Triad Storm

Novah walks down a dark hallway, biting her bottom lip with fear. The curtains are blowing away from the windows, as the wind blows harder. She looks around nervously, trying to find anything hidden in the darkness. She can feel eyes on her, as she tip toes further into the shadows of the hall. Shaking her head, she tries to muster as much courage as she can to call out. Licking her lips, she takes a deep breath and opens her mouth to speak. "I know you're there! I'm not scared of you anymore!" she yells. Novah stops to listen for anything like footsteps. As she's listening, she feels a breeze move her hair. She stiffens, the wind isn't warm. As she begins to turn, a hand comes around to cover her mouth. Novah's eyes fly open as she sits up in her bed. She's covered in sweat and breathing hard. She looks over to see Max sound asleep. She takes a deep breath to relax and lays down cuddling closer to Max. Sam had really been getting into her head and she hated it. It was like he moved into an empty spot in her brain making himself comfortable. Shaking her head she closes her eyes, trying to fall back asleep. She hoped she didn't have anymore dreams like that. A few hours later, Novah woke with start feeling someone watching her. Flying out of bed with a gasp, she turns to see a confused Max standing in the door way. He has both hands up as he walks towards her. She hated the look of fear in his eyes. "Novah, honey, are you okay?" he asks, as he slowly wraps his arms around her, kissing the top of her head. She knows he can feel her shaking and she begins to cry uncontrollably in his arms. Max's arms get tighter as he tightens his hold. She knew he hated her being scared but she couldn't help it. Sam was good at scaring her. Finally able to calm down, he releases her looking into her eyes. "I'm sorry, Max. I had a bad dream last night and I guess it's still effecting me." Novah says looking away while fidgeting with her fingers. Max puts a finger under her chin to make her look at him. "No, it's okay." he says with a warm smile. "You're safe here, in my arms. He can't get you here." he continues as he pulls her to his chest again. She can't help but snuggle closer loving his smell. Once she's released, Novah walks towards the bathroom needing to take a shower. She knew the warm water would help her aching muscles. Opening the door to the dark room, she feels uneasy. It was like someone was watching her every move. Novah shakes her had feeling stupid. She knew she was safe with Max and yet she couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.  Walking to the counter, she takes the lighter from the holder and begins to light the candles in the room. It wasn't a lot of light, but as the yellow glow  filled the room she relaxed more. Smiling and breathing in the vanilla candles, she walks over to the shower and opens the curtain. Happy that no one was hiding there, she turns the water on to let it warm up. She switches it to the tap, needing to soak instead of a shower.  Novah turns and walks towards the linen cabinet to grab a towel. She stops and turns to look in the mirror, feeling like she was being watched again. She couldn't recognize the person staring back at her. The woman in the mirror had dark circles around her eyes and she looked so tired. She shook her head mad at herself as she turns back to grab a towel. As she opens the door a bottle of bath oil falls out and she jumps back. Slowly taking deep breaths, she bends down to grab the bottle laughing at herself.  After grabbing a towel, she walks over and pour a little of the bath oil into the tub. Once satisfied with the smell, she walks back to the cabinet to put it back. This time as she opens the door, she notices a pair of black shoes facing her way. Trying to play it off, she closes the door and walks over to turn the water off. The silence was earie but she takes a deep breath and opens her mouth to speak, "Max! Can you come here please?" she yells, waiting to see if anyone comes after her out of the closet. After a few second, Max comes running into the room. She could tell he ran because he was out of breath. Novah tried to smile as warmly as she could. "You okay, No?" he finally says, between gasps. She nods, motioning for him to come closer. He frowns but walks slowly towards her. Once he's in front of her she leans in to whisper in his ear. "I think someone is in the linen closet." As she pulls away, the combination of fear and angry play across Max's face.  He reaches into his pocket and send a 9-1-1 message to John and Clint. He slowly pushes Novah behind him, as he hears the footsteps of his guards getting closer. As the men walk in, guns drawn, Max points to the linen closet and they nod moving into place. John has his gun on the door as Clint reaches for the handle. John nods and Clint slams the door open. John can see the shoes and slides things out of the way but finds no one, so he bends down to grab the empty pair of shoes. He chuckles as he turns around to show everyone that it's safe. Novah puts her face in her hands, embarrassed she had caused a scene. Max chuckles as well, telling the men it was okay to leave.  Turning to Novah, he sighs. "No, you need to talk to someone. If you don't you're going to go nuts." Novah nods, knowing he's right. She can't keep living like this. Max leans in to kiss the top of her head, as he smiles warmly and walks out leaving her to her bath. The nagging feeling of doom was still strong as she climbed into the tub and laid down. As she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, a warm breeze blows across her face. Before she can open her eyes, a hand covers her mouth and she's forcefully pulled naked from the tub. She didn't have to she the person to know who it was. Sam had finally got her alone.