Page 21 of The Curse of Redwood
“I’m yours.” He slid his hand to the crotch of my trousers. “Are you mine?”
“Very much so.”
He backed me up against the wall and kissed me. I had never felt so at peace. Ezekiel gripped the side of my neck as our mouths pressed together again and again. For a split second, the scenery changed, going from bright sunlight back to night. Someone yelled in the darkness, begging for mercy. Then I was back by the stable, kissing Ezekiel. It was like a weird dream glitch.
Suddenly, I couldn’t breathe. It felt like someone had their hand around my throat. I shot up in bed, coughing and grabbing at my neck. The pressure lifted and I sucked in a deep breath, staring around the room with blurry vision and trying to make sense of my surroundings.
It was morning.
On shaky legs, I treaded to the bathroom and splashed water on my face. That had been one hell of a weird dream. The sensation of being choked had felt so real. I looked at my reflection in the mirror. Water dripped from the ends of my strawberry blond hair and my green eyes had a wild look to them.
And then I saw red marks on my neck.
I dove toward the mirror to get a closer look. Though faint, I definitely saw them. In disbelief, I lifted a shaking hand and lined up my fingers on the four marks. They fit perfectly.
I had talked in my sleep and even slept-walked a few times, but I’d never freaking choked myself before. I braced my arms on the sink and took several deep breaths. Before I could scare myself, I decided it was best to write it off as my anxiety being wound up. Some people scratched themselves and pulled their hair out when stressed, right? Choking was maybe a bit extreme, but it was the only explanation I could think of.
Whatever the reason, I doubted it would happen again.
Chapter Five
The last week of August was cooler than average. The days were warm, but the nights held quite the chill. I was thankful I’d worn my hoodie that night as I snuck past the iron gate and slipped onto the Redwood property.
The place was secluded. No other houses were in seeing distance, and the road leading to the mansion was more like a super long private driveway. But I still liked to hide my car just in case anyone came snooping around. The cops would sometimes check the place out if they received a call about anyone traveling the road.
As I approached the mansion, nerves swirled in the pit of my stomach. Any normal person would’ve learned not to meddle by now.
But I’d never been normal.
“Secrets lie within these walls. Many sad. Others terrifying.”
Z’s statement had made me even more curious. I had read about some of those terrifying secrets, but I wanted to know more. And preferably from the source itself: the ghosts who haunted the estate.
At the front door, I checked the handle. Like last time, it was locked. I lightly knocked on the wood, then knocked again a little harder.
“Hello?” I called out. “It’s Carter, your friendly neighborhood human.” A loud thump sounded from the other side, sending me faltering backward in surprise. “Is that you, Z?”
No answer.
I waited a moment longer before leaving the porch and heading around the house. A dark shape flitted ahead of me. Was it the little boy? Hearing a faint giggle, I took off after it. I didn’t see anything once I reached the back patio, though. No silhouettes, glimmers, or transparent bodies. No ghost children.
“I won’t hurt you,” I said, feeling ten kinds of silly. They were ghosts. There was very little I could do to hurtthem, yet they could hurtmewith no problem. But still. I didn’t want them to be afraid of me.
I approached the patio doors and peered through the glass. I couldn’t see much on the other side other than what looked like a table and some cabinets. I wiped at the dirty glass before putting my face against it again. A pale face suddenly appeared. I nearly shit myself as I screeched and fell backward on my ass.
The door swung open, and Z stepped outside.
“What on God’s green earth are you doing, Carter?”
“Um.” I stood up and dusted off my butt. “Coming to see you?”
“Why? I thought I made it perfectly clear that—”
“That you don’t want me here,” I interjected, annoyed. “Yeah, I remember.”
Z came closer, bringing a small gust of cold air with him. “Then why are you standing before me right now? Why didn’t you listen?”
“Because I wanted to see you,” I answered, knowing how pathetic it sounded. But it was the truth. Unraveling the mystery of Redwood intrigued me, but the handsome ghost currently glaring at me intrigued me the most.
