Preda's Voice (Guardians of Vaka Book 1) by Carolyn Gross Read Free Book Online

to her? Phillip Torrance hadn’t loved her. She was certain of that, but he had been afraid of her. These men weren’t.
    Preda shook her head and put down the pot Mr. Scott had saved for her. She wiped the tears from her face with the back of her hand and went to change and brush her teeth. Fiver noticed it was time for bed and quickly found the litter box left for him in the corner of the room while she went into the bathroom.
    Preda looked in the mirror and almost didn’t recognize her exhausted face, except for the striking bright green eyes staring back at her. Her eyes had always set her apart as strange. As if not speaking to the other children at school wasn’t enough, she also had to have freakishly green eyes. She closed them as she finished brushing her teeth and refused to look at them again. Mr. Fox’s voice resonated in her head. “You’re not even human.” Preda slammed the door to the bathroom in frustration as she left.
    As she crawled into bed, Fiver jumped up next to her. He was purring and kneading the pillow beneath her long black hair. She heard the muffled sound of the two men still talking to each other in the living room. At first she rolled over and tried to shut out their voices, but curiosity got the better of her.
    Preda crept slowly and silently out of the room and down the hall. Their voices got louder as she made her way toward the light coming from the living room. She stopped with her back against the wall at the end of the hallway, and she slid down until she was sitting with her knees pulled up.
    “I can’t believe you told her that way,” Mr. Scott whispered harshly. “She could have used a friend. Not someone hitting her in the face with reality.”
    “We’re not her friends, Al.”
    That’s Foxy, Preda thought. Then she smiled at her new nickname for him. So Mr. Scott’s name is Al. It must be short for Alfred or something.
    “I know.” Mr. Scott sighed. “I just think she needs us to be her supporters, Tamron. What if she’s not strong enough to do this? What if that bastard Phillip messed her up?”
    Mr. Fox was about to answer when there was a vibrating buzz that must have been a cell phone. Suddenly he was whispering harshly. “Hello?” Then there was a pause. “I can’t believe you would call this number after I specifically asked you not to. What? Yes. Of course we have her. Yes. She’s safe.” He sighed then. “You do not have permission to rendezvous there. I will send someone for you shortly. Await your new orders. Do not call again unless it’s an emergency.”
    After a moment of silence, Mr. Scott sounded amused. “Was that who I think it was?”
    Foxy answered in a clipped tone. “I don’t know who else you would think it could be.”
    Mr. Scott chuckled then. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to argue anymore. Let’s just agree on what we’re going to tell her before leaving.”
    Preda leaned forward on the carpet so she could hear better, and her pajamas gave off a jolt of static electricity that made her jump and hit her hand on the wall sharply. Both men stopped talking, and she froze. Suddenly Foxy rounded the corner. He had moved so quickly and silently, she hadn’t even heard him get up. “How did you—” Preda started to ask.
    He extended his hand and interrupted her. “You are going to bed, and so are we. Now,” he said sternly.
    Preda tentatively put her hand in his, and he lifted her as if she was no bigger than a toddler. After she walked back to her room and made to shut the door, she saw all the lights go off behind her. Clearly they were done talking for the night. Preda closed the door and realized there was a working lock on the doorknob. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been able to lock herself in a room. With a sense of satisfaction, she clicked the lock shut and scrambled into bed.
    Preda tried to stay awake and process everything she had learned that day into a logical story, but she was unable to keep her