Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 90268 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 451(@200wpm)___ 361(@250wpm)___ 301(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90268 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 451(@200wpm)___ 361(@250wpm)___ 301(@300wpm)
“If that were true,” I replied with certainty in my voice, “I wouldn’t be sitting here with you.”
“So you don’t need a friend yet?”
I sighed, surrendering. “I guess I could use one.”
He didn’t waver. “You look sad, Miss Belladonna.”
We locked eyes through the rearview mirror.
“Not sad, just lonely.”
He nodded in understanding. “The Graves can be a lonely place sometimes.”
Seeing as he was in a talkative mood, I kept it going, enjoying someone to chat with. “How long have you lived here?”
“All my life.” He slid the car into Reverse. “Where to?”
“Umm… I’m not really sure. Take me to the oldest building in this town.”
“You attend school there.”
“Oh… I didn’t know that. Well, then take me to the second one.”
He looked next door at the Devereaux estate. “I won’t have to drive you.”
“Huh, I didn’t know that either. What’s next? Is this property the third?”
“No, miss. How about I drive you to the Litchfield District instead? There are plenty of old buildings for you to explore.”
“Hmm… how did you know I was into that?”
He didn’t answer, driving out of the driveway.
I couldn’t tell you what made me open up to him, but all of a sudden, I didn’t hold back, confessing, “I’ve been here for five weeks now, and I’ve yet to have one conversation with my uncle. I have no friends. Everyone avoids me like I’m living up to my last name, avoiding me like the plague, like I’m a poisonous plant or person… And I’ve somehow managed to fall into a set of rules I’ve yet to hear. I go to class. I pretend I don’t see everyone falling at the Brotherhood’s feet. I come home, and I’m alone…” Pausing for a second, I contemplated what I was to express, “Why am I here if no one wants me to be?”
“To get a grade A education. It’s what your father would’ve wanted.”
My wide stare shifted to his on the rearview mirror again. “You knew my father?”
“Yes.”
“So he did attend the Graves?”
“Yes.”
I was so shocked he was actually answering my questions that I didn’t know what to ask next.
“He’d be very proud of the young woman you’ve turned into. He loved you very much, Hennessy. I hope you know that too.”
I slowly shook my head. “I don’t know anything. My family barely speaks about him.”
His eyebrows pinched together. “Even your mother?”
“My mother the most.”
“Interesting,” he commented.
“You knew my mother as well?”
“Yes.”
“Did she also attend the Graves Academy?”
“No.”
“Oh…” I breathed out. “But you met her here? In Connecticut?”
“Something like that.”
“I don’t understand… she told me she’s never been to this state.”
“It was a long time ago. People tend to forget the past when the people who lived it are no longer with us.”
“Are you talking about my father? Do you know how he died?”
“Hennessy—”
“That’s the first time you’ve called me that. This must be bad.”
“Miss,” he clarified for the second time. “The past is already buried. I highly advise you not to get your hands dirty by digging it up.”
“No,” I disputed. “It’s staring me right in the face everywhere I go, but no one will tell me why I’m a leper. In the jungle, Alfred, where I’m from, when the group turns its back on one of their own, it’s only because they’re as good as dead. Is that what I am here? Dead?”
“Miss,” he spoke in the softest tone. “I’m sorry you’re having a hard time here. I promise it will get better for you.”
“Then this is a test? Am I passing or failing?”
“You’re still here, aren’t you?”
“That doesn’t sound very reassuring.”
“Well, I suggest you try to make some friends. You’re much stronger in numbers than you are alone.”
“That sounds like an army. What… or should I say who, am I supposed to be defeating? The Devereauxs?”
“He’s your uncle's best friend, and you’re about to become family with them.”
“Only through marriage.”
I could tell he was weighing his words, especially when he replied, “Some stories are history you’re born with.”
“What does that mean? You act like my family holds the key to my future.”
“Most families do.” He smiled before informing me, “We’re here.”
“That didn’t take long.” I felt like he was trying to get rid of me.
He gestured toward the homes. “The district isn’t far from your uncle’s. There’s a pathway in the woods that’ll actually take you back to the Graves. I’ll pick you up in an hour?”
Defeat quickly settled into my bones. “How about I just call you when I’m ready?”
He agreed and gave me his cell phone number. After I watched him leave, I thought about what he shared on a dangerous loop in my head. I needed straight answers, not cryptic warnings everyone was adamant about laying on me. I decided right then and there that I was going to get to the bottom of this.
Even if it meant confronting my uncle, which was probably why he was avoiding me to begin with. Trying to change my state of mind, I noticed that every street looked frozen in time under towering apple trees. Autumn was breathing all around me with its crisp cool air and gorgeous amber tones.