The Dead Series (Book 1): Tell Me When I'm Dead Read Online Free PDF

returned, she found me in the kitchen. If there was ever a time that demanded a drink, this was it. Instead I made a pot of strong black coffee.
    “I suppose you expect me to clean up that mess?” she said.
    “I didn’t do it.”
    She must have seen my hand trembling as I struggled to bring the coffee to my lips. “What happened, Dave?”
    “I saw Jim.”
    “What? Are you serious?”
    “He was standing next to me when I woke up. Then he was gone.”
    “No, it had to be a dream.”
    “Dreams don’t leave footprints.”
    “Well, how did he get in?”
    “You must’ve left the front door unlocked when you went out.”
    “Oh God, Dave! What if he’s still in here?”
    We never considered Jim a threat before. Holly stayed in the kitchen clutching a carving knife while I locked all the doors and searched the house. There were no other footprints—nothing. I began to doubt Jim had ever been there. I went back and checked the TV room. Nothing was different—other than the footprints—yet something was different.
    “Holly, can you come in here a sec?”
    “What is it?”
    “There’s something about this room. I can’t …”
    “I don’t see—” She reached up towards a shelf on the wall near the TV. “Dave, look at this.”
    I saw where she was pointing. The shelf was dusty, but there was a spot which was dust-free.
    “There used to be a picture here, right?”
    “Yeah,” she said. “It was of you and Jim.”
    “I remember. We were showing off the fish we caught at Shasta Lake. Right before you and I got married.”
    Jim might have recalled that as a fun time, but I remember it as tense and awkward. It was our last trip together. He spent the whole time drunk, and it was hard for me not to join in. I kept thinking of my future together with Holly and refused to take part. A tourist happened to catch us in a good mood and snapped the pic. After that I didn’t want to hang out with my friend anymore.
    “That was a great trip,” I said.

    Over dinner we tried to take our minds off what had happened and made plans for an imaginary baby girl named Jade. So far we had her graduating from Berkeley and going into a graduate program at Stanford. Then the subject of Jim came up again.
    “He could’ve been disoriented for a long time, then found his way out of the woods,” I said.
    “Dave, he knows those woods. He would’ve made it home in no time. How did he look?”
    “Like he was hurt bad. I’m going to take a ride out there.”
    “Tonight?” I heard the scared in her voice.
    “I need to see if he ever made it home.” I rinsed off the dishes and put them in the dishwasher.
    “What if he’s not … normal?”
    “Jim was never normal.”
    “You know what I mean. What if he’s—”
    “Dangerous?” She nodded. “You mean as in he killed Sarah Champion? Then I’ll hit him with a shovel and call 911.”
    This didn’t make Holly feel any better, but it eased the tension. Trying not to think too much, I headed out.
    “Lock everything up tight,” I said. When I kissed her, I knew she sensed how afraid I was.
    “Dave? Make sure you’re not being followed, okay?”
    “Good point.”
    I walked to my truck without looking back. The last thing I needed was that dour detective on my ass.
    The moon was huge and bright through the trees. Though it was summer, the air was crisp and smelled of pine. When I was younger, I used to want to get away from this place. Move to San Francisco or LA. After I met Holly, I saw the beauty around me—the trees, the fresh air, the quiet—and I understood why my parents had settled here.
    Checking the rearview mirror, I made sure I wasn’t being followed. A colony of bats swooped out of the forest into the night. You can never tell with bats, whether they’re scared or out on a joyride. A lot of times they carried disease—primarily rabies. I wondered if that’s what caused the recent rash of people with the jimmies.
    An owl hooted somewhere nearby. I heard a