Shadow's Dangers Read Online Free Page A

despite my ridiculous statement, she didn’t seem to laugh at me. Instead, she seemed more excited than anything else.
    “I’m pleased to meet you,” she said happily, her hand outstretched as an invitation to get to know each other.
    I looked foolishly at her hand, sure she was trying to making fun of me. I analyzed her eyes. There was only a frank curiosity as she regarded me, mixed with extreme kindness. I shook her hand, still confused by her interest in me.
    “Likewise.”
    “What a fool I am!” she said, equally exasperated with herself. “I didn’t even introduce myself. I’m Leighton Wates.”
    I stood motionless, not knowing what to say or do. Uncomfortable and wanting to escape from this conversation, I threw glances around me to locate Hayden. And incidentally, to watch if her other brother was here and avoid him if that were the case.
    “Are you okay?” she asked, following my gaze.
    “What?”
    At this point, she surely saw me as someone completely insane, given my current behavior.
    “Don’t worry, Garreth won’t come.”
    What or who was she talking about?
    “What?”
    Now, she probably added “stupid” to the “crazy” adjective to describe me.
    Well, she had at least the merit of having focused all my attention on her. She smiled, put her hands on my shoulders. Her serenity seemed contagious. Her blue, almost transparent eyes, plunged into mine. I was trapped in their specificity, with no possibility of escape.
    “Garreth, my brother,” she told me gently, still smiling. “He made you, how can I phrase it... ill-at-ease? Stop worrying about him. You don’t risk crossing his path again, today.”
    I was so dazed by her hypnotic look that I couldn’t think straight. She had noticed our exchange? How? How did she know I was afraid of meeting him again?
    “What... are you talking about?”
    Suddenly, there was nothing in my mind. I stared at her, looking for the subject of our conversation. I couldn’t remember what she or I had said. I was beyond confused. Her smile broadened. I felt clueless. Why did she smile that way?
    “It was a pleasure to meet you, Deliah. Oh and don’t worry, I will convey the message to Hayden.”
    I smiled too, literally contaminated by her good humor, although the discomfort caused by my sudden lapse of memory was still present. This girl was the friendliest person I had ever met. Nothing like her brothers. Even if they haven’t done any harm to me, in the end. I had imagined things for a fancy of my mind and an insignificant little look.
    “Thank you,” I told her before she went away, even though I didn’t remember asking her for this favor.
    She gave me a wink and disappeared in a few seconds at the other end of the corridor.
    My mind was less burdened all the way home. I didn’t really know why, but I was happy to have met Leighton. My encounter with her had pushed the memories of my nightmare far into the maelstrom of my concerns. Surprising when I thought I wasn’t able to stop myself from rehashing these pictures all morning. Now, it was as if I was unable to remember them. The images were blurred, as if these dreams escaped me gradually.
    I could have stayed much longer in this peace of mind if I had not heard a dog barking. Surprised, I turned to search for the animal, but saw nothing. I frowned. I walked the long dirt road surrounded by forest on either side, at the end of which was my home and I knew that the people living nearby had no dog. I must have had an auditory hallucination. Shaking my head, I kept walking. A new bark sounded. Again, I saw nothing around me. The sound, however, seemed closer and the bark seemed like that of a big dog that wasn’t in a good mood. Slowly, but surely, fear dawned on me.
    “Is there anybody here?” I asked, having the horrible impression of being in a bad horror movie.
    The barking resumed and I started to walk faster, eager to get back home. There was less than a ten-minute walk to get there. I