Read Dead and Breakfast for Free Online Page B

away from the edge of the pool, grabbed the side of the old patio table, and steadied herself. Black spots floated in front of her until they darkened her vision completely. Her heart pumped so loudly she thought she could hear it. Sweat bloomed under her arms. Intense pressure climbed her torso as though invisible arms were squeezing her in a bear hug. Her nerve endings tingled. A bright light flashed.
    The pain in her chest subsided, but everything still seemed fuzzy, as if she was viewing the world underwater. She blinked several times to clear her vision. Autumn crumpled against the table until she felt well enough to stand up.
    She had read magazine articles of young girls suddenly stricken by incurable diseases. Could that be what was happening to her?
    She hugged herself and then wiggled her fingers, trying to regain sensation. She caught sight of slender fingers on a tanned, dark-skinned right hand. This did not look like her hand. Autumn ran her fingers down her body, sliding them over silky white fabric with pearly buttons. She was wearing a blouse? Autumn peered over the side of the pool into crystal clear water and caught a glimpse of her reflection. It wasn’t her face that appeared.
    Autumn’s eyes darted around the patio. The Cayo’s white peeling paint appeared fresh and unmarked. The pool’s typical green tint shimmered clear and blue. The once-rusted patio table looked smooth and clean. The round-faced clock that hung next to the doors ticked away. Eight o’clock. That couldn’t be right. It was still afternoon.
    This was the Cayo’s patio and yet it wasn’t. This was the Cayo of years ago. The one Autumn had seen in Aunt Glenda’s old photos. Had she hit her head?
    Autumn heard the melodic sound of a girl’s laughter. A slender girl, standing near the gate that led to the street. She had short dark hair that flipped up at her shoulders and wore a white blouse with an embroidered crest and a red plaid skirt that stopped at her knees. Autumn glanced down at her matching attire. The red knee socks itched. She lifted a strand of her hair and brought it in front of her face. It was dark, like a walnut, and matched the other girl’s.
    The girl appeared by Autumn’s side, linked her arm, and rested her head against Autumn’s shoulder.
    “There you are, Inez. The boys want to go out on Ralphie’s boat. Do you want to come?”
    Ralphie? That name sounds familiar.
    “No, I don’t,” came a strange voice. It sounded harsh, with just a lilt of an accent. Autumn didn’t mean to be angry, but she couldn’t help how she sounded. She couldn’t control the words coming out of her mouth.
    The other girl pursed her lips and motioned toward a young man with brown wavy hair, dressed in a dark blue sailor uniform with white stripes on the sleeves. He was muscular and tan, but is back was turned toward them, and Autumn couldn’t see his face. “Don’t be angry, Inez. I saw him first.” She smiled, more gently this time. “Que guapo, no?”
    I’m in Inez’s body. Inez who?
    “Don’t rub it in, Mariana. Fue mío primero,” her voice said. Dammit, I wish I had taken Advanced Spanish. “Which sailor?”
    A tall, broad shouldered man with blond hair and a wide grin, also dressed in a Navy uniform, gave the girls a slight wave. There was something familiar about him, but Autumn couldn’t place his face.
    “He’s just as handsome,” Mariana admitted. “And he seems to like you.” But something inside Autumn suggested she desired the other sailor—the one whose face she couldn’t see. She suddenly felt a stab of jealousy.
    Mariana brightened. “He asked to be introduced.” She brushed past Autumn and went over to the tall sailor with the easy smile. Mariana whispered in his ear and the sailor’s brows rose in amusement. Autumn glanced away. She, nor Inez, seemed interested in this sailor. Autumn wanted to explore the Cayo and seek out Uncle Duncan, who must’ve been a young man, but she