Shadows of the Past by Kayla Stiles (buy e reader txt) 📕

“Because… I didn’t want to seem weird and didn’t want to lose your friendship,” Holly says, looking down at the ground.

Alina places her hand under Holly’s chin and tilts her face up. “I like you too,” Alina murmurs. “I didn’t want to say anything because I was afraid you wouldn’t like me too.”

“Of course I like you! Do you never notice the way I look at you or how I try to be with you and be by your side always?”

“Well I just wasn’t sure,” Alina whispers.

“Well are you sure now?” Holly murmurs as she looks into Alina’s eyes and leans in slowly. Gently, she kisses Alina’s soft, full lips. Pulling away after a couple moments, she looks into Alina’s green eyes.

“Yes. I’m positive of it now,” Alina breathes.

“Good. Now, I have a question to ask you. Will you go out with me?”

Alina takes but a short moment and then replies, “Yes Raze. Of course I will go out with you.”

And so it is. For the next few weeks, Alina helps Holly with her recurring and ever-growing nightmares. The Outcasts at first are unsure of how to respond to this coupling. But then they finally decide to accept it. The girls are both thrilled.

Over the weeks, Holly tells Alina all of her nightmares and finds out from Alina that these dreams might be clues as to how to beat the monster.

One day, about a month after Holly and Alina start dating, one of The Outcasts goes missing. Brittney doesn’t come to school and nobody can reach her on her cell phone. Finally, when someone tries calling the house phone, Brittney’s mother answers and tells them that she hasn’t seen Brittney in a couple days. Worry and fear lace her voice.

Holly fears the worst, but has good reason to. Pulling Alina aside, she murmurs, “Brittney’s dead.”

“What? How do you know?!” Alina says, shocked and taken aback.

“I had another dream two nights ago and she was in it. The monster got her.” Fear swarms Holly’s shaky voice.

Alina looks into Holly’s eyes. There’s no lie hidden there. Holly speaks the truth.

“Where is she?” Alina whispers.

“At the place this all started. We have to go back to Cape Town, in Oregon,” Holly murmurs.

“I’ll go with you,” Alina says, “And I’m sure I can convince the others to come with us as well.”

Holly argues and says how she doesn’t want to lose Alina too.

“I’m a big girl,” is all Alina says.

Holly gives in and together they go talk to the rest of the group. Surprisingly, they all agree to go with.

A few days later, as the weekend finally shows up, the group of 6 climb into Zack’s van and they all start on the scenic drive to Oregon. 5 hours later, they pull up to the outskirts of Cape Town. Driving through the small mining town, Holly looks out the window and sees the faces of the people she once knew, four years ago.

“Pull over and give me the keys,” Holly says softly. “I know where we need to go.”

Zack pulls the van over and Holly quickly climbs over the center console in the front seat and sits down, prepared to drive the rest of the way. “Hold onto your seats,” Holly murmurs to herself as she starts the van back up and drives quickly to the old abandoned mansion on top of the hill that looms above the small town. The mansion is 3 stories high and has a basement and attic as well. The basement, Holly knows, is where the monster lurks. That was where her and her friends and family had gone to try to defeat the monstrosity the first time.

Reaching the house, they park the van and all climb out, anticipation and fear etched in all of their faces. Their veins are all pumped full of adrenaline as each person approaches the house. Holly fears the worst and has good reason to. For all of her friends and family were killed by this monster while trying to defend the town just 4 years previously. Holly is flooded with the memories of that night. She remembers hearing the screams of her friends and family as one by one they were slaughtered right before her. She could smell the rusty smell of all that blood as it tickled her nose. She and her mother had hidden under a table and stayed there until the killing spree was over. The monster had returned to his lair and Holly and her mother had raced out of the house as fast and as far as their injured bodies would carry them.

“Raze. Raze!” Alina is snapping her fingers, trying to get Holly’s attention.

Holly pulls out of her memories and flashbacks. “What? Are we ready? Sorry. I was finally remembering what happened the last time I was here.”

“How do we kill this thing?” Zack speaks up softly.

“There’s some strength in numbers. If we stay close together and all attack him at one time, then he’s trapped. He can’t attack all 6 of us at one time. He only has 2 arms,” Holly murmurs.

There is an old iron fence surrounding the house. It is all rusted and broken into splinters and shards of metal. All 6 of the teens take 2 long shards, one for each hand. They then creep into the house. They get deep into the house’s structure. The floorboards are old and rickety and creaky. It’s impossible for the monster to not know that they are there. Suddenly, as if to confirm their fears, there is a horrendous howl that shakes the whole house and seems to come from every direction possible. Following this noise is the sound of thundering footsteps, almost like the sound of horse hooves. Barreling around the corner ahead of the 6 teenagers is a monster from a nightmare. Its hide is red and leathery. Its mouth is full of razor sharp teeth and it has the horns of a bull and the tusks of an elephant. Spikes run down the length of the creature’s spine and its tail has a massive club on the end of it. Its feet are hooves. Its arms are long and its sharp 6-inch long claws touch the ground.

Without warning, and without thinking, Holly cries out, “NOW!”

All at one time, the 6 teenagers charge at the giant monster. They all begin jabbing their shards of fencing at the monster. Suddenly, the monster swings its giant head from side to side and ends up hitting Seth square in the stomach. His horn pierces through Seth’s torso and sends Seth flying against the wall. Blood trickles from his mouth as his empty, staring eyes glaze over and remain open. While the others are fighting the monster, Holly creeps along the wall and creeps around the monster and the others, getting a position behind the great beast. As Jerry is sent flying as well, Holly gives one loud battle scream and runs at the monster’s back. Hopping up on the creature’s back, she brings her piece of fencing up and thrusts it down, square in the center of the beast’s skull.  The beast gives one final scream of pain and anger and hatred, and then collapses to the ground.

“Holly!” Alina cries out. Running up to the monster, she attempts to pick up the unconscious Holly in her arms. Zack comes over and takes over. A look of understanding and sorrow pass between Alina and Zack. He nods and takes Holly up into his arms. Alina and Carine both grab Jerry and take him out to the van, following behind Zack and Holly. Then Zack goes back and gets Seth. Taking the two casualties back to Fire Creek, they leave the town in peace. Holly lays across the first seat row, with her head in Alina’s lap. A few minutes later, she wakes up to the cool touch of Alina brushing her black hair out of her eyes.

“Rose?” Holly murmurs groggily.

“Yes love?” Alina replies softly.

“Did we win?” Holly whispers.

Alina can’t help but laugh a bit. She feels so relieved that Holly is ok. “Yes sweet one. You did it. You defeated your nightmares.”

“Where are Sin and Spike?”

Alina lets out a small whoosh of breath. “They didn’t make it,” she whispers, tears in her eyes. “The monster was too strong for them.”

After reaching Fire Creek, they hold a memorial ceremony and funeral for their fallen friends. Brittney’s body was discovered in the monster’s lair, as well as the bones of the bodies of Holly’s friends and family.

After they get out of high school, Alina and Holly move back to Cape Town and get married there. After that big decision, they decide that they also want to start a family. They now have 2 little ones: Kendrick Alexander and Lillith Rose. They are quite happy with their lifestyle. Holly no longer suffers from her recurring nightmares. Now she sleeps peacefully at night, wrapped comfortably in Alina’s welcoming and comforting arms.   

THE END!

Forgotten Spirits

8/20/10

Jimmy T. Snider trudged through the dark and empty park, crying, having just been bilked by his girlfriend, Castrina. Lost in the memories flooding his head and crying in anguish, Jimmy wasn’t paying attention at all to where he was going. Even as what little light the crescent moon gave off suddenly winked out and left him in utter darkness, his thoughts still focused on his ex girlfriend, so much he had no clue that he was stumbling and tripping over tree roots and fallen branches. It was only when his head slammed into a branch and he slid right into a link’s den did he realize he had walked right into the avoided Demon’s Wood… but all too late. As he looked right into the eyes of a grown female link abhoringly, he realized they weren’t alone. Half a dozen link cubs lay or sat by the edges of the dense cave, waiting for their mother’s instruction.

Just as Jimmy was coming up with a plan of action, the mother let out a mewling noise and in an instant the cubs were on top of him, hampering his struggles. One after the other, without further ado, the cubs and the mother link took turns biting into the soft flesh of their victim and tore him to shreds. Blood from Jimmy’s struggles and arterial spatter coated the walls of the den. The iron smell of blood and rank link breath, as well as Jimmy’s useless screams of agony rent the cold night air. The links believed in equal portions but one of the cubs covertly snagged a bit more of Jimmy than the rest of the cubs. To please the mother and gain her love back, the cub’s death was remunerated. So within seconds, the other cubs all leapt on their sibling and the poor cub was shown the same fate as poor Jimmy T. Snider. To this day, you can still hear the desperate screams of help that were Jimmy’s last words before meeting his fate. The screams were: I love you.