Page 34 of Ghosts of Halloween

“But you’re dead!” I blurt out, my voice pleading. Begging them to make sense of it for me.

He takes a step to the side, and now, there’s an opening. Silas still looks like a prowling predator, his position braced for attack. He doesn’t say anything, only laughs, and a second later, he launches himself at me.

I don’t wait for him to reach me. I burst out through the door, brushing against Caden, chased by his whoop of triumph.

“Jack, she’s running!” he calls, following me, his heavy footsteps thudding behind me.

Jack.Of course, Jack is the one I ran from first. I dash ahead, picking the path to the stairs, knowing I can’t let myself get cornered. The last I saw, he was upstairs. Where is he?

Caden’s right behind me, his breath and steps a steady threat, and I run up the stairs, panicking. I’ll have to find a room to lock myself in, and even as I make this frantic plan, I can’t shake the fresh, terrifying memory of Jack gliding to me through the air.

What if he can go through walls?

But Caden’s on my heels, and I don’t have time to think. I tear through the upstairs landing and dive for a door at the end of the hallway. It’s ajar and still on its hinges. I run inside, slam it closed, and lean back against it with a sob.

A second later, someone pounds on the door so hard, it jumps against my back with every hit, and I close my eyes, tears streaming down my face.

“You got me good and hard, little bird,” comes Caden’s raspy voice. “The harder you make me fight for this, the better it’ll be.”

I shake my head, my body thrumming in rhythm with his every word, the terror feeling like a wild thrill. Blood rushes in my ears, my palm is sweaty, my chest tight, and I almost can’t stand it. The fear is like a vicious snake in my gut, slithering and biting, and I just want this to be over. It’s too much.

I wish he would catch me already.

Caden pounds on the door again, and I still can’t cope. He’s supposed to be dead! How is this real? Is it real? Am I hallucinating from the pills?

Suddenly, there is a pair of hands on my throat, wrapping around me from behind. I jolt, trying to get free, but they hold me good and tight, cutting off my air.

The door is still at my back, as solid as ever. As I thrash and fight, trying to break free, I also grapple with the realization that Caden’s hands…

Got methroughthe door.

“Ready to give up, baby girl?” he asks, his voice muffled even as his hands strangle me, and I pinch his palm as hard as I can, his skin warm and alive under my fingers.

Caden curses and loosens his grip just enough for me to shake him off. I stumble further into the room, frantically looking for a place to hide, taking in the bare walls, a broken bed frame without a mattress, and a window with jagged bits of the pane sticking out.

No closet, no hiding place, no weapons.

I turn around, thrilling terror buzzing through my body. I get ready to face him. To fight him. To give in.

As the door crashes into the wall, Caden’s dark silhouette filling the doorframe, another pair of arms wraps around my chest from behind. I breathe in Jack’s scent.

“Dibs,” he says, his voice triumphant.

19

Harlow

I shriek and struggle against him. Caden enters the room, leaving the door free, and I fight Jack, groaning with effort. His hands on me are tight, but his grip doesn’t hurt. And he’shard.His groin presses into my ass, and as I struggle, shifting against him, he makes a low moan when I press into him.

He’s distracted.

So I catch my balance, raise my foot, and drop it down hard on top of his.

Jack’s moan turns into a grunt, and I shoot out of his loosened hold, making for the door. I don’t make it far.

Caden grips a fistful of my hair, and I yelp, falling back. He puts his arm around me, and we struggle. I’m in full survival mode, biting, screaming, and thrashing, and he just laughs, holding me without effort.

“Such a good little slut you are,” he grunts in my ear. “Making me so fucking hard.”

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