THe MIDNIGHT POSSESSION

Chapter 1

Curled up on the floor beside an half–open moving boxes, Nyra stared at the leather–bound diary resting in her lap.

Her grandmother's diary.

The same grandmother who had been alive yet died three days ago without explanation.

No goodbye. No final words. Just silence.

Rain hammered against the windows of Nyra Voss's apartment as thunder shook the old building but she could barely noticed as all her focus was on the dairy in her hand.

Nyra traced her fingers slowly over the strange silver symbol that was carved into the cover. It looked ancient—almost like it was burned into the leather instead of engraved.

A circle. A crescent moon.

And something that resembled dripping blood was drawn on the cover front.

Unease twisted inside her stomach.

"Why did you leave this to me?" she murmured to herself.

Outside, lightning flashed across the dark sky, illuminating the design of the apartment for a brief second, the lights flickered softly. Then died completely.

Nyra sighed sharply. "Perfect."

Darkness swallowed the room making only the storm remained outside.

She reached for her phone flashlight, but before she could even turn it on, a strange whisper brushed against her ear.

"Open it....."

Nyra froze with her whole body. Her head snapped toward the empty room trying to where she heard it from.

But there was nothing, just total darkness.

Her heartbeat quickened.

"You're imagining things, just exhausted, grieving and delirious," she said softly trying to encourage herself.

Still, her fingers trembled slightly as she opened the diary.

The pages were old and yellowed, covered in elegant handwriting she barely recognized as her grandmother's.

Most of it made no sense.

Strange symbols. Drawings of moons. Blood–red ink smeared across certain pages.

Nyra flipped further into the book until she came across one page that stopped her cold.

A ritual.

Unlike the other pages, this one looked newer—as though it had just been written and in desperation.

At the top were four words:

Do Not Read Aloud.

Naturally, Nyra read the first line anyway but the moment the words left her lips, the room temperature dropped violently.

The candle on the table extinguished by itself while she gripped her cloth as a sharp pain shot through her chest.

Nyra gasped.

The shadows in the corners of the apartment began to move.

Not flicker.

Move.

Her breath caught as darkness slowly crawled along the walls like living smoke.

"What the hell—"

Before she could continue, a loud bang exploded from somewhere inside the apartment.

Nyra jumped to her feet as she heard the bedroom door creaked open on its own.

Cold air poured from inside.

Then she heard it.

Footsteps.

Slow. Heavy. Deliberate.

Every instinct screamed at her to run, but still her body refused to move.

The shadows thickened near the doorway until they formed the outline of a tall figure.

A man.

No—

Not a man.

Something else she couldn't place her hand on.

Darkness peeled away slowly to reveal black hair, pale skin, and eyes that looked so crimson they barely looked like human own.

Nyra stopped breathing.

The stranger stared at her with terrifying intensity, as though he had searched centuries for this exact moment. Then his gaze slowly lowered to the open diary in her shaking hands as recognition flashed across his face.

Followed by something darker.

Possession.

"You...." His deep voice filled the room like velvet and thunder. "What have you done?"

Nyra stumbled backward.

"Stay away from me."

But the stranger moved impossibly fast.

One second he stood across the room, and the next, he was directly in front of her.

Nyra's back hit the wall.

Fear crashed through her as his cold hand gripped her chin, forcing her to meet those inhuman crimson eyes.

The air around the both of them suddenly felt heavy.

Dangerous. Ancient.

The stranger stared at her as if he could see straight through her soul.

Then his expression changed to something entirely different.

Shock.

His fingers tightened slightly against her skin.

"That scent..." he whispered.

Nyra's pulse pounded wildly.

"What are you?"

The stranger ignored the question.

Instead, he leaned closer, inhaling her scent slowly as though he was intoxicated by her very existence.

When he finally spoke again, his voice had turned deadly yet at the same time–soft.

"You should never have awakened me, little human."

Lightning flashed outside.

And for the first time in her life—

Nyra Voss understood the true meaning of fear.