Chapter 13 #2
“How much farther to the cave?” I ask breathlessly.
The last time Draven touched me in the woods, we hated each other.
It was more to derive a rise out of me than pleasure.
And in return, he got his own sick enjoyment out of watching me suffer.
But what he hated more was the fact that it actually turned me on too.
He places a firm kiss on my temple. “Just over this hill.” He slides his hands under my ass and cups both cheeks. “You know, legend has it that Conquest threw Imogen over his saddle and held her down the whole way on horseback.”
A tingling erupts between my thighs. “I bet you wish you had a saddle to throw me over, don’t you?”
He growls into my ear. “Don’t tempt me, Mia. I’ll make one phone call and have a horse out here so fast it’ll make your head spin.”
I giggle as we walk through a field of flowers. In the distance, I can see the cave. It doesn’t take too long to reach it. The weeds are overgrown and block most of the way in. There are large boulders stacked on each side of the entrance.
Draven crouches down and runs his fingers through the dirt. “Only the wolves come out here now. Some say they are still searching for the horsemen too. They were companions during the hunt.”
“Earlier, you said there was a darker theory as to why Ophelia Harker never married or had kids… I got distracted by the blood on your sleeve.” I shiver. Something about this cave gives me the creeps.
He stands up and dusts his hands off. “Some believe that the devil had his way with Willa before she rejected him. And that her daughter Ophelia was the first cursed child of Ever Graves, bound to a nightmare man. There are those who believe that Willa locked her away so that she would never fall in love, never marry, and never be able to reproduce any children of her own.”
My stomach knots. “That’s awful. The poor girl…”
Draven tugs on my wrist, urging me farther down the path. We wind up and around the back of the cave and through the trees. It’s peaceful out here. We walk for a while. I’ve definitely never been to this part of the woods. If he weren’t with me, I’d get lost in a heartbeat.
My sense of serenity vanishes when I spot the cabin. There’s something viscerally wrong about it. I cross my arms over my chest in an attempt to stop this prickling from spreading across my skin. “The energy here is bad.”
Draven takes off his coat and hangs it across my shoulders. As if the chill in my bones was from the wind and not from some ancient evil that pervades the air around this place.
He lights a cigarette. “There’s been a fuck ton of sacrifices inside those walls. So much death.”
The wind rustles my hair, and I swear I hear it call my name. I pull Draven’s jacket in tighter, using it like a shawl. “We going in?”
He arches an eyebrow. “Unless you don’t want to.”
My curiosity outweighs my fear. “Fuck it. Let’s go.” I hope I don’t regret this…
The door creaks open and sends a puff of dust back into our faces. I cough as I inch past it, avoiding any physical contact with the rotting wood. There’s an energy that stays in houses. Even when they lie empty, the echoes of the past remain loud and ever present. And this one’s imprint is vile.
I follow Draven up the stairs. He clasps my hand in his. “Careful, Trouble. Some of these floorboards are broken.”
I nod and step lightly, my gaze glued to the wood beneath my feet as I take each step with precision, only putting my weight down when I’m sure it’s not going to break.
The second floor is only one room with an old cot, a small closet, and one dirty window looking out onto the forest. I shiver as I look around at the yellow walls and cobwebs. “Bad things happened here,” I murmur.
Draven runs his hands through his hair, his gaze pensive. The dark circles under his eyes are prominent. It still doesn’t take away from how gorgeous he is though. He’s no stranger to sleepless nights or shadowy things, but lately, he seems to be on high alert.
He sits down on the edge of the bed and pulls me to him. “Not all bad. Legend has it that Imogen and War fucked each other senseless on this very bed. But yeah, before that… this is where Krampus would slaughter his virgins after he defiled them.”
My stomach turns, and I have to fight to keep the bile down. “What a fucking monster. Those poor girls…”
Draven wraps his arms around my waist and presses his cheek to my chest. “The thought of him, or anyone close to him, tormenting you makes me want to do monstrous things. We need to lure him out, Mia. I can’t kill him if he’s only in your head.”
Another flutter of nerves swarms in my belly.
I hadn’t even given it that much thought.
“The voice started a few weeks after I carved my oath into the Wishing Tree. I thought it was exhaustion or the remnants left over from living all my life in two worlds. No one has any idea what it’s like to have a nightmare man visit you every time you close your eyes.
I was so used to it. I love Nox, but there were times when I wanted him gone. I’m ashamed to even say that.”
Draven holds me tighter, his embrace a cocoon I never want to leave. “I understand, my love. He does, too, by the way. Don’t feel shame. You have had a really hard fucking life. It’s not fair that the devil’s doing this to you. You’ve given him so much already.”
I blink back tears, refusing to feel sorry for myself.
There are those who have had it far worse than me.
When I think about Aries’s sister, the way she grew up getting passed around by her father to his business associates…
it makes me sick. Sometimes I think I was better off being an orphan. At least the nuns were kind to me.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. I didn’t want to burden you when I could see you were going through something too. Plus, you’ve been so busy with the poison fields and the gin company. I thought I could handle it alone.”
He squeezes me tighter. “Never. You can always come to me, Trouble. But even if you feel you can’t, go to Bones or Aries or Nox.
Fuck, even Lettie. But please don’t try to go at it alone.
Especially when it comes to the shadows of Ever Graves.
We also know a thing or two about monsters.
No one is better equipped to help you with them than us. ”
I nod and thread my fingers through his thick black strands, loving the way he softly mewls at my touch. “I know. Never again. No more secrets. I promise.”
“Good.”
“Speaking of Lettie, I’m meeting her tonight for dinner. We should probably wrap up our tour soon so I can go home and shower first. She’ll be mortified if I walk into Duff’s smelling like dusty cobwebs.” I wrinkle my nose as I catch a whiff of them.
Draven chuckles. “We should head back then. Better to not incur the wrath of a Crane.”
As we shuffle out the door, a hint of blue catches my eye.
“Wait. What is this?” I reach down between the cot and the bedside table to find a baby-blue ribbon.
It’s crimped as if it used to be part of a braid or loop.
It’s got a little dirt smudged on it, but other than that, the ribbon is still in good condition.
I hold it up. “Do you think this belonged to one of the girls who was murdered here?”
Draven’s eyes widen. He shakes his head. “I think I’ve seen it in a portrait. It might have belonged to one of the Bishop sisters.”
My breath hitches, excitement coursing through my veins. “Can I keep it? I can’t imagine they’d want this lying on the floor of a creepy old cabin.”
He nods. “Whatever you want, Trouble. I’m sure they’d be honored that it’s with a descendant of one of their friends.”
I stuff it into the pocket of my leather jacket and zip it closed. For some reason, having it makes me feel stronger. Like I’m somehow more capable of dealing with the Skelker now.