The Year of the Horse (Book two of the Almair Series) (Completed)

Chapter 17 (Edited)

I didn't remember much of the part or the weekend, and I really didn't remember anything about the party except my dress being long-sleeved, long skirt and the palest blue that we could find.

"Is she alright?" someone asked that finally woke me up from my slumber.

I opened my eyes and looked at the clock. It was five in the morning. I groaned but got out of bed.

"She should be," someone whispered. There was a loud bang of someone taking out a chair, and I took that opportunity to open the door and shut it at the next loud bang of a chair.

"Do you want some coffee?" a third voice asked. It was my mom.

"That would be good, Beth," a fourth person asked. It was Lobo.

"What about you, Tupac?"

"Yes, please," Tupac said.

I padded toward the stairs silently. I knew which part of the stairs and floor that was creaky, so I didn't step on it. I didn't want anyone to know that I was listening into their conversation. My heart ached a little, but it was still beating.

"Martha seemed a bit daze during the party. Do you know why?"

"No. She wouldn't tell us." It was my dad.

"Do you know why?"

He sighed. "No. Helen says that she should tell us what had happened, but she had been dazed this whole weekend. Someone she trusted maybe turned their backs on her. That is all that I can think of."

"Did that happen with Mia and James?" the voice said. It, I concluded, was a he.

"She was sad about the lost of their friendship, but it was nothing like this," Mom said. There was a scraping sound, indicating that she had pulled a chair from underneath the table.

"She needs to not act like a child." Lobo roared, banging his fist on the table.

"Shhh, you'll wake her," Mom said. "She has turned into a light sleeper the past year."

I pushed open the door upon hearing that and walked in, silently. I folded my arms across my chest and looked at them, a frown on my face. "She is already awake," I said.

They jumped up startled and turned to look at me. They saw that I was in shorts and a tank top, which I had worn to go to bed.

"Martha, are you alright?" Mom asked, coming towards me. She reached me and placed the back of her hand on my forehead, probably checking my temperature.

"I'm fine, Mom," I said, not looking at her but instead at Lobo. "I am not acting like a child, Lobo. I just was surprised and shocked at what had happened the weekend."

Mom took me by the hand and lead me to the table. She pointed to a seat, even though I was still looking at Lobo. "Sit," she said, before she sat down next to my father.

I obliged by her wishes and sat down, even though I glared at Lobo. He had always called me a child, even though there were some things that I had to do more than him. Ava and Mal... let's just say after they stopped talking to me, I felt truly alone. I did have Jason, but those two knew what had happened to me just as James and Mia did.

"What happened?" the man asked. Concern filled his voice, letting me know that he cared about me, even though I didn't know why. He raised an eyebrow, waiting for me to speak.

I studied him, staying silent. He had the "wolves" appearance about him. That meant that he had black hair, brown eyes, and tan skin. Most of the halfon wolf people looked like this, even though there might have been some that didn't know what had happened in the back yard. He had an air of authority about him, indicating that he was someone that I had met. I knew who it was, because of the authority he had shown.