening the need for thrill.

A hot flush rolls over every inch of my body. From head to toe, I feel his presence, yet there’s a buzz of safety, security, and protection. Whoever this is, whoever has been following me, breaking into my home, even going as far as killing people, he doesn’t scare me.

“You don’t want to do this. I’m an officer with Cove Police Department and?—”

“—I know what you are. I knowwhoyou are.” His voice rumbles like the depths of an earthquake, sending tremors through my every bone. “I don’t care.”

“Killing a cop will only make this worse for you. You’ll never get out of prison.”

His shadow becomes bigger, towering over me as he takes a step forward, engulfing me in its sinful cloak.

“Do you think prison could keep me away from you?” A growl from him calls to me, my body reacting in ways that don’t make sense. “Do you think anyone could keep me away from you?” He takes another step forward, the warmth radiating from his body seeping into my back. “Do you think that anyone who came between us would live to see another day?”

I still can’t move. Fear immobilizes me, my brain unable to communicate with my body when I see the reflection of the intruder in the window.

He’s part of the unknown I can see. He’s massive, his head nearly touching the ceiling. His skin reminds me of leaves on a spring day.

He’s my favorite color and, for reasons beyond me, I want to know what he’d look like against me. I want to fall against him. I want him to catch me and wrap me in his oversized embrace.