Excerpt: The Premonition

I woke up next to my lovely wife and glanced at the alarm clock – 3:30 am, October 31 – Halloween. Neither my wife nor I celebrate Halloween, but we don't judge those who do. That wasn't always the case. We celebrated it with gusto when we were younger, dressing up for parties and trick-or-treating.

But not anymore. Only a few people know why, and one of them is currently lying next to me. I haven't told anyone else because they'd probably think I was crazy.

Let me start at the beginning. My name is Jim Patterson. My wife and I come from a small, close-knit town in rural Kentucky centered mainly around the coal mines and the church.

My father worked in the mines until he died in a tunnel collapse. The community united and helped my mother get on her feet. That's just the way things were in those days. Our pastor, Bob, became a surrogate father to me and helped us tremendously. His wife frequently came by the house with food or other offers of help, which my mother accepted graciously.

I decided I wanted to do something other than work in the mines and joined the service after graduating from high school. Bob supported my decision, telling me that a man has to do what he thinks is right. Jenny, the girl I loved since childhood, felt the same way and went to college back east to become a nurse. We promised to stay in touch and get back together in four years to see where our relationship would go or if there was any relationship. In our community, a promise was as good as gold.

It was a tearful goodbye for both of us. The night before we went our separate ways, we gave our bodies to each other and promised to love each other for all time.

Two years later, I was discharged after being wounded in Iraq. After my discharge, I went to school in California and got a two-year degree in networking and computer science. I also spent much time in physical therapy, where I met Marissa.

What happened with Jenny, you ask? Good question. Jenny had met a medical student, and they were discussing marriage. He proposed to her after I returned from Iraq, and she accepted. She informed me of this in a long letter full of apologies and platitudes of unending friendship. I was glad she found someone but was heartbroken at the same time.

Marissa figured out the basics and began working on me. It took a while, but eventually, I fell for her. Yeah, I still thought about Jenny, and we wrote to each other a few times, but Marissa had managed to take Jenny's place in my heart. Before I knew it, she had me moved into her condo, which saved me quite a bit on rent.

Having been raised in the church, I tried to find a church I could call “home” but was unsuccessful. None of them had the feel of the old country church I was used to. The pastors all seemed full of themselves, and the parishioners all acted like they were in some kind of competition to see who could perform the holiest.

I guess you would have to experience my old church to understand. Bob was a great teacher who would read a passage from the Bible, then explain it in a way we could all understand. He never put on airs, treated everyone the same way, and better yet, he could play a mean guitar. Every Sunday after service, he would pull that old thing out and entertain the congregation as we gathered around picnic tables outside, enjoying the food that everyone brought. Yeah, for me, church on Sunday was a fun time with friends and family.

Marissa didn't attend church, and she never understood my desire to find one. I never quite understood her feelings on the subject, but I respected them. Sometimes, though, I felt as though she never respected my opinion. All she would do is roll her eyes and admonish church-going people as prudes and hypocrites. Some of them were, but I still thought her characterization was unfair.

I asked her several times to come with me on Sunday, but she always refused. Finally, one day, she told me that she never felt comfortable in church, so I quit asking. I didn't understand why at the time, but I figured to each his or her own.

I did notice, though, that she would take off three times a year for two or three days. She told me she would be with her mother, sisters, and cousins for a “girl's time out.” I figured there wasn't any harm in that – after all, she would be with her mother, so what could possibly happen? Surely she wasn't cheating on me with her mother there, right?

After the second year, I realized she was gone at the same time – at the end of June, the end of October (including Halloween), and the end of February. When I asked her about it, she shrugged her shoulders and gave a flippant answer. Then when I asked if I could come with her, she gave me a look that could melt the Arctic ice cap.

“No,” she said. “It's not your time yet.” When I pressed her, she clammed up even more. “You'll find out soon enough,” she said. “Besides, we're not married yet.”

So I shut up about it. I did notice, though, that Marissa would take some odd-looking jewelry with her – primarily bracelets and necklaces with strange pendants. I asked her about them, but she dismissed my questions, telling me they were heirlooms.

So she would leave for two or three days and return ready to screw me into oblivion. I'll never forget when she came into the bedroom late at night, jumping on top of me. She had shaved her pussy bare and mashed it against my face, growling at me to eat her to orgasm. Naturally, I did, and it looked to me as though her eyes glowed when her orgasm hit.

“Just wait till we're married,” she whispered. “I'm going to fuck your brains out in ways you can't even imagine.” Part of me liked the idea, but another part of me was a bit worried.

I once made the mistake of asking her father about these time-outs. He looked at me with fire in his eyes as he spoke.

“I can't talk about it,” he said.

“So you've been with them before?” I asked.

“I said, I can't talk about it,” he hissed. “You'll find out when it's your turn – after you and Marissa are married.” Marissa's mother caught up to me afterward.

“Don't ask about things that don't concern you,” she said. “You will come to know all soon enough.” She smiled as she said it, but her eyes scared the hell out of me.

It was late June, a few days before their next “time out,” when Greg, Marissa's oldest brother-in-law, came by the house. He looked scared as I ushered him into the house and wondered why. From what I knew, he had served in combat in the Gulf War, and nothing scared him.

“Is Marissa here?” he asked.

“No, she's doing some shopping for their trip out,” I said.

“Good,” he said. “Listen, you didn't hear this from me, but if you're smart, you'd dump Marissa as fast as you can.”

“Why?” I asked. “She's always been good to me and we love each other.”

“It's these time outs,” he said. “There's nothing innocent or good about them. At all. Do yourself a favor and get far away from this entire family as fast as you can.”

“Why?” I asked. “Have you gone with Adeleine?” Adeleine, or “Addy,” as she preferred to be called, was Marissa's oldest sister.

“Yes,” Greg said. “I can't tell you what I witnessed, because I was sworn to secrecy and frankly, you wouldn't believe me.”

“Is it really that bad?” I asked. “What, do they all go wild and get naked or something?”

“It's worse than anything you can imagine,” he said. “Spouses aren't allowed unless they're invited or it's their turn.”

“Their turn?” I asked. “What the hell does that mean?”

“If you marry Marissa, you'll find out soon enough. I just want you to know, because I'm next,” he said. “And there's a real possibility I may not come back. At least, not as me.”

“What do you mean?” I asked. “Are you in danger?”

“I've already said too much,” he told me. “I'm just warning you. It's already too late for me. Cut and run now, while you can.” He looked out the door before speaking. “I have to go, but I just had to let you know. Don't say anything to anyone, not even Marissa. Got it?” I nodded my head, confused.

“Yeah, sure,” I said. “Is there anything I can do?” He shook his head.

“I hear you're a church-going man,” he said. “So please, pray for me. Other than that, there's nothing you can do. My time is up. But you still have a chance. I have to go now, before they get back. Bye, my friend,” he added, shaking my hand. “It's been good knowing you.” With that, he left and headed back home.

As promised, I said nothing to Marissa, but I noticed that she was eyeing me closely.

“Are you alright?” she asked me the morning she was set to leave.

“Yeah,” I said. “I just have a lot on my mind.” She smiled and stroked my cheek.

“Well, you just enjoy your time off,” she said. “When I get back, we'll go to bed and have a grand old time. Okay?” I nodded my head.

“Sounds good,” I said, giving her a kiss. Her eyes flashed for a moment, and soon, she was out the door. I knew I had a few days to myself, and since my class was getting ready to graduate in a couple weeks, I did not need to study.

So I did something else. I searched the Internet for information about those odd necklaces and pendants Marissa wore. I spent hours looking but found nothing. The closest thing I could find was something archaeologists thought was a symbol for a Babylonian fertility goddess. Other than that, there was nothing. Maybe I was making too much out of this, I thought. Maybe my imagination was just running wild.

But Greg was clearly frightened of something. That wasn't in my imagination. I decided to put it all out of my mind and focus on other things – like graduation. I had planned on proposing to Marissa after I graduated and taking her with me back to Kentucky for a visit, so I focused on that.

Two days later, Marissa pulled into the garage. Greg and Addy pulled up behind her and parked in the small driveway. I met them all at the door. Marissa and Addy looked giddy, and Greg looked – different. He had the same facial features, but his attitude was different. He gripped my hand firmly and smiled.

“Good to see you back,” I said. “How are you feeling?”

“Better than I have in my entire life,” he said with a wink and a smirk. “Honestly, I feel like a new man, with a whole new lease on life.” He pounded his chest with both hands and inhaled deeply. “Nothing like fresh air to get you going.”

“What happened to him?” I asked Addy. She smiled before she spoke.

“It was his turn, and he's now a new man,” she said, wrapping her arms around him. “Just think, if you marry Marissa, it'll be your turn someday.”

…

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