Paranormally Yours: A Boxed Set

by Alisha Basso

  He slowly turned around and started back toward the museum. He passed it and continued on to the apartment building where he knew the two women lived. Which apartment was hers? He leapt up to the branches of a tree that grew beside the building so he would have a good view of the balconies on this side. Most of the sliding glass doors had the curtains closed, but a few were still open to his view. He couldn’t believe his luck. There, on the third floor, was a door with the curtains pulled back. Through the glass, he could see Tessa carry a cup of tea into the living room and sit down on the sofa. She clicked a remote and he could see the flickering lights of the television. He felt like a creepy stalker hanging around in a tree, watching a woman through the door. But he couldn’t help himself. He was a vampire after all, so wasn’t he supposed to be creepy? Suddenly, he realized how pathetic this really was and he jumped down from the tree. He felt some ghost of shame, something that made him uncomfortable but only in a vague way. Nik gave one last glance toward the third floor then started toward home.

  ***

  The next night, Tessa and Jan worked until well after dark. Tessa was tired, but also excited about what they planned to do. Soon, the two of them were the only ones left in the building, and Tessa grinned as Jan came into her office.

  “Are you ready to look things over?” asked Tessa.

  “I’m still not sure about this,” said Jan, frowning. “What if it backfires on us?”

  “Jan, I’ve worked with every one of these artifacts, and nothing has happened yet. I just want to see if you get any odd feelings from them. They make me a little uncomfortable, but there’s nothing that I can put my finger on that causes that. I thought you might have some insight on that. These artifacts could be the most interesting exhibit we’ve ever had if we can prove there’s some validity to the supernatural claims.”

  “Hey, my exhibit is the most interesting!” said Jan with a wide grin.

  “Well, we can share in the glory. Anyway, let’s get started, okay?”

  The two women walked over to the case where Tessa kept the artifacts. Tessa pulled out a key and unlocked the case. Jan had an uneasy look on her face, but Tessa tried to ignore it so she wouldn’t feel guilty about dragging her friend into this.

  “Are you ready?” asked Tessa.

  “I guess so,” said Jan, doubtfully.

  But Jan was a good sport and helped Tessa pull out the assorted strange objects and set them on the large table. Jan looked apprehensively at the collection. She reached out and tentatively touched a blue sphere about the size of a baseball.

  “What’s this supposed to be?” she asked.

  “First, tell me what you feel when you touch it. Let’s see if it’s anywhere close to what the object is supposed to be.”

  Jan grasped the orb firmly in her hand and closed her eyes. Tessa watched her intently, trying to catch any expression that would give her a clue about what Jan was feeling. After about thirty seconds, Jan’s eyes sprung open and she dropped the sphere. Tessa grabbed it before it rolled off the table and set it back on its silver pedestal.

  “What’s wrong?” asked Tessa.

  “You know what’s wrong. I can’t believe you let me touch that thing.”

  “Tell me what you felt. And may I remind you that you were the one who chose to start with that one?”

  Jan glared at her and said, “I felt defiled! The thing felt dirty…wrong somehow.”

  “Okay, I guess you should feel that way. This artifact is reputed to be a Goblin Ball. Goblins were supposed to be nasty creatures with serious carnal appetites. My research found that goblins would use one of these to hypnotize women and compel them to do unspeakable things with them.”

  Jan shuddered. “That’s horrible. Only, there are no such creatures as goblins. Right? Right, Tessa?”

  “Jan, I never thought there was anything supernatural in the world, but since I’ve been researching these artifacts, I’m not so sure. Maybe it wasn’t really goblins that used the artifact. Maybe it really had power, but it was just regular men that used it, and maybe the rumors just got exaggerated,” said Tessa.

  Jan looked at Tessa uneasily. “Maybe we should just stop right now.”

  “No, come on, Jan. That was the worst of the artifacts. The rest are much milder, I promise. Here, hold this love spell amulet that I told you about, and tell me what you think.”

  Jan reluctantly took the relic and closed her fingers over it. After a minute, she smiled and opened her hand, letting the amulet slide through her fingers and onto the table.

  “Well?” said Tessa.

  “There has been a lot of mischief done with this amulet. But nothing serious. Just love spells being directed at the wrong people, things like that. It’s all kind of amusing.”

  Tessa stared at Jan wide-eyed. “You could tell all that by just holding the amulet? I thought you just had feelings. That was more than just feelings!”

  Jan said, “I don’t know how to explain this. Some things I touch, well, I just get kind of a sense from them. Like the goblin ball. It felt repulsive to me, but I didn’t know anything specific. But the amulet…I could see in my mind some of the many times it was used and what happened. It seems the love spells almost always backfired on the one using the amulet.”

  Tessa was fascinated. “Here, try this one.”

  Jan took the carved wooden cat from Tessa and held it tightly in her hand. A look of serenity came over her features. She smiled, but this time it wasn’t in amusement.

  “What?” asked Tessa.

  “It’s for protection. This cat was carved specifically, and a spell was cast to protect the owner of the statue. This one is powerful. It exudes goodness and peace. In fact, this one is going to be hard to leave now that I’ve touched it.”

  Tessa shook her head. “I had no idea you were sensitive like this. Why didn’t you tell me, Jan?”

  “Like I said before, I thought you would think I was crazy. I didn’t want you to be uncomfortable around me. Our friendship means too much to me, Tessa.”

  “Jan, you should be the one cataloguing and researching this stuff.”

  Jan sighed. “No way. I’m way too sensitive. It would drain me to do this day after day. You’re the right one for the job. You feel just enough to know these things are real. And you’ve known all along they really had power, haven’t you?”

  “Sort of. I mean, I felt things, but I wasn’t sure if it was just my imagination. I guess it wasn’t.”

  “I think this collection would make a fascinating display. But you definitely need to make sure this stuff is under glass. No one should be able to touch the artifacts…just in case.”

  “Hey, I have a new one that just came in. I haven’t even looked at it yet. The museum bought it from a man who found it on some island. The curator said he was pretty desperate to sell it and get it out of his possession. He didn’t really say what it was, only that I should research and catalogue it as soon as possible.”

  Tessa went to a wooden box in the corner and lifted the lid. She pulled out a beautifully ornate jar made of a blue glass that was not opaque, but not quite transparent. She brought it to the table and set it down in front of Jan.

  “What do you think?” asked Tessa.

  Both women eyed the jar. Suddenly, a light flashed briefly inside. The two friends looked at each other.

  “You saw that, right?” asked Jan.

  “I did. Let’s see if it does it again.”

  The two women stared at the jar for about ten minutes, but the light didn’t appear again. Tessa said, “Pick it up and see what you feel.”

  Jan hesitated a moment, but then she wrapped both hands around the jar and closed her eyes. Suddenly, she jerked her hands back and stood up quickly, causing her chair to fall backwards. Her eyes were wide with fright and she was shaking.

  “Jan, what’s wrong?” asked Tessa, concern in her voice.

  “It’s alive,” Jan whispered.

  Chapter Five


  Tessa looked at her friend in astonishment, not comprehending her meaning. But whatever Jan had felt, it had scared her tremendously. Jan’s wide, frightened eyes and her trembling lips sent shivers of fear down Tessa’s spine.

  “Jan, are you okay?”

  “I-I’m not sure. Give me a minute, please.”

  Jan eyed the bottle with both horror and fascination. She put a tentative hand forward, almost, but not quite, touching the bottle. Both women saw the little flash of light once again, and they both stepped back.

  “What’s this supposed to be, Tessa?” asked Jan, her voice filled with dread.

  “I’m not sure,” Tessa admitted.

  “What do you mean, you’re not sure? Don’t you have a background for everything that comes in here?”

  “Mostly. But when the man brought this one in, he seemed anxious to get rid of it, according to the curator. The price he demanded actually seemed a little low, as if he cared more about getting it out of his possession than making a lot of money off of it. Of course, the curator was ecstatic about getting something like this at such a low price. The man wouldn’t tell him what it was or where he got it, though. He told the curator that he was better off not knowing, but that if he had to know, he was going to have to figure it out for himself. I haven’t had a chance to research it or even look at it for that matter. I just took it out of the box and put it aside to study later. What did you mean when you said it was alive?”

  “Just what I said. Whatever is in that bottle is alive.”

  Tessa frowned. “Alive as in some kind of animal or bug?”

  “No, nothing like that. Something…different.”

  “Can’t you explain what you mean?” asked Tessa.

  “It’s like…I don’t know, something unearthly,” Jan said a little hesitantly.

  “Now you’re scaring me,” said Tessa.

  “Maybe we should be scared. Although, I don’t get a feeling of evil or even animosity from the bottle. It’s something else. Maybe sadness, loneliness, or despair.”

  “That’s still pretty freaky. Do you want to touch it again?”

  Jan shook her head. “I don’t think so. It’s not a good feeling. Just put it away, okay?”

  Tessa gingerly picked up the bottle and carried it over to the shelf where the other artifacts had been sitting. When she walked back over to where Jan was now sitting at the table, she took her friend’s hand.

  “Are you going to be okay?” she asked.

  “Sure, I’m fine. But I would rather not look at any more artifacts if you don’t mind. I’m just not up to any more of that tonight.”

  Tessa nodded. “Of course. I don’t think I want to, either. I’m going to put these all back, and then we’ll call it a night. No, I don’t want you to help me. Just sit there and rest while I do this.”

  After Tessa had replaced all the relics, she locked everything up for the night, and the two women left the building. As they were walking toward their apartments, Tessa felt a strange prickling at the back of her neck. She turned and looked in every direction, but she didn’t see anything.

  “What’s wrong?” asked Jan.

  “I don’t know. I’ve got the strangest feeling we’re being watched.”

  “Really? I don’t feel anything.”

  Tessa smiled a little nervously. “Then I guess I have nothing to worry about. After all, you’re the sensitive one. If you don’t feel anything out of the ordinary, then I must still be a little spooked by what happened tonight. I’m just being silly.”

  “That’s probably all it is,” said Jan.

  ***

  Nikolas watched the two women from the shadows. He knew Tessa had felt his presence. How could she not when he felt so connected to her? He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that she accepted the strange feeling as just nerves. Nik wondered what had happened tonight that made her so anxious. He felt protective toward her, and at the same time, he wanted to sink his fangs into her and take her blood. The two emotions warred with each other, and he had a hard time understanding his feelings. He was a vampire…it made sense that he wanted to drink her blood. But what was this feeling he had that he would defend her to the death? It made his head hurt to try to figure it all out.

  Nik headed toward his house, his heightened senses taking in the scents and sounds of the night. If he could just accept what he was and be done with it, he could always be filled with the glorious euphoria of the scent and taste of human blood. He could enjoy the hunt with total abandon and savor the kill. But there was still too much humanity left in him to allow himself to be free from the memories of his soul and the conscience that went with it. He could always sate himself with a blood prostitute, but part of the thrill was the fear, and the prostitutes no longer had fear. They were addicted to the feeling of ecstasy that went along with being bitten, but they weren’t afraid of their clients. The blood tasted so much better when fear was present, the salty taste mixed with something akin to spices. And the total bliss that went along with the taste was incomparable! He shook his head, trying to stop the way his mind was going. If he wasn’t careful, he would let himself go completely, and then there would be no hope.

  Nik unlocked the back door, which was closest to the stairs leading down to the basement. He couldn’t bring himself to sleep in a coffin, so he had emptied his freezer and used it to sleep the day away. He looked at the crucifix he had hung on the wall down here, one thing from his human life he still clung to. Gazing at the cross, he could almost pretend God still heard his prayers. He heard a voice behind him.

  “Hello, Nikolas.”

  He whirled around at the sound of the familiar voice, its sultry tones unmistakable. “Marianna!”

  “Surprised to see me?” she purred, running her hand from his shoulder to his hand.

  Nik pulled away from her grasp. “What are you doing here?”

  “I thought we could have a little fun together. You know, do a little hunting.”

  “I don’t hunt, Marianna,” he said. He was sure she could hear the strain in his voice.

  “But you want to. I can feel it. You remind me of a tiger, ready to spring at any moment given the right motivation. Come on, Nikolas. Don’t you want to stalk our prey, then feel their terror and taste the fear in their blood? Then, when the kill is over, you and I can find something else fun to do.”

  God help him, he was tempted. The look in her eyes, almost feral, made his blood heat up. He felt his mouth water as he imagined the two of them stalking their quarry, playing with them, and finally sinking fangs deep into their throats. Maybe they would go after two, so each of them would have a victim. Or they could focus on one, and then when it was time to bite, they could each take a side of the neck. His felt his jeans tighten as his body betrayed his feelings. He thought of what would happen afterwards when he and Marianna had drunk their fill. He would have been lost if a certain dark-haired woman hadn’t intruded into his thoughts.

  Sensing that she was about to lose him, Marianna stepped forward until her body was pressed against his. Her arms went around his waist, trailing up and down his back. “Come on, Nikolas, it will be the night of your life. There will be no going back, no worrying about that pesky little soul you were so concerned about. You will be free, Nikolas, free from everything you think binds you now.”

  With a roar, he extracted himself from her embrace. “No, this will not happen, Marianna! You did this to me. You disgust me!”

  “I did you a favor, Nikolas, if you would just accept it.”

  “What you did was turn me into a monster. If it takes everything I have, if it takes my whole life, I will get my soul back.”

  Marianna smirked. “Good luck with that. You’ll never find it. Never.”

  “I will find it, Marianna. I have resources.”

  “Resources?” she scoffed. “There are some secrets you’ll never unearth. I don’t even know where it is, Nikolas. I just know it’s somewhere out of this realm. Why don’t you jus
t accept what you are and be free? You’ll be happier for it. If you had done that already, you would be thanking me for giving you this life full of untold pleasures. Instead, you whine about your soul and how terrible this life is.”

  Nik’s face filled with fury. “Marianna, if you don’t leave right now, I’ll kill you!”

  Marianna laughed. “Sure you will, Nikolas. I’ll check back with you when you’ve had time to think about it. But don’t wait too long. I’ll run out of patience and you’ll be on your own.”

  “I am on my own. Now leave!”

  Marianna laughed again and turned to go. As the vampire walked out, Nikolas felt his resolve waver for just a moment. But the thoughts of Tessa helped him rein in his need to be free from the fetters of his conscience. He would be free…but he would be free from this life he was living. He would get his soul back if he had to go to the ends of the world to find it.

  Shaking, Nikolas opened up the freezer. It was a little early; dawn wouldn’t break for a few hours, but he knew if he didn’t go ahead and sleep, he might do something he would regret later. He had already killed, but he didn’t intend for that to happen again. His thoughts turned to Tessa, and he took some comfort in the images his mind was forming. He didn’t know why he was drawn to her, why he wanted her so badly. It was as if she might be his salvation. Where that thought came from, he didn’t know, but it felt right. Could she really help him? If so, how? A part of him knew he should stay away from her, that he could be dangerous to her, but his heart told him otherwise. What was the difference between his heart and his soul? How could he feel this way without the one thing that made him human…the thing that separated him from the animals?