Obsession by Traci Hunter Abramson Read Free Book Online Page A

gospel and the joy it could bring her.
    Sometimes it was hard to believe that her father had been raised Mormon, but even though he had abandoned most of the practices long before she was born, one thing was certain: family still came first for him.
    A twinge of guilt shot through her as she considered how worried he would be. She thought of how she must look right now, snow-covered and frozen, and was suddenly glad he couldn’t see her. For now, she would have to trust her grandfather to somehow assure her dad that she was okay without revealing her location. He mentioned this morning that he was going to tell her father that she had called him to let him know what had happened. Where the conversation would go from there, she couldn’t be sure.
    Kendra crossed the yard to the cabin and carefully climbed the steps to the front porch. She set the suitcase down in the snow and then struggled to fish her key out of her purse, despite the numbness in her fingers. Her hand trembled as she finally managed to grasp hold of the key and slide it into the lock.
    She pushed the door open, barely remembering to grab her suitcase off the porch as she hurried inside. The furniture in the expansive living area had been replaced since she’d been here last. Several oversized chairs were clustered near the fireplace, and two loveseats were angled in the other corner of the room, facing the armoire that housed the television and DVD player. A few logs and some newspapers were stacked beside the fireplace. Kendra immediately reached for the thermostat beside the door and turned on the heat. Then she dropped her things on a loveseat and crossed the room to start a fire.
    Her fingers were cold and red, and it took her a few minutes to accomplish what would normally have been a simple task. As soon as she was confident about the leaping flames, she closed the screen and plopped into the closest chair. She kicked off her soaking wet sandals and then realized that she would feel infinitely better if she were wearing dry clothes.
    She shrugged out of her coat, pulled some dry clothes from her suitcase, and changed right there in the living room. She didn’t worry about the mess she made in the process. All she could think about was getting warm.
    Reaching for her grandmother’s afghan off one of the loveseats, she curled up in a chair by the fire and pulled it over her legs. The smell of burning wood lingered in the air, and the warmth of the fire seeped into the room. Slowly, the shivering stopped, and her chattering teeth quieted. As the feeling began to return to her hands and feet, she settled back into the chair and let herself drift off to sleep.

Chapter 7
    Charlie navigated the unfamiliar roads through the steadily falling snow. He hadn’t thought to check the weather reports before starting out. This was Arizona. He had never really considered that only two hours north of the Phoenix desert, he would find a full-blown winter snow storm, and now he found himself wondering exactly how much accumulation was expected here in the mountains.
    He glanced down at the handmade map Elias had provided for him after he’d realized Google Maps and MapQuest couldn’t find the place. Now he could understand why. Street signs were in short supply and, rather than addresses, the properties were referred to by lot number. Without knowing where the cabin was, it was unlikely anyone was going to find it without help from someone who had been there before.
    Charlie flipped on the radio and searched for a local station, hoping for a clue as to how much snow Pinewood was supposed to get. A foot of snow had already accumulated on the ground, and Charlie was immediately grateful that he was still driving the beat up four-wheel-drive he’d bought after returning home from his mission.
    He made his final turn, the rear wheels sliding as he did so. Then he looked down the narrow road and wondered if he was lost. The snow on the road was pristine, and there