Burn Me Right

Chapter 13

The alarm clock buzzed insistently, asking her to wake up. Autumn did not want to make that effort. Still dazed in her sleep, she reached over to slap the snooze button, squinting at the bright light falling in. The morning sunlight did the trick as the clock showed seven, and she looked down to see Peaches still snoring. She threw the covers back and went straight to the bathroom, waking the pooch in the process but not paying attention to the mess on her stomach.

As soon as her gaze latched on the mirror, she noticed an angry red mark on her lower lip, a straight cut in the center, and a portion of her skin was ripped off. It was as if she chewed her bottom lip hard, which is odd because she had no habit of biting her lip in her sleep. Waking life, yes, but not in her sleep. A confused frown creased her face. Bringing her forefinger to her lips, she touched the bloody mark. She hissed. It seemed deeper than it appeared. Her first thought was Peaches, but he was a good boy. He never did this before. Her second thought was her own teeth, but how could it be? Then her gaze moved to her stomach. There was a wet stain on it, "what is going on?" she pouted. Touching it, she brought her fingers to her nose, and it smelled musky and leathery. "What is this?" she couldn't decipher what it was. It was sticky and musky. What in the world smells leathery and musky?

"An ectoplasm?" but she brushed that thought off, concluding ghosts aren't real. "Probably not the best thought, Atty. That is how people die in horror films. "You shouldn't acknowledge ghosts, Atty. If they knew you doubted them, they would come after you," she consoled herself in her head.

"Peach," she called him, but the excellent boy yawned like the lazy puppy he is. "Are you peeing again?" she was going to spank him for his naughty indiscretions, but he ran to the door, asking her to open it to do his morning business. This confused her even more. If he held it inside till morning, what was up with the marks on her body?

Incessant scratching noise brought her out of her thoughts. Hurrying up, she opened the door, and the puppy ran out to do his business. She turned around, and that's when she noticed a flower on her nightstand, but with no note. This time, her heart thumped in her chest. Once is a coincidence. What does twice mean? Is it also a coincidence? She wasn't sure. Throwing the flower in the trash, she did her business. Feeding peach and herself, she walked out the door to find another bouquet with the same flower and a note. "Each night I am here, at your feet," was written in a neatly tucked message.

Her eyes widened, and a strange swarm of butterflies twirled in her stomach. Was this some kind of prank? The flattery was long gone, and fear replaced it. A dread, a deep sense of ennui, but with fear. Something told her this was not a good thing. A wild impulse to jump seized her, but terror held her to the ground, preventing her movement.

Zyler was parked far away from the house. He wanted to observe her facial expressions when she picked up that bouquet and not-so-subtle note of his. He contemplated all night what she would feel when she picked up that bouquet. Will she get scared? Will she run? Will she hide? A part of him hoped that she would run, which would make the game more interesting. He loved playing this sick game where his prey didn't even know she was being hunted. The need carnal need to hunt her down and take her down raw was bursting through his veins. The thought of her running away from him and him catching her when she didn't expect it was making him harder than an iron pole. "Damn," he had to adjust himself to ease the ache in his pants.

"Fucking angel," he cursed. Her nose scrunch wanted him to go over and bite that cute little nose.

Another sick idea crossed his mind. He picked up his phone and texted her. He had already gotten her number. Based on the fact that he practically owns the town, it was a piece of cake for him. He diverted his gaze to her. The girl was lost in her mind. He saw her eyes go from exhaustive to narrow to two giant globes.