19th Day of Twisted already! Today we have Tallulah Grace, author of Fate, Spellbound, and Destiny, with an exciting excerpt from Fate. Enjoy!
I’ve always been infatuated with experiences and events relating to the paranormal. As a student of psychology, I also find sociopaths, psychopaths and people with even a hint of abnormal behavior intriguing. It’s no wonder that my first trilogy includes three novels that tell the stories of three best friends, all with individual paranormal abilities. Don’t think I left out the psychos; the first two books of the series, FATE and SPELLBOUND, have villainous characters that easily fit into any social setting. The third book, DESTINY, explores reincarnation and the possibility that love can last for more than one lifetime.
In FATE, Timeless Trilogy, BookOne, Kris Collins is stalked by a serial killer, but how did she ever land on his radar? In the spirit of Halloween, I’m sharing a glimpse into one of their first encounters. The most frightening aspect of this scenario is that it could happen to anyone.
“I told you not to wear that cat suit. You look like sin on a stick.” Kris laughed as Roni struck a pose.
“Can I help it if Charleston men can’t behave in polite company? I thought Southerners were raised better. Whose idea was this anyway?”
“Yours.” Cassie rolled her eyes as she tried to maneuver across the cobblestone sidewalk on stilettos. “I believe your exact words were, ‘Come on, girls, let’s kick up our heels.’ I could cheerfully kick these heels to kingdom come about now. What were we thinking?” Cassie gave up and stepped out of the torturous shoes,wincing as her feet touched the cold stones.
“Atleast you can get out of yours.” Kris grabbed Cassie’s arm for balance. “I’m strapped into these things three different ways. Why does something that looks so good have to feel so bad?”
“Because men design them; they don’t have to wear them.” Roni sidestepped a group of partygoers taking up most of the walkway. One man stopped to admire her choice of costume.
“Hey little kitty cat, wanna come home with me?” He stumbled slightly, leering first at Roni, then at Cassie and Kris as they stepped to her side. “Your friends are welcome too; we’ll have us a party.”
“In your dreams, Dumbo.” Roni mumbled as the girls switched to the opposite side of the street.
“Hey. Where you going?” The man called, then began to follow.
“Why did we park so far away?” Kris asked as she dug into her purse for pepperspray.
“No worries,” Roni sounded more confident than she felt. “He’s just a harmless drunk.” Looking back, she frowned at the man’s persistence. His progress had been stalled by several groups of trick-or-treaters, but he was now moving towards them with determination and no signs of inebriation.
Cassie glanced back as well and sighed. “What is it about Halloween that brings out the crazies?”
Kris, still digging into her purse, walked straight into a hard, stationary body.
“Oh, I’m sorry.” She apologized as two strong arms helped to steady her. “I’m afraid I didn’t see you.” A pleasant musky aroma that was purely male surrounded her. She stepped back and he slowly dropped his hold.
“No harm done.” He assured her with an engaging smile. “I was also distracted.” Hegestured to the pseudo drunk, now weaving his way through the line of parked cars that separated him from the sidewalk. “Is that gentleman bothering you?”
“That, sir, is no gentleman.” Roni gave her best southern belle impression as she turned to answer the tall stranger.
“In that case, would you ladies like an escort?” His smile briefly included Roniand Cassie before returning to Kris.
“Thanks,” Kris replied, “but our car is just ahead. We’ll be fine.” She met his gaze before pulling the spray from her purse. “Besides, we’re prepared.” She shook the pink canister back and forth.
“So I see.” The handsome stranger tilted his hat and stepped aside, allowing themto pass. “In that case, have a lovely evening ladies.”
“Thanks, you too.” Kris and Cassie spoke in unison as they moved past him. Roni eyed him slowly as she followed. Waiting until he was out of earshot, she poked Kris on the arm. “I think he likes you.”
Kris laughed. “He was just being nice.” She glanced back and met the stranger’s stare. Turning quickly back around, she hastened her pace. “Let’s get home.”
Cassie’s antique Victorian mansion stood only a few streets over from the party. The two minute drive home took almost twenty, thanks to slow moving traffic on streets filled with pedestrians. Goblins, witches, monsters and an array of other costume-clad kids and adults roamed the residential lanes leading to Battery Park.
“Look, there’s Cassie thirty years from now.” Roni pointed at a child dressed as an old hag, dragging a bag nearly filled with candy.
“Speak for yourself, cat woman. At least my costume leaves a little to the imagination.” Cassie teased.
“Look over there,” Kris pointed at the entrance to one of Charleston’s many graveyards. “What do you think they’re supposed to be?”
“Looks like a cross between Frankenstein and the mummy who ate Ohio.” Roni quipped.
The women were so absorbed with the sights and sounds of Halloween, that they failed to notice the man standing in the shadows of the old oak tree towering over Cassie’s front lawn. Moving closer to the tree as they pulled into the driveway, he considered his prey.
“Stupid woman,” he whispered aloud. “She didn’t even recognize me.”
FATE, SPELLBOUND and DESTINYare available separately or as a compilation at Amazon. Visit http://www.tallulahgrace.com for more details, or start the journey by taking a look inside FATE here, http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0054QZNRA
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