Shadow-Land - Heather Parsons (bill gates book recommendations TXT) 📗

join the others.

Sierra tried her hardest to hold her head up high so no one would know the pain she truly felt. With her stomach twisting in knots, she couldn't sit in the kitchen and smell the food that was being prepared. She stood in the hallway, the entrance to the kitchen and watched everyone else enjoy their food. "Aren't you hungry, love?" His voice come from behind her. She ended up holding her breath when she felt his arms around her waist.

"Not really. But if you are then go ahead and eat. I'll be fine here." Sierra turned her head to look at him, signaling with her hand for him to sit and eat.

"I'm not that hungry by the way I'm not leaving your side." He smiled while Sierra studied his face, then his stomach growled giving him away. She laughed and pushed him in the kitchen. He smiled again but it quickly disappeared as he reached the table. She never took my eyes off him as he sat and ate. The distance was horrifying to say the least but she couldn't see him suffering at her expense. She just wouldn't allow it.

♥`♥`♥

IT was early this morning when they finally arrived at the house. Getting Teri out of the car and into the house was fun to say the least. She hadn't slept at all and now the restlessness was taking effect. Joseph half carried her into the house and laid her down on the couch so she could get some sleep before Travis and Sierra woke up. Laying down beside her, he too closed his eyes and slept but only for a little while.

"Joseph, wake-y wake-y!" Dean yelled from across the room, making him jump off the couch and fall on the floor. His laughter was louder now and all Joseph could think about was somehow getting him back. He turned to see that Teri was gone and he hadn't even noticed when she'd left. Placing one hand on the coffee table and the other on the couch, Joseph pushed himself off the floor and took off after Dean. Seeing him run out of the house and into the forest that surrounded them. Joseph stopped at the door and stood there, watching Dean run as fast as he could to get away from him. And the whole time he was thinking, he has to come back sometime and when he does, he will get his revenge. Not being able to control himself, Joseph started laughing rather loudly at the spectacle Dean was making of himself. He looked like a child, looking back every once in a while to see if Joseph still was chasing him. One to many times did he turn around and the last time he did, he run into a tree. Laughing so hard, Joseph fell to the ground, holding his stomach because of the pain.

"Joseph what's so funny?" Teri asked standing beside him and all he could do was point to where he had last seen him. His whole body was shaking from laughter and soon she was right beside him, laughing as well.

It took everything inside him to stop laughing and be able to pull himself off the floor. Reaching out and offering her a hand to help her up. Joseph simply smiled at her showing her that if he was able to control himself then she should be able to as well.

They turned around only when he had heard everyone else was downstairs and in the kitchen. Joining them for breakfast and sitting down that's when he had his first look at Sierra. She was trying to play off that everything was fine but he could sense that she was far from that. Seeing through the mask she wore and feeling the pain she was hiding.

Joseph wanted to comfort her and tell her that everything would be okay but he wasn't entirely sure if that was true. Not wanting to lie to her, he decided on saying nothing at all. Keeping his eyes on everyone else as he too pushed the pain away and hide it.

Whatever happened to her was intense and Joseph could feel the fear and pain seeping off her. Teri followed his stare and saw Sierra standing in the entrance, holding herself together. While watching both Travis and Sierra carefully, Joseph could sense their relationship has been taken to the next level. Happy for both of them but still concerned at the same time.

As soon as Teri sat down beside him was she back up and walking over to Sierra. Watching her skipping her way over to Sierra had him shaking his head. Joseph doesn't know how she manages the energy on just a couple hours of sleep, if that.

When the girls disappeared somewhere else in the house, he focused all his attention on Travis' face. He looked like a long lost puppy without Sierra, and his grip on the table showed Joseph something entirely different. Unsure of what that entailed exactly but Joseph knew him to well and if he didn't talk about it soon, he'd blow.

"Travis let's go find Dean." But just thinking about Dean made him laugh. Joseph wondered if he was still wrapped around the tree or laying beside it unconscious. With the image of Dean's shocked face still on his mind, Joseph stood up and walked over to the door, waiting on Travis. He still hadn't looked away from where Sierra had been standing and the pain that he was in, he had felt instantly. Like a wave of emotions, all hitting me at once. Joseph had to grip onto the door frame so he wouldn't fall over. He was sure anyone that was looking at me could tell that something was wrong, his facial expressions changed in an instance. From laughing and smiling to sorrow and pain, a great deal of pain.

Joseph wanted no, that's the wrong word, he needed to find out what it was that was causing him so much pain. Shaking his head, he tried to expel the pain but it wouldn't go away. The closer Travis was to him, the stronger Joseph felt it. Turning around, he walked outside into the fresh air and tried focusing on something else. Looking to where he had last seen Dean before the tree incident and seeing him sitting up, rubbing his head. Even though he knew what happened to him, Joseph couldn't even force a smile on his face.

"God man, you could have told me the tree was there! My head is killing me!" Dean yelled with a big smile on his face. Joseph watched as he carefully stood up, stumbling a little then making his way over to him. "Whoa Joseph," he had his hands raised in the air. He was surrendering, "I'm sorry. I won't wake you up like that ever again." Joseph's eyes narrowed in on him. What was he seeing that had him acting this way?

"Dean it's not you!" Joseph snapped, the anger rolling off him now. Just then Travis was beside them and he looked the same way Joseph did. Only difference was he knew why he was angry and Joseph hadn't a clue. "Travis what's really going on?" He calmed his voice down but only by a small amount. If he didn't tell him soon, Joseph was afraid of what he might do. He has never been this upset before so who knows what will happen.

"Yesterday I found Sierra the same way I'd found her, when her parents died. But it was her brother's body this time. I also found a note by his body and no she hasn't seen it yet because there's something not right about it." Travis reached into his pocket but his hand came out empty. "Damn it, I put the note in the night stand. Do you guys know where the girls are?" They all shook their heads then took off on foot back into the house. Following him up the stairs and into the room. The girls were not in there and Joseph heard Travis sigh a sign of relief.

Dean and Joseph stood by the door as Travis retrieved the note from the night stand. Bringing it over to them while he unfolded it. The note was simple but not something Simon would have wrote.

Sierra,
I've been thinking about this for awhile and I can't go on knowing what I've done. I'm so sorry for leaving you like this but it's the only way I know how to keep you safe. I love you sister, please forgive me.
Love your brother,
Simon

The one thing that everyone knew was that Simon never cared about Sierra's safety and another, after he started do his drugs and drinking, he never considered them as brother and sister. He had a hole new name for her and it wasn't even close to sister. Coming to the conclusion that someone else had written the note, to throw them off.

"Who wrote this if it wasn't Simon?" Dean's words were the same as what Joseph was thinking only he said them out loud while Joseph thought of who would do this.

"You remember the day that Simon left saying he enrolled in the military?" They both nodded their heads. "Well I saw him that same day and he looked scared to death. He told me something that day that I've never told anyone else. It's a secret that only Jake and I know and it's been eating away at me ever since." Travis took a deep breath while they waited for him to continue. "Look guys, I can't tell you here. Let's go for a walk." Joseph could feel the anguish coming off him now as he watched him walk out of the room. Following close behind with Dean trailing. They made their way down the stairs and back outside to where they all started. But this time they didn't stop, keep walking into the forest that surrounded the house. The further they walked into the trees, the darker it became. Until finally Travis stopped and turned around, looking behind them. Joseph turned to and saw that the house had all but disappeared.

"He told me his plans were to kill both his parents and make it look like an intruder did it. At first I thought he was scared but it wasn't that, that I saw. It was rage, pure rage." Joseph watched as his hands started shaking. The look he had on his face, was one of a broken man and he would swear he had never seen him look like that, ever. "That night was the same night as the party and I was supposed to keep an eye on Sierra and make sure she attended that said party. I was the one that was supposed to protect her from Simon and I failed. I knew what time and everything about what Simon was planning but I did nothing to stop it. I just stood by and watched it happen as if I was standing next to