Page 34 of Snowed Inn For Christmas

Twenty

Julie

“You need to eat, dear,” my mother said as she gently squeezed my shoulder from over the back of the couch.

“I’m not hungry.”

I hadn’t eaten all day because Daisy seemed to be getting worse instead of better, and I was trying my best not to worry.We were far enough from the city that the thought of her needing to be rushed to the hospital made me uneasy as I realized how long it could take us to get there, especially now that it was dark outside and the roads would freeze again.

“I know, but you’re not doing her any favors by letting yourself get sick, too.I’ll sit with her while you eat.Gage just sat down.Maybe you can join him?”

I didn’t miss the hint in her tone, nor did I miss the obvious one with the wink she gave me before walking around and taking a seat at the other end of the couch.Daisy stirred slightly, forcing Duke’s head up as he waited to see if she was getting up.She groaned and rolled over, throwing the blanket off of her as a shiver shot through.

“It’s okay.I’ve got her,” my mother assured me.“I’ve taken care of many sick kids, my love.Plus, you’ll just be across the room if we need anything.”

I pushed a deep breath out through pursed lips and nodded.She was right.It wasn’t like I was going anywhere where I couldn’t see or hear them.Not only that, but Daisy was still sleeping, which was good because her body needed the rest.

I walked into the kitchen, pausing for a minute when I noticed my father sitting off to the side, his chair beside the window, while he held a bowl of soup in his hands.A baseball bat sat beside him, within reach if he needed it.Patrick was on his phone, his back leaning against the back door, which was never used, but it was almost as if he were blocking it.Then Gage sat at the kitchen table, his face worried, even if he tried to hide it with a smile.I looked around, noticing that he was sitting at the very end of the table, closest to the front door.

“What is going on?”I asked, looking between them with a hand planted firmly on my hip.

I could feel my mother’s gaze on me as I glanced over my shoulder to look at her.She always wore her emotions easily, which meant she would give them away if they were hiding something.She quickly looked away from me, pretending to mess with the TV as I returned my focus to the men in the kitchen.

“Someone start talking now,” I said, my voice even as an odd calmness washed over me.

“Why don’t I fix you a bowl of soup?”Patrick offered as he pushed away from the back door and tucked his phone into his pocket.

“I don’t want soup.I want to know what’s going on.”

He ignored me as he fixed a bowl and then set it down next to Gage, conveniently on the other side of him, where I would be protected.I cocked my head to the side, waiting him out before giving up and staring at Gage.He shifted nervously in his chair as he lifted the spoon to his lips and took a sip of the broth.I looked down into his bowl, noticing that was all that was left.

Gage was a quick eater, and while I would love to think that he was purposely going slow so he could eat with me, I knew better.If that were what he was doing, he would have waited for me before he started eating.Instead, he had already eaten and was pretending to be finishing up so he could sit there and do whatever it was he was doing.

I inhaled sharply through my nose and blew it out, trying not to allow myself to get too upset.I was tired and cranky from not eating all day, all while the stress of Daisy being sick had started to pile up on me.

Just then, my phone dinged with a new text message, followed quickly by another as more messages arrived.I pulled out my phone and opened the messages, noticing they all came from an unknown number.My heart hammered in my chest as I read them, right as the power went out.The screen on my phone lit up the space around me as a chill snaked down my back.

Unknown:Did you really think I wouldn’t find you?

Unknown:There’s nowhere left to go, Julie.

Unknown:But since you like to play games, how about we play one of my favorites?

Unknown:You try to hide, and I’ll hunt you.

Unknown:Ready?

Unknown:Hopefully, I don’t mistake one of your family members as a threat.I would really hate for anything bad to happen to them, like it did to your husband.