“Right! Clarification. Thank you for the reminder.”
She stills, offering me an adorably kissable pout. “This had better be good.”
“It’s not good. It’scritical.”
Laughter bubbles from her lips. “To what?”
“To establishing the shared meaning and mutual understanding that allows for clear and proper communication, which after all is the foundation of any?—”
“Merrick!”
“Fine! Okay. I’mnotnerdy.”
“You… what?” She’s laughing again, and if it wasn’t such a delight to hear, I might feel the need to smother it with another kiss.
But first, my point must be made.
“I’m notnerdy,” I repeat. “I’m just a multi-passionate academic seriously devoted to his intellectual pursuits, including that most meta of concepts, the intellectual pursuit of knowledge for knowledge’s own sake, the ultimate goal being the expansion of universal consciousness and awareness, and the continued furtherance of intellectual discovery for the good of all.”
Silence.
The furrowed brow.
A nod of acquiescence.
Then, the smile again, my personal sun. “Thank you for clarifying, Professor, because you’re absolutely right. That’s not nerdy at all.” She laughs again and leans forward, pinning my wrists to the bed and circling her hips once more. On a soft moan, she says, “Now shut up and fuck me before I usemyintellectual pursuits to craft the exact spell for turning you into a nerdy, glasses-wearing,not-talking frog.”
Interesting observation to note: there’s no more talking after that.
thirty-three
CULT TIES UNDER INVESTIGATION IN MYSTERIOUS DUAL BLAZES THAT KILLED 117
by Jenna Forge, Graves Gazette Staff Reporter
117 people are confirmed dead after two fires raged in Honeywell County last Saturday. The blazes, including a house fire in Braunhaven that claimed 89 lives and a forest fire in Graves Hollow that claimed 38, appear to be connected. All of the victims identified were prominent attorneys with known ties to one another. The precise nature of their association and the events leading up to the incidents remains unclear. Police have been unable to locate any surviving witnesses.
An investigator who spoke to the Gazette on the condition of anonymity cited evidence of cult activity found in the home, including a ceremonial weapon, ritual garments, and evidence of attempted ritual sacrifice. According to the investigator, the findings bear striking similarities to the crime scenes of several unsolved murders across the country dating as far back as the 1940s.
The house, belonging to estate attorney Nathan Killroy, will be scheduled for demolition after the investigation is complete.Killroy himself has been missing since the night of the fires and is presumed dead, pending the positive identification of additional remains discovered in the wreckage.
The second fire ignited in a densely wooded area surrounding Hawthorn Cemetery, the oldest cemetery in the county. In a strange twist locals are calling “a miracle,” the cemetery itself—at the epicenter of the blaze that destroyed four acres of forest land—was unmarred.
The exact cause of the fires is still under investigation. Police have set up an anonymous tip line and encourage witnesses to reach out with any information.
thirty-four
LIZZY
Three Weeks Later…
We saved the article. It’s tacked up on the fridge, held in place by our favorite magnet.
Love may be the real magic—I think we can all accept that now. But the real gut-buster? The one that makes me smile whenever I reach for a cold beverage or a wedge of brie?
Being reminded that the men who tormented my family died horribly painful, gruesome, ugly deaths.
They’re in Hell now, Oliver assures me. Facing an eternity of endless torment. He gets the inside scoop from an associate there named Hattie; tells me about it in horrifying detail whenever I’m sad. It never fails to brighten my mood.
