Entrelacen
by Dani Morales
Copyright © 2013 by Dani Morales All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or
transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Cover Design by Emma Hart Edited by Katie Woodard The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead is coincidental and not intended by the author.
This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy. Piracy is a crime. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Table of Contents
............................................................... 8Dedication
Prologue.................................................................. 9
Chapter 1............................................................... 12
Chapter 2............................................................... 23
Chapter 3............................................................... 36
Chapter 4............................................................... 47
Chapter 5............................................................... 62
Chapter 6............................................................... 71
Chapter 7............................................................... 88
Chapter 8............................................................... 95
Chapter 9..............................................................111
Chapter 10............................................................ 118
Chapter 11............................................................ 128
Chapter 12............................................................ 138 Chapter 13............................................................ 153
Chapter 14............................................................ 163
Chapter 15............................................................ 177
Chapter 16............................................................ 187
Chapter 17............................................................ 212
Chapter 18............................................................ 222
Chapter 19............................................................ 230
Chapter 20........................................................... 240
Chapter 21............................................................ 251
Chapter 22........................................................... 256
Chapter 23........................................................... 262
Chapter 24........................................................... 268
Chapter 25 ........................................................... 276
Chapter 26 ........................................................... 284
Chapter 27 ........................................................... 293 Chapter 28........................................................... 304
Chapter 29........................................................... 322
Chapter 30........................................................... 329
Chapter 31............................................................ 336
Chapter 32........................................................... 343
Chapter 33........................................................... 350
Chapter 34........................................................... 356
Chapter 35........................................................... 364
Chapter 36........................................................... 373
Chapter 37 ........................................................... 384
Chapter 38........................................................... 394
Chapter 39........................................................... 414
Chapter 40........................................................... 425
Chapter 41............................................................ 434
Epilogue............................................................... 441 Acknowledgments................................................. 461
About the Author................................................ 463 Preview............................................................... 464
Dedication
“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” –Walt Disney I dedicate this book to everyone who has ever had that moment when you didn’t think you could possibly go on but somehow found the strength. To the people who said dreaming is for kids and said I would never accomplish my dreams.
Look at me now. To my mother without you none of this would be possible. And to my three boys, this is for you, to show you that dreams can come true. Without the three of you this story would never have been written.
I love you all.
“I laughed too, enjoying life fully for the first time in as long as I could remember. One tragic event had changed everything. Shifting our lives to bring us together and we would be forever changed because of
it.”
-Tiffany King, Forever Changed
Prologue
As I sit behind the counter reading a rather thrilling book about twin guys, a girl, and their love triangle (Yes, it’s one of “those” books) I look up and study my surroundings. This little book shop may not seem like much, but it really feels like home. Stacked on the cherry wood shelves behind me are all the novels that inspired me to work in a bookstore. They’re my personal collection of favorites, the ones I always recommend to customers. Needless to say, I sell a lot of them.
Wait, I’m sorry, let me back up a bit because I’m getting way ahead of myself. My name is April Martinez, and even though I’m only twenty five, I’m certain that I’ve experienced more and had to grow up faster than any “ typical “person my age. It’s been quite the challenge to say the least, but somehow, I managed survive it all. It’s hardly a fairy tale, but it’s my story.
I’m standing in the entrance of the Book store’s “New Age” section. I glance over at the girl, correction-“beautiful girl,” behind the counter who currently has her nose stuck in a book. All of the sudden, it seems like time actually slows down. I don’t know exactly what It’s about her, but I’m suddenly unable to move. What the hell? I mean, it’s not like I’ve never seen a hot girl before. Not to brag or anything because I swear I’m not a player, but I do know how to handle myself around women and for me, this is just. Not. Normal. In fact, it’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever felt. And if it didn’t feel so perfect, I’d be
seriously freaked out right about now.
Whoa, I sound like total psycho. Sorry, just let me try to explain what’s going on here. Because before you can understand my life now, you have to know about the long and rather twisted path that brought me and “hot bookstore girl” together. I’m Logan Mathews. And I’m going to tell you how I managed to overcome my troubled past, and face my fears. It’s how I finally learned to do what I had always believed to be impossible; how to love, and have hope for the future.
Chapter 1
April I was always the shy, smart girl who got taken advantage of,a lot. I
didn’t care because at least people liked me for it. It sounds crazy right, why would anyone do that? Let’s just say that life hasn’t always been easy for me. I also know life isn’t about being easy or hard; it’s about making something of yourself. That’s why at age twelve I decided I wasn’t going to have the life my mother and father had. I wanted more. So I dedicated everything I had to school. Of course, that was only until I realized what a loser my father really was, and then I started helping my mom out. I have the best mom and though we have our differences, no matter what we’re always there for each other. My mom worked her ass off every day, but we barely got by. So when I was finally able to work, that’s what I did. Yeah, that meant I had to grow up early, but I had no complaints because that’s what family does. You take care of each other.
Making friends has never been one of my strong suits, so the few I had were really important to me. I would do anything for them. I’ve always been able to sense people’s intentions, so I know who to stay awayfrom. It’s like the energy they carry around them is tainted and I’m instantly repelled with the idea of being anywhere near them. My mom always said it was because we came from a long line of women who dealt with various forms of magic. She said that one day she would explain to me what it meant to be one of us. I had no idea what she meant, but it calmed me to know there was an explanation for some of the things I felt.
Magic always fascinated me, but it wasn’t the casting of spells that drew my attention. It’s the part of magic my mom was talking about that enamored me. It was basically the same thingwe’re all taught, “Do unto others as you would want done to you.” It was the idea that everything was connected that captured and held my attention.
Little did I know, magic was going to play a big part in my life. I wish it could have warned me what was to come, maybe it did starting with my upcoming birthday. My fifteenth birthday was coming around and it seemed like my life was starting to unravel. Starting with the relationship, or lack of one, with my dad. I think I’ve always known what he did to earn a living, but wanted to live in denial. I mean ignorance is bliss, right? Wrong. Finding out what he actually did through my friends had my friend Lisa and me making a pact that if life got too hard we would take off and leave everything behind. Lisa was always having issues with her siblings. Her parents were never around and if they were it made no difference. She was always a shadow in a room full of light. We were kindred spirits that way. We both sought attention from the people who weren’t able to give us the kind we needed.
I know it was an odd pact for me to make with someone, especially because my mom and I got along so well. Our relationship isn’t like a normal one. My mom is my best friend. We have the type of relationship people envy. So why make the pact, you ask? That’s simple. It all revolves around my brother. He always got all the attention. He was ADHD and took it to the extremes, played the card really well. He was always getting into trouble or fighting. That meant I was left to the side because I took care of myself. I was the good kid who always went to school, never complained, helped out anyway I could, and never spoke up. So I figured if I, well we, ever acted on our pact, I would be taking a stand saying, “Here I’m. Do you see me now?” Stupid and vain maybe, but that’s why I did it. I never actually thought we would go through with it, so what was the harm in it?
On one particular Friday morning, I got ready for school like usual, looking in the mirror and being disappointed with what I saw. I’m really insecure with the way I look. Shocker, right? I love shopping for other people, but not for myself. So back then I hid behind baggy shirts and baggy pants, nothing that showed my shape, or lack of one for that matter. I was comfortable hiding behind layers. That day was no different. I wore baggy blue jeans and a black shirt that was my actual size, large. I have always been endowed in the chest area. On top of that, I wore a black jacket, which I never left home without because I hated my arms. Did I mention I liked school? Yeah, I know I have 'nerd' written all over me, but school always felt safe. Math and literature don’t judge you. It’s the same wherever you go. I could actually solve these problems and figure this stuff out. It’s the one area in my life I felt like I had control over.
I got dropped off on the side of the school. Our Junior High was a massive bricked building with hundreds of windows. Absolutely no one wanted to be there. I walked through the double doors like I did every day and followed the arrows that marked the way to the auditorium. It was a pretty typical auditorium: rows and rows of blue seats with a stage at the end, blue and white curtains hanging with a cavalier emblem in the middle. Lisa was already there with our friend Sandra.
Lisa was the major tomboy in our group. The only reason people could tell she’s a girl was because she wore dark eyeliner that made her dark eyes even darker, and this maroon lip liner that I never understood. Although, if you didn’t see her from the front, you would have thought she was a guy. Sandra is a girl so skinny that she could give skinny girls a complex. She isn't really pretty, but is one of the softest spoken and sweet girls you will ever meet. She’s the type of person that gets prettier as you talk to her, get to know her.
Then there’s me. I’m the girl with the pretty face, hazel eyes that everyone loves, cute nose, nice lips, and a round face. It stops there. I’ve always been told, “If you just lose weight, you could be the prettiest girl, and everyone would be falling all over you.” Then they wonder why we young girls mutilate our bodies by taking drugs or starving ourselves. I mean really, who at fifteen needs to pay attention to what they look like or should for that matter?
I took my normal seat in front of them, thinking how I couldn’t wait to be done with this repetitive life. Then I turned around to join in the conversation.
“Hey guys. What are we up to tonight?” Looking back and forth between the two of them, I wondered what they were talking about since they both got quiet and looked at me with a weird expressions.
“You remember when we made that pact that if things got too hard, how we can take off, no questions asked, and just disappear?” Lisa asked, her voice pained and her eyes filled with unshed tears.
I looked at Lisa and nodded, “We going tonight?”
The whole time I was trying to come up with an excuse to tell my parents so we would be able to get a head start before they completely freaked out. I knew it would kill my mom, but I had to keep my promise to Lisa. Plus, I thought it might be easier to run away from my problems. That entire year I had struggled with trying to find myself and be accepted in high school as well as home. I put up a really good front around everyone other than the two girls in front of me. They knew everything about me: how my dad was a loser and a drug dealer, how I was so insecure with myself that I resorted to cutting myself, how my mom was so busy trying to make a life for us that I felt like it would be wrong to tell her all this because it would seem ungrateful. My friends didn’t judge me. They had their own issues. We didn't want to belittle each other when there were other people doing that. We just accepted each other for who we were, just like a little family. A band of misfits.
“Earth to April, can you hear me?” Sandra said breaking my concentration on the lie I was beginning to fabricate.
“Huh? What’s up?”
“So Lisa thinks tonight will be best, so we can tell your rents that ya’ll are staying at Stephanie’s house, since you guys usually do that anyways. Then ya’ll are going to say you are staying over with me on Saturday. That gives ya’ll two days to get away. Sound good?”
I was totally amazed that they had actually been thinking about this. I knew something major must have been going on at home with Lisa. Her mom was never in the picture, and her dad worked all the time. Usually it was just her and her siblings at home, which meant one of her sisters and boyfriend must have been causing drama. They always treated her badly. Being the baby of the family, they all expected her to cook, clean, and do their laundry. It’s like she took over the mother role.
“Okay, that sounds like a
solid plan. Have either one of you talked to Stephanie yet?”
This was only going to work if she was on board. Stephanie was my best friend, in the sense that we were always together, but if push came to shove its Lisa and Sandra that would really be there for me. Stephanie has always said that she’s my cousin because one of her brothers is related to one of my cousins on my dad’s side of the family. So according to her, we’re related. Whatever. Needless to say, I trusted her, about as far as I could throw her.
Stephanie walked in right as I was asking about her. Now Steph is a lot like me. She has a pretty face and not a very good body, but she has this confidence that I lack. No one realized why I would walk around all the time with a straight face. I just wanted to appear that I wasn't as insecure as I really was. I knew people called me a bitch behind my back because of the hard exterior I put up, but I didn’t care. Ok I did care, but like I said, I put up a really good front. That’s one of the only things I’ve perfected. “Ya'll have that look we get when we’re plotting a scheme. What’s going on?” I turned to look at Stephanie who sat in the same row a few seats away from me, “Before I tell you what’s going on, you have to promise to ask no questions.”
“I Promise. So what is it?”
“Lisa and I are going to be taking off, and we need you to cover for us tonight.”
“Taking off? What do you mean, taking off?” She started to raise her voice.
“You promised no questions, but you know about the pact we made. Wellwe’re cashing in on it tonight. Things are getting too hard, and our rents think we’re staying the night tonight with you. So you can’t call our house no matter what, okay?”
“Okay? Does that mean I won’t see you guys or talk to ya’ll anymore? I’m not down with that. I mean we’re a group. That means we’re supposed to stick together!”
“No. Calm down before you draw unwanted attention to us. We will all still hang out. We won’t stay gone forever. We just...we just have to get a way for a little while. Things will get better and when they do, we’ll come back. We promise, right Lisa?”
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