ALEXAKIS I drew closer to the woman and shook my head, not even knowing where to start with my lamentations. I wondered if it was even right to always dump all my worries on her. But I couldn't help it each time I saw her. My worries were always lessened one way or the other. Even if I chose not to talk, the comfort I always got from her was more than enough to take me through what I needed to deal with better about the whole issue that was bothering me in the first place.It was more like she was my personal therapist -someone who comforted me when it looked like all hope was lost. I could be feeling like the worst shit on earth, and yet when I see her, I feel this calmness within me."Come. Let's get inside," I told her. I held her hands, and we both walked to my room. When we got in and were seated, I told her everything the Elders had said, how harsh some of them had sounded, and how they had made me look like I would be a failure forever if I didn't measure up to my brother's st
CLAIRE That morning, as I left the café to go over and let Alex know that I was going to see my family, I met Luna Lisa by the door. With the way she stood there, I could tell that she was waiting for someone. "Luna Lisa," I said as a form of greeting to her. I tried to bypass her, but she refused to move from where she stood like a soldier to grant me access to the house. My heart beat loudly in my chest as I couldn't comprehend what was going on in the woman's head. I couldn't help but feel that the woman at the café, Mrs. Annie, must have called her to report to her that I was rude. If that was the case, I knew that she would omit the way she had grilled me about Luna Lisa's children which led to my outburst in the first place. So no, I was going to be the villain in whatever kind of story she created for the Luna to see. My heart thudded in my chest as I couldn't decipher if the woman would listen to what I had to say or if she would listen to what one of her own had said."I'v
CLAIRE As we drove away from the Morning Dew Pack, my heart couldn't stop thudding. I didn't know what to think or even how to think about it. One thing I do know was that I was sceptical about this visit that I was going on. I didn't think I would be able to recover from it if my father turned me out once I got there under the influence that no one wanted me, therefore my presence was not needed. If my father didn't say anything, I think I would be able to hold on to my sanity and reject whatever it was that the other two might say about my sudden appearance.Becky and Evie.I didn't miss them a single bit, and I was not even apologetic about the whole thing. I was even sure that the two of them would make me regret that I even bothered to check on them, but they were not my business. As long as my father appreciated me and the effort I took for his sake, I would gladly overlook everything mother and daughter did to spike me up.Before two hours was up, we got to the land that belon
ALEXAKIS I watched as Claire disappeared back to the end of the house, and I knew that she was indeed going to use the back door as she promised. A part of me wanted to go in with her to protect her, but I talked myself out of it. This was her daily time, and she needed to spend it with them without me interfering in her affairs. If I followed her in, it might agitate her family and they might turn on her. So, I was leaving her with the choice to let these people know whatever it was that she felt they should.To keep myself from failing in my quest to stay out here in the wood and wait for her, I got into the car and sped off to the den where I used to work. As I drove, my mind couldn't get over what it was that I would face at the place, especially since I disappeared like that without any record. Would Angelo especially forgive me for leaving in the middle of a job?Even more than the job was the rumors that were circulating that there was a mole among us. It just had to happen th
CLAIRE As I sat on the floor of the cave, my hands went to my eyes repeatedly to clean my eyes, and I had to sniff in to control the tears that were falling so rapidly. I didn't bother to wait for the verbal words that would tell me that my presence was not needed at the house, no. I figured that it would even be worse if Becky came out of her room and saw me in the house. The woman would never stop until I was humiliated until the end. So, to avoid that, I opened the main door and made my way out of the place.How could a father be so callous to his only daughter?Even if he was angry with me until death, he should have at least smiled at me a little to show that he appreciated the fact that I came home to check on him. Not just home, I had even gone as far as forgetting how he turned me out of his house just to satisfy his wife and stepdaughter. And to crown it all, he just blatantly showed me that even if I had been dead all these months, he didn't care about any of that. Not even
ALEXAKIS The moment I pulled up into the pack, Claire walked in looking very different from the spirited person who was eager to leave the pack this morning to visit her family. I winced as she dragged one foot after the other. I couldn't help but close my eyes to prevent myself from cursing her family. She strolled past Luna Lisa without as much as a single word. The action must have hurt the woman because she sighed."What is wrong with you?" I heard Luna Lisa ask the dull woman who still went on to ignore the woman. Luna Lisa wanted to go after her, but I rushed after the older woman and held her hand to signal to her that she didn't need to follow her. "But she is looking too dull to be left alone ro herself." She commented, looking very worried."Believe me when I say that it is that loneliness she needs right now. Let's leave her alone so she can get enough time to get over what happened and then become her usual jovial self," I told Luna Lisa. "Oh, okay." She said in an under
ALEXAKIS As I thought to do it, I asked Kieran to get the words across to the Elders that I would like an audience with them. The man got up and went to do as I instructed. Luna Lisa decided to leave me to my own devise as she felt that I was going to be busy. Busy it seemed to her, but I actually had nothing I was doing. The meeting I scheduled would not be immediate. It would take the Elders at least an hour to group in the meeting hall, so I still had some free time on my hands. I tried to tell her that, but she insisted that I used the time to get some rest.I knew I wouldn't be able to get that rest she insinuated, so I just got up from where I sat and dragged my feet toward Claire's room. I didn't know if enough time had passed for her to ignore what her father did or if she was still living in the rejection. But all I knew was that I needed to talk to her, especially since the decision I was about to make was one that could affect both of us in the future. So, before I would l
EVIE"What the hell was taking this man too long to get back to me?"It's been more than two weeks since I first met Nathaniel, the man who claimed to be Alex's brother. And he had even promised to assist me if I released the hunters to him, and I had agreed. But since then, I had been waiting for news from the man -news that never came. I didn't know if I should still be feeling relieved about the whole thing or if I should be worried. More than having to choose if I should be worried or if I should not be was the fact that I was so close to frustration. I felt so frustrated that I was sure that I was going to collapse if nothing was done to help my plight any time soon.Alex. My heart was yearning for the man. More than anyone or anything else in the world, he was the only one I wanted. I was so afraid that I would be late in getting to him and he would have already belonged to that woman called Claire. I couldn't afford to let that happen. Which was why I needed to see this Nathani