Winter's Dream (The Hemlock Bay Series) by Amber Jaeger Read Free Book Online Page B

right as he didn’t even know what right was. I wanted to hurt him and I wanted to know what possible reason he could have for getting me sent out into the middle of nowhere.
    Minnie grabbed my hand and gasped, interrupting my anger. “Look,” she breathed as we slowed to pull into a long driveway. Mature oaks lined the dusty drive and we drove for several minutes before we emerged from their shadows. A giant farmhouse took over my entire field of vision.
    The house was old and somehow mismatched. Some farmhouses were restored to a regal, Victorian look. This one, while not in shambles, was not someone’s labor of love. The blue siding had faded to a dusky grey and the wraparound porch sagged in places. There were no lovely hanging baskets or wicker rocking chairs or centennial flags. Some parts were clearly not original to the house. There were off color additions shooting off the sides or seeming perched atop the second story. It was massive but not imposing. Instead it just seemed confusing and that impression reminded me of my own house in Nightmare Town. A little twinge of pain tweaked my chest.
    “Welcome to the farm,” Viola said, pulling in front of a faded red barn larger than the house.
    For very different reasons, Minnie and I sat speechless in the backseat while they got out. Between the house and the barn I could make out a corral and from the barn I could hear the noises of farm animals.
    “This is, like, a real farm,” Minnie whispered, as if she had never seen one before. Maybe she hadn’t.
    “We are in the middle of nowhere,” I whispered back, refusing to be distracted from my ultimate goal—escape.
    Hazel motioned for us to get out of the car. “Come on, we don’t bite.”
    “But the turkeys do,” Viola said, “so watch it.”
    Minnie looked around before sprinting to the porch, her plastic shopping bag clenched to her chest.
    I followed more slowly, taking the whole place in. Despite being mismatched and worn down, I could tell it was well taken care of. The windows sparkled and lattice under the porch had been recently painted bright white. The steps didn’t creak as I walked up them and the screen door on the side of the house didn’t squeal when opened. As much as I wanted to hate it, I couldn’t. It was warm and inviting and smelled like apple pie.
    The aunts ushered us into a huge kitchen, admonishing us to remove our shoes. “Martha is very firm about that,” the nicer one said with a smile.
    Minnie and I were totally out of place in our matching ugly blue scrubs. All around us hardwood floors gleamed. The floor and cabinets alike were a warm shade of honey. The appliances were old fashioned but clean and shiny. Over the butcher block island hung an ironwork grid with fake ivy wound around it and copper pans hanging down. Even the teakettle was had been cleaned to a mirror-like perfection.
    “Whoa,” Minnie breathed. I reluctantly nodded my head in agreement.
    “So girls,” Hazel said, clapping her hands together. “This is your home for the next, well, however long. We’ll help you get settled in and get used to the place today and then tomorrow the real work starts.” She said it with a kind smile but I could only imagine being forced to milk cows before the sun came up.
    Viola moved in and whispered over my shoulder. “And we will talk to you later. Don’t discuss any of this with the other girls.”
    A small movement caught my eye and I turned to the wide, arched doorway leading to what looked like a formal dining room. A girl about my age shyly came into the kitchen. With her silken blonde hair and clear blue eyes, she was beautiful despite the mauve short sleeve dress and knee-length white apron she wore.
    Hazel smiled. “This is your cousin Martha; she’s been very excited to meet you girls ever since we told her.”
    She smiled and looked up at us hopefully. “I’m so glad you’re here; it will be nice not to be the only young woman.”
    I couldn’t bring