Shadowed Instincts Read Free

Melanie. Just explain.”
    Melanie sighed loudly. “Okay. Jeremy is Ace.”
    Elaine’s eyebrows raised high. “Ace? As in that black beast
that rescued you…twice?”
    “He’s not a beast, but yes.”
    “How long have you known? Since the beginning?”
    “No. He told me after we got together, a few weeks ago.”
    “Wait a minute!” Elaine exclaimed. She narrowed her eyes at
Melanie. “Did you know the night I found him in your closet?”
    Melanie felt her face heat up. She nodded her head and kept
her eyes glued to her plate.
    “Melanie!”
    “Elaine,” her father interjected, “let it go. We have bigger
issues here.”
    Melanie looked up at Darren, unwanted gratitude blooming in
her chest. He gave her a wink and took a bite of eggs. Melanie tried to hide
her smile, but wasn’t entirely successful.
    “Okay. Okay. I’ll let it go, for now, but I’ve got your
number young lady.”
    “Thanks, Mom,” Melanie said, grateful she was dropping it.
“Anyway, he told me after he showed up in the yard as Ace a couple of times. I
didn’t believe him, of course. I thought it was some huge joke he cooked up
with his friends to humiliate me. I turned to leave, then changed my mind. When
I turned back, Ace was sitting there.”
    Darren and Elaine looked at each other and smiled. “That’s
pretty much the exact story of how your father told me.” After a brief pause,
she continued, “Is that why you broke up with him?”
     “Of course not! I love him, no matter what!”
    “Then why?” Elaine asked, ignoring the declaration of love.
    “Um, well, it was to protect him.”
    “From what?”
    “Well, I told you how Mr. Hughes was harassing me and I was
too scared to tell anyone.” At her mom’s nod, she continued, “I may have left
out a few minor details.”
    “I don’t like the sound of this. What didn’t you tell me?”
    “Okay. So, Mr. Hughes threatened to hurt Jeremy. He said he
would break his arms if he saw Jeremy touch me. I panicked. I broke things off
to protect him, but I told him it was because I couldn’t handle the whole dog
thing. That’s why I got so mad when Sissy came at me, telling me that he never
loved me and that she would get him back.”
    “And you got suspended for attacking her.”
    “I didn’t intend to do it. I guess it was a symptom of my
impending change. But I have to admit, that whole show I put on with the
principal was to make sure I got suspended. I couldn’t be there anymore,
knowing that my stalker was Mr. Hughes. I would have had to serve detention in
his classroom and I couldn’t even bear the thought.” Under her breath, she
added “Besides, I needed time to come up with a plan.”
    “You should have told me. We could have called the police.”
    “There was no proof. It would be my word against his. He
would have been released and things would have gotten even worse for me. Don’t
you understand?”
    “Yes. I get it.” Melanie could see the anger brimming in her
mom’s eyes. She wasn’t sure if it was directed toward herself or Mr. Hughes and
before she could ask, Elaine continued, “But, what’s this about a plan?”
    “Oh, did I say that out loud?” She grimaced. “Um, well, that
whole party was a set up.”
    “What?”
    “Jeremy and I set it all up. We made sure Mr. Hughes knew I
would be there and that Jeremy wouldn’t. We made sure Sissy showed up to drive
me out into the parking lot. Jeremy was there as Ace. He found Mr. Hughes’
hiding spot and showed me the way. I called the police and got Mr. Hughes to
admit everything he’d done. Then Ace incapacitated him until the cops showed
up.”
    “Melanie! How could you? Anything could have gone wrong! He
could have kidnapped you, or worse.”
    Melanie’s gaze landed on to Darren as he growled softly. He
looked furious. Unsure whether or not his anger was directed her, Melanie
shifted her attention back to Elaine.
    “Mom, please understand. I had to end it. I was going crazy.
I had this