Dead End: Midnight Hollow by Penn Cassidy (best e reader for epub txt) 📕

During my other class, I pretty much zoned out. The professor, who looked like he was seconds away from falling apart at the seams, didn’t seem to care that Maddie and I were behind. We spent most of the class period talking about some book they’d been collectively reading. It seemed like the professor loved to hear himself talk, because I wasn't even sure he’d taken a single breath the entire time.

I actually found myself nodding off, and I’d spied Maddie with her head in her hand a time or two and prayed she wouldn’t start snoring. My mind drifted to the changes I’d seen in the guys and how much I worried about them. My brain wouldn’t turn off. I thought about the last serious conversation I’d had with Jason, vividly picturing the way his eyes had flickered to that bright yellow when Damon came out, the way his smile transformed his face into someone I didn’t recognize.

Damon. Even thinking his name made me shiver with equal parts of pleasure and dread. Jason’s apparent familiar was terrifying. The thought of him taking up residence inside Jason’s head was enough to make my own head spin. And that tongue… That tongue admittedly made me feel a few things I was definitely not proud of. But I was convinced it was only because Damon still had Jason’s face and voice. Yeah, that was it, I was sure of it.

And then that moment with Freddy in the bookshop. The way he’d looked at me, his touch sparking something wild inside. He’d actually touched me for real, without a hint of his usual dickishness or malice. It was surreal, but I was sure it was genuine. Of all of the guys, Freddy always seemed the most hesitant to mock me. He still did, but not to the extent that the others did. I didn’t know what came over him or me in that shop, but I couldn’t lie and say I didn’t want it to happen again and again.

Feeling his lips on mine after a year of being lonely was more magical than anything I’d experienced in Midnight Hollow so far, but I couldn’t let him know that since he’d only use it against me. I supposed there was still a very good chance that the moment had been planned, some little scheme he and Norman concocted to humiliate me. There was no sure way of knowing, but I wanted to tell myself it wasn't true. Freddy meant that kiss and those toe curling touches, and he’d have been a fool to try and deny it. Even now, my skin tingled with the memory.

After class ended and I said goodbye to Maddie, I decided to go back to the aunties’ house. I had nothing else to do at the school, and I figured some time alone couldn’t hurt. Back in the mortal world, I’d become somewhat of a homebody and liked to be alone more often than not. It was a good thing Midnight Hollow was so small, as it didn’t take long to walk through town.

The night was comfortably crisp, and I pulled my cloak around me tighter, the hood pulled up over my hair. I couldn't believe I got to wear a cloak, casually too, and no one would say a goddamn thing about it. Up ahead, I could see the lights of Main Street, but my eyes kept flickering to the road leading out of town, the same road we’d emerged from. I knew that if I were to walk just a little farther, I’d reach that cemetery. Curiosity was eating at me. My parents were buried in the Sunset Hollow Cemetery, not Midnight.

The thought made me feel incredibly hollow, as I missed my parents so much. I ached for my mom’s warm smiles and my dad’s hugs every day. Sometimes, seeing the aunties was jarring, given how similar they looked to her. I kept my eyes on that road until it was out of sight and I was swallowed up by the lights of the town. Since it was always dark here, I wondered if the shops ever actually closed and how often anyone got any sleep. The only reason the town had been empty the night we arrived was because most of them were on vacation in the mortal world.

Bats circled overhead, making little chattering noises, and I smiled up at them. There were no cars on the streets, and now that I thought about it, I’d only seen maybe one or two the entire time I’d been here. I passed by the candy shop and The Wicked Quill. Smiling to myself, I debated popping in to see how Mr. Hottie was doing, but I decided not to poke the beast—the beast being Freddy, of course.

The smells of pumpkin, cinnamon, and spice flowed through the air, as well as the scent of crackling flames as I passed the tall wrought iron torches lining the dark street. I glanced upwards, staring at the twin moons hovering overhead, and marveled. I also wondered how that even worked. I figured the oceans in this world were tumultuous, imagining the impact those moons had on the tides. And then it got me thinking… Could those moons be the reason for all the supernatural stuff?

Moons had strange effects on water, and many scientists also assumed it to have the same effect on the human bloodstream. Could having an extra moon in the sky be the reason everything was so topsy turvy? I wondered if they even had scientists in this world—or would they be called alchemists, wizards? There were so many unanswered questions just eating away at me. I thought for a second time about going back to the bookshop, but thought better of it and continued down the road. I’d save the questions for later, I just needed some alone time.

I reached the manor a short while later and set my bag down on the porch. I