Filed To Story: Claimed by the Alpha I Hate Book Read Free
I could only see the side of her face, but upon noticing Ember, the little girl smiled. That smile was wiped away when she turned her head further to the right and spotted Brandon and I hovering by the door.
Her pink lips popped into an ‘o’ and stayed that way.
Now that I could see the girl’s entire face,
I realized she couldn’t have been older than six or seven. Looking closer, I noticed a sparkly sheen over the girl’s eyelids and her eyelashes appeared longer than normal. Wait, was she wearing make-
up?
She was, I realized. The child had a full face of make-up on, foundation and all, but it was applied in a way that was meant to look natural. Even her clothes were odd, nothing like what you’d see a child in today’s time wearing. She had on a baby-pink dress with white lace and frills that circled her neck, arms, and the skirt of the dress.
She looked like a baby doll.
Ember’s eyes slid up to my face. There was something-some kind of emotion shining in them that made my stomach twist into knots. Could she see that I was noticing these strange things about the little girl? Did she notice them herself?
The subtle nod she gave me was answer enough. She noticed, alright.
“Oooooh, Ember. You’re going to be in trouble.” Angelica, the little girl, gasped. She lifted her finger, which was painted pink with a strip of white at the top and waggled it at Ember like a disappointed mother.
Ember crouched low, her hands on her knees as she smirked at Angelica and whispered, “Aw, come on, Angelica. You were just saying how bored you are sitting here all day. I brought these two up so we could play a game. You do want to play with us, don’t you?”
Angelica perked up immediately, her baby -blue eyes sparkling as she squealed and flashed ember a set of little white teeth.
She craned her head towards Brandon and I, her curled pigtails bouncing.
“You’re here to play with us?” She chirped, her eyes flitting between Brandon and me.
I’d never been the best with children, but considering our lives were on the line, it was high time I learned. I mimicked Ember’s stance, sinking down to Angelica’s level.
“Of course we are. It’s pretty boring down there. My friend and I love games.” I said sweetly. “Don’t we?”
I narrowed my eyes at Brandon, who had been standing there with his mouth open, gawking at the entire situation.
“Oh, yeah. We love games. Poker, blackjack, you name it.” He sputtered.
“What’s blackjack?” Angelica inquired in her wispy soprano.
“I’ll teach you that one later.” Ember promised, shooting a glare at Brandon. ” Right now, I thought we’d play a game using our magic.”
Angelica jumped out of the chair so quickly that she almost knocked it over. She bounced up and down on her feet.
“Yes! Let’s play a game with magic!” She squealed, clapping her little hands together.
“Alright, then. Here’s what we need to do, Angelica. Think of it like hide-and- seek. Mistress Freya is going to come looking for us. We need to make sure she can’t find us, which is where you come in. You think you’re up for the job?” Ember asked the child.
“Does Mistress Freya know we’re playing this game?” Angelica inquired, a curious tilt to her head.
Ember nodded. “She sure does.”
“Okay, then. When do we start?” Angelica replied.
“We start now. Go on and grab your coat.”
Ember ushered Angelica out of the kitchen and beckoned us to follow.
The living room was fully furnished and cluttered in a way that made the place look lived in. Framed photos decorated the fireplace mantle, while embroidered curtains covered the windows.
Before I could truly search the place, Angelica appeared. She had on a little white peacoat that matched her dress and showed just a hint of ruffle down at the bottom.
“Ready to go, Emmy.” Angelina sang brightly.
Brandon hit Ember with a look. Before I could jab my elbow into his ribcage, he snorted and muttered,
“Emmy, huh?”
“Quiet.” Ember hissed, marching over to the front door where she gripped the knob hard enough to dent the metal.
My heart skipped a beat as she yanked it open, growing faster as we stepped outside and into the open air. It wasn’t the full moon that hung front and center that ripped the breath from my lungs, but rather the fact that I recognized the neighborhood we stood in.
I’d been to this neighborhood more times than I could count to train with Rowena and Cordelia.
This entire time, we hadn’t even left the pack.
“You’re wondering how we’ve managed to stay on your lands this entire time without anyone noticing.”
Ember spoke softly, Angelica’s hand clutched in her own as she led the child in between houses to where the backyard was.
Tall picket fences divided the properties, each one the same uniform shape, height, and color. With the moon as our guide,
Ember led us to the back of the property, right where the forest met the neatly trimmed grass.
“She’s not the only one wondering that.” Brandon muttered sourly, casting a glare in
Ember’s direction. “This entire time I thought you brought me to some witchy village.”
“Freya told me to bring you to her, and this just so happened to be where she was.”
Ember fired back.
Angelica giggled, watching the two of them with curious eyes that shimmered brightly even in the dark.
My only option was to intervene before they could descend into a full-blown argument. We’d be here all night if that was the case.
“How have you been able to stay here for so long without anyone noticing? Someone should’ve been able to pick up mine and Brandon’s scents.” I said, wondering why even now I failed to pick anything up.
Right as we reached the forest line, Ember tugged Angelica to a stop. The little girl whipped around, a knowing grin on her face.
“You don’t have to cloak the house anymore, Angelica. If we’re going to play, you’ll need all your strength, yeah?” Ember said, lowering herself to the girl’s height.
Angelica tapped her chin in thought for a moment before nodding, a look of agreement on her cherub face. 2
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?