The Bell Witch Series Books 1 - 6

1,276 pages

Chapter 3: The Bell Family

Basheba tore off a chunk of her hamburger meat and tossed it across the car. Buck went for it instantly. The Rottweiler only had to bounce slightly in the front passenger seat to snatch the morsel out of the air. Still, it was enough to spray the interior with his slobber.

Basheba quickly twisted to protect her food. “Really, Buck?”

The words came out as a mixture of a whine and a laugh, which would have only confused the dog if hadn’t been so fixated on chomping down his mouthful.

“I know you know how to swallow,” she grumbled.

Too lazy to properly clean up the mess right then, she leaned back in her seat and flopped her foot about. She had learned during the past year that thick hiking socks were pretty effective at mopping long trails of drool off of dashboard vinyl. Once done, she left them up on the dash, positioning them over a heater vent. This was one of the benefits of being four-foot-eight. Cramped spaces didn’t really make it difficult for her to get comfortable. Licking his chops, Buck shuffled closer until his massive head rested upon her thigh. It was hard for Basheba to be appropriately annoyed at the drool dampening her thermal leggings when he gazed up at her with his big brown eyes.

“You’ve had your dinner,” Basheba dismissed.

It didn’t dislodge her dog’s head from her lap, but she did at least get to take another bite in peace. Savoring the taste, she relaxed a little more in her seat, eyeing the car’s neon clock. Almost midnight. It was hard to believe an entire year had passed since she had last been in Nashville. The area was pretty enough, especially when ravaged by the coming fall. Some trees stood like bare skeletons, their gnarled, twisted branches clutching at the chilled night air. Those that still had their leaves had shed their summer shades for the blazing colors of fall.

While it was bitterly cold, there was still no promise of coming snow. She cocked her head to the side to better study the sky. If they had any luck, the whole week would pass without so much as a flurry. The passing thought made her snort. Whoever goes in will have a lot more to worry about than the weather. A chill worked its way down her spine. She nudged the heater higher with her toe. The bounce of her thigh made Buck grumble with annoyance, and she rubbed him with her knuckles as penance.

Generally, she loved winter. Even sleeping in her car hadn’t diminished that. All she needed was a good sleeping bag and Buck’s body heat. It was just this one week that made her detest the cold—the 23rd to the 30th of October. She resolved to grab another sweater the moment she finished her meal. Stuffing an intact onion ring into her mouth, Basheba looked out over the parking lot.

It was a stroke of luck that her favorite burger joint also happened to be open all night. This way, not only could she get a decent bite to eat at midnight, but she could camp out for the night with little chance of being asked to move along. She rechecked the clock. Not much longer now. Soon, Katrina would make her selection. Either Basheba would crawl into the back seat and get some sleep, or she’d begin the forty-minute drive north. Back to Black River. To the place where it all started.

Anticipation prickled her skin like a thousand needles. She began to mindlessly eat, shoving the onions rings into her mouth faster than she could chew, her eyes constantly searching the horizon. Tonight, the environment was everything. She needed to make sure her setting was at least somewhat under her control. Somewhere familiar but not isolated. Populated and busy. Somewhere well-lit with little to obstruct her vision or escape.

She had carefully chosen the parking lot of the diner. Towering floodlights filled the nearly barren space, allowing her to watch the steady stream of people come and go. A mixture of stressed college students and people coming off late-night shifts. The bars were far enough away she wouldn’t have to worry about any drunk idiots trying to get into her car. And, if things went bad, the open space would allow her to run for quite a distance before traffic became an issue. The car’s windows were up, the doors locked, everything safely stowed away. Scratching Buck behind his ears, Basheba decided she was as prepared as she could hope to be.

Unable to resist the dog’s pleading eyes, she gave him the last bit of her hamburger, keeping the onion rings for herself. Alternating between devouring her deep-fried treats and slurping down her soft drink, she continued to scan the area. The night pressed in on the edges of the lights, still and dark as coal. It made it impossible to miss the first light flicking off. The spotlight was situated on the far side of the carpark. Without it, the night rushed a few feet closer to her. It was barely anything, but her heart froze.

Buck’s ears flattened as he sat up. His nose twitched and his eyes locked on the distant patch of shadows. They both watched as another light died with a low, electric hiss. The scent of ozone stained the air. Shadows rose up like a surging tide, silent as a serpent. It wrapped around the next light in the row and, with a heavy thud, it died, too.

Darkness rushed forward to claim new territory. It was so dense and complete that it looked as if someone had simply cut chunks of the world out of existence. Basheba watched. Waited. The few remaining floodlights kept her little car nestled within a warm orange glow. The neon sign of the burger joint buzzed like a swarm of bees. People continued to come and go, none of them paying the slightest attention to the abyss that existed about a yard from their feet. Glancing away was her mistake.

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