Chapter Fourteen, A Strange Awakening

Awareness crept over Beth as she struggled to pull herself from the darkness. Somewhere in the distance an owl hooted….crickets chirped…bullfrogs croaked. A cool breeze blew across her causing chills to run through her. Unable to open her eyes, she reached for the ache in her chest. Drenched. Fear seized her anew. Forcing her eyes to open, she realized the room was dark. She reached next to her to discover empty air - no floor, no Adam…nothing.

Where am I?

As the numbness wore off, she pushed herself onto her elbows, feeling the soft surface beneath her. Bed…I'm in a bed. She looked around to see a digital clock on the nightstand read 4:45 a.m.

A breeze blew again and she looked toward the source. Seeing a window, she realized she was in her cottage bedroom. She sat on the bed's edge listening for another presence in the house. When she heard none, she reached over and snapped on the lamp to examine herself. Though her night gown was drenched, there was no blood…just sweat.

She tiptoed to the door and listened, confusion and uncertainty warring in her mind. She heard nothing. One by one, she crept through the cottage rooms, listened, then flipped on a light to examine every nook, every shadow for an intruder. Still, all was quiet.

Reaching the kitchen, she expected to find Adam's body lying on the floor, but it was clean…no Adam…no blood. Looking at the back door, she saw that it was locked.

Shuddering with another fierce chill, she decided to discard the wet, clinging gown. Once in the bathroom, she started the shower, peeled off the gown and stepped in - allowing the hot water to massage her stiff, achy muscles. Little by little, the tension drained away. Was it really just a dream? How could it be when it felt so real?

As the shock began to wear off, she allowed the tears to fall. Lord, what should I do? I'm so confused. I can't deal with this all alone. Please help me! Please, show me what to do.

Tears dried, she dressed and boiled a pot of water to make a cup of tea. Seeing the half empty plate of brownies, she wondered how much of what she recalled was a dream and how much was real. She struggled to shake off the remnants of fear that had paralyzed her and now left her trembling.

Her cup of tea half gone, she jumped when a knock sounded at her back door. She flipped on the outside light and saw Adam standing there, tethering his horse to the rail. Her heart hammered in her chest. He's ok…Adam's ok…Thank you, God…it must have been a dream.

Stepping onto the screened-in porch, she crossed it and unlatched the back door with shaky hands.

"Good morning. You're up early. Is everything ok?" Adam's eyes were clouded, his face pinched with worry.

A laugh trembled on her breath. "You show up here at 5:30 a.m. calling me the early bird?"

His serious expression didn't change. "An early morning ride is part of my routine. I saw the cottage all lit up and got worried." He stepped onto the porch and latched the door behind him. "You're trembling, Beth. What happened?"

Embarrassed and trying to make light of it, she shrugged. "Apparently, just a bad dream."

He cupped her shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze. "Want to talk about it?"

Tears formed in her eyes as she looked up into his face. She wanted to touch him…to hold him…to know that this was real and not a dream. Instead, she swallowed hard and offered him a cup of tea.

"Sure…sounds good," he said and followed her into the kitchen. Once inside, she turned to reach past him and bolt the door. A look of confusion passed over his face, but she stepped to the counter to pour his tea without comment.

When she stood at the counter with her back to him for longer than necessary, he walked up behind her and turned her to face him. "Talk to me, Beth. You're starting to freak me out."

Seeing the sincere concern in his eyes, a longing swept over her to be pulled into his arms. She wanted to feel safe…cherished…loved, and deep down she felt that Adam Blythe was the kind of man to make a woman feel that way.

Startled by her own musings, she took a step back only to bump into the counter. Flustered, she waved a hand toward the dinette table. "Let's sit, please…I-I need to sit."

Reaching past her, he picked up the cups of tea and stepped to the table. Beth followed with the cream and sugar. Once they both had their teas doctored, she took a deep breath and gave him a tremulous smile.

"So, tell me about this dream."

"It was so vivid that I'm having a hard time delineating between the dream and reality. Would you tell me what all we did yesterday when you stopped by to help me unload?"

"Ok…well, I brought the bags in and tried to talk you out of some fudge. You offered me brownies instead. We took the brownies and ice tea out on the back porch, we visited for a while, and then I went home."

Beth stared at the table, seeing the scene play out like he said. "Ok…I remember that. The dream was much the same up until the point where you grabbed a brownie."

As she relayed the dream, his expression went from shock to confusion to concern. By the time she reached the point where she awoke and he knocked on her back door, his expression was unreadable.

Apprehension crept up her spine as he stared into his tea with quiet contemplation for what seemed like an eternity. I shouldn't have told him. Panic clawed at her. He won't understand unless… Self-deprecation washed over her. She gulped. Now, I'll have to tell him everything…

~Linnette R Mullin