Dark Places of the Soul: Dark Soul Trilogy - Book 1 Read Online Free PDF

next statement was going to sound, “I’ve been feeling
kinda… like I’ve been here before, sleepin’ in the bed, walkin’
down the hall back there.” She turned in her seat, pointing out the
direction she spoke of.
    He made no comment to address the possible
revelation she had just provided.
    Her mind changed gears with relative ease.
“Do you suppose there’s a place around where I could wash my
clothing?”
    “ We don’t have time for
that right now. We’re three and a half hours from our next
destination.”
    “ I’ve been wearin’ the
same clothes for a couple days.”
    “ When we reach Richfield
Springs we should be able to find a store somewhere, after our task
is finished.”
    “ Can I at least shower?”
She asked the question after finishing her coffee.
    He held up his mug. “I’m going to have a
refill. Think that’ll give you enough time?”
     
    ***
     
    Sleep hadn’t come easy. Zak had come to bed
sooner than expected, but Candice wrestled with an overactive mind.
When she had finally given way to slumber she dreamed. Unsettling
images floated through her brain. If Zak hadn’t been so deep in his
own realm of slumber he would have been aware of her increased
breathing and restless movements. When she finally opened her eyes
to break the spell, she felt her heart racing in her chest. Dawn
graced the outside world, as it had three times past when she
finally managed to escape from the reoccurring dream.
    She watched Zak die, trapped in the flaming
cockpit of a car, a vehicle different from any of the four sitting
out in his garage, gray and boxy. Three nights recently this vision
had interrupted her sleep. This latest segment added a shimmering
black pin striped highway, viewed through the heat of the flames. A
young couple approached. She could recall their faces clearly and
realized they had starring roles in the other dreams on other
nights. They beckoned to her, telling her to abandon efforts to
save the future husband she didn’t love. The girl with curly blond
hair pleaded for her to move away from the wreckage.
    The couple moved dangerously close to the
fire. Their faces blurred like melting wax. The landscape was
unfamiliar and for the first time she noticed another car, crushed
hood to hood against the one she had been a passenger in.
    The imagery seemed to have more clarity than
any dream she’d ever had before and as she rolled out of bed she
recalled the scene that shocked her back to reality, Zak bursting
into flame, absorbed into hell.

Chapter 5
     
     
     
     
    The shower stopped just short of draining
the fresh water storage tank. Keri performed as a closet singer,
belting out a few tuneless pop songs while the water made an
attempt to drown her out. James Lansing smiled with warmth he
hadn’t been able to cherish in the last few days.
    The choruses of ‘Fire and Rain’ and a few
other mellow favorites came to a halt with the water’s flow. James
continued working on his second cup of coffee as Keri made an exit
from the bathroom. He resisted a temptation to turn in his seat and
make a comment about her rock star status.
    She flopped in the passenger seat, again
folding her legs beneath her before drawing his attention. A
drowned rat, her curly blond hair clung against her forehead as she
dried the back of her head with a stolen motel towel.
    “ So was it a nice motel or
a cockroach infested dive.” She held the towel toward him to
illustrate the reason for her question.
    “ Came with the camper,” he
responded, “and I see that you’ve commandeered another of my
favorite shirts.”
    “ Don’t strain your eyes…
it’s all I have on,” she shot back in a teasing manner. “No
friggin’ way I’m puttin’ dirty clothing against clean skin…
especially used panties.”
    James noticed the pile of clothing on the
floor behind her seat. Her white panties were laid across the
top.
    “ I’m keeping my eyes to
myself.”
    “ Too bad,” she commented,
her blue