Read Online SEDUCTIVE SUPERNATURALS: 12 Tales of Shapeshifters, Vampires & Sexy Spirits by Sheri Whitefeather, Maureen Child, Caridad Piñeiro, Erin Kellison, Erin Quinn, Lisa Kessler, Chris Marie Green, Mary Leo, Cassi Carver, Janet Wellington, Theresa Meyers, Elisabeth Staab - Free Book Online
Authors: Sheri Whitefeather, Maureen Child, Caridad Piñeiro, Erin Kellison, Erin Quinn, Lisa Kessler, Chris Marie Green, Mary Leo, Cassi Carver, Janet Wellington, Theresa Meyers, Elisabeth Staab
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jerked her attention back to her daughter. Fortunately, Analise wasn’t paying attention to anyone else.
“Did you see your grandmother tonight?” Eddie asked.
Technically, Grandma Beck was Analise’s great-grandmother, but they’d never bothered with the formal title. Besides, Analise had never even met her.
“We didn’t see anyone. It was just starting to get dark when we pulled into town and Brendan wanted to see the springs, so we went straight there. It got dark really fast, though, and I didn’t like it out there, by the springs. It was creepy and I had a bad feeling, but Brendan kept talking about how it used to be. He said he’d read some Web page.” She paused, sucked in a shaky breath. “Some stupid Web page he kept going on about. I said I wanted to go and he got mad. He’d been acting really weird for a few a days because of . . .”
She stopped and shook her head.
“I mean, I think he was stressed about work and that had him uptight.”
“Laying sod stressed him out?”
“ Mom ,” Analise said reproachfully. “Quit being so judgy.”
Inside, Gracie cringed. They’d had this conversation before, but now, in front of Reilly, Gracie realized for the first time how much she sounded like Grandma Beck. She could feel Reilly’s eyes burning into her, but she didn’t look up.
“Go on, Analise,” she said softly.
“We heard something,” Analise said.
“What?” both Eddie and Gracie asked at the same time.
“I don’t know. It sounded like . . . like . . . it was in the hole,” she blurted on a shaky breath.
“The springs?” Eddie said sharply.
Analise swallowed and tears began to slide down her face again. Gracie could feel her daughter trembling and wrapped her arms around her.
“It’s okay. You’re safe, sweetheart.”
“Why is it so hot in here?” Analise asked.
Reilly pushed away from the wall and moved to a thermostat by the old-fashioned swinging doors that led to the kitchen. Gracie hadn’t noticed it before. Now she stared in surprise.
“Grandma Beck put in air-conditioning?” she exclaimed.
Reilly gave her a sardonic look over his shoulder. “Would it make you feel any better if you knew she set it at ninety-five?”
Gracie almost laughed.
“I turned it down earlier.” Reilly paused and frowned at the control. “Who pushed it back up?”
“Sure as hell wasn’t me,” Eddie said, wiping the sweat off his face with a handkerchief.
Reilly adjusted the temperature and they all waited, faces tilted up, for the whoosh of air in the vents and the cool to come. At last it did, tepid but promising some relief. Reilly gave the thermostat a suspicious glance and moved back to where he’d stood against the wall.
“You heard something in the springs,” Eddie prompted. “What did it sound like?”
“Like there was something down there,” Analise said vehemently. “Something that wanted out. Brendan went to look. I told him not to. I was so scared. It was so . . . I told him to come back and then all of a sudden he shouted to run. We got in the truck and started to drive and we saw the lights. We thought it was the town, and we turned, but we couldn’t find the way and . . . and . . .”
She glanced from one face to another, as if expecting someone to be able to fill in the blanks for her. Gracie knew they were all thinking the same thing. Dead Lights.
Technically, it was a nautical term that she’d looked up once in an attempt to understand the reference to the lights everyone in Diablo Springs had seen at one time or another. The closest she could come to an explanation was the floating quality the light behind a port window—shuttered or not—would have when viewed from the shore. Diablo Springs had never been large enough for a boat and there were no shores here—not anymore. The term, however, managed to perfectly represent the fear inspired by the lights that could be seen hovering over the deep dry spring where nothing should ever float
“Did you see your grandmother tonight?” Eddie asked.
Technically, Grandma Beck was Analise’s great-grandmother, but they’d never bothered with the formal title. Besides, Analise had never even met her.
“We didn’t see anyone. It was just starting to get dark when we pulled into town and Brendan wanted to see the springs, so we went straight there. It got dark really fast, though, and I didn’t like it out there, by the springs. It was creepy and I had a bad feeling, but Brendan kept talking about how it used to be. He said he’d read some Web page.” She paused, sucked in a shaky breath. “Some stupid Web page he kept going on about. I said I wanted to go and he got mad. He’d been acting really weird for a few a days because of . . .”
She stopped and shook her head.
“I mean, I think he was stressed about work and that had him uptight.”
“Laying sod stressed him out?”
“ Mom ,” Analise said reproachfully. “Quit being so judgy.”
Inside, Gracie cringed. They’d had this conversation before, but now, in front of Reilly, Gracie realized for the first time how much she sounded like Grandma Beck. She could feel Reilly’s eyes burning into her, but she didn’t look up.
“Go on, Analise,” she said softly.
“We heard something,” Analise said.
“What?” both Eddie and Gracie asked at the same time.
“I don’t know. It sounded like . . . like . . . it was in the hole,” she blurted on a shaky breath.
“The springs?” Eddie said sharply.
Analise swallowed and tears began to slide down her face again. Gracie could feel her daughter trembling and wrapped her arms around her.
“It’s okay. You’re safe, sweetheart.”
“Why is it so hot in here?” Analise asked.
Reilly pushed away from the wall and moved to a thermostat by the old-fashioned swinging doors that led to the kitchen. Gracie hadn’t noticed it before. Now she stared in surprise.
“Grandma Beck put in air-conditioning?” she exclaimed.
Reilly gave her a sardonic look over his shoulder. “Would it make you feel any better if you knew she set it at ninety-five?”
Gracie almost laughed.
“I turned it down earlier.” Reilly paused and frowned at the control. “Who pushed it back up?”
“Sure as hell wasn’t me,” Eddie said, wiping the sweat off his face with a handkerchief.
Reilly adjusted the temperature and they all waited, faces tilted up, for the whoosh of air in the vents and the cool to come. At last it did, tepid but promising some relief. Reilly gave the thermostat a suspicious glance and moved back to where he’d stood against the wall.
“You heard something in the springs,” Eddie prompted. “What did it sound like?”
“Like there was something down there,” Analise said vehemently. “Something that wanted out. Brendan went to look. I told him not to. I was so scared. It was so . . . I told him to come back and then all of a sudden he shouted to run. We got in the truck and started to drive and we saw the lights. We thought it was the town, and we turned, but we couldn’t find the way and . . . and . . .”
She glanced from one face to another, as if expecting someone to be able to fill in the blanks for her. Gracie knew they were all thinking the same thing. Dead Lights.
Technically, it was a nautical term that she’d looked up once in an attempt to understand the reference to the lights everyone in Diablo Springs had seen at one time or another. The closest she could come to an explanation was the floating quality the light behind a port window—shuttered or not—would have when viewed from the shore. Diablo Springs had never been large enough for a boat and there were no shores here—not anymore. The term, however, managed to perfectly represent the fear inspired by the lights that could be seen hovering over the deep dry spring where nothing should ever float
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