We’re staying in a one-bedroom motel in a small town in Alabama. It was too late in the evening to drive home. I insisted on the couch, so Allie took the bed. But I’ve been tossing and turning. I can’t stop seeing images of that tall lanky demon spirit I saw in Winona’s house. I don’t need to worry about having a nightmare, I lived one.
The alarm clock is ticking loudly. Yellow light is shining around the edges of the curtain by the front door. Other than that, it’s dark. I close my eyes. I try to rest in the quiet. But quiet reminds me of that house. The silence always portended something terrible.
I jolt awake due to the sound of banging. My eyes open, but it’s dark. The only light is still shining through the curtain from the walkway beside the parking lot. I’m thinking I see a shadow of a deer or something.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
There it is again. I squint at the window. Then I roll off the couch and walk to the door. Through a crack in the window, I see a figure. I open the curtain. It’s a girl. She’s crouched down beside the front door, naked, covering her breasts and groin. It’s Alondra! I whirl around and see that the bed is empty. Then I throw open the door. Allie’s crouched, shaking. Her mascara is running down her face, and her naked body is dripping wet.
“What happened!”
I help her inside and shut the door behind her. She won’t stop shaking. I turn the light on, I squint from the brightness—though it’s just dim lamp light—then I yank the sheet off the bed and wrap it around her body.
“Lost the room key,” she says with chattering teeth. “Thank you. Hold me, Lee. You’re warm.”
I grab her tightly, but that makes me push her off me. She’s frigid. She falls to the carpet, and I get on my knees beside her.
“How long have you been out there?”
She shrugs. She’s so cold that her lips are blue and her teeth are chattering. I put my arm around her again, but even under the bedsheet, she feels like ice.
“It’s…it’s a wandering.”
“A what?”
“A wandering.” She attempts a smile, but her lips twitch. “A… witch wandering.”
“Maybe I should take you to the hospital.”
“No, I don’t believe in hospitals,” she snaps. “No.” She takes a deep breath. Then she repeats sternly, opening her eyes wide, “No.”
“What can I do?”
“Hold me… And change the temperature. God, it’s so fucking cold…find the thermostat. Make it warmer.”
I jump up to do that. But she grabs my wrist. “No, forget it. Just hold me. Jesus, it’s so cold. Do we have anything hot to drink?”
“There’s a microwave. Tea bags and a mug, I think. I can microwave some tea.”
I get up even though, at first, she doesn’t want to let me go. I search for a coffee maker on a shelf and find a Styrofoam cup and tea bag. Then I run to the faucet by the bathroom, but the water isn’t coming out. Are the pipes frozen?
“The water’s not running.”
“Fluenta!” she cries, almost screams. Water bursts into the sink. I grab and fill the mug. Then I throw it in the microwave.
After forty seconds, I run back with the cup.
Oddly, she’s taken the bedsheet off. She’s in the nude again, sitting on the floor holding her knees and shivering. She turns her head to the left and right in an odd way, like a bird. Then our eyes meet. Those green eyes gaze at me. Despite her shaking, she smiles. It’s a sultry grin, which is unnerving. It creeps me out, because it reminds me of the haunted house.
“Come over and warm me,” she says.
My legs obey. I find myself on my knees before her again. I hand her the cup. She takes it with two hands as if it’s some holy vessel. But the weirdest thing is that she stops shaking after drinking it. Then she gently puts it down beside her on the carpet. She touches my hand. Her hand is warm.
“I’m feeling better,” she says with a smile. “Thanks, Lee. How about you? That was a really strange night at the house, huh?”
Ah…yeah. How about now?
I squint at her. Small talk feels really weird.
“Fructus,” she says earnestly with a nod, as if that’s the answer. Then she picks up the teacup and drinks more tea. I catch myself staring at her boobs and she smiles. Then she runs her hand along my neck and nightshirt. “Fructus.”
“What? What are you talking about?”
“Fructus,” she replies plainly. I heard that word before. I can’t place where.
She takes my hand and kisses the back of it. My eyes glance at her breasts again. She notices and I feel myself blush. I quickly look back at her face. That’s worse. We lock our gaze. Those bright green mesmerizing eyes stare.
“I can’t take it when you’re naked,” I mutter, shaking my head.
Why did I say that?
She laughs with a nod. “Fructus. Fructus coitus. It’s fructus.”
She takes my hand and runs it along the curve of one breast and then over an erect nipple. Her skin isn’t cold anymore. It’s warm. Then she closes her eyes, brings my fingers up to her mouth, and takes a finger and sucks it up and down seductively. I yank my hand back.
“What’s the matter?”
“You’re freaking me out,” I say. “This is like Winona’s house. You were freezing a second ago.”
“It’s me. But I’m fighting a trance.” She shuts her eyes very tight. “I think it was probably triggered by Winona. Yes. I had a witch’s wandering. I felt compelled to wander outside. A wandering makes us one with nature. We become like animals. We eat like animals. Sleep like animals.” She opens her eyes and stares right into mine again. Then she leans close and touches her lips to mine. Between kisses, she says, “And we…fuck like animals. It takes all my strength not to tear your clothes off right now.”
I laugh nervously, but she nods.
“If you don’t want this, I think I can stop. I know that I want you. I’ve been attracted to you ever since I met you.”
There’s an outdoor dirt smell to her skin. But her perfume smells four times stronger. She has a pumpkin-lavender smell.
She’s shivering again. Somehow, I find my hand rubbing her back, trying to warm her. She scoots up a little and my fingers accidentally slip down over the crack of her ass. She snatches the hand back and kisses it.
“Leave the room if you don’t want me. Even go into the bathroom for a few minutes. Leave. Or… stay with me. Hold me. But choose. I can’t control this much longer.”
“What kind of magic—”
“Make a choice,” she says, shaking her head.
She takes a deep breath, smelling the air, as if she’s taking in an exquisite aroma. Then she grabs my hand hard, running her fingers up my arm and massaging my skin. She twists my hand, hurting me a little. But then she brings my fingers to her mouth and kisses them again.
With my other hand, I pull my nightshirt over my head as an answer. Her eyes widen and her hand quickly drops mine. Her fingers glide over the sparse hairs of my bare chest and then over my stomach, running over the ridges of my abs. She locks her lips hard on mine as she continues to rub me. Her hands land between my legs.
Apparently, removing my shirt was enough. She pushes me on my back on the carpet. Then she mounts me. I’m expecting to be shocked by her cold skin, but she’s warm. Her boobs hover over my face. I reach up and suck one, while running my hand over the soft curves of the other. I’m squeezing her, finally touching her body in ways I could only dream of before. She giggles. She moans as I suck. I’ve never done that before. Then she dips down and strokes my shoulders and neck. She reaches down again to the bulge in my underwear. Her hand glides inside and touches the skin of my hard cock. Now I know she was right. There might have been a choice before, but now it’s gone. We’re committed.
And yet, even now, I push her off.
“What’s the matter?” she asks, amused. She’s on her side on the carpet.
I run to a chair, by a desk, where my pants are hanging. I rummage through my wallet and grab a condom. It doesn’t take me long to get back to the floor.
She throws back her long black hair and mounts me again on the carpet. She smiles at me. But this isn’t the sweet Alondra smile; she looks hungry. And her beautiful face scares me a little in the dim lamplight. Her dark mascara is running.
She grabs my hand again and runs it along her soft skin, guiding it down her side until it finds the crack of her ass again, while joining my lips to hers painfully tightly. Then she rocks over my hard cock through my underwear. She says the words between kisses:
“Fructus. Coitus fructus.”
Now I remember those words. It was from the dark-skinned girl named Beth who tried to rape me on Hilltop Bluff. That memory is enough for me to want to stop again.
But Alondra yanks my underwear off and tugs it from my feet. I’m naked like her. Then her fingers, with those long black fingernails, glide over the skin of my naked, erect cock. She rubs it. She keeps rubbing it until I moan. Then she tears off the condom wrapper herself and slides the rubber over my cock. After a little bit more stroking, she lies on top of me again.
I move my head away.
“What’s wrong now?” she asks, almost in a grunt. “You want me to stop? Really? What’s the matter, Liam?”
“Those words are the words I heard on the hilltop.”
“What words? Coitus fructus? It means fuck. It means I want to fuck you. I really want to fuck you right now. Don’t you want to fuck me?” Then she adds, almost in a whisper, by my ear: “Fructus. Coitus fructus.”
That’s irresistible. Is she casting a spell on me? Or is it just her?
“I’ve never done this before.”
“Fuck? Or fuck a witch?” She actually laughs. I don’t think it’s very funny. She frowns at me.
Then she closes her eyes and grinds against my cock again. But I haven’t entered her yet. She gazes down with her infamous smile. Even now, naked, she’s Alondra, looking totally sure of herself. She gently runs her hand along the stubble on my cheek. That eases me a little. Then she brings up my head to hers and kisses my lips.
My heart’s thumping. She’s holding my head while grinding over my groin. Even her scent, the lavender perfume, seems to hold me. I desire to be close to her so much now.
“Let me translate,” she says, still grinding. “Sweet. Sweet…sex. It’s a…” She dips down and her lips dance with mine. I can’t move. I’m frozen. I don’t know if it’s a spell, but I literally can’t move. But I don’t care. I don’t want to move. “It’s Latin for sweet. ‘Sweet sex.’ Or, if you prefer, fruit. Fruit fuck, Lee. Fucking… I can…try to stop if you want me to. Do you want me to stop?” She runs her lips down my neck and over my hard chest. “Please say you don’t. Please.”
Then she drags her tits along my stomach, moving her body over my cock, only arousing me more.
“Do you…want me to… stop…Lee?”
“No. Don’t stop. Please don’t stop, Allie.”
“You really haven’t had sex before?” she asks. “Are you serious?”
I nod.
She takes a deep breath over that, as if it’s intoxicating, and ravenously dips down, pressing her lips hard against mine like an animal. She’s breathing so hard I can feel her blow along my lips. She laughs and squeezes me so tight it almost hurts. Then she enters my mouth, running her tongue along mine.
“But those were the magic words that night,” I say, between her sucking. “This isn’t you. It’s a spell.”
“This is me, not a spell. I’m a witch, Liam. But I like you. And I would never harm you. Never. I would hurt myself before hurting you. I can’t believe no one’s done this with you before. You are so incredible.”
I’m incredible? No, she’s incredible.
She moans in pleasure as I enter her. She gently pushes in and out on top of me. I squeeze her breasts; then I lean forward and take her in my mouth again. She’s groaning while pressing her lips and body against me. Then I find enough strength to raise myself into her. That makes her cry out more. She pumps faster. We’re moving together. As we touch, I turn to my right and I swear I see the silhouette of a deer with antlers standing by the window. It nearly distracts me until—
“Take me,” she says. “Don’t stop.”
She places my hands on the crack of her ass, now moist, bringing me closer, deeper. Then she’s back at my mouth, practically chewing on my lips. I taste her tongue.
“You’ve never had sex before?” she asks, looking into my eyes. “Are you serious? Really?”
I hesitate, but then I nod.
“Oh, Lee. Thank you.”
“Thank you? For what?”
“For sharing that. Only you would. You’re so amazing.”
“No, you are, Alondra.”
She leans over and kisses me again, still grinding into me. Then she sits up straight over me, throws her hair back, and shakes her head. “No, you are.”
The shadow of the stag is kicking and bucking like crazy by the window. I’m sure I see its shadow now. I’d point it out to Alondra if we weren’t so intimate. The hooves of the animal are clopping against the walkway as its bucking up and down. It seems to be in tune with the rising and falling of Alondra’s body over mine.
Alondra gently turns my head and looks deep into my eyes. She smiles as she presses into me faster. I try to turn back to the window to look at the stag, but she gently pushes my head back again. She smiles, opens her eyes wide, and stares, in the dim light, into mine. As she rocks her body inside me, she wants me to stare into those bright green eyes. Is she hypnotizing me? I don’t care. I love gazing into her. Maybe she’s doing it because she knows I love looking at them so much. I don’t want to be anywhere else except with this girl, right now, so close. Gazing into her.
The stag is clopping loudly enough now for Alondra to finally turn and look at the window. It’s jumping up and down, crazy. So is she.
She looks away from me and loses her smile.
“I’m going to cum,” she says. “Oh, god, Lee! You’re incredible.” She grinds harder and leans down, sucking on my lip. Then she lifts her head and extends her body straight back, exposing the curves of her boobs and nipples. She throws her black hair back, moans, and falls down on me, landing on her elbows. She cradles my head, locking her eyes with mine again, so close I can feel her breath over my face. “Oh, Lee. Liam. I love you. I’m cumming! I really love you, Liam. I know it now. I love you so fucking much!”
She climaxes with me inside her. That makes me orgasm too. We fall to our sides. But then she quickly gropes for me. It reminds me of Winona’s room. It’s as if she’s afraid I’ll leave her if she doesn’t grasp me in time.
She’s cold again. Icy freezing cold. She’s shivering and her icy body makes me shiver too. And this is like when I hugged her in the pool by her house. It’s that cold pleasure. Her skin is like ice.
“Rest with me,” she says with heavy eyes. “Lie with me. I’ll keep you warm, angel. You’re my angel and I will care for you.”
“Why were you outside in the middle of the night, Allie?”
“I’m a cold witch. But you warm me.”