Free Beautiful Sins: Leigha Lowery by Jennifer Hampton Page B

me and sighed.
    "Leigha sweet heart… Please, just let this go. You're safe. There's no more danger." He vowed. I shook my head annoyingly and crossed my arms over my shoulders.
    "No. Something isn't right. What were those animals? What are you? I know what I saw; now are you going to tell me or do I have to find out for myself?" I asked angrily.
    "Leigha please…"
    "Leigha! Oh baby, you're finally awake!" My mother shouted as she burst through my bedroom door. She hurried over to me, pulling me into a tight hug. The Prince stood over us.
    "Yes, it's a good thing I got to her when I did. She could have gotten herself into a lot of trouble." The Prince murmured. I scowled at him as my mother continued to squeeze me tightly.
    "Mom, please I'm okay. You can loosen your hold on me. I can't breathe." I complained.
    "Oh." She said, pulling away. I could tell that she was slightly embarrassed by her suddenly rosy cheeks. That embarrassment quickly faded, and I prepared myself for the torrent as her lips began to curve into a frown.
    "Young lady, do you have any idea how much you frightened me? Why would you do something like this?" She scolded. My mother's disappointment was far worse than any other form of punishment.
    I held my head down in shame. I didn't want her angry with me.
    "Mom I'm sorry. I shouldn't have taken off like that. I just really wanted to get out of the house to work on my project. I should have just asked you." I said. She didn't look up at me. I knew, this wasn't over by a long shot…
     
     
     
     
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    THE THANEADDUS CHRONICLES
     
    Thanks to Prince Alexander, I was confined to the house until my ankle was well enough for me to walk on it. He came to visit often, putting the entire neighborhood into a frenzy. One night during dinner, I overheard Randy explaining to my mother that we may have to move. I didn't want to move again.
    What confused me more than anything, was the silence Maria held over the horrific attack in the park a few days ago. It was as if it had never happened.
    "Here's the rough draft for the column. I figured you'd want to read it over before I submitted it to the editor." She murmured, passing me the vanilla folder. We were in the living room, watching The Prince and Randy play and intense game of chess.
    "Can I speak to you for a moment?" I asked, gesturing towards the kitchen. The Prince looked up at me, curious of my behavior.
    "Er… Sure." Maria answered. I could feel him scowling at me as I followed Maria into the kitchen.
    "Maria… What's…" But I didn't get to finish. She had her hands up, waving around furiously to silence me.
    "What?" I muttered. She moved closer towards me. Her voice came out in a whisper as she spoke. I could barely hear her.
    "Not here Leigha, just hold off a little bit longer until we are alone." She murmured.
    She looked up at me with the most pleading eyes, and I knew she was serious. What in the world was going on? Why was everyone behaving as if nothing had happened?
    Maria walked over to the fruit basket and handed me a banana.
    "He's probably listening. Eat something; you'll want to annoy him as less as possible." Maria murmured. I rolled my eyes and tossed the banana roughly onto the table.
    "You know what? I know I haven't gone insane. If no one is going to fill me in on what's going on, I'll just have to find out for myself." I threatened.
    "Ahem." The Prince cleared his throat.
    "Is everything alright?" He asked. I forced myself not to meet his gaze. He had such a power over me; it was so unnatural and it made me feel uncomfortable.
    "No. Maria and I were just discussing the article." I lied. I knew he saw right through me; I wasn't sure how long he had been listening in on our conversation.
    "Leigha dear, why don't you come and join me while I finish off this game with your father? He suggested, holding his hand out to me.
    "Actually, I think I'll just go to my room. It's late and I'd like to get some rest. I'm going to