Haven of Nightmares (Littlemoon Investigations Book 5) (10 page)

BOOK: Haven of Nightmares (Littlemoon Investigations Book 5)
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He knew when he was told ghosts existed, he needed to see it for himself.

She would likely too.

“Well, we board in five minutes. There’s no way to get Nyx here to back Tori up. We’ll have to see what’s going on, and go from there. If it’s too much for her, we’ll bring in Nyx to channel the ghost. Maybe that will help.”

“Okay, thanks. Oh, and hurry. It’s creepy here at night when you know what’s going on around you.”

Julian didn’t doubt it.

“Tori said hang in there.”

Yeah, what choice did he have?

“Maybe you two should bunk somewhere in the same place where you’re both safe.”

He glanced down at Mattie.

Yeah, well, that was the best thing he’d heard all day, and he didn’t mind.

Convincing her might not be as easy. “I’ll try. You know how it is.”

Yeah, Julian did.

He was alone with a beautiful woman. That alone added layers of stress. If he wasn’t freaked out, Roman should be.

“Just be safe until we get there.”

“Thanks, Julian. Have a safe flight.”

When he hung up, Mattie was staring up at him. It was odd. At first, he thought he’d forever see Devora when he looked at her, but he didn’t. He truly saw Mattie, and he wanted to protect her with everything he had.

Something had changed.

Maybe it was that they’d been honest, and he saw her heart.

“We have to stay in the same place. We’re going to need to bunk together.”

She glanced over at the bed.

Even as her heart began pounding, she knew that they couldn’t fit in that bed together.

Oh, she’d love to try, but logistically, it wouldn’t happen.

“We can stay in your parent’s room.”

His face went sheet white. “No.”

Mattie thought she’d crossed some line. Why was she surprised? Sexy man, invisible girl, and they never would cross paths.

“I’ll head to your sister’s room. I’ll be fine.”

“Mattie. Wait.”

“No, Roman. It’s best this way.” She moved away from his body, trying to put space between them. This was leading somewhere she couldn’t go.

That ship had sailed.

At the door, she glanced back. “I’ll be fine. I’m always fine. Don’t worry.”

With that, she closed the door.

“Jesus,” he muttered, running his hands through his hair. He had to be the biggest idiot on the face of the earth.

When was he going to learn?

He was so close to fixing the mess, and now he’d just backfilled it with a ton of shit.

Apparently, he sucked at the woman thing.

He’d made headway to convincing Mattie that he was sorry, and now he’d made her bolt again.

How many shots did he think he was going to get at this? How many chances?

At this rate, he was done.

 

And he knew it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

       
         
* * *
  L   i   t   t   l  e  m  o  o  n  * * *

 

 

 

 

 

Flight

 

 

 

As everyone else slept, Julian couldn’t. He really wished there wasn’t that stupid
‘no phones on the plane’
rule. He was worried about Roman.

He was new to this.

Hell!

They were too, but he still had to try to keep his people safe.

“He’ll be okay, Jules,” Tori said from beside him. “Roman is a smart man, and he’ll cover their backs until we get there.”

He hoped she was right.

Glancing over, her eyes were still closed, but that was the soldier in Tori. She rarely slept deeply.

“I have to worry.”

“Tomorrow, we’ll get there and kick this ghost’s ass. I’m ready, Trey is ready, and so is Bethany.”

“Are they here?” he asked, looking around at all the sleeping passengers on the flight.

“Yes. Don’t ask where. You don’t like when I zone out. It’s best you don’t know.”

He let out a deep breath. “Okay.”

“Oh, and Bethany wants you to know they aren’t alone. This plane is full of things, and if you look out the window, you’ll see one watching you from the plane window.”

He closed the shade. “No thank you. I don’t want to know.”

“Now you know why my eyes are closed,” she said, cuddling closer. The armrest was up between them, and Tori’s hand was wandering.

When he gasped, she opened her eyes to wink at him. “Focus on that,” she purred in his ear.

The blanket over his lap was in just the right place. When he heard the zipper sliding down, he began praying that no one bothered him.

He was going to get lucky on a plane.

Sort of…

“I can’t take you anywhere,” he muttered, nipping her ear.

She was aware.

Only, it wasn’t her fault.

 

Julian Littlemoon was sexy, and she was helpless to fight it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

       
         
* * *
  L   i   t   t   l  e  m  o  o  n  * * *

 

 

 

 

Remington Academy

One A.M

 

 

He heard it.

It sounded like someone was struggling. Things were falling, and he knew where it was coming from. Racing from his room, he found Mattie on the bed, her face going blue.

She couldn’t breathe.

“STOP!” he yelled, looking around.

There was no one there.

As her arms flailed and legs kicked out at the invisible thing, he didn’t know what to do.

Moving toward her, he pulled Mattie into his arms.

She gasped for breath.

Then she began sobbing.

“Something was choking me,” she got out between gasps for air.

He carried her toward the door and out into the hallway. In the light, he stood her on her feet.

There were gouges around her neck, and he didn’t think they were from her. They went sideways around her slim throat. If Matilda had done it, she would have dug into her flesh in a downward pattern.

“I am so scared,” she said, shaking. “Oh, God, I’m so scared of this place.”

Yeah, so was he.

Picking her up again, he carried her into the large bathroom the family had shared. There had to be a first-aid kit somewhere in there. His mother had been a planner, so there had to be something he could use to soothe her wounds.

Mattie sat there, shaking on the ledge of the sink. There was blood running down her neck, and she was trying to slow down her sobs.

She was close to hyperventilating.

“It’s okay, baby. I have you now. I’m going to stay with you until Tori and Julian arrive.”

She was shivering as he dabbed something cold on her throat. “I nearly died. Something tried to kill me. Why?”

He wished he knew.

Had he, Roman would send her away. The last thing he wanted was for her to be harmed. Mattie was off limits. God knew that he’d done enough damage ten years ago.

“I don’t know, but we’ll figure it out. I’ll take you somewhere safe on the grounds. Where do you feel safest?”

“The library.”

He wasn’t surprised.

He did too.

“Let’s get this cleaned up, and then let’s grab something to eat and head there. I don’t think we’re going to sleep tonight.”

“I don’t think I’ll ever sleep again.”

He couldn’t blame her.

As he inspected her wounds, Roman noticed that she smelled spicy and warm, like some exotic flower.

His body reacted being that close to her.

Roman didn’t know what to think about it. He didn’t know what to do about it. She was injured by their past. Would she even want him to try to give them a future?

He’d broken her.

Mattie’s own sister betrayed her heart.

This was going to be damn tricky.

“We need to get you changed. Your shirt is ruined,” he stated.

“I’m not going back into that room. It’s never happening. I’ll die in there.”

Okay, point taken.

He tugged off his hoodie. Beneath it, he had a long-sleeved shirt. He’d be fine. His big concern at this point was the woman before him.

“Thank you,” she said, her teeth chattering. “I’m so cold. I’ll never be warm again.”

He took her hands in his. When he blew into them, there was a visible puff of breath.

Yeah, he knew what that meant.

Tori had told them about it and some cases. There was a spirit there.

When he looked up, and into her eyes, he could see something over her shoulder.

Words were appearing in the glass.

 

 

                        ‘DIE’

 

 

Roman’s heart began pounding in his chest. All the while, he wanted to freak out, but he knew if she saw it, then they’d both be scared.

He had to be the strong one.

In the back of his mind, he was thinking how coming home had been a horrible idea.

Now they were going to pay.

“I need a favor,” he said, touching her face with his fingertips.

“What?”

“I need you to close your eyes and trust me, okay?”

Her eyes went big.

“There’s something behind me, right? I can feel it on my neck. I can feel it breathing on me. Oh, God, there’s something touching me.”

Yeah, they had to get out of there.

The last thing he wanted was some spook getting its jollies by feeling up Mattie.

It was time.

“Trust me. Close your eyes, Mattie. I’ll keep you safe.”

 

 

            
 
         ‘No you won’t. She’s mine.’

 

 

The words appeared across the glass like magic. He could hear the dragging of a finger across the frosted glass.

She heard it too.

When Mattie went to look, he touched her face. “Don’t. Trust me to keep you safe.”

She stared into his eyes.

What choice did she have?

She gave him her trust.

Roman was scared shitless. His heart was now ready to explode out of his chest. Not only were they dealing with a ghost, or possibly more, but this entity was smart. It could respond and was strong enough to interact.

This was bad.

Really, really bad.

Julian and Tori couldn’t get there fast enough. He only had to keep them safe for three more hours.

It seemed like an eternity.

Her life was now in his hands.

“Mattie,” he said, kissing her on the forehead. “Close your eyes and hold onto me. I won’t let you go. I swear.”

The words played through her mind.

She hoped this time he wouldn’t.

Mattie put her faith in him and tightly closed her eyes.

As soon as she did, he scooped her up and into his arms. What they needed now was a way to stay safe. It was still late in the night, and he needed help.

“I’m going to grab us some food, and we’re going right to the library, okay? First, I need to make another call. This is a little out of my element.”

Little?

That was laughable.

He was screwed and scared.

“Who are you calling?” she asked.

The only person he could think of was Nyx. She knew how to protect herself against spirits.

“An expert.”

She tucked her face into his neck.

“Dial fast.”

 

He did.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BOOK: Haven of Nightmares (Littlemoon Investigations Book 5)
12.43Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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