Black Water Tales: The Secret Keepers Read Online Free PDF

to the remnants of her parents bickering, her mother restating her theory that it would have been best to go all the way around and come into town directly on I-48, rather than taking the most common route on Culliver Parkway. Her father apologized profusely but loyal to his reasoning that it would have taken them an hour out of the way.
    Regina shrunk deeper in the soft leather of the seat trying to tame the embarrassment that she felt at the episode that had just taken place. Somehow, she had lost all control and became only a helpless onlooker as the mental deterioration unfolded. Showing her emotions was something that she hated to do because emotions were a sign of weakness and once people knew your weakness you were at their mercy; a position in which she never wanted to find herself. Being at the mercy of another was the gate to a mind hell.
    Regina was relieved when they finally pulled up in the gravel drive in front of the oblong building that was the town diner. Her muscles were cramped and stiff from the long ride from the airport. The brisk fall day released a salvo of wind upon Regina’s smooth skin as she stepped out of the car in front of the OC diner. She squinted her eyes against the October wind that was drying her face. Main Street was nothing like it had been when she left, but almost the same way it had been when she was child. Peering up and down the street, Regina stretched while trying to familiarize herself with a past that she knew all too well.
    She pulled her cellular phone from her jeans pocket to make sure that the hospital had not tried to contact her. Disappointment racked her when she saw that she had no missed calls.
    Her eyes swept up and down the clean sidewalk until they hung on a strange man. A tall, anomalous creature with his black pinpoint pupils trained on her. Even as she took notice of his stare, he never blinked, wanting her to know that she was the object of his full attention. The shadows of the shade under the store awnings made it difficult to definitively document the details of his face, but there was no doubt that he was set on Regina Dean. His mouth twisted in an ominous sneer and his eyes seared through her with electrifying exactitude. Regina’s first thought was to be angry with the shameless derelict scrutinizing her, but the sensation of the hairs raising on her body gave her a second thought and she began backing away. Regina stumbled upon her father’s feet as he came up behind her, she was jolted, and then watched in slow motion as her $400 phone fell into a foul puddle of leftover rainwater. She quickly retrieved the phone from the water and shook it rapidly while cursing herself.
    “What is it, Regina?” her father asked. Regina returned her eyes to the bold stranger, who still studied her. She tried, but failed to break the trance that the glowing eyes cast upon her.
    “That man!” her voice quivered.
    “What man?” her father demanded, stepping closer and leaning forward for a better look into the inconspicuous crowd of people that paraded up and down the sidewalk.
    “Right there …” She pointed a shaking finger. “… He is staring at me!” she insisted.
    Charlie Dean peered down the street ready to set straight any man who was making his daughter feel uneasy. Any other day Mr. Dean would have allowed the incident to pass without much thought and instructed his daughter to follow his lead, but considering the fragile state of his little girl the least he could do was ensure that she felt safe. Mr. Dean laid eyes on the shady character, but quickly returned the focus back to his daughter with a soft smirk.
    “Are you joking with me, little girl?” he asked as he began to laugh.
    “What?” she asked, annoyed by the fact that her father was questioning her when some freak was stalking her like jungle prey.
    Regina looked back and forth between the creepy man and her father several times, growing more aggravated with each glance by the fact that