The Witching Hour

Chapter 1 - Fear

Rain fell across Malachi Peak, and the mist slowly rolled in from the mountains. As if sensing the cold, Ivy Vale snuggled closer to her longtime boyfriend Hunter. His hands encircled her waist and eliminated whatever space was left. A small smile began to form on her lips. Many nights had she fallen asleep in his arms, a sense of security blanketing her.

Planting a light kiss on his cheek she pulled the comforter closer to her body and turned over. Her brown eyes fluttered away and landed on a ghostly figure at the edge of her bed, even with her eyes. It took at moment for her pupils to focus. When she did, she had no choice but to process what she saw.

Cassandra Laurent stared back at her. The woman she called her best friend, a mentor and most importantly a sister, kneeled by the edge of her bed. Her hair once a vibrant blonde lacked its usual shine. Her ocean blue eyes that could capture and drown you with one look had lost all life.

"No, no," she muttered, shaking her curls violently. "You've been gone, missing for almost a year now. We never found your body. Cassie, no..."

Tears threatened to spill over and cascade down her face. Ivy buried her friend months ago once it was determined they wouldn't find her body. The whole town searched far and wide for her.

"Help me," Cassandra mouthed.

She reached out and took hold of Ivy's wrist. Pure ice and dread filled Ivy's veins at the touch. Ivy opened her mouth to let out a scream and closed her eyes trying to erase this ghost of a woman.

Someone shook her shoulders and tried to bring her back. She refused to open her eyes and held herself tightly. Ivy rocked back and forth, muttering 'no' over and over again.

"Ivy, please, open your eyes," Hunter's voice cut through this time. The soft pitter pater of rain morphed into a thunderstorm with lightning illuminating the sky every couple minutes.

"It can't be," Ivy whispered, eyes still closed. Hunter pulled her close and lightly kissed the crown of her head. He rubbed encouraging, calming circles into her back.

"Ivy, it was the nightmare again," he whispered. "No one else is here. It's just the two of us."

Slowly, the young woman opened her eyes. She glanced at the digital clock on their nightstand. 3 a.m. it read.

The witching hour.

Every time she had this nightmare, it always occurred at the same time. Other than that, it was never regular. At first it happened often, especially immediately after the accident. Then the dreams tapered off over time. Either her brain was finally healing or the person torturing her was finally forgetting about her. It had been weeks since Cassie had visited. Now this was the third time in a week

However, Ivy knew she wasn't the only one plagued with these torturous visions. The rest of the group also received them, typically the same night. Ivy knew she would get a text in the morning from at least one of the others, unless they had already sent out a message.

"I thought they had stopped," she cried. "It had been almost a month. Already three this week."

Hunter pulled her down into bed and held as close as humanly possible.

"It's all going to be okay, babe," he reassured her, running a hand in her curls. "We got through the others. We'll weather this storm."

"How am I so lucky to have you in my life?" Ivy buried her head into his neck and breathed in his scent.

"I think I should be the one asking you that question," he countered closing his eyes. "Night Ivy. I love you."

"I love you too."

Ivy couldn't close her eyes without stealing one last glance at her side of the bed. Dread gripped her heart at seeing Cassie again, but she had to know.

Nothing stared back at her. Ivy let out a small sigh of relief and closed her eyes, letting darkness take over. She welcomed the old friend, knowing she would have to deal with everything, and everyone, in the morning.

—
A/N

Just wanted to take a minute and thank those for checking out my story. As a new writer, I was extremely scared to post it online. I actually started writing this iteration fall 2019 and made it to almost 20 chapters. Originally, I had planned to start posting after 5ish  That never happened as my nerves got the best of me 🙈

I hope you all enjoy this labor of love. I look forward to what you as readers have to say. I've always loved writing, and if you were ever on Polyvore (now Urstyle), that's where I got my start. The idea for the story is almost 4 years old now, and it originated as something else. I kept coming back to it over the years, wanting to write for these characters, especially Ivy.

Thank you again for reading, voting and/or adding it to your library. I'm so excited to take you on an adventure with these characters ☺️. Happy reading!