Shadow & Smoke

Chapter 10

An entire week passed without anything out of the ordinary happening and I almost didn't know what to do with myself. For the first time in months, I was able to sleep through the night even though my nightmares had been replaced by dreams of Malachi's face.

His stupid, beautiful face.

In my dreams, he still lurked in the corners, shrouded in darkness but there was something less menacing about him. In my dreams, he came to me as I slept and stayed with me. Instead of bringing the nightmares that plagued me, he seemed to stand watch against the bad dreams, guarding me from them instead.

But, I knew that it was all in my imagination. There was nothing gentle or noble about Malachi. Aside from the fact that he lived in the fucking shadows, he was not a good guy—or a guy at all. Whatever he wanted from me, it wasn't anything good.

I went from teetering on the edge of sanity, being unsure that Malachi wasn't a fucked up figment of my imagination, to hoping that he would electrify my world and slip out of the shadows again.

I went from being terrified of what haunted me to actually seeking him out at night.

I was officially fucked up.

Getting ready to close up the bookstore on a Friday night, my mind was—as per usual—preoccupied with thoughts of Malachi. I wondered if I'd ever see him again. I wondered why I wanted to. As before, I still had so many questions that I knew he wouldn't answer outright.

"Let's get a drink!" Jane smiled as she finished restocking a bunch of books. She leaned over my desk and looked at her watch. "It's just about closing time and I need a margarita."

Laughing at the pitiful face she made at me, I contemplated taking her up on the offer. My other option would be to go home and wait around for another psychotic break when I might be able to see Malachi again. Going out would at least kill some time. Crawling into bed after a good dose of tequila would help me sleep better than I had been.

"You know what?" I laughed. "I'm down."

Jane was surprised but excited that I was agreeing to go out and honestly, so was I.

In the small town we lived in, there were few places to get drunk but our favorite bar The Horseshoe was nearby and we could walk from the bookstore. It wasn't fancy but it had good service and good fare.

"I have to confess something first..." Jane said nervously as we closed up and headed out of the store. I paused and narrowed my eyes at her suspiciously. She continued, "Eli is going to be there and some other people. I counted on you turning me down so..."

I laughed, "I forgive you."

If I was being honest with myself, I had been ignoring Eli since my last encounter with Malachi. For whatever reason, he was not keen on me hanging out with Eli even though he and I had been friends for a while. Subconsciously, I'd kept my distance from Eli and his attempts to hang out. I had given him a raincheck after all.

Dressed casually in a pair of black leggings and a tank top covered with an oversized gray sweater, I was cozy and comfortable. The black boots on my feet crunched the fall foliage that was in the midst of littering the ground around us.

Five minutes later, Jane and I made the few blocks to the bar and once we entered, we were greeted with the usual hello that all the locals received. Kimmie, the short and stout redhead who had worked at the bar since I was old enough to drink, gave me shit for not visiting her lately and as an apology, she poured us both a shot of something I couldn't decipher and I tried not to make a face as I drank it.

Good ole' Verity Springs. Small towns certainly did have their charms. Even though I wasn't born and bread, they'd accepted me as one of their own and I was grateful for that. As much as I'd been trying to avoid going out and being social since everything started happening, it may have been just what I needed.