Secrets Of A Shadow

Prologue

I woke to the sun shining bright through the skylight window in my bedroom. I loved waking up to the view of the blue sky above. I sat up, rubbed the sleep away from my eyes, then glanced at my bedside table where a tall glass of milk and a plate of strawberry oatmeal cookies sat waiting for me. A smile broke out on my face as I took the note sitting next to it. Written in my mother's italic handwriting, the note said:

Had to run sweetheart, see you at dinner.

Mom was an LAPD homicide detective which meant she was always out and about, investigating people's deaths. On most Saturdays when mom didn't have to work on a case, we usually spent the mornings cooking breakfast together and eating in the backyard, enjoying the view of the garden. On the day's that she had to leave for work, mom always made sure she left me breakfast before leaving, it had become our "thing".

I got out of bed and slipped into my pink fluffy slippers. I stepped out of my bedroom with the intention of going to brush my teeth, but the sound of hushed voices coming from the front of the house stopped me in my tracks. My father was a conditioning mechanic and never worked on weekends. I walked down the hallway to see who the early visitor was. The closer I got, I realised the voices were coming from the living room. 

"Kate you can't be here." Dad's deep voice said.

"I'm tired of being the other woman, you have to make your decision." Said a woman's voice, she had a slight accent and she sounded angry.

"Don't you think I know that." Dad snapped. "You can't be here right now."

"Your daughter needs you. Tell your father you need him." The woman said again, but her voice was more soft this time.

I moved away from the wall I had been hiding behind and stepped into the room.

"Dad?" The word came out of my mouth in a whisper and in the form of a question, giving away my confusion.

"Selma." Dad breathed, raking a hand through his dark locks then rushed over to me. "Go to your room pumpkin. I'll be with you in a minute."

"No." The woman objected.

I cocked my head to the side to see her.

Honey colored, straight hair hung over a triangular, angry face. The woman had warm amber skin that complemented her
warm light brown eyes. With an average height and slim body, she stood graciously. There was something welcoming about the woman, despite the anger shown on her face, maybe it was the fact that there was a little girl holding her hand, looking up at her with love in eyes.

"Let her stay. It's time she meets her sister." She said.

Dad turned back around and marched to her then grabbed her by the arm.

My body tensed at my father's aggressiveness. 

"Stop it." He growled down at her, then to me he instructed, "Go to your room Selma."

The woman pulled away, breaking dad's hold on her.

She raised her head defiantly at dad.

Dad looked nervous. "Kate, let's talk about this."

She ignored him and stepped closer to me, with the girl clutching her hand. "Selma this is Melia, your sister."

The girl who looked like she was my age, had a yellow, golden skin tone and long black hair braided into two pigtails. Her eyes were emerald green and her pink lips were pouty. She stood motionless in front of me, observing me with her green eyes like I was observing her.

As I stood there, everything started making sense. Why I haven't seen my parents talk to each other like normal happily married couples did. Why they slept in separate rooms for the past year, why they seemed to hate each other but were still married to each other. Mom had found out that dad was cheating on her with another woman.

Did she know he had a daughter with the woman?

I had a sister.

I couldn't believe it.

I thought I'd never have a sibling, but here I was standing in front of my sister. Someone I could go to swimming lessons with, someone I could play in the garden with, someone I could eat strawberry oatmeal cookies and drink milk with. It was the best news a ten-year-old, who was an only child could ever want to hear.

I wrapped my arms around the girl, squeezing her tight. She let out a yelp, surprised by my display of affection. In any other circumstance I would've been sulking and angry at my father, but in this case, happiness took over my body. I glanced up and saw that Kate had a smile on her face. She seemed happy and I knew that my instinct was right, she was a kind woman.

I pulled back and smiled at Melia. "We're going to be the best of friends."

She responded with a lift of her lips.

***

A/N: So this is the beginning of the book. Hope you enjoyed it and that you're  looking forward to what comes next. There's more to come so stay tuned. Don't forget to vote, comment and share. I'll really appreciate it.

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