Total pages in book: 64
Estimated words: 63214 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 316(@200wpm)___ 253(@250wpm)___ 211(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 63214 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 316(@200wpm)___ 253(@250wpm)___ 211(@300wpm)
Am I the killer?! Wait. No one has died. Yet. Stop saying that.
With the chairs gone, I left my bedroom and wrapped the blanket around me.
Everything will be fine. No worries. None at all.
The blanket dragged behind me on the floor and swept the steps as I headed down to the kitchen. “Option two is even crazier. The snowman can come alive. Santa and the mermaids are real. I did create or at least, witnessed magic last night. That is not what I want to deal with. In fact, I would rather go with option one.”
If everything was real, then my life would implode. Nothing would ever be the same again. The impossible would then be possible and all the things that made me feel safe would give me anxiety. With this world, not much made me safe anymore.
I was a Black woman in America.
I didn’t need to fear cops, racists, rapists, crazy gun-wielding citizens, and horny snowmen. How could I sleep in a world where ice came alive, entered dreams, and fucked the shit out of people.
And boy did he give it to me. Okay. I’m not thinking about that. I won’t get crazier than necessary and start reminiscing on how I had sex with a man made from ice. Do not think about it, Faith! Try to be less crazy whenever possible!
I stormed into the kitchen. Instead of turning on the coffee maker and making a fresh pot, I walked back and forth, back and forth in front of the sink.
In one second, I laughed out loud and shook my head at the absurdity.
The next minute, I broke into tears and wiped them with shaking fingers.
What should I do?
I blew out a long breath.
Calm down. Calm down. This is totally fine. Every problem has a solution.
I stopped pacing and glanced out the window. Santa, the mermaids, and the snowman remained where they’d been when I checked on them from upstairs. I studied Santa. Even though I’d melted him to a crushed ice heap, he looked as if I’d just finished carving him.
“Fire doesn’t work.” I tapped the counter with my fingers. “I can’t melt the problem away. I probably can’t hammer or chain saw them to bits because they’ll just reform and appear the next day.”
I thought back to the dream. Remy had said a lot before making love to me.
My body trembled with desire.
Damn that was good. And it felt so real. Was it real or had he just did that in my dream?
I touched my body. My flesh ran cold. My nipples stiff and hungry. Moisture lay between my thighs, but it could have been all the ice dripping on the bed.
Heat swarmed inside of me. That dream had felt so damned good, and the secret twisted parts of me wanted more.
Stop it and concentrate. How do I get rid of them if they’re all still alive?
“I can do something. I’m not powerless. I made them and they came alive in the image I formed.” I leaned against the counter and took in the feet of new snow that had covered the ground. It hid the car, making it look like a misshapen hill. The trees appeared short due the snow level rising.
“I could make something to protect me. Maybe a soldier.” I tucked hair behind my ear. “Wait. How am I going to make sure that he will protect me and not join with the others?”
I thought back to the dream. Instead of coming after me like a pack of flesh-hungry zombies—Santa had a threesome with the mermaids and my snowman seduced me. That didn’t sound like evil spirits. It represented a group of dead people that had desperately wanted to get laid their first night back in our world.
“I’m not going to make another person. I can’t guarantee that he or she won’t come after or try to hook up with me.”
But I couldn’t just sit back and wait for night to come without some way to defend myself. I had to make something. I sat down at the kitchen table and considered my options. By lunch, I grabbed a notebook and pen, writing down the craziest ideas.
That afternoon, I had a plan, got dressed, and went outside.
“Listen. I have two things to say.” I walked up to Remy. “First, I have no idea if you’re a friend or foe. The dream was. . .odd. Let’s not do that again. Whatever that was. I enjoyed it, but. . .let’s just not do that again. It’s weird. Two, I’m building a jail around you in the hopes that we can discuss this peacefully tonight.”
A breeze blew through my hair. A few branches snapped and fell to the ground behind the car. I had no idea if that was the spirits or just the natural occurrence of nature.