Page 92 of The Curse of Redwood

“Did he say what the banishment ritual entailed?”

“I don’t know everything,” I answered. “But it has to be performed here at Redwood. It’s where the possession started, and it’s where it must end.”

Callum was risking so much to help me. I hoped I was worth all the trouble.

“And Philip will be set free?” Zeke asked.

I nodded. “Does that make you sad?”

“A bit.” He drew circles on my chest. “More than anything, it’s a relief. He has been in pain for so long.”

“Wait.” I lifted my head. “Has Philip been a ghost here this whole time?” Upsetting thoughts pushed into my head of Zeke and Philip together every night when I wasn’t here. Was that the real reason Zeke had pushed me away so often? So he could fuck me during the day and be with his ghost boyfriend at night?

“Unfurrow that brow,” Zeke said, tilting my chin up. “I know where your thoughts take you, and you’re mistaken. Philiphasbeen here since our deaths, yet not in the same way that I’m here right now.”

“Huh? I don’t understand.”

“Let me explain.” He shifted to a sitting position against the headboard and pulled me to his side. “Sometimes when a person dies, they don’t just become a spirit… they become something else entirely. The more violent the death, the more corrupted the soul becomes. You aren’t a human or a spirit at that point. You’re nothing but a manifestation of pure rage. Revenge against those who damned you is your only driving force.”

“Are you saying Philip died violently?”

“Yes.” Zeke moved his gaze to the ceiling. “His screams haunt me to this day.”

“You told me you were responsible for his death. How?”

“You’ll think me wicked once you know. It will be just as I deserve too, for I loathe myself every day because of it.” He brushed his fingers through my hair as a distant look appeared in his eyes. “We all have a dual nature. A monster lurking inside us. I’m a lot like Dr. Jekyll in a way, outwardly good…but sometimes shockingly evil.”

“Tell me.” I dreaded the answer but needed it too. It was the only way to move forward.

However, something strange happened after that. There was a slight pressure behind both my eyes followed by a tingling sensation.

“Carter?” Zeke’s voice sounded so far away, like I was underwater and he was on the surface calling out to me. Cold touched my cheeks. “Darling?”

My vision dimmed before going black.

And then I opened my eyes to a beautiful night sky.

“They say there’s a man in the moon,” Ezekiel said, as we strolled hand in hand along the narrow path. “I wonder if he’s watching us now.”

“Perhaps he’s a protector,” I responded, and then smiled as he stopped walking and pulled me to him.

“A protector of what?” he asked.

“Lovers strolling on moonlit paths?”

Ezekiel shared my smile and leaned closer to me. The lake stretched before us, the surface shining with light in some places and dark in others. Stars reflected on the water. It was much like life, I supposed, a balance of light and dark.

I closed the gap between our mouths. It had been too long since I’d kissed him.

“We mustn’t,” he said, breaking from my lips. “Not here. Not out in the open.”

“And who will see us?” I asked, putting my hands on his waist. “The man in the moon?”

“Philip,” he warned, shaking his head. “You know what they will do to us if they learn the truth. We cannot risk it.”

“Shall we go to the stables then?” I grinned when I saw his will slipping.

“Very well,” he said, grabbing my hand. “But we best make it quick.”