What is Hidden Read Online Free Page B

here, and if he didn’t take me on, I would have to find someone else who could. He was better after that, almost as if nothing was ever wrong, but I still caught him staring out to sea from time to time.
    I quickly got ready for bed and let my mind wander as I tried to fall asleep. It had been a good day, and I fell into bed with a satisfied smile on my lips. All my days with Aiden tended to be good ones.
    If I’d known what was coming next, I might have relished that feeling of contentment just a bit more.



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FOUR
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    T hat night, I woke to the sound of Hachi whining from the small yard behind our store. He normally slept through the night, so it was unusual for him to make any noise. Then he started outright barking. And I smelled smoke.
    I threw off my covers and pulled on my boots under my nightdress. I scrambled to move as quickly as I could in my newly awakened grogginess, still clumsy with sleep. I reached for my mask blindly, strapped it on, and rolled out of bed.
    While calling for my father to see if he was simply working through the night and I was in a panic over nothing, I noticed light streaming in from under the door at the bottom of the stairs that led to the workroom of the shop. He didn’t respond as I pushed the door open, and my jaw dropped at what I saw.
    The entire workroom was in chaos: materials strewn every which way, beads and ribbons littering the floor, shards of glass glittering between the floorboards. But above it all was the overbearing heat of the flames that were beginning to engulf everything.
    “Father!” I called again, frantic that I didn’t know where he was. I coughed as the thick smoke began to fill my lungs, and I ran upstairs to see if I could find him there.
    I threw open the door to his room only to find it in a similar condition to the workroom—things thrown everywhere, and no one in sight.
    I stood there, dumbfounded. What was I supposed to do next? The crackling timbers of the house groaned, and I knew the fire was starting to spread. Shaking my head, I gathered my senses about me and realized I needed to get out of the house and fast. My father was probably already out. That was why I couldn’t find him. At least, that was what I hoped.
    Hachi’s cries grew louder and more desperate as I scrambled down the stairs and turned down the hall for the back exit, unable to look at the workroom. Luck kept the way free and I escaped into the backyard, the heat of the flames chasing me out of my home.
    Hachi lunged at me, pulling at his leash and whining pitifully. I untied him from his little shed and tried to calm him down, petting him and attempting to speak in an even voice.
    I turned to look back at my home. It looked so innocent from outside. The windows were dully lit with what looked like candlelight, and the cool night air dulled the heat of the flames. If I didn’t know any better, I’d have thought it was just a bad dream that chased me out here.
    As I was staring at the windows and deciding what I should do next, movement caught my eye—a shadow against the firelight. Papa! He was still in there! I must have missed him in my panic.
    “Hachi, go get someone—anyone!” I pleaded with him, hoping that whoever found him roaming the streets would bring him back to the store and render some kind of help. Hachi looked up at me with his big dark eyes, licked my hand, and refused to leave me. “Please, I’m going back in! I have to find Papa!”
    Gulping a deep breath, I reentered the groaning building. The movement I’d seen came from the farthest window, so that’s where I went.
    Thick smoke was accumulating, and I wagered that the outside of the building was starting to look less innocent. In the back of my mind, I hoped someone would look in our direction and realize we needed help, but it was the middle of the night. No one would be awake, unless they were drunk and haunting the streets, which wouldn’t help me at all.
    In my haste to leave the house, the