Filed To Story: Claimed by the Alpha I Hate Book Read Free
We were only halfway through warm-up, but I was seconds away from ditching to track down Breyona since she couldn’t answer a simple mind-link. Either her thoughts were too chaotic and disorganized to focus, or something bad had happened to her. I felt uneasiness in the pits of my stomach, almost like I were missing something. Still, it wasn’t anything like the feeling of knives twisting into my gut when
Tristan said those chilling words.
“You want me to come with you?” Cassidy asked, keeping her voice low. “I don’t mind ditching to help you find Breyona.”
I thought over her offer, but before I could take her up on it, I heard a familiar huff from down the hall.
Cassidy gave me a funny look since I had opened my mouth to respond and quickly shut it, but it was fleeting since seconds later Breyona came bursting through the door.
With her hair disheveled and her cheeks flushed she took a deep breath and said, “…so sorry, car broke down.”
“It’s alright, you didn’t miss much. We have one other student that’s absent for today, so you’ll be partnering with me. I’ll make sure you get caught up.” Emilia nodded, her eyes understanding as she scribbled something onto her clipboard and officially began today’s class.
I caught a glimpse at what made Emilia qualified to teach when she launched into a brief introduction of
Krav Maga. Chris drilled every punch, kick, and hold into my head until I could recite them by heart while also not getting my a*s kicked.
After enough leg takedowns and elbow strikes to the liver, both of which hurt worse the next day, I learned I memorized things quickly when under pressure. I also learned I’d do just about anything to kick Chris’s a*s, even once.
We didn’t do much sparring, but what little we did showed me no matter how she felt about Emilia, she truly was paying attention. I could tell she was holding back, if not from the playful twinkle in her eyes, then from the persistent nudge in my gut. Any time that look crossed her face, I’d smirk and silently dare her to push harder. She didn’t take the bait, but it did make class interesting.
“You could’ve answered my mind-link, you know.” Breyona wiped the sweat from her forehead as she scolded me. The second Emilia called training to an end she made a beeline for me. “I had to leave the car Nolan loaned me on the side of the road, then I hitchhiked. Do you know how many women go missing while hitchhiking?”
I blinked at her, “I’ve been trying to mind-link you up until you walked through the door, there’s no way I would’ve ignored you.”
As all the mid-day classes let out, Cassidy decided to stay behind and catch up with a few acquaintances from another training group. My question about her date with Lars was right on the tip of my tongue, but there hadn’t been a moment where the two of us were alone. If I told her my suspicions and someone else were to hear, it could easily spell disaster. She promised to catch up in a few minutes, but I was beginning to learn how easily she could get distracted.
“You didn’t ignore me?” She frowned, and for some reason that seemed to trouble her more.
I shook my head and said sincerely, “I’d never.”
“You know, I mind-linked Mason too and didn’t get an answer. I figured he must’ve gotten distracted; it wouldn’t be the first time. I knew when you didn’t answer something was up.” The fear that flashed across her face was all too familiar. When she spoke her voice was low. “You don’t think the witches were trying to k**l me again, do you? Or what if they’re trying to mess with our mind-link so we can’t talk to each other when they finally do a****k? Maybe I shouldn’t go with Gio…maybe it’s safer here.”
Feeling myself pale, I hopped onto the trunk of the car and watched streams of warriors in training as they exited through the two sets of double doors. From there they fanned out across the vast parking lot.
“Those are both good points, I just wish there was a way of knowing for sure. I think you might be safer going with him and getting far away from me and this pack for a few days.” I never had a hard time telling Breyona the truth but telling her she’d be safer by leaving me behind, it was a little hard to s*****w. “Hopefully, Holly sees something that gets us the upper hand, because until I learn some real magic, I have no clue how to stop them.”
“I won’t be gone for long; you can count on that. We’ll figure this out together and I’ll be at your side through it all. Even if you weren’t my best-friend, you’re the Vampire Queen. You and Gio are essentially a package deal…which sounds a little strange now that I think about it.” She narrowed her eyes playfully, and slowly the emotion simmered into something familiar and calming. “There was something I wanted to ask you before we left. I only remember bits and pieces. So, I wanted to know…
what exactly happened last night?”
Breyona sensed the change in my demeanor instantly and sank her teeth into her lower lip, something she did only when she was nervous. I slid from the trunk of the car, too consumed by guilt to stick a graceful landing.
“Look, I know it has something to do with…the shadows.” She said with furrowed eyebrows, lowering her voice dramatically towards the end. “I just don’t remember anything else…and I’d like to know every detail considering I almost died.”
The fact that she knew did little to deflate the balloon pressing against my insides, slowly suffocating me until all I could see was red. Instead I nodded numbly, because why wouldn’t she want to know?”
When are you leaving?”
Some of the severity left her face and she managed a small but genuine smile. It hinted at her fear and her budding excitement over meeting her mate’s family.
“Tomorrow, which is why you and I are having a sleepover tonight. Oh, and it’s taking place at your fancy new house, so tell Nolan to make himself scarce.” Her lips twitched into a playful smirk.
“I heard something about making Nolan scarce and knew I needed in on the conversation.” Cassidy’s laughter sounded from a few cars away, and slowly she came into view. She spotted Breyona and her cheerful expression brightened. “I’m so glad you were able to make it! I’m horrible with cars, but you could’ve always mind-linked me for a ride.”
“I’m awful with them too, I think that’s why I got all frazzled when it started filling with smoke. I couldn’t piece my thoughts together let alone mind-link anyone.” Breyona lied smoothly, and I know I’d have to do the same. I tried not to anticipate the sour taste it left in my mouth.
A thought popped into my head, and I asked on a whim, “How did you get here if you had to ditch the car?”
“It’s uh-a long story, one I’ll explain tonight.” Her voice jumped an octave, and I knew there was something she was leaving out.
“Oh, I knew I heard something about a sleepover!” Cassidy squealed then dropped her voice to a whisper as Breyona shushed her. She held back her laughter as she quietly asked, “…can I come?”
“Of course you can.” I replied quickly, then mind-linked Breyona to let her know I’d explain on the way to the witches’ house.
It was smartest to get Cassidy within the safety of the house before asking about Lars. With all the wandering ears in this pack, someone was bound to hear. All it would take was a single mind-link and he could have enough of a head start to slip through the boundaries.
Breyona and I were seconds away from taking off when I noticed Emilia through the dwindling crowd.
Her eyes scanned the crowd and stopped on my face. She walked with purpose and took long strides past the crowd until we were feet away.
“Glad I caught up to you before you left. It’s an honor to have you in my class, Luna. I’m eager to see if you live up to your reputation…same goes for you, even if you did show up late.” It was the respect in her eyes that surprised me most, and the way it brightened the splotches of gold and green within them. If it weren’t for the wide smile she flashed Breyona, I wouldn’t have noticed the way it dropped when her eyes settled on Cassidy. “I’ll see you in class tomorrow, Cassidy.”
“See you tomorrow, Emmi.” Cassidy replied, and the venom she laced into the nickname told me it wasn’t for endearment.
Emilia’s eyes hardened into stakes of blackwood, but she said nothing as she turned on her heel and walked away.
“Do you trust her?” Breyona asked once I finished explaining my plan, her filled with simple curiosity.
It took me a moment to answer truthfully. I listened to the soothing hum of the road as I debated on what words to say. We still had a few minutes until we reached Rowena’s, which meant I had plenty of time to think.
“No, but I’d like too someday. I know so little about her, which is partially my fault because I could’ve easily asked Nolan anything I want to know, but I didn’t want to come off as weird and suspicious.”
“Oh, I have no problems coming off as weird and suspicious. I want to know every woman that’s ever batted their eyelashes at Gio.” Breyona wrinkled her nose, and quickly the two of us descended into laughter.
The light-hearted mood we set in the car lasted the entire ride, up until we walked into the witches’
house and saw Grandma in the kitchen, her eyes lit with a soft lavender glow.
“You tell anyone, and you won’t see a cent of your inheritance when I’m gone.” Grandma narrowed her eyes, but the frown that tugged at her lips made the flimsy threat ineffective.
“I didn’t even know we had an inheritance.” I snorted as I stood at her side in the kitchen.
Like I had hundreds of times when we lived in the little cottage, I began gathering the d***y bowls and pans that collected in the sink as she baked. A thin layer of silence settled over us, one that reminded me of long days training with Chris and cherry pies that sat on the windowsill to cool.
“So, you don’t want me to tell anyone you were here or that you were here and using magic?”
She swatted at me with a rag until I chuckled and moved away from the sink. Breyona finished putting the rest of the dried dishes away and perched herself on the edge of the counter, her eyes curious and eager. Her obvious love of magic made a whisper of a smile cross my face.
“No, it’s not that. It turns out Rowena was right; I’ve been using magic to make my baking better, and for all these years…” Her features contorted into a scowl that made my chest begin to throb. She looked around at the various plates of cookies and exhaled sharply, as though they were to blame for greedily taking the magic from her overworked hands. “I won the Kenworth County Fair’s pie baking competition four years in a rowfour years! I’m a-a fraud.”
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?