Sweetwater: The Kihn (The Sweet Series) by Rivi Jacks Read Free Book Online

directly behind me, and I take off running as quickly as one can run in total darkness. As I touch the kitchen doorframe, I slow to turn. I swing to my right to clear the kitchen table and head to the back door and the air moves as something grabs at me. It’s as if something brushes through my hair as it reaches out to catch me. I keep moving just out of its reach. There’s no way to get to the gun in time, so I just head to the back door.
    There’s a loud bang as Ireach the door. It must have run into the kitchen table. The door won’t open. I frantically fight with the lock as the banging continues, loud and insistent.
    “I’m coming!” Jake yells as he comes down the stairs. The pounding continues. “I’m coming, dammit!” I hear him unlocking the front door as I open my eyes. I’m lying on my back, in bed, heart racing. I sit up; the alarm clock shows three-sixteen.
    I hear Jake talking to someone, and then he’s at my bedroom door. “Sofie, are you okay?” He knocks. “Sofe, you awake?”
    “Jake!” I gasp. He steps into the room, light from the hall spilling in. “Who’s here?” I slip on my robe. I’m trembling, making my voice quiver.
    “Are you okay? What’s wrong?”
    “I... I guess I had a bad dream.” That’s how nightmares are for me: realistic and hard to believe it’s only a dream upon waking.
    “Nick’s here.”
    “What?” I ask with surprise. As I make my way down the hall, I look around. Okay, this nightmare was incredibly vivid and real.
    “Sofie.” Nick places his hand on my shoulder. “You’re trembling.”
    “Why... are you here?” My voice reflects my confusion.
    “I—” He glances over at Jake. “I had a—feeling something was wrong here.”
    What? “Only in my nightmare,” I say my voice unsteady.
    “So, just a bad dream and you’re okay?”
    “Yeah, I am.” I yawn. What the hell? This is too weird. “I guess... I should get back to bed and let you go to yours.” I glance uncertainly at Jake with a what’s going on look.
    “Do you want to talk about your dream?” Nick asks.
    “No!” I say and startle him. “Sorry. My Gram always said, ‘Don’t tell a dream before you eat breakfast, or it will come true.’”
    “Well,” he sounds amused, “we wouldn’t want that.”
    “No,” I breathe. “We would not.”
    “Okay, goodnight and—sweet dreams.”
    “Thanks, and thank you for coming to check on us. I’m grateful you woke me.”
    As I head for my room, Jake says, “Nick, be careful about pounding on a door in the middle of the night around here. You came close to a shotgun in your face.”
    This reminds me, and I hasten back to the hall closet. I reach in for the twelve-gauge pump-action shotgun. Nick and Jake both watch me.
    “Night,” I tell them, taking the shotgun with me.

Chapter Three
    T he early morning light coming through my window wakes me. I’m rested and alert earlier than I would have believed possible, considering the lack of sleep I’ve managed in the past four days. Amazingly, after last night, I’m in good shape. I should have just enough time to stop by Lucy’s for a cup of coffee before heading to work.
    Dressed in jeans and a dark-green tee, I pull my hair into a high ponytail. I’ve always had thick hair, and the last time I had a trim, the hairdresser suggested a few layers. I love them, and the highlights are courtesy of the California sun. The ponytail swings full and bouncy down my back.
    The house is quiet; Jake has already left to feed cattle. I stand in the hallway outside my bedroom. The floor looks perfect and the door unblemished. As I step into the kitchen, the table seems to be in its normal position in the center of the room.
     
    Since I’ve already worked out a menu, I don’t take long at Murphy’s. I just need to go through the storage room to check on what I’ll need to order. We decide to start Murphy’s Special of the Day the following Monday.
    When the noontime rush is over, Emma