Read Online Dark Realms by Kristen Middleton - Free Book Online

and
you’re new in town, I’m just going to give you a warning. Make sure
that you take care of it as soon as you can, though. Next time I
might not be so easy on you.”
    Mom smiled wider than ever. “I will, thank
you, officer.”
    He tipped his hat. “My friends call me
Caleb. Drive safely now.”
    “Wow,” said mom after she’d rolled up her
window. “Did you see that man’s eyes? They were an amazing shade of
violet. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone with that color of
eyes. No wedding ring, either.”
    I stared at her in
disbelief. “Oh, my God mom, we just got into town!”
    “Yeah, but I agree with Nathan that there’s
nothing wrong with making new friends; especially friends who are
in law enforcement,” she replied with a straight face.
    “Well, I guess,” I answered, staring into
the darkness. Obviously, she was beginning to get a handle on her
fears and I should have been relieved, but instead, it only made
me… uneasy.

Chapter Two
     
     
    When we finally made it to the cabin, my jaw
literally dropped.
    “What do you think?” asked mom as she parked
the car next to Nathan’s.
    “Wow. It’s amazing,” I replied, opening the
car door. “Are you sure this is the right place?”
    “It is. I saw pictures but wanted to
surprise you,” she said, getting out of the car.
    This was no average lakeside cabin; it
looked like something you’d see on a “Top Ten List” of some
luxurious getaways.
    “This must be worth millions. I can’t
believe we’re staying here,” I said, unable to wipe the grin from
my face. I felt like someone had just shouted “Move that bus!” and
we were looking at our new dream home.
    “Yes, it’s quite extraordinary,” she said,
staring up at the cabin. “I’m still in shock that we get to stay
here, too. Ernie is a lifesaver.”
    “He’s more like Santa Claus,” I replied,
feeling giddy. I couldn’t wait to check out the inside. It was
possible that Shore Lake wasn’t going to suck quite as much as I
thought.
    She reached back into the car and pulled out
her cell phone. “I’d better call him once we’ve unpacked the
groceries. Let him know we’ve made it and how thrilled we are.” Her
eyes became misty. “You know, I just can’t thank him enough for
everything he’s done.”
    I agreed with her there. This place was
beyond words. Heck, everything about it screamed money, too, from
the expensive cedar wood frame to the thick-plated enormous glass
windows; it reminded me of a mountainside chateau in Europe.
    “Impressive, huh?” she said.
    “Yeah.”
    Especially with its two-tiered deck that
someone had built on north side of the cabin, and a massive porch
that wrapped around the entire main floor. There was even a gazebo
with a hot tub next to a courtyard which contained a large grill
and several pieces of outdoor furniture for entertaining.
Unfortunately, we had nobody to entertain.
    “Wow,” said Nathan as he got out of the car
and walked over to us. He was also staring in amazement at the
cabin. “How in the world did you score such an awesome place?”
    Mom smiled. “Ernie.”
    “Look, there’s the boathouse.” I pointed
down towards the lake. Even that place looked like it was larger
than some of the homes in our old neighborhood.
    “Cool,” said Nathan, nodding in approval. “I
hope the weather is nice tomorrow, so that we can take the boat
out,” he started walking towards the dock. “I wonder what kind of
boat they have?”
    “Check later,” said mom, grabbing her purse.
“We need to get this stuff inside.”
    He sighed and turned around. “Okay. It’s
probably too dark to see anything now anyway.”
    She took the keys out of her purse and began
walking towards the cabin. “You know, I’m really surprised that
there isn’t some kind of alarm on the cabin. I mean, this place is
vacant most of the time.” She sighed. “I hope when we get inside,
nothing is missing.”
    “Everyone must trust each other in