Dream Runner Read Online Free PDF Page A

self-involved, if I do say so myself.” He cast a fleeting look over his shoulder. The carpet of running, jogging, walking humans seemed to stretch for miles behind him. “Many folks as there are out here, wouldn’t it be nice to just run up on the right one?”
    Peachtree Street had always seemed like a series of curves to Marlea, but the climb to mile four of the race route was known as “Cardiac Hill” and, even in training, it was a challenge. Her face tightened and her arms pumped when she heard the timer beep on the monitor she wore on her left wrist. “I slow down, and I drop my time,” she reminded herself, inhaling deeply. Lifting her head, she looked past the bulk of Piedmont Hospital, fixed her eyes on a cloud, and pushed to the top of the hill.
    “Don’t worry,” a woman screamed, waving her flag frantically, “mile four is downhill!”
    Thank you, Lord! Marlea exalted and ran on.
    “In and out of this city all my life and it’s never felt this hot.” AJ slipped the cap from his head and swiped the back of his hand across his forehead. He jammed the cap back on as he noted the peach-shaped marker for mile five. Another hill. He almost cursed. A steep half-mile climb and a sharp half-mile descent had him sweating just almost as hard as he had when he was part of the back line. It felt good.
    “Almost there,” a white-haired man in a Peachtree volunteer tee shirt called out, urging the racers forward. “Almost there.”
    Almost there, and ahead of him, the crowd of runners had thinned considerably. No more than twenty people moved to speeds and rhythms of their own determination. Chancing a glance over his shoulder, AJ saw that like those ahead of him, he had far outdistanced the pack. These frontrunners, he realized, were the ones who had set the pace for the Peachtree. These were the class of the bunch. “And I’m up here with ’em.”
    Not thinking, he picked up his pace and grinned at the man next to him, who struggled to stay even. Seeing challenge in the man’s eye, AJ pushed a little more. When the man fell steps behind, AJ cranked it up another notch and passed two women. “Well, this ain’t too shabby for a brother with a bunged-up knee.” No, it wasn’t too shabby for a brother who held state records in high school and national speed records in college. The speed was part of what took him to the pros—a big part. AJ sucked air, shifted his run into higher gear, and relived his glory days. Then he couldn’t help himself. He went for broke. “Wouldn’t it be somethin’ if…”
    Marlea could almost feel the push of time against her hot skin as she made the turn, passing a man with gritted teeth, and a woman who screamed, “Noooo!” at her back. “Been there, done that, and never again,” Marlea swore, tightening her resolve and leveling her gaze on the Nike-shirted back in front of her. A tiny piece of her heart bent for the screaming woman. She recognized the agony that came with seeing a rival runner pass you without so much as a backward glance. Her monitor sounded again as her feet pounded the path through Piedmont Park. Shielded by ancient oak trees, Marlea could see the finish line. The monitor beeped again, five seconds ahead of the mark…
    “Damn,” AJ said, his breath low and hoarse, “this was easier than I thought.” He passed another man, and sited on the woman just ahead. Her head was high, her shoulders level, her hips tight. She had a nice long stride, the rhythm setting her ponytail swinging, and she seemed determined to finish fast. Her kick was high, and AJ felt his knee twinge when he tried to match it, but he did. Drawing even with her and pushing hard, he chanced a glance, then grimaced when his knee folded beneath his weight.
    What the… Marlea had no words for what was happening. Pain in her foot and ankle, and the sudden slide of the whole world. Gravel bit into her knees and her palms as the ground rushed toward her. Something hard and heavy