The Unwanted (Black Water Tales Book 2) Read Online Free Page B

that?”
    Petro’s voice lowered to express his deep concern. “You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into. That place is a black hole, something you don’t know about, and won’t ever understand or want to for that matter. That place it…it’s…” Petro moved closer to Travis and Blaire as his voice fell lower, conveying the intimacy of his message which was unexpectedly disrupted.
    “Drink!” Soreena shouted gleefully, as she threw her arms around her tree trunk of a husband. Like a switch, he flipped and exploded in jovial howling. He spun his wife around in a circle, before purchasing another round of drinks, resolving to dissolve the matter of St. Sebastian into the four shot glasses that were soon in front of them.
    As the crowd thinned and the tunes on the machine became separated by more extended bouts of dead air, Blaire’s head felt as if it weighed hundreds of pounds as she struggled to lift it from the cool, hard surface of the table. Travis, Petro, and Soreena’s voices sounded far away even though she saw that they were sitting right next to her.
    “How did we get to a table?” Blaire asked, trying her best to clear away the brain fog.
    “You okay?” Travis asked.
    Blaire enjoyed the occasional drink, but this night she was in rare form. Only once could Blaire recall being this drunk and, as horrible as she was feeling at that moment, she remembered that it was the next morning that had been the true debacle, causing her to dread waking up tomorrow. Travis looked almost as bad as she, but Petro and Soreena were flawlessly composed.
    “Time to go!” Petro laughed heartily, while his wife screeched a giggle as if her husband had told a hilarious joke. Petro stood up from his chair causing it to clatter onto its side. In one fluid move, he threw his wife over his shoulder, and Soreena roared. It seemed to be one of their signature couple tricks, obviously performed numerous times for the entertainment of spectators as much as their own. Blaire’s hand shot up to her mouth to catch whatever might come out of it at the thought of being upside down.
    “You want a ride to St. Sebastian?” Petro asked, not bothering to alter his tone in order hide his adverse feelings.
    “Our room won’t be ready until tomorrow,” Blaire responded. Petro paused then put his wife on the ground.
    “We’re stuck here,” Travis chimed in.
    “Ah, okay, you stay with us!” Petro replied. Everything that he said erupted from him in a mini explosion.
    “What?” The American pair perked in unison.
    “You stay with us tonight, and we take you to St. Sebastian in the morning,” Soreena said with a sly smirk that was both welcoming and unnerving. Blaire could not tell if her hosts were gracious, psychotic, or just drunk, and she cared little at such a time when the vodka and beer worked doggedly to shut her down.
    “Oh, we couldn’t,” Blaire replied, her refusal superficial at best, and one she hardly planned to stand on if the couple insisted.
    “Yes!” Petro’s wife screeched into the conversation. “We have extra room, so you stay with us, and we take you tomorrow!”
    “Well…” Travis said, vacillating as he looked to Blaire, and she could see that he had little objection to the proposed accommodations when considering the alternative.
    It was a modest home, no more than a five -minute drive from the pub. It was devoid of any luxuries, but it was clean, warm, and better than sleeping at a bar. Blaire took her time moving through the living area that reeked of stale beer and quiet desperation. This place had to be something inherited, a home with all of its old spirits passed down through Soreena’s family from generation to generation. Above the fireplace, Blaire noticed family photos that dated back further than any of them had been alive, peculiar ancestors watching the place with prudent expressions drawn tight at the sight of the strangers.
    Soreena offered water to her guests before