Page 31 of Alpha Marked

Her mom tossed her the duffle bag, pulled a gun from the safe, and handed it to her.

"Stay here. Lock yourself in your room. There's food in the pantry. I'll have Strider come for you tomorrow to take you to the gallery and then to the airport."

"You're not taking me?" River didn't like how little her voice sounded.

"If they will be watching anyone, it will be me. I snuck out and got here by shifting in the woods and keeping to the back roads. But once I return, there's no telling where they are or who might be watching me."

They stood awkwardly before her mom reached out and tugged on the end of the River's remaining curls.

"You can do this. You're my daughter, after all."

River nodded as her throat tightened. She gripped the duffle bag harder to keep from reaching for her mom.

"Believe it or not, I do love you, River."

River nodded as tears flooded her eyes.

"We'll get through this. I promise. I won't let anything happen to you."

Strider arrivedto pick her up at three thirty the next day. He produced a bag and a dress on a hanger.

"I brought you a few things I thought you might want to use for your big night. I don't know if they are helpful or not. They're Bianca's, so I figured they might be useful."

River smiled at him. "Thanks, Strider."

"And here." He held out Bianca's bright red prom dress. "It's all I found that was fancy."

"This is perfect," River lied.

He nodded. "I'll watch T.V. while I wait."

"Okay." She closed the door awkwardly. She loved Strider; he was a wonderful guy, but he just… wasn't her dad.

River tossed the prom dress onto her bed and dumped out everything in the bag.

She thumbed through the various makeup items, hair accessories, and nail polishes- as if she had time to paint her nails.

She scrutinized the red dress and picked out a matching red rose clip, mascara, and lipstick. Guess red was her color for the evening.

It didn't lookbad after River removed the poufy sleeves and mermaid tail from the red dress. The sweetheart neckline made her boobs appear bigger, which was a plus, and the skintight dress showed off her svelte figure and slender arms.

She pinned her hair to the side and clipped the red rose behind her ear. A sweep of mascara and the bright lipstick made her ocean-blue eyes pop.

She inspected herself and realized it might be the last time she saw her old bedroom for a long time.

She went to the windowsill and wiggled the rotted wood board at the bottom. It popped off, revealing a small space in the wall. She stuck her arm to the bottom and retrieved a small tin box. She sat it on her lap, running her fingers over the vintage scene whose paint had chipped off years before.

A light knock on her door pulled her from her thoughts, and she shoved the tin box into the duffle bag with all her other stuff and went to the door.

She pulled it open, and Strider took her in.

"Wow," he said. "I like it."

"Thanks."

He took the bag, put his arm around her shoulders, and kissed her head.

"Come on, Kid, let's get you to the party and off to safety."

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