Brief Interludes Read Online Free PDF Page A

comforting surroundings of her tiny one-room apartment. She stared at the bare walls and stark beige counter separating the kitchen from the living room, wishing for just a second—one tiny second—that she wasn’t alone as she remembered the horrible dream.
    Everyone has nightmares, but night after night? And why were they always the same? The same, except along with each new episode rolled in an additional piece of the story, but they always ended with someone choking her, the face shadowed or masked each time. Similar to a suspenseful horror story where you know the beginning and end, but the middle— the who , the where, and the why—comes in bits and pieces like tiny clues, each new revelation more terrifying than the last.
    They seemed so real and drained her energy. She shuddered and read on.
    “Recurring dreams show little variation in story or theme.”
    “Well, the theme’s the same, but what about the rest ... and the face; why can’t I ever see the face?”
    “Dreams may recur because an encounter portrayed in the dream remains unsettled. Once a resolution is recognized, the dreams will stop.”
    “Hmmm ... a resolution. Identifying the murdering bastard would help,” she said, the memory of her father’s death forever present in her mind. Always.
    She'd been awake for hours, never able to fall back to sleep after a nightmare. Addie rubbed her burning eyes and gingerly pulled herself up from the sofa. Holding her breath, she tiptoed to the kitchen as though the nightmare might gather substance and engulf her any minute. She poured herself another cup of coffee and sighed.
    “Get a grip, Addie, it was just a bad dream,” she said, having developed the habit of talking to herself now that she lived alone.
    Bad dream my ass . Something evil lurked in those dreams, those nightmares. She trembled a bit remembering the way it took hold and wouldn’t let go, strangling her until she woke up.
    She sipped the strong brew while absently massaging her throat, glancing out the window and down at the almost empty parking lot. Her truck sat in its usual spot—alone in the lot—the last of its fellow smog machines. At half past nine in the morning everyone else in the small apartment complex had already left for work, school, or wherever. It looked so lonely—the way she felt now—and that familiar longing for her dad crept over her. Addie was convinced her nightmares had something to do with his recent death.
     
    ***
     
    The eerie wail of the howling wind sent shivers down Addie’s spine. Pulling her jacket sleeves down over the palms of her hands, she gripped the steering wheel to hold it in place. Thank God the heater worked. The vicious cold air outside mixed with the fog floating in from the ocean, enveloping her truck, filling her with an ominous sensation. It swirled its way over the landscape, transforming the spectacular terrain into something unfamiliar. Sinister. The late morning haze shrouded most of the highway, snaking its way through the massive redwoods, stirring visions of her nightmare. The roar of the surf thrashing against the rocks emphasized the menacing force.
    She shuddered. Her breath quickened. Hot and tingly blood pulsed through her body, swamping her with a sense of dread. The force strengthened and burned as though her veins were on fire.
    Addie inhaled, holding her breath for a few seconds before exhaling. “Deep breaths, Addie, slow, deep breaths,” she whispered as the memory of the horrible nightmare flooded her mind.
    She concentrated on her breathing, feeling the rapid beat of her heart, determined to steady her nerves.
    “Think of something else,” she demanded and glanced down at her camera and tripod. She’d remembered to bring them along today, hoping the sun would come out so she could go to the cliffs during her afternoon break, still determined to decorate her bare apartment walls with pictures of the giant waves crashing against the massive rocks. She