THE GIRLS
A FLASH OF lightning lit up the sky
illuminating the L-shaped room where Sophie and Terri slept. The light was so
bright, it startled Sophie awake and she sat up rubbing her eyes. When she
could finally focus, she was surprised to see their room was suffused by a
golden glow that lingered long after the lightning faded. As she gazed about
the room in wonder, she saw her twin standing by the window that looked out to
the backyard.
"Ter, what ya doin'?" she asked.
Terri turned her head, a bright smile on her
face. "Soph, come see. It's beautiful. It's like a fairy world."
Sophie got out of bed and joined her sister at
the window. Her eyes widened in amazement when she saw what was happening
outside. Scores of fireflies were dancing around one of the bushes in the yard,
their light sparkling and shimmering in the wind and rain.
"It looks like Christmas," said
Sophie, her voice filled with awe.
"Yeah, Soph. See how they dance. And
listen - I think they're singing."
Sophie pressed her face to the glass, straining
to hear. "I don't hear anything."
"Close your eyes and really listen."
Sophie did as her sister instructed. In a
moment, she nodded her head eagerly. "I hear it. I hear it. It's like
magic. It's so pretty."
The girls grinned in delight as they listened
to the sweet melodic song of the fireflies.
"What language is it?" Sophie
whispered. "I don't understand it but I love it."
"I don't know. I've never heard anything
like it before."
They stood quietly listening and watching the
spectacle taking place before them oblivious to the storm that was raging. But
in an instant, their joy was cut short by a loud crack of thunder that shook
the house. The room plunged into darkness as the golden glow was extinguished and
the fireflies disappeared.
"Look," whispered Sophie pointing her
finger to the yard.
Terri gripped her sister's hand tightly as she
watched a shadowy figure streak across the lawn toward the woods. A flash of
lightning lit up the sky, temporarily blinding the girls and when their sight
returned, the figure was gone.
They stood transfixed, waiting to see what
would happen next. Then a soft mournful sob, barely audible at first, pierced
the silence. Stunned, Terri and Sophie hugged each other in fear as the sobs
became more desperate. The wind began to howl and mournful cries echoed in the
night. Tears streamed down Sophie's cheeks as she recognized the voice that was
now calling out her name.
"It sounds like Mommy, Ter! Is it Mommy?
Please, is it Mommy?"
Terri leaned forward, her body rigid as she
strained to recognize the voice calling to them. The sound was so familiar but
not real, not like her mother. Yet, it was her.
"It is Mommy. She sounds in so much pain.
I think she's hurt. We have to help her."
Sophie gripped her sister's hand tightly. The
cries were becoming more plaintive now as if the caller was losing hope.
"We have to wake Daddy. He'll know what to
do."
Terri shook her head. "We can't get Daddy.
What if it's his fault? What if he hurt her again? You heard them fighting. No,
it's up to us, Soph. We have to help her."
The girls stood staring at each other for what
seemed a lifetime, then Sophie nodded. "You're right. Let's go. We have to
find Mommy. We have to save her."
Terri took her sister's hand and squeezed it.
Together they tiptoed out of their room and down the stairs. They stopped
briefly at the hall closet, put their slickers on over their nightclothes to
try to stay dry and grabbed a flashlight. Then, hand in hand, they opened the
door and, without hesitation, went silently out into the storm.
BLURB:
What could be more idyllic than to live on
an island off the coast of Maine? That's what Bill Andersen thought when he
moved his family to Mateguas. But Mateguas is more than just pristine beaches
nestled between rocky shores. No, Mateguas is something quite different...
On a remote island, a troubled family is
trying to pick up the pieces of their shattered lives and start over. But
unbeknownst to them, the property they have inherited is steeped in ancient
magic - magic that could seek to consume and destroy them.
An arcane locked box, a strange and
foreboding trail into the woods, a seductive young woman, and tales of a
malevolent Native American spirit are just some of the perils Karen Andersen
must face in order to find a way to save her family.
MATEGUAS ISLAND is the 2014 Gold Medal Winner in Supernatural Fiction awarded by
READERS' FAVORITE INTERNATIONAL BOOK COMPETITION.
Amazon / Amazon UK / Barnes & Noble / iTunes / Kobo
AUTHOR BIO:
Born in Norwich, Connecticut, Linda Watkins
moved to Michigan when she was four years old. After graduation from college
(Carnegie-Mellon University '70), she relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area
where she lived most of her adult life. A Senior Clinical Financial Analyst at
Stanford University School of Medicine, Linda was always writing. At work, she
created 'long forms' and business plans; at home, she wrote whimsical stories,
poems and songs for the delight of her friends and family. In 2006, retired,
she moved to Chebeague Island, Maine where she wrote her first novel, MATEGUAS
ISLAND.
Today, she resides in Western Michigan with
her three rescue dogs (Splatter, Spudley and Jasper). She published the sequel
to MATEGUAS,
aptly titled, RETURN TO MATEGUAS ISLAND, in December 2014 and is actively at work on the third full-length
novel in the MATEGUAS
ISLAND SERIES that she hopes to have ready for publication in late 2015.
For more information, please visit
http://www.lindawatkins.biz,
her personal blog
http://www.mateguasisland.com,
her novel website
You can also follow her on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Linda-Watkins-Author/412758982152044
No comments:
Post a Comment