Forsaken by Dean Murray Read Free Book Online

done in frosted glass and some kind
of breathtaking white stone with silver fittings. The closet was
nearly as big as my room and had three large boxes already sitting in
it.
    Isaac
had trailed along behind me with one hand on the towel to make sure
it stayed put. He pointed at the boxes as I turned back to look at
him.
    "Rachel
sent those. They arrived today. I don't know for sure what's in them,
but knowing her, I expect your wardrobe from Sanctuary makes up at
least some of the contents."
    I
shook my head in amazement. "Are you sure about this, Isaac? I
mean this room is incredible."
    He
shrugged. "It's all Alec and Rachel's money, and Alec seemed more
concerned with getting me here and set up somewhere close to where
you live than what the ultimate price tag might look like. None of
the other three rooms are really any less crazy, and honestly, if
you're comfortable here, then there's less chance I'll have to follow
you around the city just because you're looking to kill some time."
    I
suddenly remembered the downside to a bodyguard. Every time I was
thinking about going somewhere I'd have to balance how much I wanted
to go there against the fact that it would be an imposition to Isaac.
    He
seemed to read my mind and waved my concerns away. "This
is my first, and maybe only, trip to New York. I'm happy to go
wherever you want to go; this just gives you more options
when you really don't feel like going out but need to get
away."
    Given
recent developments with my mom, there was a big chance I'd
need a refuge. I managed a nod of thanks, which earned
me a smile from Isaac, and then he pointed at the boxes again.
    "I'll
go get dressed while you see what goodies Rachel sent you. If you
need anything, I'll be in the study."
    "How
do I find the study?"
    "Adri,
the house isn't that big. Just walk around and you'll find it
eventually. It will give you a chance to explore."
    Isaac
smiled again and then walked away, leaving me alone with Rachel's
boxes. I put my coat and backpack on one of the shelves to my left,
and then I opened up the first box. Isaac had been right; all of the
incredible clothes that Rachel had bought me on our Vegas trip were
packed away, some of them still with tags on them. I'd known she was
buying too much stuff, but I hadn't realized just how much she'd
snuck past me until the first time I'd seen it all together in one
place like this.
    I
really couldn't take it all home; Mom would ask way too many
questions, and it wouldn't all fit in my closet there anyway. I took
a deep breath and started hanging things up in the closet. The stuff
I'd never worn before was easy, but the second box held the stuff
that I'd worn while I'd been living with Alec and Rachel.
    I
knew Rachel would have had it laundered before packing it up and
sending it to me, but in some indefinable way it still smelled like Sanctuary. Even worse, each article of clothing reminded me of
Alec in some way or another. I'd worn the brown hiking boots on our
trip up to the top of the mountain that sheltered the estate. The
paint-speckled tank top had borne witness to the one and only time
Alec had taken me to his studio and tried to teach me how to paint.
    It
was both harder and easier to deal with than I'd expected when I
first opened the box and saw all of 'my' clothes sitting there.
Easier because I didn't pass out or even really have to fend off a
serious panic attack. Harder because it was like I was having to
leave Alec all over again.
    I
was crying before I managed to finish cleaning out the second box,
but it was the good kind of crying. It left me feeling tired and
wrung out, but somehow lighter. I cleaned the remnants of my mascara
off my cheeks and turned to the last box. There was a handwritten
note inside the box, on the top of all the clothes.
    Adri,
    This
is all of the stuff that I was planning on giving you for Christmas.
I expected you to be able to wear it on the skiing trip. I figure you
probably need the cold-weather gear there