Free Dead by Morning (Rituals of the Night Book 1) by Kayla Krantz Page B

red candles in golden candle holders. They threw light up onto the wall where a red pentagram was drawn. It was made from blood, the blood of victims past. He dropped to his knees in front of it and crept closer pushing the bones that covered the floor out of the way in the progress.
    He bowed his head to the symbol and rolled the tooth between his fingers again.
    “All mighty, Lucifer,” he whispered, “I really need some supernatural help if I’m going to ever have her on my side.” He flicked the tooth into the pile of bones where it echoed a strange scraping sound.
    Of course he didn’t get a response but inside he could feel it. He could feel information and power being given to him. His heart fluttered wildly with the feeling.
    “Infect her dreams is what I’m planning,” he whispered. “But how can it be done?”
    Once again the feeling inside his heart rumbled.
    “By spilling the blood of her best friend…” he whispered. “Of course. That can be done in the dreams too. Thanks, Dark Father.”
    He stood up and pulled his trusty dagger from his pocket. He pulled up his sleeve and made a single slit on his skin. His blood dripped to the place in his sacrificial “thank you”. When it dried on his arm, he pulled his sleeve down and turned for the door feeling fully aware of the mission ahead of him. In order to get Luna to help him, he needed to kill Violet next.
                                                                          ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    Luna was walking through a forest. She looked around her nervously, knowing instantly that she was lost. She didn’t know, however, why she was here. She stopped walking and looked around again. She tried to make sense of her surroundings as she stared up at the green leaves on the trees and the bright blue sky beyond. How was it daytime again? It seemed like she had just fallen asleep.
    Eerie silence surrounded her. She knew there was something wrong. Luna started to walk again and in the distance the sound of a loud howl of a dog cut through the silence. It rang out ominously before the sound faded into the eerie quiet once again. She swallowed nervously and looked over her shoulder. After making sure her surroundings were clear, she began to walk again.
    Suddenly, a twig snapped loudly behind her. She jumped as the sudden noise broke the silence and turned expecting to see an angry dog snarling at her. She calmed down when she realized it was only Violet. Luna walked up to her, glad to see that she wasn’t alone. Violet didn’t look right, she stood still and her usually rosy face was as pale as the moon. She didn’t acknowledge Luna at first.
    “What is this place? Where are we?” Luna asked her. “I don’t even know how I got here. Do you?”
    “I don’t know,” Violet said in a quiet voice. She looked over her shoulder quickly, and Luna narrowed her eyes at her friend. Was Violet actually scared for the first time in her life? 
    “Maybe we should try to find someone who can explain what’s going on,” Luna suggested. “I’m sure there has to be somebody around that knows.”
    Violet nodded in agreement, but still didn’t speak.
    They walked side by side in silence. Time passed and kept passing as they continued to travel silently through the woods. They seemed no closer to the edge of the strange forest then when they had first started walking. Overhead the sun hadn’t moved from its position high in the sky. It was like time was frozen. The only sound was the scuffling of their shoes as they traveled. The trees were beginning to grow closer and closer together. Luna guessed they were at the heart of the forest…or close to it.
    “This is getting us nowhere,” she said finally and stopped walking.
    “That’s the truth,” Violet replied looking at her through exhausted eyes. “I think we’re even more lost now.”
    Suddenly, the pair heard the sound of a gun being