Possession

Gary cleared his throat, bringing me back from my thoughts. When I looked at him I could have sworn there was a tinge of red to his lightly tanned cheeks. "Yes, well unfortunately you will most likely have endure more of that until tomorrow. If I could I would help with that."

"Thanks," I said, looking down at my hands that were perched on my knees. His hand came into my vision and covered my hands. Warmth spread quickly throughout my body and I could feel a throbbing between my legs as my hands began to tingle under his touch. I looked up into his eyes that were much closer as he'd leaned in while I wasn't looking. I could feel my cheeks flush and Gary snatched his hand away as if he'd been burned.

With a small cough he said, "Don't worry. It'll all be over soon. I think the spirit is wearing down with all the energy it has put into, uh, well, you know and then your husband's body is fighting it."

"Do you think Jared is still around?" I asked suddenly.

Gary sat there for a moment, turning his head as he looked around what he could see of the house. "May I take look around?" he asked.

"Sure, by all means," I replied and stood. I followed him around the house, wringing my hands.

Our last stop was my bedroom. I let him in and followed him to the center of the room where he peered around, still completely silent.

Finally he turned to me. My hands were clasped in front of my chest and I looked up at him hopefully. I noticed his Adam's apple bob before he spoke.

"I don't think he is. I don't feel anything at all except for some residue left over from the spirit that's inhabiting your husband's body. It's pretty strong. I'm guessing this thing has been hanging around you for quite a while."

"A while? Like, how long exactly?"

He looked around again and then said, "Maybe a few years?"

"Years?" I squeaked out.

"Tell me, were there any problems between you and your husband before his accident?"

"Yes," I said slowly, "why?

"They might have been caused by the ghost. They feed off human energy and after long term exposure can cause illness, mood swings, and depression, just to name a few."

"Jared had been slowly losing interest in me for some time," I began to explain. "The romance died, the sex disappeared. Finally he would barely even talk to me. I tried everything I could think of to get him to respond to me, but nothing worked."

"It was most likely the spirit. From the way you said he treats you it sounds like he may be a bit territorial of you. He probably took a liking to you while you and your husband were out somewhere and followed you home. Since then he was probably targeting Jared and pushing him away."

Suddenly, a horrible thought occurred to me. "You don't think the ghost had anything to do with Jared's accident do you?" I held my breath as I waited for Gary's answer.

He sighed. "It very well may have. What did you say happened to him exactly?"

"Electrocution is what he told me."

"Yeah, could have been the ghost. They can mess with electrical systems."

"And you don't think Jared is around anymore?" I could feel the tears beginning to well up in my eyes.

"I'm sorry but no. I'm guessing your husband may have been too weak to really want to stay since the ghost may have been going at him for quite some time."

I began to cry then. What would I do now? What would be the point in forcing the ghosts from Jared's body if there was no Jared to fill it afterward? Could I escape this ghost and get a divorce? Would he let me go quietly?

Suddenly I was wrapped up in a pair of warm, strong arms. I buried my face in Gary's chest and continued to cry and he hugged my tighter to him. I felt his cheek against the top of my head.

"I'm really sorry," he said quietly, his voice resonating in his chest.

He held me until the sobs subsided and I pulled away. Before I looked at him I wiped the tears from my cheeks. He proffered a handkerchief and I gladly took it and cleaned up the mascara that I knew must be under my eyes now.

With a sniffle I handed it back to him and he tucked it into his pants pocket. "Sorry," I said thickly.

"It's all right."

I looked up at him and my breath caught in my chest. He had his hands on my shoulders and his face was mere inches from mine. I saw something in his eyes that set my heart to racing. The look was gone in a flash and he dropped his hands and took a step back. I took a deep breath, my whole body shaking.

"Let's go back to the living room, shall we?" he said and let me lead the way.

Sitting on the couch, Gary cleared his throat and looked at me. "We can still force the spirit from your husband's body tomorrow, if you want. I know some people feel that allowing such an aggressive spirit stay in our world in a loved one's body is a perversion and disrespectful to the loved one's memory. It might also be easier for you if we did that. The spirit desperately wants to keep you to himself. I don't see him allowing you to leave, at least, not without a horrible fight."

"I was afraid of that." I looked at Gary for a long moment. "Do you think removing the spirit is a good idea?"

"In my honest opinion?"

"Yes."

"I do. I didn't feel anything good from it when we shook hands."

"And you're sure you can do this on your own tomorrow? Have you had to do it like that before?"

"I'm sure and yes, I have." He reached over and took one of my hands in his and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "I know you're scared. It's all right to be. But you're in good hands with me. I've been doing this for many years. This spirit isn't even the strongest one I've encountered when by myself. If you want to go through with this, I will get everything ready."

My whole body trembled at the thought of anything wrong happening, but I was oddly comforted by Gary's hand on mine. With a small, shaky smile, I nodded. "Okay. We'll get rid of the ghost. When do we do this?"

"Tonight around midnight of course," he said with a grin, making me smile as well at the cliché.

"I'm not sure how we can do that, though. I mean how do you explain you're being here at that time?"

Taking his hand from mine, leaving me feeling suddenly cold, he reached into one of his pants pockets and pulled out a small bottle of liquid. "Before he goes to bed, get him to drink something that you've put three drops of this in. He won't taste this and it'll knock him out cold for a while. You'll have to time it right because it only lasts about two hours. We can't do anything until he's completely out or else he'll still be pretty strong and put up a bit of a fight. Do it too early and he'll be awake before everything is complete." He put the bottle in my hand and curled my fingers over it.

Still holding my fingers over the bottle he said, "Send me a text as soon as he's finished everything in the glass. And let me know if the drink has alcohol in it, that will make the stuff work faster."

I nodded understanding. "He'll probably have a few beers before bed."

"Okay. If that's the case, make sure he doesn't drink too many before you give him the beer with the drops. The more alcohol in his system, the faster it'll work, not to mention the faster it'll wear off. Don't give it to him with the first beer."

Outside a car door slammed. I looked at Gary, wide-eyed in panic. We both stood. "What do I do?" I hissed.

"I'll go out the back. My car is parked on another street. Don't worry, I won't get caught."

Hurriedly I let him out the back door and just as I shut it, the front door opened. Jared walked in and looked at the doorknob then at me.

"Why wasn't this locked?" he asked as he shut it and locked it himself.

"Oh, sorry, I had gone outside to check the mail, I guess I forgot to lock it back."

His eyes narrowed at me and he pointed to the back door. "What were you just doing?"

"I, uh, thought I heard some kids in the back yard. I opened the door to check and to tell them to go home."

He walked over to me and placed a hand on the wall next to my head, leaning his face in close, his eyes searching mine. I tried to keep my breathing normal so he wouldn't notice how nervous I was. Suddenly he pulled me to him kissing me roughly then pushed me away and headed to the bedroom. I swiped the back of one hand over my mouth, fighting the urge to throw up.

By ten-o-clock Jared was into his fourth beer. He'd started early that night since it was Friday. I was afraid he'd drank too much, but just had to hope that one or two more wouldn't hurt before I gave him the one with the drops. I stood in the kitchen, the bottle in my hand. It was hard to calculate when I should give it to him. Gary had said it would work quicker with alcohol in the system and wear off faster. I couldn't give Jared anything now or else he'd be waking up around midnight, at the latest. I figured I had to wait an hour. I just hoped he didn't drink his fourth one too fast.

While waiting, I busied myself with laundry and cleaning the kitchen, my eyes constantly going to the nearest clock. When eleven-o-clock finally arrived I made my way to the kitchen with a basket of clean clothes and set them on the counter.

"Hun, do you want another beer?" I asked as I stood in front of the fridge with the door open.

"Yeah," he answered.

I quickly took another beer from the refrigerator and set it on the counter. After popping the lid off with the opener I grabbed the bottle from my pocket and unscrewed the lid.

I pulled the dropper out and held it over the mouth of the beer, my hand shaking horribly. Gary said three drops. I'd put in two when a hand grabbed my wrist and spun me around, my other hand flying out and knocking the beer over.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he yelled, his face nose to nose with mine. His complexion was ruddy and his breath reeked of the past beers. I coughed, my eyes watering at the stench.

"You're hurting me," I cried, trying to pull my wrist from his grasp. This only made him squeeze harder, causing me to cry out and let go of the dropper.

He flung me aside, my ribs making contact with another counter. Bending down he picked up the dropper and sniffed it. Turning to me, his eyes wild, he shook the dropper at me.

"What is this?" he growled. When I didn't answer right away, he shoved the dropper into my face and shouted, "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS? ARE YOU TRYING TO DRUG ME?"

I tried to answer him but my voice came out in no more than a squeak. Before I knew it, a searing pain exploded on my right cheek and I was knocked to the floor as a scream escaped my lips. A hand twined into my hair and jerked my head up so I looked him in the eyes.

"I give you everything you could ever need and treat you right and this is how you repay me?" he said, his voice a deadly whisper. "What is it? Is there another man? You trying to kill me? How much of that stuff have you put in my beers tonight?"

"I-I haven't put any in the other beers," I said as I started to cry.

He glared at me. "I think you're lying. I'll bet you put something in every one of the beers I've had tonight. Luckily I have a strong constitution and don't go down easily." With a grunt he pulled me to my feet by my hair, causing me to scream out again as I gripped the hand in my hair with both hands.

"I've been sweet to you all along and I put up with the crying after sex, but tonight I'm not going to be so nice. In fact, I think I'm going to enjoy making you cry."

He dragged me to the bedroom and tossed me on the bed. Before I could do anything he was on me, ripping my clothes from my trembling body.

I flailed against him, trying to scratch or kick him to make him stop. He grabbed both of my hands and pinned them above my head, then held my legs down with his knees. I still struggled but it was no use. He grabbed my face with one hand, his other keeping a tight grip on my hands, and forced me to keep my head still as he descended on my mouth, shoving his tongue in as far as it would go. I cried out around it but barely any sound came out.

When he'd had enough of that, he let go of my face and took a breast into his hand and squeezed it savagely then pinched my nipple and tugged on it, making me cry out, tears spilling from my eyes as I begged him to stop. Then his mouth clamped down on the nipple and he sucked hard. It felt as though he was going to pull my backbone through it. Then he bit down nastily and I screamed.

"Please stop!" I yelled between sobs. "I wasn't trying to hurt you, I swear!"

"You'll say anything to get me to stop. You're just lying some more," he growled out as he moved to the other breast, his hand replacing his mouth, putting my breast in a vice-like grip.

After he was finished with my breasts he fumbled at his belt then his pants, undoing them and shoving them down his hips with one hand. I began to struggle as hard as I could, knowing the pain that would come.

He took his belt and tied it tightly around my wrists and then picked me up and turned me over, pulling my ass up off the bed. I felt him moving around behind me and I tried to get away but he only shoved my head into a pillow, making it hard for me to breathe. Then I felt something touch not my pussy but my ass hole. I started screaming and trying to push myself away, but he held me too tightly. The next thing I know he shoved himself inside my ass.

I screamed bloody murder then and each time his dry cock pumped in and out of my ass. With the pain and the lack of air my vision began to go black until I lost consciousness.

~*~

When I awoke, it was deathly quiet. My wrists were sore and chafed; my chest ached and stung where the sheet rubbed against the nipples. The pain in my ass was beyond description and it throbbed with each beat of my heart, sending shooting pains through my body each time.

I grimaced as I sat up, biting back a cry from the pressure the bed placed on my butt. Looking around I saw Jared lying on the floor unconscious, his face covered in cuts and bruises. On the wall just beyond him was a giant circle with symbols scrawled on the inside and some around the outside. A dark stain, like smoke burns, covered a wide line vertically down the middle. The spot eerily resembled a human.

"How are you feeling?"

I jumped at the voice and whipped my head around to see Gary sitting in a chair next to the far side of the bed. "I hurt," I said, my voice coming out hoarse.

Gary stood and went to the bathroom sink and filled a small cup with water, handing it to me when he made it back to the bed. As I drank he sat down next to me, his eyes worried. When I was finished he took the cup but didn't get up.

"Better?"

"I think so," I said, trying out my voice again. This time is was clearer. "Could I get some aspirin?"

"Of course," he said and quickly jumped up. "Is there some in the medicine cabinet?"

"Yes."

He refilled the cup and brought me the aspirin and waited for me to swallow the pills and drink before asking, "What happened?"

I sighed, a movement that caused my nipples to press into the sheet I held over my breasts and I winced. "He caught me putting the drops in his beer," I explained. "Obviously it made him mad and he hit me then dragged me in here by my hair where he began to rape me." My voice was quiet as I related everything to Gary. "When did you get here?"

"You were unconscious by the time I arrived. I told you I'd be nearby in case anything happened. I heard you scream and came running. When I got here I found your husband...uh, well I suppose you know what I found him doing to you."

I hung my head, utterly ashamed. Gary's fingers fit under my chin and lifted my face to look at him. "I cannot even begin to apologize for everything that happened to you tonight," he said softly. "This never should have happened."

"You didn't know. I didn't know," I said with a shrug. For a long moment we stared at each other and then Gary leaned in, hesitating just before my lips. When I didn't pull away he placed a gentle kiss on them, bringing tears to my eyes.

"I felt a connection with you the moment I opened your e-mail. I can't explain it. It tears me up inside that I wasn't here soon enough to stop that spirit from doing this to you." He kissed me again, this time deeper and I responded to him. When he pulled back, he released my chin and lightly brushed his fingers over my right cheek.

"Is there a bruise there?" I asked and he nodded.

"You have several bruises, but I won't go into where they are, I'm sure you already know."

Out of the corner of my eye, Jared's body caught my attention. I looked over at it and Gary did as well. "Is he dead?"

"Yeah. I knocked him out after a few blows and performed the ritual to expel the spirit. You won't be bothered by it again."

"Is- is that what the dark stain on the wall is?" I asked and pointed at the thing.

Gary looked and nodded. "Yeah, that's what the spirit left behind. The meaner they are, the blacker the stain."

"So it's all over. Jared's completely gone now." I was sad to lose someone I had loved for so long but a calm came over me knowing I'd no longer be dealing with the ghost. While I would mourn the loss of my husband for a while, I was safe and I knew Jared was in a better place where the ghost wasn't bothering him at all anymore either. "What do we do about the body?"

"I was thinking about that but I'm not sure."

"We have to get rid of it," I said suddenly and Gary looked at me, surprise evident in his face. "While you did save my life, I doubt the police would let you off completely since they'll think you beating him is what killed him. I don't want you to go to jail."

He grinned. "What did you have in mind?"

~*~

The fire blazed several feet into the air. The smell of cooking meat wafted by me and I turned to the patio where Gary stood by a grill flipping some hamburgers and turning the hot dogs.

Ashley stood beside me and nudged me when she caught me looking at Gary. "What?" I asked with a laugh as I turned back to the bonfire.

"I know you've had a rough couple a days and last night especially but aren't you going a little fast to this new guy after sending Jared packing?" she asked.

"Maybe," I replied and took a sip of my spiked cider. "But don't I deserve to have some fun? After half a year with no sex and no real physical contact, then this past week with Jared, I think I've earned this. Besides, how can you say no to someone so hot who comes to rescue you?"

Ashley and I both looked back at Gary with girlish giggles, enjoying the sight of his muscled forearms with his sleeves rolled up to his elbows.

"He might be a bit older but he'sgorgeous!" my friend squealed.

"That he is."

After the impromptu Halloween party had ended Gary and I cleaned up the trash and the food, constantly stealing looks at each other. When it seemed we had looked at each other for the millionth time, we each threw down our garbage bag and ran inside.

We made it only so far as the doorway to the bedroom before we had each other's clothes off and our hands all over the other's body as we fell to the floor.

Gary was careful not to hurt me where I was bruised. He gently licked and sucked on my nipples, making me sigh in contentment. Moving up he kissed me tenderly. I slid my fingers into his soft hair and pulled him into the kiss, opening my mouth to him. With our lips locked together, he reached a hand down and slipped a finger between the folds of my sex, running it over my clit, making me moan into his mouth and my hips buck up into his hand.

He played there, circling the little nub, my body shaking in the first orgasm. Then he dipped two fingers into my pussy and began working them around inside. I moved my hips in time with him and moaned loudly when he pulled his lips from mine and moved down to my neck.