Thirty-Two
Their Obsession
Liv
I awoke to the sound of creaks in the floorboards. Foggy from sleep, I blinked several times, my eyes straining to see the light, but nothing came. My pupils adjusted to the dark room when I heard the sound a second time.
I inhaled a sharp breath and held it while I stayed still. Afraid to move in case I missed the noise, I was sure it came from the other side of my door. I was a cat on high alert, and the hairs stood up on the nape of my neck. My eyes widened as I waited for another creak, but all I heard was my fast-paced heartbeat.
Nothing. My mind must’ve imagined the disturbance, the racket all in my head. A bad dream my subconscious made up after all the crap I had recently been through. My brain desperately tried to make sense of the fucked-up feelings I had for my stalkers. It was seriously screwed up—a mix between hatred and want. A need I should never have for men who were forceful, dominating, possessive, and completely out of their minds.
Creak.
There was the sound again! I knew it! I wasn’t crazy, and the noise wasn’t all in my head. Sebastian had left in the middle of the night, and I knew the disturbance wasn’t him. He never creeped around the house like this and moved with a steady rhythm. Not thuds that made a lump form in my throat and my nerves race out of control.
I was curled up in bed, too frightened to move, with the bed sheets pulled up to my nose as I breathed heavily. Fully intent on suffocation instead of letting whoever was out there get me.
The groans on the floor had turned into footsteps, but there wasn’t just one. There were two sets of steps. One lighter and one heavier. The lightweight steps tried to conceal themselves, while the solid ones gave a steady stomp.
I shot up in bed when I heard them come right up to my door. My eyes locked on the doorknob as I watched the knob slowly turn. And I made a beeline for the door.
Scurried for the solid fixture without another thought as the bed sheets tangled around my waist, and I fell to the floor. My feet kicked to free myself, my hands pushed me up off the floor, and I slammed my body up against the door. I clicked the lock with trembling hands as my pulse hammered against my neck, and my hair sucked in and out of my mouth with each hurried breath.
“I know you’re there! Get the fuck out of my house before I call the cops!”
Dumb. Really stupid, Liv. Me and my big mouth.
Silence greeted me. Not one peep from the intruders on the other side, who were likely frozen at my words and judging their next move.
I quaked with shudders and couldn’t stop my reaction to the intrusion I had awoken to. Blindsided and awoken from a deep slumber in full panic mode. Fight or flight. But the only direction to run was right out my window.
Shit.
I turned around with my back against the door as I listened for any more noise and peered around my room. Desperately trying to find anything to plunge, strike, or gouge my intruders with. Instead, my eyes landed on something else.
Two fake white roses.
They sat perfectly centered, waiting for my attention, with the sheets bunched up around them and a note laid beside them at the foot of my bed. I had missed the artificial flowers in my horrific scurry and the fear quickly turned to rage. These weren’t any criminals, they were my phantoms.
Assholes!
How did they get into my condo?
Once again, I was at a loss because the doors and windows were all locked. I had triple-checked after Sebastian had left, and I knew all too well they’d be back. I wasn’t taking any chances, so I’d fixed the damn window.
I snatched the note off the bed and read their torturous words,
Roses are red,
Violets are blue.
Obsession lasts forever,
And so do these roses
Meant just for you.
Jesus.
My heart hammered into my throat, and I swallowed the hard lump. My gulp was loud, but my emotions were fierce. Their note struck something deep inside of me and tore away at another tiny piece of my soul—ripped at my essence and tried to pry it wide open, but I wouldn’t let them tear me to shreds.
Another small piece of me was gone. Stolen by their words, and I hated to admit their move was smart. Unlike their usual dumb tactics, just as stupid as these artificial roses. Cheap fuckers. They couldn’t even afford the real thing. Must be bankrupt. Served them right.
I grabbed the roses from my bed and stomped into the bathroom, hauled them straight into the trash can. Angrily, I tore up the note and loathed them for invading my privacy and disrupting my sleep. A crude reminder of how mean they could be while my heart beat wildly from their attempt at a sweet gesture.
“Fuckers! I know it’s you!” I yelled as trudged to the door and placed my ear against it.
The stillness should have brought me peace. The silence was deafening as I ripped my ear from the door and huffed in aggravation. I peeked at my alarm clock. It was half past two in the morning. Witching hours. My phantoms fit right in with the ghosts. How inviting. But I reeled with another thought.
Where the fuck was Sebastian?
Whichever bimbo he was with must be good in the sack because he had lost all track of time. His dick was rather small, and she probably couldn’t get her lips wrapped securely around his ugly stick. Unfortunately for her, she’d have to pretend to enjoy his company for hours to get a penny out of him because that was all Sebastian Chamberlain was good for.
Shadows moved through the crack at the bottom of my bedroom door. The dark figures swayed one way and then the other. Until the darkened outlines were out of sight.
I held my breath and unlocked the door. Nothing happened. There was no sound or movement from the other side, not even one attempt to force their way inside.
Were they gone?
I highly doubted it.
Carefully, I opened the door until there was a small gap I could see through. I scanned from left to right. No one was there. But a creak came from the stairs.
I made a mad dash for the stairwell. “Ah-ha!”
To my surprise, I was the only one there, alone at the top of the staircase, peering down into thin air. Slowly, I took the steps two at a time with my heartbeat pounding in my chest, and the muscle felt like it might explode. The sound was inside my eardrums as I made it to the bottom floor.
“Sebastian will be home any minute now! Get the hell out!”
Goosebumps crawled over my skin, starting from my legs, all the way up my chest, and extending out toward the back of my hands. The unknown was unnerving as I crept toward the kitchen in a fearless fashion. But on the inside, everything crawled with dread .
I knew I shouldn’t. Alarm bells rang out in my mind to run and head back upstairs, but my legs wouldn’t listen. Either I was too fucking curious if they were still there or incredibly dumb. Likely both, but I stopped, and my eyes widened when they landed on a frightening sight.
Two colossal figures with masks on both faced me. The pair were in spooky spirits. One was disguised in a skull mask, holding a baton, and the other was Ghostface from the Scream movies, and he held a knife.
They were equally a horrific view as they stood incredibly still and didn’t move a muscle.
“Phantoms? Is that you?” I asked as I caught sight of the butcher block and sidestepped.
They didn’t answer me but swayed in the same direction.
“I hated your gift.”
The skulled figure didn’t appreciate the comment and steadily tapped the baton against his palm. The soft tap against flesh was the only sound I heard as I took another step, wanting to arm myself. I was defenseless with each man armed. The fight was unfair, and the odds of me escaping this were scarce.
“I know it’s you, and you both disgust me. I despise the pair of you more than I have anyone in my entire life. More than Sebastian.” I glared, and I wanted to hurt them.
But the last part was a flat out lie.
Sebastian was the root of all evil, not my ghosts. Yes, they forced me to do unspeakable acts with them, but it brought me pleasure I never knew I could feel. I’d discovered explosive, erotic, feral needs that I hated to want. I’d made animalistic sounds I didn’t even recognize and couldn’t tame, even if I tried. They consumed me; Sebastian ruined me. There was a difference I clearly saw, but I’d never admit the truth to them.
“You’ll never have me because I belong with Sebastian.”
The words were bile in my mouth and made me sick to my stomach. Sebastian repulsed me, but I needed to preoccupy them. I required a split second to reach out and lunge for a knife.
Fiercely, they growled and studied at each other. The sound hurt my ears, pierced into my heart, and stung like a venomous snake with its scaly skin wrapped around me. The sensation squeezed me tight, refusing to free me, but I released myself and ran for the blade.
Suddenly, a hand gripped the back of my neck. “Ah!”
I reached for the butcher block and my hand touched the handle. I fumbled to get a grip on the handle, but the death lock around my neck jerked me forward and away from my weapon. The commotion caused a knife to tumble out onto the island with the butcher block falling to the floor and I squeaked as I met a solid chest. I peered at the face of the disguised slasher.
“Fuck! Let me go!” I yelled at the masked man.
Slowly, the asshole shook his head from side to side, and I squirmed in his hold. The grip only grew tighter and bruised my skin and pulled my hair. The disguised jerk’s dick was hard against my belly, and the smell of cedarwood mixed with whiskey excited me. A fiery pit swirled in me because this was what these fuckers do to me. They awakened emotions I couldn’t deny no matter how hard I pushed them away, and even with their identities concealed, they still did a number on my pussy.
Ghostface took the tip of his blade and brought it up to my neck, but my hands remained at my sides. My rapid breathing made my tits bounce as the steel ran over my tank and skittered across my navel. Slowly, the sharp tip nudged between the drawstring of my silk pajama bottoms, and he cut the thread in half.
Instantly, my bottoms fell to my bare feet, and I gasped at the sudden escalation of the situation. I was now half-naked in front of both men while the slasher ran the knife back up my skin and underneath my tank top. Tingles ignited while fear should have made me quiver, but I was turned on. I hated the feeling, but liked it all at the same time. My body remembered all the ways they could make me feel, all the unwanted desires they sprang to life. The assholes knew how to please me, but first they must cause me pain.
“Slice me. Go on, do it. End this torturous intoxication you both put me through,” I hissed with need and reached up to touch the handle.
The fucker fought me; I’d caught him off guard as his breathing picked up a notch. He didn’t expect me to react in such a dangerous way, but they brought out the worst in me. A feverish feminine brute who was confused, but her mind was fogged by lust.
My phantom groaned as he gave up the fight, and I inhaled sharply as the blade skimmed the surface of my skin. The cut wasn’t too deep as the steel tip ran up the middle of my abdomen and blood trickled downward. Drips slowly pooled into my belly button and fell down below. The red surely mixed with the juices my pussy had produced from my untamed arousal.
I released the pressure on the knife as my phantom stopped skimming the blade across the surface and trailed over the top of my white shirt. I watched as the bright stain ran from one hard nipple to the next. The blade teased me as I bit down into my attacker’s flesh, and he snarled when my teeth clamped down. The sound ignited a fiery need in the pit of my stomach, and I released my teeth from him as I felt hands on my ass. They squeezed tight, and I instantly bit down again while the slasher hissed from above. His massive erection pulsated against me.
I freed my mouth from him and breathed, “Again.”
The knife trailed back down toward the cut I had helped him inflict on me, and the masked jerk behind me slapped my ass. The motion made me arch my back, and the blade drew fresh blood, but from a tiny nick right beside the longer cut. A whimpered hiss escaped my lips with my head thrown back and my eyes wide open, trained on my phantom’s disguised face. I found the long black hooded eyes to be a horrific sight, but they fired me up. Underneath all my layers, I kept a wild creature hidden, but I was a sick fuck. I was as screwed up as them, and I didn’t realize it until now.
“Enough!” I exclaimed, but the blade cut short my realization as it departed from my skin and propelled me backward—into the arms of my other phantom.