Ghostly (Darkly Devoted Book 1)

by Brooke Kennedy

  “Yeah!” some random girl exclaimed as she came to sit with us. She grabbed a nearby bottle and pushed the Ouija board off to the side. She put the bottle sideways on the surface and looked up at us. “Who goes first?”

  “Well, first we have to establish some rules,” Meredith said. “Pretty much, anything goes. You spin the bottle and have to spend seven minutes in the closet with whoever it lands on. Boy or girl. Simple as that. You do whatever while you are in there, and no one asks questions.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Celeste said. She reached for the bottle and twirled it.

  This is not happening, I thought.

  That bottle could land on anyone. I looked up at Ryder, who watched the bottle spin. He let out a sigh of relief when the bottle pointed at Brett.

  “Lucky me,” he said, grabbing Celeste by the hand and dragging her to the closet on the other side of the room.

  “This should be interesting,” Ryder said as he pushed the timer on his watch. “Countdown starts now.”

  We sat and talked while we waited for his watch to go off. I sat there awkwardly as my neighbor continued to stare at me and try to make some sort of telepathic connection.

  Meredith appointed herself as the one to go get couples out of the closet when their time was up.

  As the game continued, each person spun the bottle and spent time in the closet. I continued to be anxious. Even breathing deeply didn't help. I just sat there, worried about whether or not they would come out alive. I seemed to be the only one worried about it though. Everyone else was having a good time.

  They were clueless.

  “You okay?” Ryder asked and nudged me with his shoulder.

  “Yeah, I’m fine.” My eyes roamed around for something to take my mind away from all the bad things that could happen. “So, uh, who’s that?” I pointed to a random person nearby, hoping for conversation.

  “Who?”

  “That guy, over there. The one not dressed up.”

  He looked to where I pointed and frowned. “I don’t see anyone…”

  Meredith interrupted us and pushed the bottle towards me. “Your turn, Miss Addams.”

  My attention immediately turned to the game. The moment I’d dreaded was there. I let out a long breath and reached a shaky hand to the bottle. I paused and looked up at my friends. They watched me anxiously to see who it would land on. It felt as if the world was zeroing in on me.

  Ryder looked at me. “Go on.”

  “Here goes nothing,” I said, twirling the bottle and watching it spin.

  My heart raced as it started to slow down. I dreaded to see who it would land on. I watched it start to slow and then stop, pointing at Ryder. I felt my sharp intake of breath as it slowed and came to a stop. Yes.

  My neighbor cleared his throat, and I jumped in my seat.

  Suddenly, the bottle began to spin again, quicker that time, without anyone touching it. It was impossible, unless the ghosts had finally joined us. Fear trickled through my body at the thought. The Ouija board had worked, and they were coming after us. The bottle spun out of control, stopping suddenly and pointing to him instead.

  Crap.

  “Oh, girl.” Meredith giggled and grabbed my hand, jerking me to my feet.

  I glanced over at Ryder and saw the confusion and disappointment on his face. My eyes then went to the figure sitting beside him who hadn’t moved from his place on the couch.

  “Go on, Cade,” Celeste urged from the other side of the table.

  Cade. So, that was his name.

  My brain screamed at me to stop the game, but Meredith pushed me towards my neighbor as he stood up from the couch. I didn’t want to look like a complete idiot, so I tried to remain calm. They’d all think I was crazy if they thought I really saw things happening in the house; I was terrified that something bad would happen if I was out of the room. I didn’t want to go in there with him.

  Cade took my hand and led me toward the closet. He pushed his way through the crowd as if he was desperate to get to it.

  I stepped inside and heard him close the door behind us. He turned to me and laced my fingers with his. I tried to pull away from him. Too much could go wrong in there, and I wanted out.

  “Please don’t fight me,” he said in the darkness, his voice deep and alluring.

  “I don’t think this is a good idea. You know this house is—is—” I stammered and backed away from him until I bumped into the wall behind me.

  He continued to hold my hand and block my way to the door. I was trapped with him. There was no way I could run if I needed to.

  I felt him move closer to me. He leaned toward me, so he could whisper in my ear. “Haunted? Yeah, I know. Does it scare you for some reason?”

  My heart raced faster and threatened to beat out of my chest. “N—no.”

  “Are you sure?” he asked and traced a finger down my cheek slowly.

  “Positive.” My skin broke out in goose bumps. Something was there with us. Could he feel it too?

  “Then why are you shivering?”

  “I’m cold, that’s all,” I insisted. I pressed myself closer to the wall and away from him.

  He let go of my hand. “What do you think they do to pretty little girls who move in here?”

  Was he trying to scare the shit out of me?

  “They haven’t bothered me,” I lied.

  “Then what’s that bandage on your arm?” His hand touched it.

  I slapped his hand away just as I heard a scream erupt from the living room and then something slamming around. It was happening, everything I had feared.

  “I have to get out there,” I exclaimed and tried to move past him.

  He took a hold of my arms and pressed himself against me, so I couldn’t leave. “You’re safe in here with me, from whatever it is. Don’t worry about it.”

  “My friends are out there!” I pushed against him.

  “You barely know them, don’t claim them. They will be fine…probably. Besides, if this house isn’t haunted like you say, then you have nothing to worry about. Right?”

  I bit my lip and began to shake, unsure of what I needed to do to keep the others safe and to get him to leave me alone.

  “I’m not stupid, Briar. I know that you’ve figured out what’s going on here. I didn’t want to tell you because I wanted you to see it for yourself first. I have this…thing for you, ever since I saw you pull into the driveway. I didn’t want to scare you off with stories of ghosts.”

  The lights flickered on and off; the sound of electricity short circuiting echoed throughout the small space. I screamed and buried my head in his chest, surprising myself, but feeling oddly comfortable and safe there. His arms wrapped around me.

  “Shh, you’re safe with me. I know how this place operates. I lived here, remember?”

  The lights stopped flickering and left us in darkness again. He chuckled and trailed one of his hands up my body to one of my braids, giving it a sharp tug.

  The music stopped outside, but I could hear people talking and screaming about something I couldn’t understand. I was terrified. If something happened to someone, it would be all my fault.

  At the same time, I wanted answers. I had so many questions for Cade since he seemed to know about the house and had lived to tell the tale.

  My knees grew weak as he pulled me to him. My stomach twisted in knots, and I froze. In his arms, my pulse raced. It was a feeling I hadn’t felt in months. Excitement and lust. Once, it was my closest friend, but now I wanted nothing to do with it. I would do anything to prevent it. Yet, Cade intrigued me. A part of me yearned to be there with him. Just like it had that day in the basement. It made no sense.

  “It’s not the time or place for this right now,” I insisted and put my hands up to his chest to stop him from moving any closer.

  “Then maybe we should do what we came in here to do,” he said. The lights flickered back on for a second, long enough for me to see the devious smile on his face, befor
e going off again. “Are you really that scared?” He cupped my face with his hand and caressed my lips with his finger.

  “Yes,” I breathed.

  His lips brushed over mine softly as his hand let go of my braid and tangled in the hair near my head. The softness of his lips caught me off guard. In just that one quick moment, I was lost in the smell and taste of him. Nothing could have ever prepared me for that feeling. I was a goner. The world around us faded, and all I could think about was Cade. Everything was okay in his arms.

  He pushed his body against me, mouth greedily moving against my lips. His knee forced my legs apart and gave me somewhere to land when my feet gave out on me. I fell against him, and he moaned into my mouth. He deepened the kiss, and I could feel the cold metal of the barbell through his tongue, showing me he was nowhere near as innocent as he looked. It surprised me. His hand tracing downward to play against the hem of my dress as his mouth moved along my jaw line and down my neck, tracing his tongue along my collarbone as I whimpered underneath him.

  My hands reached up to steady myself as need washed over me. I grasped for his shirt, so I wouldn’t fall to the ground. Running my hands up his chest and into his hair, I wrapped my fingers into it. He kissed me rough and hard, greedily as if I were all his. His lips on mine were a wondrous thing, and I never wanted it to end. It was enchanting, enthralling, and terrifying. I shouldn’t have been enjoying it.

  Meredith’s voice broke through the atmosphere. “Briar, you won’t believe this!”

  She pushed the door open, but it slammed shut violently and muffled her words. I heard her grab the doorknob and twist, but it didn’t open.

  “Briar!” she exclaimed frantically from the other side and continued to try to open the door.

  Cade’s hands tightened on me, one in my hair and the other on my waist, so I couldn’t move. I couldn’t think with him so close and my body responding how he wanted. Somehow the small space was heating up; his cold fingers trailed along my skin and mingled with the warmth from my body. His hand caressed my leg, moving softly across my skin, and pushed the fabric of my dress higher. It felt so good.

  “Cade,” I groaned as his hand began to move up my thigh, fingers pressing into the side of my body. He moved his knee against me, clearing all fear and worries about ghosts and monsters from my brain and replacing them with the desperate need to lose myself in the hard body pressing against mine.

  I ran one of my hands down his chest, feeling the hard muscles working there as he grasped me. I stopped my hand at his pants and lifted his shirt enough to run my finger along the inside of his jeans. In the distance I could hear Meredith at the door, banging on it and trying to pry it open to let us out.

  Part of me screamed to stop and remember what was going on, but instead I grasped at Cade’s belt. Some otherworldly force seemed to help me undo it, helping me unbutton and unzip his pants so I could continue to tangle my other hand in his hair. I pushed the front of his jeans downward and played my finger along the soft fabric of his boxers. I needed him. I wanted him. I reveled in it.

  “Shit, Briar,” he whispered into my neck. His breath was cold as it ran over me.

  My father’s voice was the only thing to snap me out of the spell I was in.

  “What is going on here?”

  Cade let go of me instantly and stepped away. He muttered obscenities as the door of the closet flew open.

  My father flipped on the lights and showered my sensitive pupils in the blinding florescent.

  “I am very disappointed in you.”

  That’s it? I thought he would be more upset than that to find me in a room alone with a boy. I forced my eyes open and put my hand up to shield some of the light. Cade was gone. Thank goodness. But where the hell did he go?

  “I said I’m disappointed in you,” he repeated. He crossed his arms and glared at me from the doorway.

  I took a few deep breaths to steady myself. “I—uh—I’m sorry, Dad.”

  “I thought you were past this, Briar. You don’t even know how angry I am right now.”

  “I have an idea.” I brushed past him and into the living room, straightening my clothes as I went.

  The room was a mess, as if a tornado had come through. No one was in sight; they had all apparently fled from the scene and left me to deal with it. I had no idea what had happened and really I hated to know.

  “You are going to clean up this mess and then go to your room, do you understand me? You’re not having anyone else over if you can’t be the mature adult that you claim to be. You might as well cancel any plans you had for Halloween.”

  “Dad!”

  “Don’t even try to change my mind. This is outrageous.” He kicked the Ouija board and stomped off in the other direction.

  I didn’t move until I heard his bedroom door slam. My legs gave out underneath me as the reality of the night set in. What a dangerous situation I had put myself in by going into that closet. What a dangerous situation I had put everyone else in by inviting them into the house. I remembered the screaming and yelling. Tears rose up in my eyes and ran down my cheeks as I crumpled to the floor.

  Chapter Eight

  I locked my bedroom door and went over to where I’d hidden a pile of possible necessities, ones I had tried so hard not to use. Pushing my closet door open, I rummaged through my shit until I found my old backpack. It was time. I was empty and it was time to do what I knew I had to. There were no other choices left. My one last safe place was being taken from me.

  There was nothing left.

  “No…” I whimpered.

  The hands that reached into the bag and retrieved a long rope weren’t mine.

  “Briar…” someone whispered from far away.

  The rope was scratchy as I wrapped it around my throat.

  Something cold grabbed me and pulled me from my nightmare.

  I screamed.

  My eyes flew open as I was yanked from the nightmare. Cade stood over me with a serious look playing over his face. His hand covered my mouth, encouraging me to be quiet.

  “Don’t scream again.”

  I grabbed his hand and tried to pry it from my face, so I could breathe. My heart raced in my chest so hard it was painful.

  That was it. He’s going to kill me.

  “I’m not going to hurt you,” he said and reached for my hands to stop me from attacking him. He crawled up on top of me and placed his knees on either side of my waist. His free hand grabbed my hands and moved them over my head, pressing them to the pillow.

  I continued to struggle under him, trying to buck him off me as I raised my hips off the bed, desperately trying to get away from him so I could scream. Run. Get away.

  “Can you please stop screaming? You were having a nightmare.” He leaned down and moved his hand enough to kiss me, swallowing my screams down his throat. He pulled back from me and put his hand back over my mouth. He laughed. “Are you done?”

  I stopped struggling for a minute and looked up at him. His mouth twisted into a big boyish smile as he gazed down at me and laughed. This isn’t funny. I furrowed my eyebrows and reminded myself that I just woke up from a dream. Maybe I was just blaming him for feelings the dream had surfaced.

  I nodded.

  He removed his hand from my mouth. “If I wanted to kill you, I would have already.”

  “You’re insane.”

  “You have no idea.” He laughed and then grew serious again. “I wanted to talk to you.”

  “Obviously, now get off me.”

  He obliged and sat back on the bed beside me.

  “Do you want to listen to some music or something?” Might be less awkward.

  “Sure.”

  He stood up from the bed and went over to where my phone sat on the desk. After pushing a few buttons, I heard the rough voice of Andy Biersack of Black Veil Brides. I loved him. As if he knew that, Cade smiled at me.

  “You like them too?”

  “Yeah, they’re awesome. Just rec
ently discovered them,” he said and returned to sit beside me. He pulled his legs up to him and crossed them.

  “Where have you been for the last few years? They have been around.”

  “Just got into some new music recently. It’s like I’m a whole new person now.”

  “Is that so?” I asked.

  Cade reached out to take one of my hands. I didn’t stop him.

  “Where did you go last night? When we were in the closet?” I asked. I hated being so paranoid but things had been so weird lately.

  “I know this house very well.” He looked up from our hands to my eyes. “There are all sorts of nooks and crannies that no one knows about. That’s really how I got into your basement. I don’t really have a key. That was the one to my house.”

  “Maybe you can show me about those secret entrances and exits sometimes.”

  “Um, probably not.”

  “Why not?” I jerked my hand from his.

  “Because this house can be dangerous.” He brushed my leg with his hand, pushing the fabric of my oversized shirt up. I gasped at the coldness of his touch and remembered our time in the closet. I wanted him automatically, but he frowned.

  “Hey, what was that on your leg?” His voice was worried, which surprised me.

  “Nothing,” I spat and pushed down my shirt.

  I knew exactly what he had seen, my battle scars, and I didn’t want him to see them again. They were my secret and no one in town knew about them so far. I wasn’t like that anymore. At least, I was trying hard not to be. Sometimes I missed it though. Missed having a way to get rid of the pain.

  “It’s not nothing,” he insisted and grabbed for my leg again. “When did you do that?”

  I moved away from him and wrapped my arms around myself. “I’m not telling you anything.”

  “I know what those are, Briar, I’m not stupid.”

  “You could never understand,” I insisted.

  “I could, if you would tell me.”

  I shook my head. “No way. I don’t even know you, and still you come up in this house and try to have things your way.”