Page 22 of Dusk Macabre

“You’re the closest thing to a living, breathing wrecking ball I’ve ever come across.” He stared at me. “I should just put you out of your misery.”

Before I could move, he was directly in front of me and my chin was in his hands. My heart tripped over itself as his irises changed color, rotating between brown, red, blue, and back to brown.

“How did you do that? Are those contact lenses?” I stared at him and then blinked. His eyes stayed an amber brown.

He didn’t answer me. “What is it you are looking for?”

“Something very precious. I’ve been searching for it for a long time.” He didn’t release me, and it took me a moment before I wrenched myself away.

“Mm...,” he hummed. “I see. In a bit over our head, are we?” He smirked, the dark lipstick making him look like a sexy ghoul.

A deep sigh left me. “I don’t know if it's in here. Or near here. I just know it's very important that I find it.”

Kiam’s eyes narrowed and then he swung an arm out, motioning for me to go ahead and look. Straightening my back and lifting my chin, I brushed past him.

“What does it look like?” he asked.

He was right behind me. I was hyper-conscious of his presence, my body highly and annoyingly attuned to his proximity.

“It's shiny. Immeasurable value.” I turned down the hallway. “I’ll never stop looking until I find it.”

The atmosphere changed, becoming weighty and ominous. The space around me seemed to dim before the light altered again. My boots squeaked against the hardwood flooring as I came to a stop and glanced around.

Kiam was right there, of course. “Why are you dressed like that? Are you roleplaying as ‘lord of the manor’ or something? It's cool and all, I’m just curious.”

His lips parted, and he pressed his tongue against the back of his teeth. “You don’t quit, do you?”

I huffed. “No, not if something is important to me.”

“It's a great quality, just misdirected.”

Fully aware I was being rude, I turned around and continued forward. My heart beat in chaotic thumps. If he was merely a squatter, I was still violating his privacy. He’d absorbed this space as his own, and it didn’t matter that his name wasn’t attached to his living space. The part I didn’t want to admit to myself was that I had a sneaking suspicion everything went a lot deeper.

A luxurious living room opened up in front of me, with velvet sofas trimmed with scrolling and etched wood. Everything was black, other than the dark wood molding gracing the ceiling and arched window trim.

“Wow. This is gorgeous. I couldn’t have designed it better, myself.” I hurried into the room, eager to take it all in.

Built in bookcases, antique tables covered with knickknacks, candles, and other curiosities made me completely forget I wasn’t exactly wanted.

As I started opening boxes and digging through bowls, the necklace and ring were the last things on my mind. I was finding small mixtures of herbs, tiny bones, and even some pearls.

“This is the coolest house I’ve ever been in,” I muttered to myself. I was like a crow with a shiny object, fixated and enthralled, marveling over the sheer luck of stumbling upon such a magnificent house. No wonder he chose this place to stay—it was glorious.

One of the little bones appeared almost pearlescent, and I lifted it from the small, hinged, brass box. I hadn’t stopped for a moment to think about what I was doing and the very second I made contact with it, a tingling sensation skittered up my arm.

“Ohhhh,” I mumbled, nearly dropping the artifact.

The next thing I knew, Kiam was in my face, his irises bleeding through shades of brown, and fangs—fucking saliva-dripping, sharp fangs, were looming over me.

Screaming, I shoved at him, and he smiled. The asshole grinned at me and I threw a punch, missing him by a mile, before I twisted around and took off at a sprint.

My feet pounded the hardwood floor as I careened down the hallway. I tripped over something unseen and grabbed the edge of the table with the crystal-eyeballed skull to steady myself for the briefest second. Something crashed to the floor, the metallic thud unnaturally loud with all my senses on high alert.

My hair whipped my face as I glanced from left to right, trying to find my way out of the maze. Where was the front door? I’d left through it, before.

Suddenly, inexplicably, the man was in front of me. My palm slapped his firm chest, and I stumbled backward, nearly hitting the floor before he snagged my wrist. Lifting my right leg, I kicked out at him, making contact with his shin, and I was released.

My tailbone hit solid wood, and I scrambled to my feet, keeping my head down. I felt a tug on my hair, but I kept on going.