I arrived home and welcomed the warmth, as it was cold outside. I took my shoes and coat off and made my way upstairs to my bedroom. I turned on the bedside light and took out Grace. I ran my fingers through her hair. It was a bit knotty. I picked up a brush which I used for the other dolls and brushed her hair. I smiled and said quietly, “Here you go, you’ll look good as new. And knot-free.”
After a few minutes of brushing, I put her on my bedside table. I got ready for bed and climbed beneath the duvet and said to Grace, “Goodnight.” I could’ve sworn she winked at me, but I was probably tired. I shut my eyes and let the sleep take me.
I woke up early. I always did. I was going to relax today and take a day off. I’d been working constantly. I looked over at Grace. She had moved. She was no longer facing forward. She was facing the other way, towards my desk. Strange. I said to her, “Jake wasn’t wrong about you being special. Maybe you’re possessed.” I stared at her, expecting her to wink again or something else. She didn’t move at all. So I got dressed and went downstairs to relax and read.
As I was sitting down and reading, I swore I kept hearing a voice in my head, like a subtle breathy whisper, almost seductive. It said, “Help me.” What the fuck? I looked around, startled. There were no windows open, and the TV wasn’t on. I might have to go back to the market and talk to Jake about Grace. This was already getting out of hand. I’m already questioning my own sanity.

The Doll Chapter 2 was originally published in The Thorne Vault on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Chapter One

I kept to myself most of the time, well apart from going to the pub for a drink if you count that as being sociable. I collected dolls for a hobby and used them to display necklaces I made and sold. I had decided to add another doll to my collection. Little did I know this doll would turn out to be very different indeed.
I made my way to the market, to the local doll store. A man was there who always had fresh stock for me. He saw me and said with a nod, “Hi Edward, come for another doll I see. You must live in a mansion. You have bought, I swear, over a hundred by now.”
I smiled as I got my wallet out and said, “Do you have anything new in?”
He looked around and then said, “I do. An import from somewhere different to my normal supplier, which I found odd. But here she is. I named her Grace, but you can rename her anything you like. Isn’t she beautiful?”
He handed her to me. She was beautiful: long straight black hair, striking blue eyes and a dark coloured dress. Tucked into the front of her dress was a small folded note. I glanced at it. It said, “She listens when spoken to kindly.”
I said, nearly forgetting where I was, “She is very beautiful. And I like the name Grace. It suits her. How much is she?”
The man put his hands up and said, “I’m letting you have her for free. She’s special, I think. You keep your money for more important things.”
I raised my eyebrows in surprise and said, “Oh, okay, thank you. I just realised all this time I have bought from you, I never asked your name.”
The man smiled and said, “It’s okay. My name is Jake. Nice to officially meet you, Edward. You take good care of Grace for me.”
He handed me a bag to put her in.
I said, “I’ll see you soon, Jake. Take care.”
Jake waved and said, “You too. See you soon.”
And I made my way home.

Update was originally published in The Thorne Vault on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Halo After Dark Chapter 3 was originally published in The Thorne Vault on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Halo After Dark Chapter 2 was originally published in The Thorne Vault on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

My name is Oliver and I’m a vampire. Nothing unusual there, right? Well, it depends on what your beliefs are.

Here’s something that’ll shock you: I live with an angel named Alice.

She’s the most goody-two-shoes supernatural being I’ve ever met. She needs to let her hair down and hang up her halo sometimes.

Why? Because being perfect all the time can be mentally draining.

Maybe I can convince her tonight.

But I doubt she will.

The evening had rolled around quickly. Alice had been in her room all day. She finally came out to get a coffee.

I said, “Nice to finally see you, Alice. I thought you’d got kidnapped.”

She gave me a deathly stare and said, as she went about making her drink, “I’ve been reading. And I don’t think anyone would want to kidnap me. What use would an angel be to a mere mortal?”

I stood up from my chair, walked up to her and said, “You’d be surprised how evil mortals can be. I actually don’t just kill them randomly. I focus on the ones who deserve it.”

She looked at me. Her halo flickered, as did her eyes.

She asked softly, “What is it like to feed on someone who deserves it?”

I answered nonchalantly, “Same as always, very messy and bloody. An innocent being such as yourself wouldn’t want to know, really.”

Her eyes locked on mine as she said, “Well, I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t want to know.”

I put my hands over her head, feeling the heat of the halo, and whispered, “Let me show you. Shut your eyes.”

Halo After Dark Chapter 1 was originally published in The Thorne Vault on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Office Hours is out now! was originally published in The Thorne Vault on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Chapter Eleven
An hour had passed. We were on my sofa. I’d found out a lot about Mary. She is a loner and is comfortable with it, and she truly believes in the supernatural and thinks they walk among us but obviously they’re not seen. And she’s an avid reader. Makes me wonder if I should reveal what I am to her right now, but she’d probably run away screaming.
I looked at the clock. It was 5pm.
I said, “I should probably get you home.”
She looked at me sadly and said, “Oh, okay. I was hoping I could stay over.”
I laughed slightly and said, “That would be dangerous territory for us, I think, right now at least.”

Chapter Twelve
I had taken Mary home on Friday night, and we had exchanged numbers. Again, I dreamt of her. It was slightly filthy, as always, like a what if I hadn’t taken her home yesterday? type of thing.
I woke the next morning to my phone buzzing with a text. It was either a colleague or Mary.
I turned over to my bedside table and picked my phone up. I unlocked my phone, opened the text, and I saw a sight for sore eyes: Mary wearing lingerie, lying back on her bed with a seductive expression on her face.
If she’d have given me that look yesterday, she definitely would have ended up on my bed.
I read the caption:
“Morning, Sir.”
I replied:
“Good morning, trouble. You know exactly what you’re doing to me.”
I lay my head back on my pillow as I awaited her reply.
It had been five minutes. I had nearly fallen back to sleep, then I reluctantly got up and got dressed. Nothing smart at weekends; I wear joggers and hoodies mostly.
I then went downstairs for a coffee, and whatever else today might bring.
My phone buzzed again in my pocket. I took my phone out. It was Mary.
She replied:
“I’ve no clue what I’m doing to you, plus I’m not there to do anything to or with you. Such a shame. X.”
Reading that made my pulse rate increase a bit. It makes me wonder how much experience she has, sexually speaking.
I replied:
“Well, I’d tell you what to do, Mary. If you’re here, it’s my rules. Understood?”
She sent me a voice note saying:
“Yes, Sir. Loud and clear.”
She sounded slightly breathless.
And I don’t think she’d be running around in lingerie, but it’s something I’d pay to see in private.

Office Hours Chapters Ten, Eleven And Twelve was originally published in The Thorne Vault on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

She then stepped back, trailing her fingers away from mine. Part of me wanted to pull her towards me and kiss her. But instead I said, “Look, Mary, I think you should switch lecturers for this particular subject matter that you’re studying.”

She looked at me curiously and asked while putting her folder in her bag, “Why would that be?”

I folded my arms and said, “Because, the truth is, I like you, Mary, more than I should. And lecturers and students shouldn’t feel like that about each other.”

I already knew she felt the same way. I could hear it in her heartbeat and I could feel the attraction coming from her. I just needed to hear her say it.

She walked around the desk and up to me, standing over me, and said, “I like you too, Adrian. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have called you by your first name.”

I couldn’t resist her. I carefully took her hand, she didn’t pull away, and I asked, “May I kiss you?”

She smiled a little and said, her voice soft, “Yes. I’ve been thinking about it a lot.”

I stood up and pulled her into an embrace and kissed her hungrily. I felt heat surging through my body. I could feel everything she was feeling, she was getting turned on. I ran my hands down her neck, she broke the kiss and moaned.

I said, my voice rough, “Tell me what you want, Mary.”

She looked at me, slightly breathless from the kiss, and smiled.

“You don’t know?”

On the contrary, sweetheart, I know exactly what you want and everything you’re feeling.

I said, “Not here, it’s not the right time or place, and maybe we should get to know each other before going to the next level. Don’t you think?”

She looked disappointed but agreed and said, “Yeah, that’s true. You’re just such an attractive man, I can’t help but want you.”

I blushed a little and said, “Thank you, Mary, you’re not bad looking yourself. Let’s meet after today’s done.”

She kissed me tenderly. If she’s not careful, she’ll make my eyes glow with arousal and she doesn’t know what I am right now.

I groaned softly as our lips parted from each other, her lips tasted sweet.

I let her free of my embrace reluctantly. She sat down at her desk and scrolled on her phone.

I knew she was buzzing with arousal, how much she still wanted me.

But it can wait.

It’ll be so much better.

And raw and passionate.

I think it’s beyond lust for me now.

Chapter Nine

The day had gone pretty quickly. It always did, but it seemed this day went a bit faster.

I packed up my things. I was ready for the weekend.

Mary was waiting outside of my office. I smiled to myself. I could hear her heart racing.

I opened the door. She looked at me and smiled.

“Are you ready to get to know me?”

I smiled.

“Absolutely. Where would you like to go?”

She said with a laugh, “I’m guessing your house is out of the question.”

I looked her in the eyes as we began walking out of the university and said quietly, “We could go to mine if you’d like. Nobody’d have to know.”

She smiled shyly.

“It’ll be nice to see where you spend your personal time, and have your most intimate moments.”

Had she been spying on me?

We were in the car park and had reached my car. It was a black Mini. We both got in.

I said, “Make sure to put your seatbelt on.”

She rolled her eyes.

“We’re not in class now, Adrian. I mean, Mr Cole.”

I tilted her chin up to look me in the eyes.

“You can call me Adrian or Sir.”

She gasped a little and sat back in the seat, putting her seatbelt on.

I started the car up and off we went.

Office Hours Chapters Eight And Nine was originally published in The Thorne Vault on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Update. was originally published in The Thorne Vault on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Apologies. was originally published in The Thorne Vault on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.