by Jill Sanders
The only thing she’d been able to make out was a pair of sexy chocolate eyes.
She must have drifted off to sleep again, because this time, when she peeked one eye open, she saw the alarm clock in her hotel room.
Getting up, she felt like punching something. She was getting tired of things happening to her that she had no control over.
Once more, she was up before dawn with no hope of falling back asleep. She picked up the phone and called the one person who’d always steadied her.
“Hey, Daddy,” she said, leaning back.
“Hey, pumpkin.” Just hearing her father’s voice settled her nerves. “How’s it going?”
“Not so great. Did you hear about the take-over this week?” She figured she’d start with something simple.
“No, I’ve been stuck in meetings all week on some last minute changes of a bill. What’s going on?”
For the next fifteen minutes, she filled her father in on her career, or lack thereof.
“So, where exactly are you?”
“Some podunk town called Hidden Creek.”
The line was silent.
“Dad?”
“Yeah, I’m here, sweetie.” Her father’s voice sounded funny. So much so that her investigative side came out.
“Have you heard of it?”
“I lived there for a few years when I was in high school.”
“You did?” She sat up. “Why didn’t you ever tell me?”
“Well, I didn’t tell you about the other twenty towns your grandparents dragged me to either,” he joked.
Realizing he was right, she leaned back. Her grandfather had been a fortune hunter. He’d seen dollar signs every place except for where he was. He’d moved her father’s family around so much, she wasn’t even sure her father remembered all of the towns he’d lived in.
“So, what do you remember about this place?”
“Not a lot. Listen, honey, I’ve got to go,” he broke in. “Stay safe.”
He got off the phone quickly, leaving her wondering what her father hadn’t wanted to tell her about the small town. She knew the man too well to fall for his act. Her father was hiding something.
Clicking her own keyboard, she typed in her father’s name and Hidden Creek.
Several websites came up, wanting her to pay for searches, but she knew how to go around them. Finally, she found a picture of her father and mother. But when she looked closer, she froze.
Once more, she felt her skin tingle. She closed her eyes, wondering where she’d end up.
She’d been planning for this. Tucked in her pockets was everything she needed.
She was happily surprised this time, however, when she opened her eyes and noticed that she was standing outside of the local library.
Glancing down at her watch, she frowned when she noticed that it was five minutes after they had opened their doors. Where had the last two hours gone? Maybe she’d spent more time on her computer than she’d thought.
Regardless, it was just the place she wanted to be. She’d been thinking about stopping by the local newspaper office, as well, but the library was going to be her first stop.
Could she actually be getting a handle on controlling this?
Glancing around, she wondered if anyone had seen her magically appear, but the small town appeared to be completely quiet that morning.
When she walked into the library, she was greeted by an older woman. After telling the woman that she wanted to learn more about Hidden Creek, she was escorted into a large room in the basement.
Brea shivered slightly when she realized that the place resembled the library in the opening scene of Ghost Busters. The librarian showed her how to use the microfiche reader and pointed out where the films related to the town were.
The librarian told her that local papers published between ten and fifty years ago were all on microfiche and were labeled and organized in large wood file cabinets. Due to a lack of funds, most of the old newspapers hadn’t been scanned into the computer system yet.
She researched the town for several hours. By the time she was done, her eyes stung, her head hurt, and she was pretty sure she was going to walk with a hunch for the next few days. She couldn’t believe this was how people used to do research before the internet.
She spent the next few days in the basement of the library. Each morning, after getting dressed, she would feel her skin tingle, and she’d appear in the same spot in front of the library. She had actually tried to intentionally send herself there just that morning, but when she had closed her eyes and wished herself there, nothing had happened. Just when she’d finally given up, her skin had begun to tingle.
She still hadn’t found anything that could explain what was happening to her.
Every night she was woken by new dreams. She’d seen the brown-eyed man several times before, but had always believed he was just her dream guy. You know, the man every woman fantasizes about. Usually he’s a mix of several men together. A little Chris Hemsworth, some Bradley Cooper, a touch of Channing Tatum, and even some vintage Harrison Ford just for fun. She wondered if he was real, but doubted it, since every dream she’d had of him was very sexual in nature.
She’d never done some of the things she dreamed of. Her sex life so far had been limited. She’d only had two lovers and neither of them had ever done to her what she dreamed about brown-eyes doing.
She’d first started dreaming about him when she started dating Drew. Her dream guy was the complete opposite of Drew, so she’d decided that her brain was telling her not to get too involved. She should have listened.
But now, since being in Hidden Creek, dream guy had been showing up every night.
Between him and dreams about Christina being in trouble, she was lucky if she got four hours of sleep each night.
One night, after a long day of research, she’d thought she’d rolled out of bed and reached for the bedside light. She’d instantly been bombarded with images.
She saw a dark room lit by candles, and a woman’s figure lying on a table, as if it was an altar. Then she saw a large red metal door, and a group of people standing around her, chanting.
The rest of the night, she’d stayed up, waiting for the sirens to drive by. When they did, she got dressed quickly and followed them.
From her car, she watched the paramedics take two people to the ER.
Her heart skipped a beat when she noticed the woman’s black hair.
What the hell was wrong with her?
She banged her hands on the steering wheel. Flipping the car around, she decided it was time to leave Hidden Creek.
She went back to the hotel and was packing her stuff when she saw something out of the corner of her eye in the bathroom mirror.
Her mother stood a few feet behind her. Spinning around, she stared into silver eyes, much like her own. Taking a step back, she realized that it wasn’t her mother.
“Aunt Misty?” She took a step forward, her eyes on the figure who appeared to be floating just in front of the door.
When her aunt’s eyes moved to hers, sadness overtook her. Falling to her knees, she wept as the image of her aunt disappeared.
She packed her bags faster than she had ever moved and was out the door and in her car less than five minutes later.
About an hour later, she was back in her own apartment. When she shut the door behind her, she locked it and relaxed. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and then another to steady herself.
She hadn’t seen a ghost. She had kept telling herself that the entire ride home. She’d said it so much in her mind that she’d actually started believing the lie.
When her skin started to tingle, she cried out, “No!” She forced her mind to stay focused on her apartment, but it was too late. When she opened her eyes, she found herself back in Hidden Creek.
Ethan shifted his pack on his shoulders as a bead of sweat rolled down his back. They were several clicks from their destination and that strange fee
ling washed over him again. He’d been fighting it all day.
It wasn’t as if he could will it away. Especially since now, his gut was tied in knots. Even his men knew something was wrong. There were only four of them, trudging through an area the US military had no right to be. Hell, if they were caught, he was pretty sure all knowledge of them would be wiped clean and denied.
“Sarge, should we—”
He held up his fist, signaling silence. No one moved. No one even breathed.
Once again, images of the silver-eyed beauty flashed in his mind. Shit. Get it together.
Now wasn’t the time to daydream about some sexy-as-hell woman.
Dropping his arm, he took one step, then another. Suddenly, his feet flew out from under him. Thoughts of his brother crossed his mind just before bullets flew by his head. Desert dust, red canyon rocks, and dirt flew around him, and there were several loud booms.
Then, his entire body was tossed as a bullet ripped through his pack, tearing through his shoulder. Searing pain shot up his arm and shoulder, tossing him back to the ground. Glancing down, he saw bone sticking out as blood trickled down his side.
The world tilted slightly. He heard his men screaming and fighting back, but the only thing going through his mind was his brother and the silver-eyed woman.
He lay there for a moment, before everything settled. Glancing over, he realized that if he didn’t move, his entire team was going to end up six feet under.
He rolled over and grabbed his weapon and started firing with his good hand. One of his men grabbed his leg and started pulling him to safety as he continued to fire where he assumed the enemy was hiding.
When he felt his vision start to gray, he bit the inside of his lip and held on for as long as he could. He was tossed over someone’s shoulder and carried. Shifting up, he made sure he could see behind them as he held his weapon at the ready.
Only when he was tossed in the back of the truck they’d traveled there in did he allow his body to react to the violence it had been through.
Once more, his vision grayed as pressure was applied to his wound and his men screamed instructions over him.
“Hang on, Sarge,” Nick said, frowning down at him. He didn’t need to look down. He knew it was bad by the way Nick was looking at him.
“Shit,” he said. “Someone better call my mother,” he said, just before blacking out.
When he came around, he was in an evac. He knew that there were drugs flowing through his system because everything was fuzzy. But he had one question that had to be answered.
“My men?” He almost growled it out.
“All safe. You’re the only one injured,” the medic said, patting him gently on his good shoulder. “Relax, you’ve just earned yourself a one-way ticket back to the States.”
Chapter 4
Brea stood just outside the door on the large front porch. She didn’t know why she’d appeared there. One minute she’d been in her apartment, and now she was standing here looking at Christina.
Once more, the tingling sensation flowed through her, but this time, a warm shot of air flowed over her as well. The strange feeling caused her to take a step backwards as everything started to tilt.
Christina rushed forward and grabbed her arm, then jerked back as if she’d been burned.
“Sorry.” She frowned at her. “Are you okay?”
“I…”
Christina stood back, tucking her hands behind her back. “Welcome. Please come in.” She motioned her into the room. When Brea glanced around the room and saw Jacob, she relaxed slightly.
“I…” She took one step into the room. “I didn’t mean to interrupt your party.” She glanced down and realized she’d lucked out that time, since she still held her purse.
Christina chuckled. “Actually, you’re just in time, seeing as you’re the guest of honor tonight.”
She turned back to the dark-haired woman. A feeling of dread washed over her. She’d seen this night. This moment. Several times before.
She knew that from here on out, everything was going to change. She’d tried to fight it by leaving town, but she’d ended up right back here anyway.
“Forgive me.” Christina folded her hands in front of her, making it clear to Brea that she was not going to get a handshake. “I’m Christina, but please, call me Xtina.” The name fit the woman standing in front of her much better than Christina. “This is Jessie.” She motioned to the woman Brea had seen earlier that week rushing out to help the unconscious Xtina after she had passed out in the grocery store. “This is Jacob.”
“We’ve met,” he said, moving away from the fireplace a step and nodding in her direction. There was still a slight frown on his lips, but his eyes looked like he was waiting for the punch line of a joke.
Brea nodded in his direction, then her eyes fell on the man sitting on the sofa in the dark corner. Her breath caught in her throat. “I saw you get hurt,” she said, breaking into the woman’s introductions, “but it was your shoulder…” Suddenly she realized what she’d just owned up to and clamped her mouth shut.
“It’s okay,” Christina said. “This is Mike. It was his twin brother, Ethan, that was hurt. He’s okay and is on his way back to the States.” Christina sighed and walked over to lay a hand on the injured man. There was a dog lying next to him, and one of his legs was propped up, covered in a large white bandage.
It was strange looking into the eyes she’d dreamed about, but knowing it wasn’t him. She couldn’t tear her eyes from his as Xtina invited her to sit. Taking the seat across from him, she shifted her attention back to Xtina.
“I…” Where did she start?
“Who are you?” Everyone turned to look at Jessie, who just shrugged her shoulders. “You may know her”—the woman looked at Jacob and her eyes narrowed— “but no one else in the room does.”
“Sorry.” She shifted slightly. “I’m Breanna Garrett.”
Jessie’s eyes narrowed. “And?”
She shifted again. “I’m from Atlanta. I work for WSB.” She thought about the text message she’d sent to Drew about coming home and cringed. He’d probably drive by her place and see her car parked in her spot. Which reminded her that she was stuck in Hidden Creek without a car. She held in the groan of frustration.
“Why are you in Hidden Creek?” Mike spoke for the first time, causing her to jump a little at the familiarity of his voice. She’d heard him—no, his brother—speak so often in her dreams.
“I…” She wondered that herself, but then decided a little truth couldn’t hurt. “I’m here because of her.” She turned to Xtina.
“Me?” For the first time since Brea had walked in, Xtina looked a little shocked.
“Yes, because of this.” She pulled out the newspaper article from her bag.
“You’re here for a story,” Jessie finally said, her eyes narrowing towards Jacob. “You knew about this?”
Jacob, for his part, only shrugged. Brea watched as the side of his lips curved up and suddenly, something in her mind clicked.
“You’re brothers?” she said out loud, her eyes going between the two men.
“Yes,” Mike said after a moment, tilting his head slightly. “You said you saw Ethan get hurt.”
It was so strange seeing him sitting across from her. It was a little too dark to see clearly, but still, she could see small differences between him and her dream man.
“Yes.” She felt her face heat.
“It’s okay, we all witnessed it. Like you,” Xtina said, walking around and sitting beside Mike. Mike took her hand in his and instantly Brea could see that their connection was deep.
“I saw him get hurt,” she said again.
“Did you see anything else?” Mike asked.
She shifted again, not comfortable telling him about the rest of her dreams about his brother. Or the fact that she’d just… what? Teleported from an hour away. She felt some of the blood drain from her face. She’d gotten used to appearing at t
he library, but that had been less than two miles away. She’d always imagined that there was some sort of limit on her travel. What if she ended up across the world?
“I… I saw you.” She turned her eyes to Xtina. “In the grocery store.”
“The day I passed out?” Xtina frowned.
“Before that,” she admitted.
“I don’t understand,” Xtina said.
She took a deep breath and explained how she had visions of things before they happened. When she was done, the room was quiet. She left out the part of teleporting and about her other dreams.
“Has this happened to you before?” Xtina asked.
Brea bit her bottom lip. “Actually, I’ve always had… visions.”
“That come true?” Jacob asked, sounding interested.
Her eyes met his and she nodded. “But nothing like this… it was different.”
“How?” Xtina asked.
“In my vision…” She glanced around the room and realized everyone was listening to her intently. No one looked at her like she was crazy. Actually, just the opposite. “Before you passed out, your eyes went white and you told me that Hidden Creek holds my fate.”
Jessie jumped up from her seat. Her face had turned pale. “I… have to…” She rushed from the room.
After Jessie left through the front door, Jacob stood up quickly.
“I’ll go check on her.” He followed her out the front door.
The room was silent for a while.
“I’m sorry, would you like some tea?” Xtina stood.
“No, thank you.” She glanced at the woman. “I know this may sound strange, but is there anyway someone could give me a ride back into town?”
Mike spoke up. “Didn’t you drive here?”
Brea took a deep breath. “This may sound strange, but… The last thing I remember is walking into my apartment in Atlanta.”
Again, the room was silent.
Less than an hour later, Brea found herself standing in the middle of the living room in Mike’s house, just across the field from Xtina’s massive house.