A paranormal romance novel inspired by the children's poem In a Dark Dark Wood Leslie Sherman is a YouTube famous paranormal investigator who finds herself in the care and company of a captivating, attractive and mysterious man, Walker R. Blackwood, who lives alone in what she thought was an abandoned manor she stumbles on after becoming stranded and injured deep in the woods of Acadia National Park while out on a solo hike. As a single twenty three year old woman who’s still grappling with the turbulent breakup from her high school sweetheart, Randy Turner, nearly two years ago, Leslie struggles with the loss and regret of what they had together. Desperate for affection and love, Leslie becomes intimately drawn to the seductive yet brooding Walker Blackwood, who's formally prestigious reputation is tainted by the mysterious deaths of Mr. Blackwood's three female employees. Torn by her growing feelings towards Walker Blackwood, Leslie grows suspicious of him the more she learns about him and the more he refuses to disclose his past to her.
View MoreAssessing the contents of my mud-soaked backpack spread out on the wool oriental rug of the seating area all around me, I let out a heavy sigh. It's not as bad as I thought, but not as good as I hoped, either.The extra hoodie I packed is sopping wet. As are the tent, inflatable sleeping pad and pillow, camera and recording gear, and pretty much everything else that was packed in the top half of the bag. My sleeping bag is thankfully dry and currently the only thing partially covering my nakedness.All of my grimy, wet clothing is draped on whatever I could find nearby to dry overnight. The weatherproof two-in-one small lantern and bug zapper are on the fancy leather top table, decently illuminating the surrounding space.Sitting with my legs crossed on the floor, I released a shaky breath, bringing a pair of metal tweezers to my upper arm towards the jagged gash across my skin. Once fully undressed, I inspected myself from head to toe to the best of my ability. My body is covered wit
Hastily making my way around the aging stone brick and wooden beamed structure, I noticed all the glass-paned windows were still intact. Which is at complete odds with the obvious unmaintained state of the aging mansion. From the windows I've seen so far, not one has appeared to have a crack or any noticeable damage. On the other hand, over half of the window shutters I've seen so far have either fallen off and are lying in a broken heap on the ground or are hanging on for dear life by a single rusty hinge.Rounding the rear corner at the backside of the mansion, I stopped, seeing a brief reflection of my headlamp out of the corner of my eye near the ground at the foundation of the mansion. Pivoting to my right, both of my knees pop, stiff from the chilly temperature as I crouched down in search of whatever bounced the light of my headlamp off of it. Yes! There's a rectangular window big enough for me to climb through leading to a lower level or basement that's partially covered by we
Groaning, I clamp my half-closed eyes tightly shut due to the throbbing in my head made worse by the repetitive scratchy hoot of a nearby owl. Curling myself into a tight ball lying on my side, I shiver so hard that my teeth chatter uncontrollably. Gradually, creaking my eyes open one at a time, I gasp, slowly remembering through a fog of disorientation where I am. Lying in the fetal position on the muddy ground, somewhere in the woods of Acadia National Park.The light of day was almost gone, I noticed as well, nearly sending me into a panic. Moving my limbs around, I became acutely aware that I'd sustained multiple injuries from tumbling down the steep hillside. Nothing feels broken or severely damaged though. Trailing my fingers along the side of my head that bounced off the boulder, I winced, feeling a sickly matted section of partially dried blood mixed with hair over a sizable knot on my skull. That can't be good.Easing myself up into a sitting position, I glanced around at my
“Look at me baby girl. Keep your eyes on me and do not look down. I've got you, okay?”Randy speaks to me in a calm, reassuring manner that I'm not sure if I'd be capable of if the roles were reversed in this type of situation. The situation in particular is that I am currently dangling forty feet above several sinkholes in the floors below the abandoned insane asylum we were scouting out. The tearing sound of my hoodie sleeve clenched in Randy's hand peels my eyes away from his. “Randy!” I screamed, my voice shrill with terror, tears streaming down my face.Mere moments ago, I was walking behind Randy down the decrepit patient ward hallway on the fourth floor of the massive Victorian-period asylum. The walls and floors were littered with graffiti, garbage and chunks of the decaying fallen pieces of the ceiling and walls. His long legs and strides stepped over the rotten, sinking section of the floor hidden beneath an empty torn black garbage bag spread over the floor. My shorter l
Stepping off of the charter bus inside the park entrance, I'm greeted by a fresh autumn breeze mingled with scents of fallen leaves, earth, evergreen and damp foliage. The colorful woodland scenery surrounding me is magnificent. Nearly every tree is ablaze in crimson reds, bright oranges, rich golds and deep evergreens.Approaching the dark brown log cabin style visitor center, I took a trail map off of a brochure rack mounted on the wall next to the building's front door. Removing my iPhone from my front vest pocket to message Kyra that I'd arrived, I cursed under my breath, discovering I was receiving zero phone signal out here. Great. Absolutely wonderful...Opening the map, I locate and mark the trails I'm interested in hiking today. Acadia National Park is filled with spectacular views, craggy shorelines, deep white pine forest, and overlooks. I definitely want to hike up to Sergeants Peak, which is a bit more of a challenging hike. From there, I can either continue heading north
Sitting in the Jeep, I shake my head, clearing away the intrusive thoughts depicting odd metaphors of figurative pendulums with truth sharpened blades… and decide to give Kyra a call. I barely slept at all last night, causing my overly tired brain to conjure up some rather bizarre ideas. Maybe I'll suggest a nap to Randy when he comes back. Some sleep will probably do both of us some good.The phone scarcely makes it through the second ring before Kyra picks up, speaking with an anxious, grave tone. She doesn't bother to answer with a hello or any sort of greeting.“Leslie! You saw what she posted didn't you?” Kyra blurts out.“Saw what who posted?” I inquired, feeling a sense of dread wash over me.Releasing a long exhale before clarifying, Kyra fills me in. “Oh God. Leslie, I’m so sorry girl. Katie posted pictures of her and Randy all over each other online. It’s on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. She tagged Randy in them as well.”This actually isn't all that shocking to be honest
Sitting in the waiting room of the nearest urgent care center, I repeatedly tug and fidget with the hem of my t-shirt. Randy had been back there in a room for nearly an hour. Updating me through text messages, he informs me that the doctor is strongly recommending him to file a police report and to also save and not touch anything from last night that could be collected for potential evidence. Our apartment is now a crime scene.My urine tested positive for GHB.Randy's recent text awakens a violence inside of me that I didn't know existed until now. She will pay dearly for this! I almost left him. Almost gave up on us, believing his drinking had finally become a problem too stressful and painful to constantly battle him on. The thought of finding him with another girl after last night because he was too drunk to comprehend what he was doing nearly drove me to toss all of his belongings out the window.Are you OK? When do you want to contact the police to file charges against Katie?I
The immediate events that transpired after Randy dropped to his knees in front of me in the spare room were dreamlike at first but quickly turned into a horrific nightmare. It all happened so fast, without any rational thoughts or reasoning to stop either of us.Circling his arms around my waist, Randy buries his face into my chest after confessing he would never stop fighting for me, hugging me tightly. I stood there motionless at first with my arms slack at my sides, so overwhelmed and numb from the shock of last night. I faintly hear the front door of the apartment open and close, indicating Kyra had left, leaving Randy and I alone with one another.Not entirely aware of my own reaction, my arms rose and enfolded around his shoulders with my hand cradling the back of his head on my chest. This feels so right, and I hate that it does. Our bodies pressed together, his warmth and strong arms holding me tight, never wanting him to let me go. Internally, my emotions battle each other wi
The elderly man, Edward, sitting beside me on the bus interrupts me from my thoughts by quickly clearing his throat and answering my initial question.“I’m getting off at Northeast Harbor stop to spend a few days with my sister, Patty.” He mentions like it’s a death sentence with a scowl.“Oh? You don’t sound too thrilled about visiting your sister?” I replied in a careful tone. Maybe that’s why he’s so grouchy.“No, I’m not thrilled about it at all. She’s dying and only has a few days at most.”Not expecting that bit of information or his annoyed tone, I offered my condolences. “Oh my, I’m so sorry to hear that, Edward.”“Ha! Don’t be!” He snorts with a chuckle. “She’s a miserable, cranky old bat, and I’m the last sibling out of four who is still alive, which unfortunately means I’m the one responsible for handling her affairs.”His admission is odd and saddens me in a sense. I wonder if his entire family is so rough around the edges, or maybe he’s jaded by his sister for a good reas
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