Searching (Hidden Truths Book 1)

by Quell T Fox

  At nearly eighteen, Leona Graves thinks she has her life figured out. It’s simple, right? Get through senior year and start college. When a water main breaks at Braunford Prep, students are transferred to surrounding schools, including the one she attends. Even though Leona’s best friend is boy crazy, Leona has never been interested. And it isn't because her brother and three scary uncles would murder them and hide the bodies without a trace - she just finds them boring. Until three boys from Braunford show up and change her mind. Leona thought she knew who she was. Turns out boys and life aren’t simple at all.

  Searching

  Hidden Truths: Book One

  Quell T. Fox

  Copyright © 2021 by Quell T. Fox

  Searching is a MMFM #whychoose PNR novel. This is book one in the Hidden Truths Series and they must be read in order.

  There is adult content in this book and it is not meant for readers under the age of 18.

  This books ends with a HFN.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, at QFOX@quelltfox.com

  Cover Art: IDK Art

  Created with Vellum

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Author’s Note

  Also by Quell T. Fox

  About the Author

  Prologue

  St. Patrick’s Day. It’s always been my favorite Holiday. The only Holiday when it is acceptable to get shit faced. An abundance of alcohol and drunk bitches that want to fuck…

  Who wouldn’t love that?

  The answer: no one.

  The problem with alcohol is it makes you do stupid shit.

  The problem with drunk women who want to fuck is they make you do stupid shit.

  Charlene was no different.

  When a tall blonde walks my way, I don’t ask questions. But when a tall blonde walks my way and drops to her knees, I unzip my fly and pull my cock out.

  After half a bottle of Jameson, who am I to deny someone when they ask for my dick?

  The problem with alcohol is it makes you do stupid shit. Like sleep with a human.

  The stupidest shit I could do.

  Well, almost.

  The sleeping with her part was bad, but it’s the getting her pregnant part that was worse.

  The bitch was smart though. Whether she knew who I was at the time or not, she never came back. Never asked for nothing, not a single cent. But that was the problem. She never came back to me. The dumb bitch had the audacity to brag about getting knocked up by the alpha of a wolf pack.

  That is not something you do and live to tell the tale.

  Charlene, as most women are, was simultaneously smart and dumb. It’s a disaster, a real fucking problem. Smart when it was convenient to her, and dumb when it was inconvenient to me.

  And the only thing we can do with problems, is take care of them.

  ***

  “And when we find her?”

  “You bring her to me.”

  “Bring her here?” James—my beta—asks. If it were anyone else, I’d have their head for questioning me, but James has been correct a time or two when questioning me, so I let it slide. “Farrell, you think that’s a good idea?”

  When I don’t respond, he keeps going.

  “I just mean that, bringing her here may not be the best idea.” He looks around the small area we’re in. We’re the last ones out tonight, by the fire. We’re celebrating the end of the summer. Everyone else in this pack has since passed out and been dragged to their beds. James and I know better than to get that drunk. In fact, I haven’t gotten that drunk in eighteen years.

  “Why don’t you let me handle that, hm?” I get to my feet and take a step closer to him, placing my hand on his shoulder. “I appreciate your discretion with this.”

  “Of course, sir.”

  “Take Elerna with you.” I cock my head to the side. “She could use a little fun.”

  He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. He hates Elerna and he knows this is his punishment for questioning me. See, I said I would let it slide but I only meant I wouldn’t kill him over it. I didn’t mean there would be no repercussions at all.

  Because there must always be a repercussion when someone does something wrong. When someone breaks a rule, they must be punished.

  And I happen to love giving punishments.

  Chapter One

  Leona

  “So, how many hot guys do you think will be heading over from Branford?”

  “Really, Lina? Is that all you’ve thought about?”

  She shrugs a shoulder at me, her grin a mile wide.

  “I mean, it’s been at the top of my list.” She bites her lip and goes back to painting her nails. Bubblegum pink. That’s Lina. All bright colors and bubbly. I’m more of a blacker than black girl myself, but it’s why we get along. Lina is the day to my night. The stars to my sky. The beacon to my ship lost at sea.

  Lina is also my best friend, and my best friend is boy crazy. Don’t get me wrong, I like boys too. I can appreciate their good looks, nice smiles, and firm bodies. The problem is we’re in high school and high school boys just don’t do it for me. They’re awkward and immature and most of them are nothing less than jerks. Not that they can be blamed, exactly. Hormones make them that way.

  It’s not that I’m into older guys, I’m not really into dating at all. And it isn’t because of my brother and three crazy uncles that would kill any guy that looked at me. It really is just how I feel.

  “Can you blame me, girl? The boys at Roseland are lame.” She caps the nail polish and leans back against the wall, blowing on her nails.

  “Damn right they are. All boys are lame, aren’t they, Leona?”

  My eyes dart towards the door, looking up at the (and this is debatable) scariest “uncle” of all. “Yes, Maddox. All boys are lame,” I deadpan, rolling my eyes for only Lina to see but she doesn’t respond. I didn’t hear him come in, but he must have knocked. No one ever comes into my room without knocking. Lina stiffens as he takes a few steps closer to us. Sometimes I think he does it on purpose. He loves how people react in his presence. She has a thing for him… along with the other three men living in this house. Like I said, she’s boy crazy. But she’s never been out of hand, so I ha
ven’t lost all respect for her. She’s an amazing friend and loyal to a fault. Yes, she’s kind of flirty with them, but I can’t blame her. They are good looking guys and everyone knows it. I can comfortably say that about my own family because I’m not blind.

  “Is your friend staying for dinner? We’re ordering pizza.” He gives her a side eyed look but quickly looks back at me. He definitely knows something is up with her, but he’s used to it. All girls look at him like that. Guys, too. My family, they’re all exceptionally good looking and I’m used to the stares. You’d think Lina would be over it by now. We’ve been friends since I moved here and she comes over a few times a week. She’s with them almost as much as she’s with me but she’s still star struck into silence every time they speak to her. I can’t help but laugh at it.

  “Yes, she’s staying for dinner,” I answer when Lina doesn’t respond. This is the last free night we have. School starts in a few days and we intend to spend every spare minute together, since our bestie time will be cut down to almost nothing. Senior year is not easy.

  Maddox nods and leaves the room.

  “Really, Lina?” I shove her playfully. She falls over, lying flat on the floor. She drapes her hand over her face, swooning dramatically. She adds a lustful sigh and all. She sure could give Lenny a run for his money when it comes to dramatics.

  I’m not sure why we hang out on the floor, it’s just our thing. Always has been. We sit crossed legged and across from each other, doing what we need to do.

  “What?” She whisper shouts. “I can’t help it! Your uncle is like, one of the hottest guys on this planet. I need to keep my mouth shut or I’ll say something stupid and then I’ll never be able to show my face here again. If they were anyone else’s uncles, girl…” She sucks in a sharp breath.

  I point my finger down my throat, gesturing to gagging and she laughs.

  “Fine,” she says behind her giggle. “So, the new boys?” She cocks a perfect eyebrow at me.

  “With our luck, they’ll be sending over all the girls.”

  “Nope. I heard from Brenna that they’ve split it up evenly.”

  “Lucky us.”

  Braunford is one of the more high-class schools in the area. Even fancier than ours. It’s about a half hour drive from here. We went there once during freshman year for a field trip. There was a college meet and greet. I don’t know why they like getting kids hyped up for college at such a young age. When I was a freshman not a single part of me was worried about college. I was trying to get over the fact I was in high school and figuring out how to manage it all, but Roseland doesn’t hold back. They push their kids and have had a 93% graduation rate for the last eleven years. That’s the highest in the country.

  Spending the day at Braunford was unforgettable though. The school was beautiful. I couldn’t get over how elegant it looked, with tall archways, coved ceilings, and its overall pristine conditions. The students who attend are lucky.

  Over the summer they had a water pipe burst. Something which wouldn’t normally be such a major issue, but it just so happened the week it burst was when everyone was on vacation. Not a single soul in the school. They only found out about it when the principal returned and at that point it had already been a few days. The city assumed the school was doing routine cleaning before the students returned, so it wasn’t flagged.

  The pipe was located on the third floor and the water leaked down to the lower levels. Because no one was there to catch it, water reached half the school. No one is sure if they will be able to fix that much damage yet. They may have to tear it all down and rebuild. All the kids in the school have been split up and placed at other surrounding schools, my school being one of them.

  Roseland Prep is a great school. I guess it helps that one of my uncles is a teacher there. When I was younger and first started school, I had some trouble. I’d never been to a school before, but he helped me out and made me comfortable. And not by making the teachers go soft on me, he would never do something like that. He spent time working with me one on one, helping me out after school and figuring out how I learned best. He would speak to my teachers to get their opinion, but never once did he expect anyone to give me a free pass. He only wanted to help me get better.

  Moving here was easy. Getting used to my new, antithetical life was the hard part. School, especially. I’d never been around a large group of people before, and that was the most difficult. It’s not something I’ve completely gotten over.

  I didn’t have a good upbringing. My life has only been good since I moved here when I was twelve. It’s been a complete 360. Life changing but in the best possible way.

  I’ve known I had a brother for as long as I can remember. Mother never hid it from me, but I’d never met him until he came to get me. The same day our mom was killed. Him and Maddox came to pick me up; they came to save me.

  I was living in a home that should’ve been labelled as a biohazard. I was basically a house guest to all the roaches and rats that took up residence there.

  I moved in with my brother, three uncles, and aunt—who are in no way my real uncles or aunt, but when I was little it just made sense—the day I found my mother dead. I had no idea what a Circle or a Harem was, so that’s what we all went with. They’ve since added two kids to the mix, and as annoying as they are, I love them to pieces. Milo and Briella add something to my life I didn’t know I needed.

  Their lifestyle is so ordinary to me now. Having all these people under one roof is normal. It’s crazy, but it’s a million times better than what I had. I’d choose this craziness any day over what I had before.

  The dynamic in this house was something that took me some time to get used to. Everything was new to me. I wasn’t used to the space, the cleanliness, or the well-stocked fridge. And I really wasn’t used to the support, love, and affection. To be honest, it’s still overwhelming for me at times. Getting used to the physical things was easier. Having new clothes and a full belly was only something I’d dreamed of, but the comfort of it all came naturally. But the emotions? I’d be lying if I said it was easy. Opening up is a struggle I still deal with.

  But it wasn’t only that. It wasn’t just the large house filled with people and food. My family, they’re all Supernaturals. As far as I know, I’m not, which isn’t out of the norm. You never can tell who in a family will or won’t be. It’s kind of like whether you’re born male or female, the chances are basically the same.

  Some parts of the world are more populated with Supernaturals, some areas despise them, and some embrace it. It’s simply like any other race or culture. It was difficult for me at first, like everything else. I’d never been around anyone with magical powers before. The first time I found out Maddox needed blood to survive I didn’t eat for two days. The thought was a lot for me to stomach. Literally. But then Callan sat with me and explained the process, taking one on one time like he always did with me, and suddenly it made sense. It was okay.

  Sometimes it feels like I wasn’t alive before I came here. Like I was just floating through time. Sleeping, even. But the day Lenny and Maddox came to get me, the day they saved me… that was the day I woke up.

  My brother is Lenny. He’s in a relationship with Maddox, Callan, and Alec, along with Friday – the female link that holds them together. That’s what Supernaturals do; have multiple partners. Something about their powers working better, and a bond that’s been chosen by the universe. A small part of me is a little jealous I don’t have powers, I’ll admit it. As a human, it seems so cool to have something extra special but I’m sure they think the same about human life. They don’t love me any less because of it. It’s an internal struggle. The lingering feeling of not fitting in is constant. The lack of magical powers is just one more thing setting me aside from my family.

  They each have different abilities, which is the part I find most intriguing. Lenny is a warlock, he has all the magical powers any other warlock would have. He just really sucks with potions, so don’
t ask him for one. Maddox is a vampire, self-explanatory. Yes, he needs blood to survive but not in the way you think. Alec is an air elemental, piss him off and you will asphyxiate right where you’re standing. No physical connection needed. And last, but definitely not least, is Callan. He’s a knowledge manipulator. Other than being super, super smart, he has the ability to change someone’s thought process. He can actually make someone believe they are a duck. Trust me, I’ve seen it happen.

  It’s been weird for a few of my friends over the years. I use the term “friends” lightly because the only true friend I have is Lina. There are others I’ve been friendly with, including Eli. Us three were close at the beginning of high school but soon found we had different interests, but we still keep in touch.

  Eli was okay with my family, like Lina. Some other students weren’t. Ignorance is bliss, is what I like to say. I’ve been teased and taunted by a few over being related to “savages,” as they would call them. I always ignored it.

  Lina has stuck by me from the beginning, ever since my very first day of school. We hit it off right away and we’ve pretty much been inseparable since. Thankfully Friday is always on my side and allows me to do things like hang out with her. Not that we do much, but the occasional mall trip and movie is nice. If it were up to the guys, they’d keep me locked in my room until I was on my deathbed.