Happily Never After
Page 21
“George, what’s happened?”
He was about to cry. In a sad, desperate whisper he said my name, “Quinn.”
What made it so unbelievable was I heard him with my ears, not just in my head.
I was about to ask him more when the front door opened and Jason walked in laughing. Before I could run up to him and throw my arms around him, I saw who he was laughing with.
It was me.
Only it wasn’t.
The girl with Jason looked like me, but had such a look of happiness and love I felt envious of her. Her hair was a little shorter than mine and layered. She even wore makeup.
I watched, unable to move a muscle as Jason bent down and kissed her passionately. It stole my breath away. Not because I knew what his kisses felt like. It stole my breath away because somehow I knew it went horribly wrong in the cemetery that night.
“Jason,” I squeaked.
He didn’t answer or even turn in my direction so I tried again louder.
“Jason!”
Still nothing.
I walked over and laid my hand on his arm but it didn’t touch him. It passed through him as if he wasn’t even there.
I didn’t have a chance to gather my frayed thoughts. The girl who was not me turned around and lifted her lip in a sneer. Then, she winked at me and laid a newspaper on the table in the foyer.
On the front page was a picture of Jason and me, smiling for the cameras in front of a restaurant. The headline read, “Jason Preston falls for local girl.” My head pounded from trying to catch up with what was going on until I saw the date.
If I was looking at today’s paper, it had been sixteen days since my eighteenth birthday.
Finally, my thoughts caught up and the horrible truth slammed into me.
It hadn’t worked and, to make matters worse, Catherine had taken over my body. I went to chase after them as they walked holding hands into the kitchen.
George came up beside me and I felt his hand on my arm holding me back as real and solid as a living person.
“Let me go. I have to warn him.”
George shook his head with a sad smile. “You can’t. You’re one of us now.”
Then, the sick realization of what happened settled over me, oily and dirty. I was a ghost, a thin wisp of who I used to be. Catherine had found a way to inhabit my body, which meant it was possible. As quickly as that thought struck home, however, stubborn determination replaced it. She'd stolen my body, my home and most of all, the man I loved. I couldn't stand the thought of losing Jason so soon after I'd found him. I had to find a way to get him back, to get it all back. Catherine unjustly held it for now, but not forever. I was not going to let her win. Someday, somehow, I would find a way to get my life back, and when I did, Catherine would be history.
Literally.
The End
Coming soon!
A Strange There After
Book 2 of the Savannah Shadows Series
About the Author
Missy Fleming lives in beautiful Bozeman, Montana where her love of being outdoors often conflicts with her love of writing. Luckily, winter makes it a little easier. Missy contributes to multiple writing sites and Happily Never After is her first published novel in the United States. She is blessedly single, dedicating her affections to travel, writing, reading, family and her six year old Bichon Frise, Jack.
Also Available
From Melange Books
Ruhk's Rising
Phoenix Elite, Book Two
by Melissa Starr
Elora's days at Marlind Prep are anything but safe or boring. She receives news of her BFF's death not long after she disappears and is certain the Phoenix Elite are responsible. While searching for stability, Elora is stripped of her strength and sanity by the ancient Ruhk, Isaac, who continues to infiltrate her mind. Adding icing to the cake, she finds herself at odds with her mate/advisor, Ezra, leaving her vulnerable to the new guy, who just happens to find her on the verge of a nervous breakdown. What dangers await Elora among her own in RUHK'S RISING?
Also Available
From Melange Books
McKinley's Jewel
by Marissa St. James
Bonnie-Jean Russell, personal assistant to the current laird of McKinley clan, can't find her boss. When she discovers his likeness in an ancestor's portrait she has to find a way to bring him back to the present. Standing in her way is the tale of a missing pouch of gemstones...a treasure everyone else wants.
Also Available
From Melange Books
Beyond the Cell
by Sara Tribble
Sixteen-year-old Sonata Wilde is living in Hell.
Not literally Hell, more like a prison stashed away in the mountains known as The Cell. All mythical beings were banished to live here nine years ago, segregated from the humans. Being trapped in captivity is breaking her down and the temptation of escaping grows stronger, regardless of what it might cost her.
No one has ever made it out of The Cell, not with the extreme voltage on the wires and constant guards on patrol. It's damn near impossible, minus one loophole. Sonata has a plan ready to set in motion, along with help standing by to make sure it all goes accordingly. The taste of freedom is within her grasp and she's ready to embrace it once again.
Also Available
From Melange Books
Waiting for Natalie
by Dan Spanton
Natalie Bouchard, a high school student from Portland, Maine, becomes convinced that her younger brother didn't drown in an accident years before, but was kidnapped and taken to Colombia. Without telling her parents, she flies to the Colombian capitol city of Bogotá, accompanied by a nineteen year old friend, Caleb Ferguson. A search of city streets and orphanages ends in disappointment. Finally, as her grandfather arrives to take her home, she gets a lead. Her little brother may have been taken by illegal emerald miners to a highly dangerous area north of Bogotá.