Free No Happily Ever After (The Fairytale Diaries #1) by Amanda Gatton Page B

patient and calm, they'd sent her to her room.  So instead of packing, she lay there thinking back on all the moves before.  The day after Christmas would be Aspen's fifteenth birthday.  Something told her that the fact they were leaving on her birthday was not coincidental.  She was old enough to realize once and for all, her parents were lying.  And they were hiding something very serious. 
    She finally began to suspect that their secret was her.
    Her mind kept returning to an incident when she was eight years old.  Her parents never spoke of it, and she suspected that they thought she didn't remember it.  But she did.  And she thought of it often.  Especially that particular Christmas Eve when she was so desperate to finally, once and for all, solve the mystery of her secretive, gypsy life.
    They'd lived in a small town in West Virginia.  They'd been there for several months and the entire Briar family was pretty happy there.  They lived a quiet, solitary life.  Mr. Briar went off to work each day and Aspen stayed with her mom and was home schooled. 
    Aspen recalled it was a glorious summer day.  She and her mom had spent the morning running errands.  When they returned home, Aspen asked her mother if she could go play outside.
    "I have to put away groceries, Aspen.  We'll play outside later," her mother replied.
    Aspen glanced out the kitchen window at the expanse of beautiful blue sky, the tall grass and wildflowers, and the thick of trees on the other side of the yard, dancing in the warm breeze.  The day before she and her mother had strolled in the woods where she'd been given a lesson on wild berries and various plants. The allure of summer called her; she was eager to explore more.  She pouted and turned to stalk out of the kitchen. 
    Moments later, Aspen crept back to the kitchen doorway where she found her mother singing softly to herself and sorting out the groceries.  It was always quite a process as her mother portioned and froze meats and produce.  Aspen watched her for a moment and then turned to sneak soundlessly out the front door.
    She scampered quickly through the yard and into the woods.
    It seemed like a long time passed as Aspen ambled leisurely through the trees.  She picked berries that her mother had taught her were safe to eat and plunked the succulent balls into her mouth.  She took pride in touching the leaves of herbs her mother had taught her about, and carefully avoiding the ones she'd learned were poisonous.  Finally, Aspen emerged into a clearing.
    The sun shone down and washed the field in heavenly golden light.  The grass grew tall and was heavily speckled with a rainbow of fragrant wildflowers.  She closed her eyes for a moment, enjoying the breeze on her face and the song of the birds and insects in the trees.
    Aspen wandered into the center of the clearing where she took a seat on the ground.  She gathered flowers all around herself, and then sat gently weaving them into a crown to wear atop her golden hair.  She entertained herself by singing softly.
    And then she saw the woman appear out of the shadows of the forest and into the clearing.
    At first, the sight of her frightened Aspen.  The woman was unusually tall and rail thin.  She was dressed in a long black gown that hugged her disturbingly emaciated body.  Even though it was a hot summer day, her dress had long sleeves exposing only her bony, claw like hands, and a high collar that covered her up to her chin.  Her face was shockingly pail with dramatically protruding cheek bones.  She had blood red lips and spooky black eyes.  A black hood covered any hair the woman might have.
    Just as Aspen's alarm almost propelled her to her feet, recognition dawned on her.  She had seen this woman before.  Suddenly Aspen recalled many instances of glimpsing the woman.  Watching outside a schoolyard.  Peeking out from behind a supermarket's shelf.  Walking by outside any number of the Briar family's