Kindred: Book 1 A Realms of the Otherworld Book
Read Kindred: Book 1 A Realms of the Otherworld Book Online
Authors: Jana LaPelle
KINDRED
Book One
Realms of the Otherworld Book
By
Jana LaPelle
Text Copyright © 2016 Jana LaPelle
This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental. Any references to historical events, real people, etc. are used fictitiously.
No part of this book may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the express written permission of the author.
All Rights Reserved.
Ebook cover and formatting by:
www.ebooklaunch.com
A huge thank you goes out to my dear friends Dianna Simpson and Larissa Muncy. Without whom I’m not sure I would have been able to have completed this project. All your kind words, praise, encouragement, and constructive criticism did not go unnoticed and was very much appreciated. To my son Gabriel, you are my inspiration, thank you for being you and for your creative and fascinating mind.
For my family and friends and especially my son for daring me to follow my dreams and supporting me in this endeavor.
Table of Contents
A month or so ago if someone had of asked me if I believed in monsters, I would’ve laughed and my reply would’ve been something like, “Yeah, right?” I would’ve backed up my sarcastic retort with, “Maybe in movies and legends?” But knowing what I know now I’m left to ponder why parents tell their children there are no such things as monsters. I mean, really? Let’s be realistic, monsters come in all different shapes and sizes, right? For most of us a monster could be seen as a rapist, or a murderer, or even a child molester. Those are the monsters that most of us are familiar with, so yes monsters do exist. Sometimes, said monster may not look like a monster at all. What they say is true, looks can be deceiving. But monsters of legend? Not so much. For most of us, seeing is believing and I’m no different. Why do parents deny the existence of monsters to their children? I don’t know. Maybe by denying the possibility that such things exist to a child just reinforces a sense of security within themselves. Or maybe, our parents were just following a very old and passed down tradition of denying the fact that these creatures really do exist, a tradition that began long ago in an effort to soothe the fears of children and has been followed for so long that no one remembers that otherworldly creatures are really out there.
What would you do if you knew the truth? How would it shape your destiny, your fate? Most individuals will lead an ordinary life while others are destined to accomplish the inconceivable. No matter what, for most, the truth is hard to acknowledge, no matter what that truth is, it can often times be a very bitter pill to swallow. Being destined to be different, to stand apart, comes with great responsibility and sacrifice, a realization that I’m just beginning to grasp.
Summer vacation! Need I say anything more? Driving back from the beach I’m left to ponder. My family and I’ve just spent four amazing weeks at the beach basking in the sun. I’ve been blessed with an awesome family and they’re not even blood relatives. I was adopted at the tender age of just one month old or so they think. My sister Audrey was a young adult when I showed up out of nowhere. Mom found me left outside the entrance to the emergency department at the hospital. Crazy right? She works there as a pediatric oncologist and took me in around the same time that her daughter, Audrey, married Daniel. Strangely enough, I had been abandoned with nothing more than the basket I was found in, a blanket, the necklace that I have always worn, and a note. Thinking back on my life I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. I love my family, they’re amazing and not once have I ever felt anything but one hundred percent loved and apart of this family unit. Spending time with family this past month on vacation has been bittersweet because in less than 3 weeks I’m heading off to college, a life altering event to be sure.
The beach house we rented was amazing. Every morning we woke up to the breath taking views of the Gulf Shores and every day we spent the majority of our time on the beautiful white sandy beaches of Santa Rosa. Considering that we lived in Kentucky, nowhere near the ocean, the view was a tropical welcome change. There’s nothing like the sound of water as it comes ashore to bring on your inner calm and tranquility. It was everything we had hoped it would be. But all good things must come to an end.
It’s crazy how fast four weeks can pass you by in the blink of an eye. Four wonderful weeks of no worry about school or anything else for that matter, well there are these dreams I’ve been having since my eighteenth birthday, several weeks ago. They feel so real. I’ve never dreamt with such attention to detail and I can’t help but wonder what they mean. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind having these dreams so long as talk dark and delicious continues as my leading man. It’s really quiet bizarre. I’m not sure exactly what to think of these nightly interludes with my dream man and I’m definitely not sure about sharing them with anyone else just yet. Not even my best friend.
In these nightly escapades I’m taken to a beautiful meadow and in the distance I see him under a large weeping willow tree as if he’s waiting, just for me. The really strange thing about the dream is how it starts with me leaving my body and traveling to the scene that has become familiar and comforting. Then there’s the feeling that I know this man somehow, even though I’ve never seen him before, I’m drawn to him. It should worry me how I react to him but it doesn’t and I want more than anything for him to be real. I just wish that I could remember more after I wake. Like did we talk? If so what did we talk about? What’s his name? The one constant is his handsome face. Thank god all this started on vacation, if I had been in school I would be driven to distraction.
The drive has been quiet and I’ve had plenty of time to reflect on things as we’re heading back home. Our journey has been long but uneventful and we’re just a couple of hours, if that, from home. It’s twilight as we come upon the Jellico Mountains in Tennessee and humidity is particularly heavy. As night begins to fall, a fog begins to settle on the mountains like a heavy white shroud and visibility is being impacted. I volunteered to drive so Mom could be rested and ready for her first shift back at the hospital. As I look around the vehicle, I notice Mom is dozing in the back seat and my niece Alexia, my best friend, is busy listening to her IPod and texting friends. We’re maybe two car links ahead of Audrey and the rest of her crew as we’re making our way towards Kentucky. As we begin our decent off the mountain I noticed in the rearview mirror a semi-truck emerging from the dense fog behind us like a ghost at dusk. It’s closing in on us at an incredible rate of speed. Being in the fast lane I try to find an opening to move out of this guy’s path, but weekend traffic is absurdly heavy. Looking back a sense of dread overcomes me. I look over to Alexia and shout, “Hold on!” The fog is really heavy at this point, distorting distances and images. As I look in my rear view mirror again, I see the semi-truck is obviously out of control and about to overtake my sister’s SUV. Mom, sits up, looking around, “Ashlinn, what’s wrong?” She asks in alarm.
Everything takes place in slow motion and time seems to slow down. I vaguely hear the truck behind me lay on their horn repeatedly, sounding an alarm which is already too late. I hear the truck as it slams into Audrey’s van. The sound is indescribable. I’m still trying in vain to find a way out of the path of destruction and praying that my sister and her family will be okay. What I see unfolding behind me tells me that the worst is yet to come. Mom in the back seat is frantically looking around to see what’s happening behind us as Alexia has just now noticed the tension in the air, as the feeling of impending doom settles over us.
Suddenly the play button has been hit by some invisible force as the truck behind us rams Audrey’s van off the road. The attached trailer begins to jack knife going eighty plus miles an hour and before I know it Audrey’s SUV is totally out of control and rolling end over end, slamming into the median barrier, a crumpled mess. The trailer is now air bourn and is heading directly for us. There’s absolutely nowhere for us to go to avoid what is about to happen. My last thought, before the trailer, that is hurtling toward us collides with our vehicle? “Oh snap.”
