Read Online The Dream Thief by Kerry Schafer - Free Book Online
Authors: Kerry Schafer
Tags: Literary, Psychological, Romance, Fantasy, Paranormal, Mystery, supernatural, Dreams, love, bestselling author, Interstitial Fiction, pacific northwest, redemption, weird fiction, Kerry Schafer
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Merchant made them. "So, you don't remember ever playing the guitar?"
He looked at me like I'd lost it completely. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"Just answer me."
"No, Jesse. I've never played the guitar. Why do you go on about that?"
"Because you do play the guitar. Or you did. All the time. You brought it camping. You brought it everywhere. If your hands were free, you were playing."
His eyes remained blank. "I don't understand."
A banging at the door of the barn froze us both into stillness, listening.
A thud. The padlock rattled on its chain. Must be my renters, back to collect the rest of their contraband.
I grabbed Will's hand and tugged him over to the ladder. Â "Up here. Hurry!"
He shoved me ahead of him and there wasn't time to scuffle with a game of who goes first. When the doors opened my head was up in the hayloft, so I didn't see the light flow into the dark barn, or the sight of blue skies and trees outside. What I heard was a voice saying, "Hold it right there, Jesse, or I blow your boyfriend away."
Before I could react, Will's hands clamped around my ass and shoved me upward, so that I overbalanced and fell flat on my face into the hayloft.
"What's up, Marsh?" Will's voice, down below and out of sight, was calm, but I could feel his heart racing in my own chest, two sets of heartbeats galloping along as one.
"Tell your girlfriend to get down here before I shoot you."
"Jesse doesn't give a damn about what happens to me. You'll need another tactic."
"Do you think I'm stupid?" Marsh raised his voice, calling up to me. "Hey, Jesseâshould I just wing him, or get him in the heart?"
Threatening me was one thingâthreatening the last person in the world that I loved was another. Fury flooded through all of my fear and washed it away. I wanted to leap on Marsh's head with a Tarzan cry and flatten him. To pulverize his pretty face with my fists or maybe something a little more solid, like a tire iron, but at the moment he had a gun pointed at Will and I was afraid that surprise might make him pull the trigger.
I peered down on both of them from on high, staying out of sight and out of the line of fire, and trying to think of a plan. Marsh was fully clothed and appeared to be sane, but I had my suspicions about that. He had a rifle in his hands and was aiming it at Will, who stood at the bottom of the ladder, blocking my descent.
"Jesse, I know you're up there." Marsh tilted his head back in an effort to see up into the loft but I knew I was out of his sight. I stayed that way. Getting dead myself wouldn't help anybody.
"Send Will up here, and I'll come down."
"I'm not going anywhere," Will said. "Jesse, stay where you are."
"You have something I want. Don't mind shooting your boyfriend if it will help me get it." Marsh's finger looked a little too eager on the trigger, and apparently he'd been joking about the winging thing because he was aiming at Will's heart.
"Leave Will out of it. I'm coming down."
"J, no!" Will hissed beneath me, and an irrational little glow of happiness warmed my innards.
He might be hurt and pissed and disappointed in me, but he still cared. As for Marsh, I had half an idea of what he wanted, which meant there was hope of manipulating him. He'd never been overly bright, and between the two of us, Will and I ought to be able to take him down.
Chapter Eight
Â
Â
U nfortunately, the soul bond didn't mean Will could read my mind.
As my feet hit the ground, he turned himself into a human missile, fists at the ready. He lunged at Marsh, who sidestepped and swung the gun like a club. An ugly wet crunch, and Will's face went slack. A ribbon of blood opened up on his temple. His knees bent and he crumpled to the ground.
I gasped, feeling the concussion jar my own brain, then ease as Will slid into oblivion.
He lay where he'd fallen, not moving, blood darkening his hair and pooling beside his head. His chest rose and fell in shallow breaths, and I
He looked at me like I'd lost it completely. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"Just answer me."
"No, Jesse. I've never played the guitar. Why do you go on about that?"
"Because you do play the guitar. Or you did. All the time. You brought it camping. You brought it everywhere. If your hands were free, you were playing."
His eyes remained blank. "I don't understand."
A banging at the door of the barn froze us both into stillness, listening.
A thud. The padlock rattled on its chain. Must be my renters, back to collect the rest of their contraband.
I grabbed Will's hand and tugged him over to the ladder. Â "Up here. Hurry!"
He shoved me ahead of him and there wasn't time to scuffle with a game of who goes first. When the doors opened my head was up in the hayloft, so I didn't see the light flow into the dark barn, or the sight of blue skies and trees outside. What I heard was a voice saying, "Hold it right there, Jesse, or I blow your boyfriend away."
Before I could react, Will's hands clamped around my ass and shoved me upward, so that I overbalanced and fell flat on my face into the hayloft.
"What's up, Marsh?" Will's voice, down below and out of sight, was calm, but I could feel his heart racing in my own chest, two sets of heartbeats galloping along as one.
"Tell your girlfriend to get down here before I shoot you."
"Jesse doesn't give a damn about what happens to me. You'll need another tactic."
"Do you think I'm stupid?" Marsh raised his voice, calling up to me. "Hey, Jesseâshould I just wing him, or get him in the heart?"
Threatening me was one thingâthreatening the last person in the world that I loved was another. Fury flooded through all of my fear and washed it away. I wanted to leap on Marsh's head with a Tarzan cry and flatten him. To pulverize his pretty face with my fists or maybe something a little more solid, like a tire iron, but at the moment he had a gun pointed at Will and I was afraid that surprise might make him pull the trigger.
I peered down on both of them from on high, staying out of sight and out of the line of fire, and trying to think of a plan. Marsh was fully clothed and appeared to be sane, but I had my suspicions about that. He had a rifle in his hands and was aiming it at Will, who stood at the bottom of the ladder, blocking my descent.
"Jesse, I know you're up there." Marsh tilted his head back in an effort to see up into the loft but I knew I was out of his sight. I stayed that way. Getting dead myself wouldn't help anybody.
"Send Will up here, and I'll come down."
"I'm not going anywhere," Will said. "Jesse, stay where you are."
"You have something I want. Don't mind shooting your boyfriend if it will help me get it." Marsh's finger looked a little too eager on the trigger, and apparently he'd been joking about the winging thing because he was aiming at Will's heart.
"Leave Will out of it. I'm coming down."
"J, no!" Will hissed beneath me, and an irrational little glow of happiness warmed my innards.
He might be hurt and pissed and disappointed in me, but he still cared. As for Marsh, I had half an idea of what he wanted, which meant there was hope of manipulating him. He'd never been overly bright, and between the two of us, Will and I ought to be able to take him down.
Chapter Eight
Â
Â
U nfortunately, the soul bond didn't mean Will could read my mind.
As my feet hit the ground, he turned himself into a human missile, fists at the ready. He lunged at Marsh, who sidestepped and swung the gun like a club. An ugly wet crunch, and Will's face went slack. A ribbon of blood opened up on his temple. His knees bent and he crumpled to the ground.
I gasped, feeling the concussion jar my own brain, then ease as Will slid into oblivion.
He lay where he'd fallen, not moving, blood darkening his hair and pooling beside his head. His chest rose and fell in shallow breaths, and I
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