Chapter 35. Reluctant Pawn

Riley POV

I was sitting on my bed, locked in my bedroom by my Mama as I was on time out. I was trying to read one of the few books Mama had gotten me from the library, when I heard her footsteps in the hallway.

They were different today, it sounded like she was heading somewhere quickly. That usually meant she had plans, and her plans usually meant trouble for me if I failed to live up to her expectations.

The lock clicked, and she pushed open my bedroom door without knocking. She never knocked anymore before she entered.

“Get up, Riley. We’re going out.”

I closed the book carefully, marking where I had stopped for the time being with a piece of paper I’d torn from a notebook. “Where are we going?” I asked carefully, as I was a bit confused. School didn’t start till next week for me and it was a weekend.

“To see Alpha Xenois and his son. Remember what I told you about them? About how they’re going to be our new family? How you are going to