"Everyone has secrets."
"Dreams are the subconscious' way of telling people what they truly want."
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Artemis Mallory had lived fourteen of her eighteen years in the dark as to why her mother left her with her adoptive family and pack. She ha...
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Around twenty or so pack members from the Nightshade pack were sitting around a mahogany dinner table. The dining room was right off the kitchen, and followed the same masculine pattern as the rest of the house. Me and my pack members were sitting next to each other on one side of the table. Instead of chairs, the dining table had mahogany benches on either side. At the head of the table at each end were two chairs. On the right, the Alpha and his mate were sitting next to each other, and on the other side the Beta and his mate.
The only people I knew at the table were Braxton, Adam, Orion, the Beta, the Alpha and the Luna. Artemis and Aiden had not appeared yet. The Beta's mate, who I was told was called Karen, looked a lot more timid than Artemis, or even more so than the Luna. She was wearing a neck high floral dress and her eyes were cast down. The Beta was obviously still very old-fashioned. Directly next to the Beta's mate, on the bench, was a young brunette girl of about fifteen years old. She had a bandage over one of her eyes, and she had her head in a book. This was obviously Artemis' sister, and looking at her I understood why she was so furious. She was chatting exuberantly with Orion, with her head still in her book. He was looking at her with a faint smile as she seemingly tried to explain the book to him.
Directly opposite to the girl was Braxton. As I leant over to get a look at him I noticed he was sporting a bruise over a swollen eye. I nudged Lewis who was busily chatting with Ruby. The downside of your sister being your best friend's mate is that you lose your best friend. He turned around with a questioning look, I motioned for him to lean over and look at Braxton. On the other side of me, Apollo tracked where we were looking as well. Both of them slowly smirked as they saw Braxton's eye.
"Braxy, what happened to your eye?" Lewis asked with fake concern. Ruby, who had been drinking from a water glass, started choking as she tried not to laugh. He casually patted her on the back as she tried to regain her breath. Apollo's shoulders were shaking as he silently laughed. Across from me, Adam wasn't even trying to hold in his laugh, and Orion had his head in between his hands as he shook with laughter. To my right, the Alpha was trying to look stern but the faint smile on his face was a dead giveaway. The Luna was chuckling silently, and the Beta's daughter had a bright smile on her face. The rest of the Beta family looked less than impressed, as Colton stiffened in anger, and Karen gaped in shock. The rest of the pack members were unsure whether they should laugh or hide.
"I did it," a smooth voice spoke up from behind me. Everyone turned around to see Artemis and Aiden walking hand in hand. I felt a growl rise in my throat but I quickly pushed it down. She wasn't my property, I didn't have a right to be mad, and maybe she was happy with him. If she wasn't happy though, I would do anything and everything to get her out.
Artemis was looking different than she had before. Gone were the leggings and leather jacket. Instead she was wearing a baby blue, long sleeved dress. It had long flowy sleeves and a flowing skirt that reached her knees. Her white blonde hair was loose and curled slightly. She had on what looked like natural makeup. Overall she looked like a classic good girl. Don't get me wrong, she looked stunning, but even though I didn't know her, she didn't look comfortable.
