Almost Human (Those Violet Eyes Book 2)

Chapter 1

Darkness.

Complete and utter darkness.

I can't breathe. Where's the air in this place?

I reach out for something, anything, to get me out of here, to get me to air. All I feel is the cold, hard texture of wood, and it's all around me. I try to open my mouth and scream, but my throat is so dry that nothing comes out. I start clawing at the wood, tearing through it as hard as I can with the very little strength that I have. It takes some time, but I manage to rip open the wood and my hands sink into what feels like dirt above me. The coolness of the dirt soothes my bleeding and torn up nailbeds just barely as I dig through it, desperate for air.

--

"You said she'd be back." I throw the witch against a wall, holding her up by her neck.

She just smiles knowingly, a glint in her eye. "She will be, just give it time." She says, furrowing her eyebrows at me. "Did you forget to dig her up?"

"Excuse me?" My grip on her neck falters for a moment. "What are you talking about?"

She laughs. "Are you kidding? Did you really have me cast the spell before digging her up? How do you expect to get her back if she's still in the ground?"

-

The area around the grave looks normal as I walk up, but as I get closer I notice that there's a mound of dirt in front of the grave where there's a large hole. I crouch down to examine it, and I can see the empty coffin below. She's gone.

I spend the majority of the night scouring the town searching for her, with no luck. It becomes almost sunrise, and I make my way back to my crypt. I hope she didn't get lost, I hope she doesn't burn in the sun, I hope she - the door to my crypt is ajar.

Carefully and quietly, I make my way to the crypt door and peek in. There's a figure sitting on the floor, their knees pulled up to their chest and their arms wrapped around their legs, head down. I take a step in the door, and their head snaps up.

"Who's there?" They ask. Female.

"This is my home." I say slowly, stopping in my tracks. The voice is familiar to me.

The figure turns to look at me, and I almost fall to the floor. She smiles slowly at me. "This isn't your home, William."