Chapter Four

The moment I stepped into the high-rise building, right out of one of the TV series Angie snuck in for me, a bit of my fear and worry slipped away.

My father was brazen and pompous, but I didn't think he would make a show of it here, in the academy where his kind carried on his legacy, albeit to his regret.

I stood in the foyer staring at the sign above a door that read office and letting myself breathe again. I was free. I was here at the Werewolf Academy. My every move wasn't monitored. There were no guards following me around. No family meetings on Sundays that included my father reviewing my whole week, only the things he didn't approve of, of course.

I'd never once received encouragement from him.

Once, he told me I was one of very few shifters he would claim as his own. Closest thing to a warm word I'd ever had from him.

"Are you new here?" A voice that sounded familiar and yet I knew wasn't pulled me from my thoughts and my hesitation in going to the office. The slim redhead was flanked by a blonde and a woman with striking long black hair with silver streaks. Each one had stopped and turned to me.

Something inside me stirred. Oh gods, it couldn't be them already. Sure, I believed in Fate, but this would be uncanny.

I looked around to see if they might be talking to someone else, but nobody was close to me. "I just got here a few minutes ago." I pulled my hair up as the back of my neck heated. Of course, life outside the compound would be different, but at moments, it was entirely overwhelming.

Like when you run into what you think are your three sisters who probably don't even know you're alive.

"I'm Minx. This is Ava and Kiki."

They put their hands forward, and I shook them, again referencing the movies. "I'm Cleo. It's nice to meet you all."

While they were each uniquely beautiful, neither one more than the rest, there was something akin between them and me.

I didn't know the proper way to broach the subject but, as I opened my mouth to do so, Ava began to speak. "Are we…I know this sounds crazy but you already knew who we were, didn't you?"

That was one way to do it. "Yes."

"And you're another sister?" Kiki asked.

"I am. Sorry to barge into your lives like this."

They all laughed. "It's fine. We've all done it. Except Minx. She was here first," Kiki answered. "So, your mom hooked up with our elusive dad and then he ran away? Is that your story too?"

My face must've given me away because the platinum sister of mine began to retract while Minx shot her a mean look. "Kiki! She's been here two seconds."

Ava rolled her eyes. "That's what happened to us. We found out we were sisters through the Shifter Registry."

The entryway began to fill with students as doors opened to classrooms. Of course, I had arrived in the middle of the day, so they were in session. Maybe I should've waited until the next morning.

"Um, yes. Me too. That's how I found out you three were here. Can we talk somewhere else? This is kind of crowded."

The people didn't bother me, per se, but I wasn't used to crowds, and there were ears listening.

"Of course. Let's go into the study hall over there. It's empty right now."

We sidestepped the incoming crowd and went into a room with white walls, wood floors, and a long wooden table and chairs. That was it. A study room it was.

"Are you okay?" Minx asked.

"I am. I'm not used to people yet. Sorry about that."

"What does that mean?" Ava asked after checking her phone. "You haven't been around people?"

"I was raised alone with only guards and my caretaker, of course. Only Angie was allowed to speak to me. And my father, of course. Oh, your father. Our father? This is weird."

"Wait a damned minute," Kiki said. "You know our father?"

All three of their phones beeped, and Ava groaned. "It's our mates. Sorry. I swear, if they don't see us in class, they come unglued."

"You have mates?" I asked. "I was always told mating and fateds and all of that was a story. A myth."

Minx laughed loudly. "Well, we can certainly say that's not true. Each of us has three mates."

"Each of you?" Holy wow.

Kiki put her palms on the table. "I'm sorry to interrupt the mate story but I have to know. You were raised by our father? You know him?"

I nodded. "I was."

"Well? What is he like? Is he coming here? Are we going to get to meet him?"

They were working under some assumptions. Like they would ever want to meet my father. Like if he came here, it would be for some hugs or to shower his daughters with presents. If our father ever came here, it would be to drag me back to the compound and probably lock me up. That was, if he let me live at all after shaming him.

I had shamed him this time alright. All the way up shame mountain, down shame valley, and across shame river.

"I-I…" Try for a coherent thing to say. "I really need to register and get somewhere to get some rest. I've been running for days. Can we discuss this later?"

They all nodded, but when I got up to make my way to the office, I heard Ava said, "Wait, why is she running away from him?"