Possess Me by Michelle Heard

 

Chapter 27

 

Everleigh

 

“Yesterday, some idiot raced past us as if he was participating in Formula One,” I complain to Rosalie.

It’s the first time I’m visiting her at her home, and let’s just say I’m blown away. I knew she came from money, but the mansions (yes, plural) are spectacular.

“The driver was a freaking maniac.”

She shakes her head. “It’s insane.” She glances over her shoulder, then asks, “How many sugars?”

“Two, please.” I look at the living room where Vincent is trying to teach Roman how to play with cars. Rosalie’s son is trying to eat them while mine is patiently saying no, then showing how to push the little cars on the tiles.

I have an amazing child.

Rosalie places a cup of coffee down in front of me. “Have you heard from that guy again?”

“The one who wouldn’t take no for an answer?” I pick up the cup and take a sip.

“Yes, that one.”

I shake my head. “No. I’m glad he got the message.”

She scrunches her nose then gives me a playful smile. “So you really don’t want to date again?”

“I’m closed for business.”

“Don’t you miss it?” she asks. “You’re only twenty-two.”

“Sometimes it gets lonely, but in my heart, I know I’ll never love anyone besides Vincent’s dad.”

“It’s a shame,” she murmurs over her cup of coffee. “Viktor has a new employee, and I think you’ll make a great couple. He’s on the quiet side, but he’s a hard worker.”

“No, thank you.”

“He’s really good-looking.” I give her a look of warning for her to stop. “Fine, I’ll drop the subject.”

We hear a car’s engine, and Rosalie's smile brightens. “Oh, I think Viktor’s home. You’ll get to meet him.”

Crap.

“You said he’s working late.” That’s the only reason I agreed to come over. Just because I’ve become friends with her doesn’t mean I’m ready to meet her family.

“Sometimes, he pops in during the day. It’s okay. Don’t worry.”

She sets her mug down on the kitchen counter and walks to the sliding doors.

Nerves start to spin in my stomach, and I rush to where Vincent is blissfully playing with Roman.

“Hey, you’re home early,” she says cheerfully.

A man in his mid-thirties comes into view, and the sight of him sends my anxiety skyrocketing. The way he walks looks like he’s on the prowl to kill something. Or someone.

God, he looks intimidating.

He smiles at Rosalie and gives her a kiss. “I missed you, Moya malen'kaya roza.”

Hearing him speak Russian makes goosebumps spread over my body, and before I know what I’m doing, I pick up Vincent.

“Mommy!” my little boy snaps. “I’m playing.”

Viktor’s eyes snap to me, and it feels like I’m hit with a thousand-pound hammer. Instinctively I take a step backward.

“Who’s this?” he asks Rosalie.

“She’s the friend I told you about. Viktor meet Everleigh.” She glances in my direction, and the smile drops from her face. “What’s wrong?”

Another man comes into sight, and my heart explodes from my chest. My legs give way, and I sink to the tiles, my arms locking tightly around Vincent.

Alek.

With wide eyes, I stare at the man I love, unable to make a sound. The shock makes my vision tunnel on him.

Alek.

He glances from Viktor to me, and I watch as the blood drains from his face. He shakes his head as if he can’t believe what he’s seeing.

An eternity passes between us.

The long darkness where it was just the two of us. Watching him getting beaten. Watching the skin being torn from his back. Vincent being killed. Alek being shot because he pushed me out of the way.

His father dragging me out into a field and shooting me like an animal.

All the hell we’ve been through is laid bare between us.

I hear voices and feel as Rosalie crouches beside me. She pulls my crying son from my arms, and all I can do is stare at his father.

He still looks the same…yet he doesn’t. He’s taller than I remember, and his body is more muscled. His face looks older, all the boyishness gone from his features.

He looks just as scary as Viktor.

Alek shakes his head again, his features tightening until he looks devastatingly broken.

My breaths saw over my lips. My heart hammers uncontrollably, and I start to feel dizzy.

 

 

Alek

 

I stare at the ghost of Everleigh, thinking I’ve completely lost it.

Today I’ll be locked up in a padded cell.

I hear Viktor’s voice. “Is your friend okay?”

“I don’t know,” Rosalie answers as she rushes to Everleigh’s side. “She’s having an anxiety attack. Make some sugar water.”

I watch as Rosalie takes the crying boy from Everleigh’s arms, and it becomes too real.

I shake my head, and still, I see Everleigh.

“Alek?” I feel Viktor’s hand on my shoulder as he shakes me. “What the fuck is going on here?”

I blink, and unable to tear my eyes away from the ghost of the woman I love, I ask, “Do you see her?”

“Of course, I fucking see her,” he mutters.

My body moves on its own, and when I reach Everleigh, I drop down to my knees in front of her. I carefully lift a trembling hand, scared if I touch her, she will vanish.

I hesitate for the longest moment, my eyes drinking in the sight of her beautiful face.

My heart is nothing but a whisper in my chest as my fingers brush over her cheek. I feel the heat of her skin and my heart stutters.

Wrapping my hand behind her neck, I feel her warmth again. I yank her to my chest and pull her onto my lap. Just like we did in the dark room, I hold the woman I love.

Is this really happening, or is it a dream?

I press my face into her hair, and when I take a breath of her, she smells different. Something fresh and sweet.

My body shudders, and I groan, “I miss you so much, moya malen'kaya lyubov'.” I start to press kisses against her hair. “It’s getting harder and harder to live without you.”

“What did you say her name was?” I hear Viktor ask.

“Everleigh…Everleigh Adams,” Rosalie answers. “Shhh…your mommy is okay. Everything’s okay. Shhh…” she pacifies the little boy.

Rosalie’s words sink into my mind, and pushing Everleigh back, I stare at her beautiful face again.

“Are you real?” I ask, my mind a mess of madness and confusion.

Everleigh looks at me as if I’m the ghost. A sob bursts from her before she nods.

Something detonates in me as the realization hits.

She’s real.

“Iisus Khristos,” Viktor whispers. “She’s alive.”

She’s alive. If they see her, she must be real.

The realization keeps hitting me in waves, my eyes locked on the woman I thought I had lost.

“You didn’t die?” I manage to ask.

She shakes her head.

When she doesn’t say anything, I beg, “Say something. Say anything!”

“I m-missed you t-too,” she sobs.

The bubble we shared for over two months wraps around us. I pull her back to my chest, soaking in the warmth of her body.

I don’t know how much time passes, and I don’t care.

Holding Everleigh, the cracks in my mind vanish, and my broken heart starts to mend, beating stronger than ever.

My shattered soul becomes whole.

She’s alive.

Again the realization hits, and again I push her back so I can see her face. Our eyes lock, and I feel her in my soul.

Everleigh never died in that field. She’s been alive all this time.