Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 84982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 425(@200wpm)___ 340(@250wpm)___ 283(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 425(@200wpm)___ 340(@250wpm)___ 283(@300wpm)
A migraine! Take some pain meds and come on!
Nope. Not happening.
I did. It’s not working. I’m lying in the dark.
Another lie. I shifted my eyes over to my lamp and considered turning it off so I wouldn’t be lying about that. Just to cut back on all the lies. I wasn’t sure if God had a book up there, where he was tallying things up, or not.
Okay. Fine. But if it gets better, then hurry and get over here.
It will not get better. I was one hundred percent sure of that.
I will.
Lie. Yeah, I’d better turn off that lamp. The lies were mounting.
Setting my phone down, I leaned over and switched off the lamp. There I was, in the dark. Shifting my gaze to the television, I considered turning it on, wondering what was on tonight. I’d been reading lately and not involved in any television shows. Sighing because that didn’t sound appealing either, I turned to look out the window and immediately froze. I could see a black figure in the distance. Blinking, I leaned forward and squinted to see if it was a neighbor who had come into my backyard, but it was gone.
I stood up and walked over to the door to make sure it was locked, then went back to look one more time. Nothing.
What could that have been?
I normally never got scared, living alone. I mean, there had been the time I let Esther convince me to go see a horror movie with her and Jaiden two days before Halloween, and that had messed me up for a bit. Other than that, I felt safe. It was Madison, Georgia. Nothing ever happened here.
Annoyed with myself, I went over to the television and turned it on. I’d watch something funny. It was highly unlikely I had seen anyone in my backyard. Sinking back onto the sofa, I clicked through the channels until I found a rerun of Everybody Loves Raymond. That should work.
My eyes shifted back to the window again. It really had looked like there was someone out there. Convincing myself I had imagined it wasn’t easy. But why would someone be in my backyard, and where would they have gone so fast? I probably needed new contacts.
A knock at my door caused me to freeze. My heart began to beat faster as I stared at the door. Who would be here?
My mother would have used the doorbell, then yelled out, It’s me!
There was no way it was Esther or Haines. They were at the cookout, which was a good twenty-minute drive away.
I didn’t move as I looked at the door. Maybe I should call someone. But who? The cops? Tell them someone had knocked on my door? That would make me sound like a lunatic.
I strained my ears to listen, but I heard nothing. I could normally hear footsteps on my tiny front porch. Why was it so quiet? Had there really been someone in my backyard? Were they seeing if I was alone first to … to … what? Rape and kill?
I sucked in a breath and unlocked my phone screen. I could dial 911 and have my finger on Call, just in case.
I had no weapon if they broke in. I could get a knife from the kitchen, but then what good would that be if they had a gun?
Were all my windows locked? I started to get up and check but sat back down because if they heard my footsteps, they’d know I was here. Wait, they already saw me through the window.
Why didn’t I have a gun? I lived alone!
Because I was terrified of guns. That was why.
It was the lies. I had told too many, and the Lord was teaching me a lesson.
My breathing came in quick, short gasps as I sat there, waiting. The minutes ticked by, and the silence continued.
A car drove down the street and honked. That was normal. Folks did that around here to say hello when they passed.
If there were a scary stranger on my porch, someone would see them. Right? I was overreacting.
It could have been a package delivery. UPS ran late sometimes. I wasn’t expecting anything, but then it could be the wrong address.
Another car drove past. Nothing. No sound.
I’d worked myself up over nothing.
Sighing, I stood up and walked over to my door. Pulling the curtain back just enough to peek, I saw no one. Dropping my gaze, however, I found a pink box. A very familiar one. The exact same box that the bakery used.
Unlocking my door, I opened it slowly and checked out the area. Nothing except the neighbor’s cat running across the street. I bent down and picked up the box and looked inside.
One dozen lemon crinkle cookies. Who would have brought me these? Bess at the bakery? I mean, she liked me and all, but we weren’t that tight. I was just a good customer. Haines had no clue what kind of cookies I liked, and he was at the cookout.