The BlackBurne Legacy (The Bloodlines Legacy Series Book 1) by Apryl Baker Read Free Book Online Page B

your face. We want everyone to be able to see you.”
    No, we don’t , the panic inside screams.
    I force my hands to unclench from around the chair arms. My hair is my shield. Whenever I needed to hide, down came the ponytail and my hair swung forward to keep prying eyes away. I’ve hidden behind it for years, my own personal security blanket. To take it away is like cutting off an arm. This is going to hurt.
    “Just do it.” I grimace and keep my eyes firmly shut, cringing with each snip of the scissors.
    Change. Change is good. At least that’s what I tell myself as I drag myself kicking and screaming into it.
    Major brownie points to me.
    I’m not sure how long I sit there, listening to the scissors become the death knell to my only hiding mechanism. Nerves eat away at me and I struggle to sit still. What will it look like? What will I look like? How had I let Emma put me in this situation?
    A laugh echoes in my head and I go perfectly still. That wasn’t me. I listen, but nothing. Maybe my stress level is too high and I’m imagining things? I’ve never heard voices before, though. This is new and very, very disturbing. Dad will lock me up for sure if he gets wind of this.
    “There, all done,” Stefan announces, startling me. “Jill is going to do your makeup, and then you can see yourself.”
    Jill is a very pretty girl in her twenties. She smiles, but it’s a bored smile. Her cart rolls over with her and she starts rummaging through colors. I eyeball the massive makeup kit with despair. I have no clue about makeup or even how to apply it. My tortured expression catches her attention.
    “It doesn’t bite.” Laughter bubbles in her voice.
    “It might as well,” I mutter, feeling overwhelmed.
    “Don’t worry.” For the first time since she came in, a real smile flits across her face. “I’ll show you how to put all this on. Every girl needs to know how to enhance her natural beauty.”
    True to her word, for the next hour she explains what everything is, why some things work with my fair skin and why others won’t. She patiently shows me how to apply each and every piece of makeup she has picked out for me, letting me do it until she’s satisfied I have the hang of it. Noxzema cleans my face, and then she sets to work on it herself. The whole time I’m thinking to myself, when did being an adult become so complicated, and why is being a woman even more complicated? Do girls really spend hours on makeup and hair? Seems a little pointless, but if it’s normal, then I’ll learn.
    “I’ve done my worst.” Jill gives me a cheeky grin and turns me to face the mirror.
    Truth time.
    I crack an eye and almost fall out of the chair.
    No, it can’t be me. I stare at my reflection in open disbelief.
    The girl who stares at me is…wow.
    “You like?” Jill asks.
    Emma saves me from answering when she comes over. She must have seen them turn my chair around. “You all done?” She stops and the look of shock on her face is comical. “Alexandria?”
    “Beautiful, yes?” Stefan admires his handiwork.
    “You look so grown up.” The wonder in Emma’s voice is telling. She and Dad refuse to believe I’m twenty years old. The new haircut must have finally made her realize I am all grown up.
    Maybe change isn’t so bad after all.
    No, it’s not , the voice in my head whispers. Be a little daring .
    I blink. It sounds so real, like someone talking to me. I catch the faint smell of musty leaves and fresh dirt. What is wrong with me?
    It’s not real, it’s not real, it’s not real , I chant over and over. It’s not real .
    “Alex, are you all right?”
    I focus on Emma’s worried voice and count to ten. I will not panic, not here. Biting back the fear, I flash Emma my best smile. “I’m fine, Emma, better than fine, really.”
    The worry remains in her eyes, but she forces a smile. “You look beautiful, baby girl.”
    “Thank you.” I look back at the girl in the mirror and see a stranger