Black
Beauty
Everleaf
Series
Book
Zero
Constance
Burris
Genre: Urban Fantasy/Horror
Publisher: BE Publications
Date of Publication: September
2015
ISBN: 1515275892
ASIN: B015VEGE0Y
Number of pages: 140
Word Count: 30,000
Cover Artist: Pixel Studio
Book Description:
At Vista Apartment Complex, life
drastically changes for four of its residents when they decide to do business
with Crazy Jade—the supposed voodoo witch that can grant your wish for a price.
Shemeya wants the confidence to
stand up against the girls bullying her at school, but she soon has to choose
between keeping her dreadlocs or living a normal life. After catching her
boyfriend cheating, Latreece just wants to have the same curves as all the
other girls. Ashley will do whatever she can to have “White Girl Flow”, but
takes her pursuit too far when she steals from Crazy Jade.
Everyone who comes into contact
with Crazy Jade soon learns the true price of her magic—and how horribly wrong
it can go.
Book Trailer: https://youtu.be/VahU40fcbFs
Excerpt:
Shemeya knocked
on Jason’s door. For the past two years, they’d ended up in the same chemistry
course as lab partners. He’d asked her out a few times, but she’d politely said
no. He bored her. Turning him down made her feel like an idiot who only went
out with thugs, but she wasn’t stupid. She only wanted a little thug, not a
full serving.
When Jason
opened the door, she pulled off her backpack and stepped into his house. “Is
your mom home?”
“No, she’s with
her new guy.” He led her into his kitchen. “Want something to drink?”
“You got some
juice?” She desperately wanted to get rid of the dry, earthy taste that the
herbs had left in her mouth. Water hadn’t worked.
“I got something
better.” He reached under one of the kitchen cabinets and pulled out a bottle
of Hennessy.
“Jason, really?”
He smiled
innocently.
She rolled her
eyes. “Sure. I need a drink after the day I’ve had.” And liquor should kill the
taste in my mouth.
He poured the
cognac into two yellow plastic cups before they walked into the living room and
sat on his couch. The alcohol warmed her insides and seared away the taste of
the herbs.
“We should be
talking about absorption, not sitting here getting drunk,” Shemeya pointed out.
“We always
finish our projects tipsy. Why should this time be any different?”
Shemeya laughed.
“Anyways, let’s get started: absorption vs. adsorption.” She pulled her
chemistry book from her backpack.
“Stupid names.
Why do they have to be so similar?” He sat back on the couch with a glazed look
in his eyes.
“Are you going
to get your books?”
He licked his
lips and leaned forward. “I’ve heard stories about you and Latreece’s
boyfriend.”
“So?” The buzz
she had from the liquor quickly dissipated while her heart rate increased. She
dreaded where the conversation was headed.
“I don’t
understand. I’ve been asking you out for months, but you go out with him
instead. He has a girlfriend.”
“I didn’t go out
with him,” she said through clenched teeth. She’d expected to be harassed at
school; she hadn’t expected it here. She had hoped her anger would shut him up,
but no such luck.
“I saw you go in
the room with Corey last weekend at Serena’s party.”
She threw her
books on the table and stood. “Oh damn, Jason. Really?”
“I’ve treated
you with nothing but respect since I’ve known you.”
“I’ve had a
horrible day with everyone teasing me at school. Now I get here and have to
deal with it from you, too. I’m leaving.” She turned from him and bent over to
pick up her books.
“Are you
crying?”
She brought her
hand up to her face, and it came back wet. Why was she crying in front of him?
Wasn’t the fake weed supposed to give her courage?
“Don’t go. I’m
sorry.”
She was so busy
wiping away her tears that she didn’t fight it when he grabbed her hand and
pulled her back onto the couch. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
She let him hold
her as she cried. Maybe it was the liquor, maybe it was the fake weed, or maybe
it was her loneliness, but whatever the reason, she didn’t stop him when he
brought his lips down onto hers.
His sweaty hands
on her breast brought her back to reality. He wasn’t who she wanted. “No,
Jason.” She pulled back. “I have to go.”
“Don’t go,” he
pleaded, with his hand still under her shirt. Somehow they’d ended up on the
couch with him on top cradled between her legs.
“No.” She tried
to move from under him.
He loomed above
her, flushed despite his dark skin. “Do you like it rough? Is that what it is?”
“No. This isn’t
what I came here for.” Shemeya tore at his chest, but Jason refused to budge.
He kissed her
neck. “I’m tired of being the nice guy,” he murmured, pinning her further
beneath his body.
“Get off me!”
she screamed. His erection rubbed against the crotch of her jeans. She punched
and kicked, but it made him more excited. Her scalp itched as she fought. She
wanted to scratch, but she needed both hands to fight Jason off. I’m getting
raped, but I can’t fight the urge to scratch. The inconvenience of it almost
made her laugh.
Something above
moved. She looked past Jason. Five snakes were hovering above his head.
“I’m going
crazy.” This time she did laugh, and the snakes, which were the same rusty
brown color as her dreads, smiled.
Jason looked
towards her. “Why are you laughing?” His eyes darted above her. The feel of his
erection disappeared as he crept away, but she wrapped her legs around his
waist.
Her itching
scalp had been replaced with pleasurable tingles that ran from her head down to
her toes. “Where are you going?” she asked.
“We need to
leave,” he said, trembling. “There are snakes in here. There are snakes in your
hair.” She pulled him closer while he fought to be released. “Let go. We need
to get out of here.”
“No, stay,” she
whispered in his ear. “They won’t hurt you.”
Shaking, he
looked from Shemeya to the snakes. He tried to force himself from her legs.
This time, when she tried to pull him closer, he punched her. Pain exploded in
her jaw, but she never let go.
“Jason, that
hurt.”
He looked into
her eyes. “Please,” he begged. A snake sunk its fangs into his cheek. Another
struck his ear. One clung to his nose, and another hung below his left eye. He
writhed in pain as he tried to escape the snakes and her thighs. His pleading
eyes came back to her before he stopped moving completely. The snakes retracted
their fangs. She relaxed her legs. Jason fell onto the carpeted floor.
She stood and
nearly fainted before she righted herself by grabbing the side of the couch.
She brought her hands up to fix her hair but hesitated a few inches away. She’d
never touched snakes before. But the snakes came to her, caressing her open
palm. They were cold and smooth and full of life.
THE BUCKET LIST By Constance Burris
Josephine lifts
her arthritic knees up the steps of the small Japanese tour bus and stares past
the rows of empty seats before she settles her gaze on a middle-aged woman with
a curly afro.
When the woman
turned and smiles, that is all the invitation Josephine needs. “May I sit,” she
asks after she wobbles her wide hips through the tight aisles.
“Of course,” the
woman says.
“Thank you. I’m
Josephine from Texas.”
“Nice to meet
you. I’m Keisha from North Carolina.”
“Are you
traveling alone?” Josephine asks.
“Yeah, are you?”
“No. My no good
husband is at the hotel in bed. He ate some bad sushi or some shit.”
The woman
blushes. She must be from the suburbs, Josephine thinks. Suburbanites are
always blushing over curse words.
“Are you looking
forward to seeing Mt. Fuji?” Josephine asks the girl once the bus starts
moving.
“No, I’m getting
off at the Aokighara forest.”
“The what?”
Josephine asks.
“The suicide
forest at the base of Mt. Fuji.”
“I’ve heard
about that place. It’s where people go to die.” Josephine shakes her head. “I
wonder why so many go there?” Josephine asks. “I suppose they’re all unhappy.”
“They can’t all
go there because they’re sad,” Keisha says. “Maybe some are just finished.”
“Finished with
what?” Josephine studies the woman. She’s too pretty to be so morbid.
“With life.
Maybe they’ve crossed everything off their bucket list.”
“Well, then you
create another list. Believe me; I’ve started over more than a few times. You
can always reinvent yourself and create a whole ‘nother bucket of lists.”
“Yeah, I guess
you’re right.”
“You’re not
thinking about going there to die are you?” Josephine asks suddenly concerned.
Keisha laughs.
“Of course not. I’m just curious.
Josephine brings
her hand to her chest. “Oh my goodness. You about gave me a heart attack.”
“You don’t have
to worry about me. I have a husband and a little girl at home. I would never
leave them.”
“Good. Good,”
Josephine says as she stares at the woman, looking for any sign of depression.
“I promise. It’s
just a weird curiosity of mine. I’m not going to kill myself.
“Well if you’re
sure,” Josephine says, finally at ease.
“Ms. Josephine,”
the Japanese tour guides says with an almost flawless American accent “We’re
here.”
“Oh my. I didn’t
even know I was sleep.” Josephine looks over to Keisha, but the woman’s seat is
empty except for a folded sheet of paper. Josephine glances around the bus for
the woman, but she is nowhere in sight. All of her belongings are gone.
Satisfied she has done her due diligence and no one can call her nosy,
Josephine unfolds the paper.
Keisha’s Bucket List
Visit
the suicide forest
All but the last one is marked
out.
About
the Author:
Constance Burris
is on a journey to take over the world through fantasy, horror, and science
fiction. Her mission is to spread the love of speculative fiction to the
masses. She is a proud card carrying blerd (black nerd), mother, and wife. When
she is not writing and spending time with her family, she is working hard as an
environmental engineer in Oklahoma City.
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