Winter's Destiny Read Online Free Page A

kitchen. He grabbed the cereal box; she reached for the coffeepot. “You look like shit,” he told her, pulling a bowl from the cupboard.
    “Thanks. Want toast with your cereal?” Amy stumbled around the kitchen waiting for the coffee to brew.
    “No, I don’t want toast.” He pulled the milk from the fridge and read the date. “It’s expiring this week. You need to go shopping, Amy. You know I hate stale milk,” he grumbled, pouring it over his cereal. “You’re not keeping up with things, Amy.”
    She sat down across from Dan, eyeing him. Nothing was good enough anymore. She didn’t buy the right groceries, she allowed dust to settle on the furniture, she let Jamie spread his toys across the carpet, and on and on. The complaint list grew longer every week.
    He interrupted her thoughts. “I’ve been thinking about last night. You’re obviously stressed out. I think this would be a good time for you to take that vacation your firm owes you. Go away for a while. Nita can look after Jamie.” He looked over at her purposely, waiting for a response. When none came, he continued, “You’ve been working too hard. You need a break. Go somewhere for a couple of weeks. I’ll let Nita know.”
    Groggily, Amy got up and poured the rich steaming coffee into her mug and held the pot in his direction. He held out his cup and she poured. “No, Dan, I’m not going anywhere. And I’m not leaving Jamie. What I am going to do is find out who that woman is, and what’s going on.”
    “No! Amy, don’t do that. Leave it alone. You hear me? Things are getting out of hand. I don’t want you making a bigger deal out of this than you already have.” He ate in silence then dropped his spoon. “Damn it, I wish you hadn’t called the sheriff.” He picked up the spoon and tapped the tabletop with it. “Complicates things.”
    Surprised, Amy said, “Really? Most people don’t think of the sheriff as a complication unless they’re on the wrong side of the law.” She cocked her head and looked at him intently, once again feeling anger rise within her. Does he ever care about anyone but himself? “You know, for a doctor, you’ve got shockingly little compassion for people.”
    Dan dropped the spoon and stared at her. “What did you say?”
    Amy turned away. Where did that come from? The truth was, she was weary of Dan’s self-centered, uncaring attitude. She turned back, her eyes steady on his, “You never care about anyone, except yourself, Dan. It’s tiring.”
    He blinked, unable to believe what he'd just heard. “What’s happening to you, Amy? In all the years we’ve been married, you’ve never talked to me like this,” he thought a minute and then added, “It’s not like you at all. Of course, we both know you don’t handle stress well.”
    She took another sip of coffee, savored the flavor, and inhaled the aroma, praying for revitalization. Mug in hand, Amy turned toward the hall and headed for the stairs.
    Dan stood up. “Where’re you going?”
    She threw the answer over her shoulder. “Shower. See you tonight, or tomorrow, or whenever you decide to come home.”
    Dumbfounded, Dan stared after her.
     
     

CHAPTER 4
     
     
    As Amy drove toward town, she turned up the morning news. Local reports were first, including mention of a woman reported missing near Cape Peril. There’s the publicity Dan’s worried about.
    She pulled up to her Grandfather’s ranch style bungalow within the golf course community, where he once enjoyed a daily round of golf with Grams and his friends. Amy parked behind what she had nicknamed, his eight-wheel ride . The van was in the carport, the electric scooter mounted across the extended steel bumper. No room in the garage. It housed a lifetime of keepsakes and memories. What didn’t fit in there had been stuffed into the crawlspace.
    At the front door a weathered sign hung above the mailbox, boldly stating, The Haddens . Only one Hadden lived here now.
    Amy glanced at