Free Cades Cove 01 - Cades Cove: A Novel of Terror by Aiden James Page A

“What’s up with you, anyway?”
    Heavy panting with eyes half-open was her only response. He carried her out of the room and over to the stairway. Just as he reached the stairs, the front door creaked open. Her ears perked up and she began to whimper.
    “ Jill?... Chris?... Is that either of you?”
    No verbal response, but the floor creaked in the living room. Tyler’s carefree footfalls announced his return downstairs. Once he walked over to the front door and closed it, he encountered a similar, uneasy stillness like upstairs. The temperature had dropped here, too, and very recently... much cooler than it was outside. He didn’t see anyone in the living room or dining room. However, something about the air around him seemed kind of weird, like it was charged with energy.
    Worried his sudden jumpiness might get the better of him, he shifted his focus to the logical and explainable. Maybe the wind and the house settling caused the door to open and made the floor creak, like what Dad mentioned yesterday when Jillian lost her damned mind over nothing.
    “ Hello, Zachariah-h-h-h!”
    “ What the… who’s here??”
    Surprised, he almost dropped Sadie while he jumped back toward the front door. The dog curled up even tighter against his chest, digging her front claws into his shirt to ensure her own safety. With his heart thumping madly, he peered into the living room where the voice came from. He still didn’t see anyone. From what he could tell so far, the voice belonged to some female with a strong Southern accent, though her tone seemed unnatural. Cold and unfriendly.
    “ Come out and show yourself!”
    Not as tough sounding as he would’ve liked. He thought of Jillian trying to get him back after yesterday. That would make sense. But where in the hell did she learn to talk like that? He moved into the kitchen, and Sadie lifted her head to let out a low, menacing growl.
    If Jill’s messing with me, then why is the dog acting like this?
    Sadie should be wagging her tail. Other than their mom, the dog favored his sister over everyone else.
    No one in the kitchen, but the curtains above the sink swayed, like a slight breeze grazed them. Thinking whoever was here might be in the dining room, he set Sadie down on a kitchen chair—no easy task since she tried to jump back into his arms. She continued to whine, but once he got her to remain on the chair he took a few steps toward the dining room and then reversed his path. He ran through the living room and didn’t stop until he passed the foyer and reached the stairs near the dining room’s other entrance.
    Again, he didn’t find anyone.
    “ Okay, Jill…. I get it now,” he said snickering, but nervous. “You’re trying to freak me out after what happened yesterday, right? Well, it won’t work because—”
    “ Guilty…both you and yer brother-r-r!”
    An icy breeze embraced him from behind, where the voice now came. He tried to turn around, to take a look at whoever was there. But he couldn’t. He couldn’t move, which amazed and frightened him even more. The only thing he knew for certain it wasn’t Jillian. No frigging way.
    “ Yer blood for mine,” the hollow voice whispered sultrily.
    The coldness intensified...the mysterious presence drew ever closer. Out of the corner of his right eye he saw wisps of reddish blond hair. He finally managed to turn his head, but her image became a blur and disappeared. Taunting laughter filled the air around him, and he threw up his arms around his face to protect himself.
    The laughter grew steadily louder and more derisive. Trembling in terrible fear, he thought he might faint. But the laughter faded, replaced by the sound of running footsteps on the driveway. The doorknob began to jiggle as other voices resounded on the front porch. Relieved that Jillian and Christopher were home, they already argued over who got to take Sadie outside to do her personal business.
    “ Hi, Ty,” said Christopher, the first one