9781618850607ForeverNightDayNC (2 page)

Carrie
Ann finished her tour of the house back in the parlor. She sat and waited as
Mrs. Bonnie crunched numbers. She handed a piece of paper to Carrie Ann and
said,
“
I
think that if you place an offer in this range they would accept it. It
’
s a good price, but not too far off the mark.”

She
traced the number, and thought about the amount. “That
’
s just…I could never get anything remotely like this
in the city for that price.” Her small condo had cost twice the number that was
written on the paper.

The
realtor nodded. “That
’
s just one of many perks that comes from living in a
more rural area. So, shall I place the offer or would you like some time to
think about it?”

“
Place it,” she agreed, heaving a sigh of much needed
relief knowing that the final decision had been made. It felt good. It felt
right.

* * * *

The
room grew cold, and then colder still.

Carrie
Ann exhaled, and watched as her breath materialized in front of her. He was
near. She sensed him, his presence in the room. It was his way of telling her
he
’
d arrived
—
that at any time she might catch the slightest glimpse
of him out of the corner of her eye, or
feel
his
touch.

“
I
’
m here,” he whispered, his voice deep but soft, his
cool hand caressing the small of her back. She trembled. This
couldn
’
t be happening.

A
second hand slid around her waist. And when she looked down, she saw her blouse
ruffling where his hand should have been. She turned to see him, but there was
nothing. And once again she was alone, craving more.

* * * *

He
’
d waited so long for this, for her. She was the one,
the one who would complete him once again. The house had been Augustine
’
s prison for decades. But now he
’
d never be alone again. His waiting was over.

In
the bedroom, he stood in the shadows watching her slowly undress. He was
tempted to make contact again, just as he had earlier that night.

She
was perfect in every way
—
soft skin, intriguing eyes, and a heady scent. And now
in the recesses of the dim candlelit room, he could see more, so much more. Her
breasts were supple, begging to be suckled. She excited him…
Maribeth
.

Sweet
Maribeth
.
She was his first love, his wife, and the mother of his children. Then he
’
d had to leave them, and when he returned, they were
gone. It was far too late to try and change things. The house, the walls…they
contained him now and held him, locked in time. That would never change. It was
his final destiny.

People
had come and gone over the years, yet nothing ever held them for long. The
house was his, and always would be. The past owners had sensed his presence. It
was as if his very being had impressed itself into everything around him.

He
’
d do things to let them know they
weren
’
t alone. It amused him to make the temperature drop at
a whim. It always made them feel uneasy, and he liked that. They were the
intruders.

He
liked this intruder, though. Her nipples were a stark contrast to her alabaster
skin. They stood out like small rosebuds, begging to be plucked, touched,
fondled and sucked. He imagined what it would be like to take them in his mouth
one at a time, savoring their soft texture, feeling them stiffen as he
manipulated them with his tongue.

“
Call for me, my love,” he whispered. “Call me now.”

* * * *

“
Augustine.” The sound of his name rolling off Carrie
Ann
’
s tongue
was enough to make her shiver. He was there with her, she could feel him.
Pulling the bedclothes up around her, she
couldn
’
t help but wonder if this was all a dream.

“
It
isn
’
t a dream, I assure you.” She heard him again, and
felt as though her heart would leap from her chest.

“
Lover, don
’
t be scared.” His breath felt hot against the back of
her neck with every word he spoke. “You want this.”

She
moaned, and bit down on her bottom lip when she felt his fingers on her pussy,
sliding her panties aside, the hem of her nightdress moving upward.

“
Yield to me.”

“
Yes.” The word escaped her mouth with a gasp as his
fingers toyed with her clit. “Don
’
t stop,” she begged, riding the delicious wave of
ecstasy flooding her inner core.

“
I
’
ll
never stop.” One of his fingers slid inside her, and pressing back against him,
she felt his stiff cock bumping up against her ass.

She
reached back to caress him only to find cool flesh. It was startling because
she
hadn
’
t noticed it before. It
couldn
’
t be normal, and this
couldn
’
t be real. It made no sense. Her mind reasoned that it
had to be the wine. She was drunk and dreaming.

Bearing
down, Carrie Ann felt the hot pressure growing in her groin. She wanted him,
and her body begged him for more pleasure. “Oh my,” she moaned, one hand
running along the mattress, her fingernails pressing down.

Pain
…
she felt it on the right side of her neck. Was he
biting her?

She
screamed and pulled away in a flash of movement, falling to the floor beside
the bed.

Silence.
Her heart raced. The room
was extremely cold. Trembling, she stood searching the room for any trace of
him. “Hello?”

Nothing.

“
Hello? Is there anyone here? Please, make yourself
known if you are,” she called.

She
felt her neck. The skin
wasn
’
t broken, but it felt tender beneath her touch.

She
glanced to the windows that looked out over the front of the house. She walked to
them, and started to draw the blinds down. She felt like she was being watched.
It terrified her.

Outside,
the rain and wind pushed against the sides of the house. But once she was back
in bed, she felt slightly more secure, and went to sleep.

Chapter
Two

The
next morning Carrie Ann woke with a jolt, and it took her a minute to recall
the events from the previous night. She grabbed the phone next to the bed, and
keyed in the realtor
’
s phone number. She had questions to ask, questions that needed answers.

She
waited for one ring to go through, and then another. On the third she heard
someone on the other end pick up. “Hello, Crest Harbor realty. How may I help
you?” asked Mrs. Bonnie.

“
This is Carrie Ann Ryan.”

“
Carrie Ann, I was just thinking about you and
wondering how you were doing with the house.
”
Mrs. Bonnie was perky as always.

“
I have some questions to ask you.” She stopped for a
minute to think about the most pertinent ones.

“
Questions?
Oh dear. Is there anything wrong with the house? The home inspection I was
given by the previous owners was darn near perfect. There was a slight problem
with the plumbing, but it
’
s nothing serious I assure you.
”

Quick
to sell…indeed!
“
Why exactly
were
they so quick to sell?” she
asked, ignoring Mrs. Bonnie
’
s comments about the plumbing.

“
Well, I told you before. They had bought the house to
set up as a business, and it
didn
’
t go through for them. My guess is they
didn
’
t want to put the work into the place. It happens all
the time. People get in over their heads, and before they know it, they no
longer want it
—
the
business, not the house. Sometimes dreams are not reality.”

“
Did anything happen to them here? I
mean,
anything strange by chance?”

“
Not that I can recollect. I
didn
’
t have a whole lot of contact with them after the
initial listing.”

She
was getting nowhere with this. “Things have been happening here and I can
’
t explain them.”

Mrs.
Bonnie sucked in a breath. “The house has a history.”

Carrie
Ann tossed her head back and rolled her eyes. This was a fine time to finally
get this little tidbit of information. “Just what is this history?” she asked,
quickly becoming annoyed with the woman.

“
It
’
s haunted. Or that
’
s what people around these parts say.”

“
Why
didn
’
t you tell me this?” The woman should have told her
before the final sale papers had been signed. “I had a right to know this.” She
wanted to slam the phone down, but she
wasn
’
t done with Mrs. Bonnie. Not yet!

“
I
didn
’
t think it was that important. Besides, I don
’
t believe in all that silly stuff. It
’
s nothing more than a local legend to keep the kids
away from the property. It
’
s just a house.
A rather old house
that has its own little quirks.
”

“
I
’
ve
had things happen here. You said this house has a history. I want to know what
that is.”

The
woman sighed. “I can only tell you what I know. It could all just be hearsay.
Augustine
LaMount
built the house for his wife just
after they were married. They went on to have two children before the First
World War. He enlisted like any good man, and went off to fight.” She stopped,
and Carrie Ann wondered if she was still on the line.

“
Mrs. Bonnie? Are you still there?” She heard static,
and then nothing until it cleared.

“
Yes, I
’
m here. It must be a bad connection. Anyway, he never
came home from the war. He
wasn
’
t listed as being killed in action, and they never
found a body. He simply disappeared without a trace.”

“
But a man just
doesn
’
t up and disappear. That
’
s impossible. Someone had to know what happened to
him.
”

“
I know. Folks from that time who knew him and the
family said they
couldn
’
t ever imagine him leaving his wife and two kids like
that. He
wasn
’
t that type of man. He was a real family type,
apparently. His wife,
Maribeth
, eventually moved out
of the house with the kids, and went to live with relatives. End of story.”

Carrie
Ann felt sad upon hearing this.
“Anything else?”
She
hoped there
wasn
’
t.

“
That
’
s about it. People have reported feeling
‘
off
’
inside the house. The owners just before you
couldn
’
t bear the place. I admit, at times when I went out
there by myself, I felt like I was being watched.”

“
Thank you,” she said, before hanging up. She knew
exactly how Mrs. Bonnie felt.