The Guest House Hauntings Boxset by Hazel Holmes (novel books to read txt) 📕

returned to his eyes, and for an even shorter moment, so did his humanity. “I will fight it as long as I can, but if you aren’t able to break the curse that binds me to this evil realm, then it won’t matter. He’s coming, Sarah.” Allister’s tone became grave. “And there isn’t any convincing him otherwise. So you can either do something once you’re free to save his soul or spoil what little time you’ll have left on this rock before the world burns and you burn with it.”

Sarah had wanted a chance at redemption, and she had wanted an opportunity to do something good, and this was her shot to help all of the women she’d seen in her visions.

“How much time can you give me?” Sarah asked.

“I can make it last a day,” Allister answered. And even now, Sarah noticed the sweat breaking out on his face and the flashes of pain and anguish. “But don’t dawdle—GAH!” He buckled forward at the waist, clutching his stomach and dropping to his knees. He trembled, the ends of his mustache shaking as he lifted his head to look at Sarah. “You know all the players in this game. All you have to do is put the pieces in order.” Anger flashed over his face again, but this time it darkened his features, and the flicker of life in his eyes turned yellow and hot. “Run, Sarah. RUN!”

Just like the transportation into the house, a harsh tug at her waist yanked Sarah backward and pulled her from the darkness.

The moment Dell had his hands on the door, the gravity that had kept him pinned down was suddenly lifted. With his strength restored, he shouldered open the door, stumbling inside as if he was running downhill.

Everyone turned toward him upon his entrance, but Dell’s gaze fell onto Sarah. The scales had crawled all the way to the top of her head, but they hadn’t completely covered her yet. But he spied the orb on the bed. With the witch about to make a move and Iris screaming bloody murder either from pain or from shock, he lunged toward the object.

He couldn’t explain what propelled him toward the orb, but it consumed his thoughts. The rest of the world faded around him, and he clutched at the orb’s surface just as the witch reached for his arm. But while she tried to pull him back, it was too late.

With his hand on the orb, Dell looked back toward Sarah just in time to watch the scales crumble from her face. He wasn’t sure if she saw him before she disappeared, but the only thing that mattered to him was the fact that she was safe.

77

The brief flash of Dell’s face was seared into her mind as she suddenly found herself cold and alone out in the middle of Bell’s main street, staring at the mansion high on the hill overlooking the town. After a minute of shock, she shivered, realizing the cold for the first time since she had been taken, and squeezed her arms around her shoulders. She stared up at the monstrous building on the hill, where Dell was now trapped, forced into whatever hell he had freed Sarah from joining.

And while it was a welcome reprieve, Sarah knew it was only temporary. The clock was ticking, and the longer Sarah waited to get started, the less time she had to figure out how in the hell she was going to save Dell and stop that family from ending the world. With her grit returned, Sarah spun around and marched toward Dell’s cruiser, knowing that he had radioed for help but unsure of how long it was going to take for them to arrive. But what she hadn’t realized was who was sitting in the back of his squad car, handcuffs still binding his wrists.

Brent stared at Sarah through the tinted back windows of the cruiser, and she blinked a few times before the realization of who it was finally sank in. It was a surreal moment, looking at him in the back of a squad car. She imagined the irony wasn’t lost on him now that she was free and he was not.

Sarah had envisioned this moment for a long time and had replayed the meeting repeatedly. But now that it was here and she finally had a taste of the justice that she had longed for so much, she discovered that she didn’t care.

The only thing that mattered now was getting Dell back and ending whatever shit storm the Bell family was trying to set upon the world.

Sarah opened the driver’s side door, tossing only the briefest glance toward Brent, who pressed his face against the steel mesh backing that separated the backseat from the front. She reached for the radio blaring loudly from beneath the center of the console.

Never having used a police radio before, Sarah fumbled the receiver awkwardly in her hands before finally squeezing the side and sending her voice echoing via radio waves. “This is Dell Parker’s cruiser. Is anyone there? I repeat, this is—”

“Who the hell is this?” A woman’s voice blared from the speakers.

“My name is Sarah Pembrooke,” she answered. “I’m outside Pat’s Tavern in Bell, and I need backup to this location immediately.” Sarah released the radio.

“Been a while since you wanted the cops to show, sweetheart,” Brent said, his face still pressed up against the mesh.

“Fuck you,” Sarah replied, snapping back at him.

Brent laughed, more chatter spilling over the radio. He shook his head and then leaned back in his seat. “For a woman who prides herself on being worldly, you sure don’t know shit about the way the justice system works in this world, sweetheart. It’s all about perception and clout, and I’ve got both in spades. What do you have, huh? You’re just some shitty little street urchin that I happened to bed a few times due to boredom.” He nodded to the house.