Beckoned (The Brazil Werewolf Series) Read Online Free Page B

apologetically, “Sometimes, he is rude though he hasn’t been raised that way.”
    “It’s okay, Sophia,” I said, glancing back at Andre before looking back into her eyes. She smiled and patted my shoulder.
    “No, it’s not,” she said and then, shrugged, “But it will be.”
    Sophia turned to my mother and smiled, “I’m glad to have you both back but you should speak to your daughter alone ,” she said with a pointed look and then, looked toward Andre, “And I will speak to my son.”
    My mother nodded as she shifted nervously, “I will, Sophia.”
    Sophia patted my mother’s cheek gently and then, walked toward Andre with a determination that made me jealous. How could she face her son’s steely gaze without cowering down?
    “Aurora,” My mother said, causing me to turn to look at her. The look on her face was tortured, “We need to talk.”
    Suddenly, my fear of Andre didn‘t seem so bad. The secrets trapped within my mother’s mind terrified me more.
    *********

    Tears had already begun to brim in my mother’s eyes before she had even sat down. A lump formed in my throat as I watched her, warily. I had never seen my mother cry as much as she had in the last couple of days and those tears only frightened me worse about the secrets that she was keeping.
    She looked at me tortured as she finally sat across from me at the little table in the dining area of our home. She took a deep breath, clasping her hands in front of her on the table top as she did and looked into my eyes.
    “Do you believe I love you?” She asked almost desperately.
    I smiled at such a ridiculous question, “Of course, Momma,” I said, reaching forward and taking her hand. I hoped the action would comfort her but in that moment, I realized nothing would. She was too tense…too frightened and anything that I did would go unnoticed. I kept my smile in place as I continued, “Nothing you tell me will convince me you don’t.”
    She looked at me doubtful and shook her head. The tears that she had held back fell down her pale cheeks, “You shouldn’t promise anything yet.”
    I rolled my eyes and then, met her gaze,“Momma, what is this about?” I asked, realizing why she was so afraid. I narrowed my eyes as I studied her, “Is it about the man who tried to attack us last night.”
    My mother nodded her head in one jerky motion and then, closed her eyes before looking at me pained, “He wasn’t trying to attack us, Aurora,” she said, as a tear escaped her eye and rolled down her cheek. She removed her hand from mine to wipe it away as she whispered, “He was trying to take you from me.”
    I blinked surprised. My heart beat wildly as I realized that the girl that Sophia and my mother had been talking about was definitely me. Still, nothing she had said explained why he wanted to take me from her. I frowned as my previous suspicion rose in my mind. It seemed to be the only explanation that made sense. My heart dropped but I still had to know if it was true, “But…why would he want me?”
    My mother closed her eyes again releasing two more tears to roll down her cheeks and then, took a couple of deep breaths before opening them and looking at me with heartbreak clearly written in her eyes. She swallowed hard before she spoke in a quivering voice.
    “Because he’s your father,” she said, trembling. Something like anger entered her voice as she looked into my eyes, “Because he wants you to be part of his family and not mine.”
    I had suspected the man may be my father but hearing it still caused me to suck in my breath. She had lied to me. She had told me that he had died. I bit my lip, knowing there had been a reason…a very bad reason to have kept him from me. Still, I felt shame race through me because I wanted to know about him and for some reason, it felt like a betrayal to my mother. Still, I had to ask, “Who is he?”
    She stared at me for a moment while tears fell down her cheeks. Hurt crossed her face