Call of the Dark (Dark Paranormal Steamy Monster Encounter) Read online

  Call of the Dark

  ©2015 by Cassia Dureza

  All rights reserved. This book, or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner without the written consent of the author.

  This is a work of pure fiction intended for mature audiences 18 or above only. All characters involved are over the age of eighteen. Any names, places, businesses, character profiles or incidents are an invention of the author’s imagination and used in a fictitious manner. Any characters, events or places described within resembling persons living or dead is purely coincidental.

  Cover art from Fotolia

  “So he wants me to go where?”

  “Romania.”

  Natasha eyed her co-worker with a thoughtful, yet hesitant expression and raised an eyebrow. “Oh, sounds like this one could be dark and exotic. So what’s there that is so interesting to our loyal readers?”

  Scott handed her a page containing a brief summary ending in a bullet point list. “You’re going to have a look at some of the unique architecture. Take in the native culture. And report on a local festival, mostly known for its huge bonfires, underage drinking and promiscuous outdoor sex.”

  She replied in a droll monotone, as she skimmed the list in her hand. “Will I also be chasing any leads requiring the insights of any vampires or vampire hunters in the quest to write this article?”

  Scott leaned back in his chair and shook his head. “I don’t think so. You’re heading north of the Transylvanian tourist trap. The vampire schtick has been done many times over by other travel mags. We’re going with a slightly different angle for this one.”

  She bent over the Chief Editor’s desk with an optimistic gleam in her eyes. Despite being possibly being sent into the middle of nowhere, perhaps it could be an assignment she might actually enjoy. “All right. Sounds like a relaxing vacation with a huge orgy at the end. I’m up for some Romanian strange. When do I pack my bags?” A brief image flitted through her mind of getting caught in a tangle of drunk, sweaty naked bodies. She pressed her legs together beside Scott’s desk and tamped down the erotic thoughts. Have to keep up professional appearances, at least in the cubicle zoo, anyway.

  He gave her an uneasy grin. “You and TMI Tom are going to be there the last week in April.”

  Natasha scrunched up her face. “Ugghh. I have to go with TMI Tom? Why in God’s Hell do I have to get stuck with him?”

  Scott swivelled in his chair. “Apparently, he knows some of the language. He knows German anyway. Matt thinks that it will help with the article. It’s a small village and the people you need to connect with probably don’t have a decent grasp of English.”

  She fought a tired look of mild disgust and failed. “I’ll try to talk Matt out of it. Anyone else but him.”

  “You can try, but I think he’s set on it. Tom is one of our best photographers. And added to that, he has a lot of experience travelling to rural and remote locations. He’s the best fit for your editorial.”

  Natasha gave a long sigh of resignation. “I’ll pack my Taser. I just wish it was allowed in carry-on.”

  Scott laughed. “You can always pack some sleeping pills and sneak it into his drink for the flight over if you’re that desperate.”

  She smiled. “I might just do that.”

  From the cubicle next to Scott’s, they both heard movement as the occupant came back from a long lunch break. A head popped up to greet them and join in the conversation.

  “Hey guys, how’s it going? Just heard from Tara that you’re going on that assignment to Romania. Congrats on landing that one. It sounds like a pretty cool gig.”

  Natasha smiled wanly. “Yeah, thanks Diane, I just heard. I’ll be leaving in a few days.”

  Diane brushed her short dark hair out of her face and gave her a stern look. “Why so glum chum? Remember that urban expIorer’s paradise piece I did last month? I got sent to Centralia. The town stupid enough to condemn itself by burning its garbage over an exposed coal seam. It’s still burning underground, even after 50 years. Did you forget how much I bitched about interviewing those dumb hicks that still refused the order to evacuate? Crazy ass yokels. There were sink holes and carbon monoxide vents all over that place. The best part of that job was leaving.”

  Scott answered her. “She’s just upset that she has to go with Tom.”

  A look of comic pity swept over Diane’s face. “Oh, I see. How long do you have to put up with him hitting on you?”

  Natasha sighed. “A week, unless I can convince Matt otherwise.”

  Diane replied, “Hah, good luck with that. Once Matt gets in his mind to do something, it’s a done deal.”

  “Yeah, but maybe I can convince him to hire a local bilingual guide.”

  Diane snorted at her. “Not likely, with the budget spent for this article already. He’s also a better photographer than you. He has a gift of getting the perfect once in a lifetime shot.”

  Natasha grumbled to herself. Diane practically echoed what Scott had said. Convincing Matt to send someone else was going to be difficult. But perhaps a naughty personal one on one with him would change his mind. Another voice interrupted the conversation as a pretty young blonde walked up to them with a dozen file folders in her hands. “Hey guys, what’s the latest gossip? Don’t leave me out.”

  Scott smiled, ran his hands through his spiky brown hair and blushed at her. He had a not-so-secret hidden crush on her. “Hi Jessica. No gossip. Just giving Natasha a brief run down on her latest mission.”

  Diane interrupted him. “She’s going with TMI Tom to Europe. For a week.”

  Jessica stuck out her tongue and squinted. “Romantic NOT. Bring earplugs to drown him out.”

  Natasha responded. “Noted and agreed.”

  Jessica blurted, “He always finds a way to take the most mundane topic and warp it into something disturbing about himself you can never unhear. I’m making a top ten list. What’s your worst contribution?”

  Diane started, “That he calls his testicles Thunder and Lightning.”

  Jessica choked and said, “His left hand is his LTR. But it’s an open relationship.”

  Scott chimed in, “His mom told him he was the first one to be hatched from the egg sac and he has no brothers or sisters because he ate the rest of them.”

  Natasha stopped them. “Ok, I’m depressed enough. I’m sure by the time we’re ready to publish, I will have more to add. My ears are starting to bleed just thinking of it. I think I’ll go head over and plead my case to Matt now.”

  The gang snickered and shouted in unison. “Happy travels!”

  Natasha walked over to Matt’s office and knocked on the shut door. She heard a muffled sound of him talking as the door opened for her. She entered his office as he hung up the phone and closed the heavy door behind her. He smiled warmly at her as he ran his eyes up and down her body and lingered at the short black satin skirt that showed off her tanned thighs.

  “Glad to see you. I was going to call you in for a meeting after lunch. I have to talk to you about the latest assignment you’ll be working on.” He leaned back against his expensive mahogany desk as he curled his hands around its corners.

  “Yeah, thanks, I heard. About that though. Tom? Really? Is it too much to expect another competent photographer to go along with me?”

  “Don’t be so dramatic. He’s the best one to assist you for this job.” Matt leaned forward and closed in some of the space between them. He had his pep talk game face on. “This is a great opportunity for you. Take it and have some fun with it. I expect a fantastic article when you return.” He put a
comforting hand on her shoulder and massaged it.

  She playfully brushed it off, and scowled at him. Glancing around the office, she tried to plot out a strategy. Along the walls were the covers for the first edition and popular editions of ‘Blast!’, the edgy magazine/travel blog Matt founded and she was hired for. Two years ago, as a new journalist graduate, she had walked in to hand in a cold resume when Matt spied her and interviewed her on the spot. He had suddenly needed a writer to replace one he recently fired and had to meet a quick deadline for an article to hit the next issue. With his dark brown hair, seductive green eyes, deep husky voice and athletic build, she felt an instant attraction to him. It became obvious to her that he felt the same, as their interview felt more like a session of flirting than a career outline. As far as they could tell, no one else knew about the office romance that later developed between them. A well enclosed office with no windows and a thick door to mute the sound for privacy was the key to their success.

  She was trying to find the perfect words to convey that she would be spending an annoying week listening to a never ending multitude of unwanted sexual advances, problems and inadequacies from a boy-man with no working mind filter. She came up with nothing. Time to use Plan B.

  “Is there no foreign bug eating contest or naked hang gliding article you could put Tom on instead?” she whined as she pouted her lip and hitched up her skirt to show off a black garter. The leg and the strap underneath instantly got Matt’s attention. He quickly glanced away before it distracted him from responding.

  Matt picked up a pen lying on his desk and flipped it around in his fingers. “No. We need him there. One of the main topics in the article will be about the old wooden churches in the area. You will have to get the church key from one of the residents of the village and they will probably not speak any English. And then you have to drive there. The roads there are not the best. Most of them are one-way modified mountain trails that are muddy, and filled with pot holes, with no guard barriers to protect you against speed and sharp turns. Would you be comfortable with that? Tom is used to driving in those conditions. He did a stint driving trucks in Bolivia for a few months and can handle the terrain.”

  Natasha groaned. Memories of driving solitary in the Alberta Rockies came back to her. It was an experience she didn’t want to repeat. “So tell me why we can’t hire a guide to go up there with me instead?”

  Matt hesitated. His eyes shifted away from her as he found his voice to reply. “I’ve been told that for one of the churches, the locals don’t like to go there. There’s sort of a superstition around it.”

  Natasha smiled. Her initial suspicions were confirmed when she realized why Matt wanted her to go in the first place. During her time working for Blast!, she had developed her niche. There were plenty of places Matt had sent her to that had urban legends around them, but they always turned out to be boring and empty. She built quite a good story around them anyway. Rumours about ghosts and hauntings always brought out the cynic in her. It was a load of crap, in her opinion. The scariest part about most of the locations was getting there in the first place. She moved towards the wide desk and perched on top, crossing her legs. “Sounds intriguing. Is it haunted?”

  He shrugged. Matt gave her a sly look that told her that he knew she was on the hook line. “Possibly. But not by a ghost. Something else. I’m not sure what.”

  Natasha laughed. An urban myth that took her out to Romania had to be a good one. “Tell me more.”

  Matt gave her his best horror parody voice. “At this time of year, former caretakers that have been to one of the main churches have encountered….something. Not human, but not a creature either. Maybe like a demon, or something else like it. Most who have seen it, said little about it and disappeared entirely a few months later, never to be seen again.”

  She giggled at his delivery. She wasn’t in Romania yet for context, but she knew he made his accent sound bad on purpose. “It doesn’t sound like the typical haunting baloney. But it is the worst way to get rid of a girlfriend if I’ve ever heard one. I think I should feel a little insulted.”

  His voice lowered to an alluring growl. “Don’t be. I give you all the best assignments.” He swiftly moved towards her, towering over her short voluptuous frame. Green eyes glinted at her with carnal intent. She felt a ripple of sensuous anticipation go through her body as his hands lightly touched her shoulders and moved to trace along her wide hips, waist and thighs. Matt smirked as he reached down with a feather light touch on her thigh and playfully snapped the garter belt on her leg. She winced at the stinging sensation, and pulled him closer by his belt. As he braced himself on his desk to hang above her, her breath hitched as she felt the grinding of the solid hard mass of his cock pressing against her panties. She felt his steamy breath on her neck as she sank down to lie on the desk. Hands grasped and kneaded her generous breasts while she yanked up the crisp white business shirt to caress the sculpted abs hiding underneath. His hot tongue moved down her neck to her chest and she sensed her body gently sliding, repositioning her lengthwise on the desk. Through the lace underwear, she felt a finger trace its way up and down the opening of her slit. She groaned and moved with his fingertips, removing her hands from his abs to frantically grab at his collar to remove his shirt. While his hands were moving up her leg to remove her flimsy underwear, she worked furiously to undo the tiny buttons that ran down his shirt. Her mouth searched and found his, and with the soft warmth of his tongue meeting hers it generated an ache she needed to quench. Rising up to meet him with another deep kiss, she grappled with his belt to unhook it and reached inside to draw out the throbbing bulge within. Feeling the building tension growing inside him, Matt freed his rigid cock from the clothing still restricting it. Grabbing her hips and the soft gathers of her skirt, he hoisted her upward and entered her with a sudden force that made her gasp. Natasha thrashed and gripped the edges of the desk, sending piles of papers scattering onto the floor. Matt groaned as he felt the intimate squeeze and pull within her and the impulsive urge to thrust hard and deep overtook him. Moving with a shared rhythm, Natasha rotated her hips to take in the hot plunging strokes Matt was pumping into her. Impatient moans of pleasure escaped from Natasha as she felt him driving harder, losing himself in her slick heat. Matt let out a guttural sound as the compression around his thick rod reached a tipping point. He surrendered himself to the friction and felt the surge of his climax flow out like a wild torrent in a final tantalizing release of pressure. Natasha groaned and bucked hard as she peaked and seized around his erupting shaft. With a final heave, Matt slumped as the bulk of his athletic form crushed her spent, satiated body against the desk.

  Natasha sighed. “So then, everything is booked and finalized? Tickets, hotel, car?”

  Matt lifted his head out of the crook of her neck and propped himself to one side on the desk to face her. “I think so. Jessica is wrapping things up for you. She is making the last of the phone calls and online arrangements today. You can go and see if she’s done. I think you will be leaving next Thursday.”

  “Great. I just wish the company was better,” Natasha huffed.

  “Stop whining. Get over it already. You’re both professional adults.” Matt gave her a stare of vague parental-type disapproval.

  “Well, one of us is anyway. Want me to bring you back anything? Local booze? Ceramic mug of Vlad?”

  “How about a decent bottle of plum brandy. A great cover story. And this hot ass back in one piece,” Matt said with a smile and a sharp slap to her exposed rear.

  ҉ ҉ ҉

  Natasha grunted as she slumped in her seat. After a delay in boarding, she finally could sit down and hopefully relax for the lengthy flight she had to look forward to. She arrived at the airport with time to spare. However, Tom was nowhere to be found in the departure lounge. Ten minutes before queuing, she spied a familiar pudgy looking figure approach her. He looked even more disheveled than usual. He rubbed his eyes and apologized while mixed
feelings went through Natasha’s mind . It wouldn’t have been much of an article without a photographer, or his equipment. Although, on the plus side, if he did miss his flight she would have had a peaceful ride down and a day in Romania to herself.

  Natasha watched as Tom stuffed his duffle bag in the overhead bin and sat down. He smoothed back the unruly wavy brown hair from his face and straightened the battered hipster T-shirt over his gut as he sat down. She noticed the pale, tired look on his face and a food stain on his five o clock shadow. Even for Tom, it looked like he had seen better days.

  “Cutting it pretty close. Matt would have been pissed if you missed the flight. Did you not set an alarm?” Natasha asked as he settled in for the flight.

  Tom replied, “Sorry about that. No, the traffic getting here was a nightmare. There was a bad pile up on the way here. I had to sprint to the gate.”

  “Well, it’s good that you made it just under the wire. He wants this to be the cover for the next issue,” she stated cordially.

  “I got the run down on the spots he wants us to visit. I have some ideas for some terrific shots. Don’t worry, it will be killer,” Tom said confidently.

  Tom lost the confidant air in his last statement and shifted in his seat. He buckled in and scanned the plane nervously. “You know, I’m not such a fan of flying. Take offs and landings are the worst. Oh, and turbulence. I’ve never been a fan of roller coasters. You could help me out though.”

  Natasha observed that he did seem to be a bit on edge. She replied, “Ok, options on a plane are a bit limited, but how can I make things better for you?”

  Tom pointed his head towards the washroom. “After the seat belt sign is turned off, you wanna induct me into the mile high club? I heard the membership has tons of advantages.”

  Natasha gave him a dirty look. Already it begins, she thought. “I don’t think so. There’s barely even enough room for you in there to sit down. Due to combined mass versus physical space, it just isn’t remotely possible.”