All Chapters of Haunted: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

In the afterglow of their lovemaking,Ethan gathered her in his arms,holding her close to his chest as the pulse of his racing heart matched her own.She held him even closer,her body feeling tender and achingly satisfied.He was well versed in the art of lovemaking,Beth wantonly thought to herself,remembering how Ethan had taken her to the heights of exquisite pleasure,more than once….Now,she was lying naked in his arms,his hard body pressed against her in the most tender agony she had ever known.At this rate they would never sleep,not that it would be a problem.Making love with him had been an experience she could relive again and again.He knew just what to do,where to touch,to give her maximum satisfaction.When it was over,she had pulled the sheet up,which he then unceremoniously had flung to the floor.“I want to see you,”he’d said as his lips led a trail of fire from her neck to her breasts,his hands roaming her body,awakening her desire once more.”G

   “…the lady in the shadows…the one who watches you and wants you dead…” As the little girl's words from her vision swept over her,Beth felt a sense of terrifying unease.It was a coincidence,she told herself,nothing more.It was impossible that the little girl and Marcus could be speaking of the same thing,it was just impossible!“The lady in the shadows?”she said,her hands trembling in fear.In her mind she saw herself lying cold and frozen in that casket.“Beth?Are you okay?”Marcus asked.”You seem upset.Its just a story.....”“I’m fine,”she said,reaching out to take his hand.”I just remembered there's something I have to do.”“You’re leaving?”“Just for a little while Marcus,I'll be back later.”“Okay.If you want,I can show you some of Grandma’s journals.Dad gave them to me after she passed.She speaks about these things a lot in them.”“Thanks Marcus,”she said,her mind racing in 10 different directions at

 “Grandma loved documenting her life.She wrote everything down,from what she had for breakfast to what she felt.I think she probably hoped that if anyone wanted to make a movie of her life they would have adequate material!”The mischief in his voice was undeniable and Beth couldn’t help but smile.She wished she had half his zest for life.Ethan sat crossed legged on the bed as he began to flip through the journals,casting them aside one by one until he came to one,which by the glint in his eyes,both Beth and Marcus assumed was the one he was looking for. “And?”Beth asked.He held it out to her and she began to read.“This is from the start of her marriage,just after she moved into the manor,”she explained to them.”She talks of her unease at being alone on the upper floor,of feeling a presence in the house.She also says that she told her husband,but he just thought it was after wedding jitters.And then here is one entry where her sister came for a visit an

Days later…. “Time of death….15:03.” The silence in the emergency room was solemn as Beth took a deep breath and squeezed Dr. Casper’s arm as he called the time of death. This was the part of her job that she hated deeply and passionately,losing a patient when they had done everything in their power to save him. She stepped forward to take a closer look at the young man,the victim of an automobile accident. A bus carrying twelve passengers had crashed into his car. The emergency room was completely overrun with all the injured, but he was the worst off.Dr. Casper turned to her, his face clouded with sadness. He had been a doctor for over thirty years and every time death touched his work it seemed like the first time.“You did everything you could,Doctor,” Beth said. “He’s in a better place now.”She looked down at him. So young,not even thirty yet. His

Fallon hid her disgust behind a shy, ladylike smile, taking in the sight of Lord Carrick and his son. Both appeared utterly unkempt and their clothing had definitely seen better days. Ever since Lady Carrick succumbed to her fever, two summers ago, her husband and son had done nothing but travel to distant lands and left the upkeep of their manor and grounds, to an army of servants, at their beck and call.Fallon wondered if they even ever bathed. The smell of sweat from Warren, where he was sitting opposite her in the sunroom, was overwhelming. Thank God she had the presence of mind to open the window, before taking her seat. This was what she would have to endure as his wife? Being bedded by a regal urchin? Her stomach turned as she imagined doing her womanly duty with such a foul creature. How would she survive?Unfortunately, her mother had told her it was a woman’s duty to submit to her husband at his choosing. No woman must ever initiate the act of surrender, nor a