“The studies of demonic and angelic creatures. The history, the battles, the legends, and so much more. And for you to learn just what you are,” he smiled at me, those dark eyes lighting up.
I was lost for words as I just stared at him in shock.
“I’m a schizophrenic,” I finally mumbled when he didn’t laugh or show any indication that he was joking.
This was crazy.
I was crazy.
He laughed now, a sharp yet angelic sound that made me relax.
“Oh, sweet child, you are most certainly not,” he smiled broadly at me, his eyes glittering with amusement.
“I see monsters,” I shot back. How on earth would he know if I was or wasn’t crazy? He didn’t know me.
“Ah, now, you do see something. But they aren’t monsters. And there is nothing wrong with you in any way,” Dezikiel said as he clasped his hands on the desk. “What you see, are hellhounds.”
I snorted at this. Hellhounds? My four monsters didn’t look like dogs in the slightest.
“This is all just something going on in my head,” I muttered, shaking my head in disbelief.
“No, Lily, I assure you, it’s not. Those hellhounds have been protecting you ever since your mother died. Jorkan keeps you inside the safety of your home whenever he knows there are others looking for you. Your home, thanks to your hellhounds, is warded to mask you from discovery. They’ve watched over you for the last few years,” Dezikiel said, watching me carefully as I processed his words.
“Jack,” I murmured. Was he calling Jack… Jorkan?
“Right, you gave them all names, but they have their true names, too,” Dezikiel chuckled.
“I’m so confused… you’re saying… I’m not crazy?” I murmured, completely shocked at the idea that I was not utterly insane.
“Yes, and I know you’re probably thinking all of this is just a part of the illness you have, but it’s not.”
“How would you prove it?” I scoffed. It could all just be in my head. Or a weird dream. Although it didn’t feel like a dream.
“Give me your hand,” Dezikiel requested as he held his out, the palm facing upwards.
I stared hard at him, trying to read him. I’d learned to read people to some extent over the years, but all I was seeing was his honesty and gentleness.
Just who was this man? And why did I get the strange feeling that I could trust him? He was a complete stranger for crying out loud.
But I did. The way he spoke, the way his smile touched his eyes, everything about him seemed real.
I clenched my jaw as I reached out. Might as well see what he was hoping to achieve by this.
I took his hand, and he gripped mine hard as his eyes began to glow with a golden-white light.
I gasped as a wave of calm washed over me, and a sheet of sheer white took over my vision.
I stood in a white expanse, devoid of anything except Dezikiel standing before me in his navy suit.
“Do you understand now?” he asked as he clasped his hands together and cocked his head expectantly at me.
I did. Somehow, with all of this light and warmth that had enveloped me, all the beliefs I had of me being mentally sick and crazy had been swept away.
What he’d told me was true.
The whole thing about angelic and demonic creatures, my hellhounds, this Academy.
Somewhere deep inside myself, I wanted to question it all, question everything that was happening, but the calm encasing me made that desire fade away.
“Don’t fight it. I know it’s in your nature, but everything that has happened to you, with your monsters, it’s all been real. With the pawn shop owner, Magnus’ hand was forced, and he had to manifest more in order to take action. You took over from there, instincts kicking in. I’m impressed that they awakened before midnight tonight.”
“My mons… hellhounds, they all have names?” I asked, correcting my term for them.
“Yes, and it’s about time you finally meet them. They were ordered to only watch over you after your mother’s death, you weren’t supposed to be able to see them, as many others can’t. But you are not just any person, Lily. You, yourself, are very special indeed,” Dezikiel gave me a thin-lipped smile. “Now, how about we go back and get you to your room. I’m sure you must be hungry as well, food is being prepared.”
I didn’t even get a chance to nod before I was sucked out of the white expanse and back into my body, still clutching his hand on the table.
I wasn’t crazy.
And demonic creatures, angelic creatures, they were real.
I knew it was true. It was like someone had pulled the wool from my eyes, breaking that mirage of crazy I believed in for so long, and revealing the truth about the world.
My monsters, they were hellhounds.
“Come, let me show you to your room,” Dezikiel flashed his stunning white teeth as he released my hand and stood up gracefully.
I didn’t say a word as I rose and followed after him.
I was still processing it all. I was never crazy. I was guarded by hellhounds.
“Why were they guarding me?” I asked as I followed along after him, my bare feet silent on the carpet in the hall we’d gone down. “You said others were looking for me, and Jorkan would keep me indoors, what do you mean by that?”
I did have so many questions, but the realization that I wasn’t crazy had left me feeling a little happy.
Guess that was a good birthday present.
“You carry special bloodlines from your father’s side, whom I believe you never knew,” he sighed.
“Yes, my mother said he was a one-night-stand, but he found her when she gave birth to me before he left her again, never to come back,” I spat. He was no father, just a sperm donor.
“Well, he carries royal bloodlines, hence why you needed protection when your mother died. When he found her while she was giving birth to you, he masked the pair of you. But when your mother died, that protection magic was broken, and the hellhounds found you instead. Tell me, what happened the day your mother died?” Dezikiel asked softly, his footsteps inaudible. You would’ve thought those black leather shoes would make some kind of sound.
I’d never told anyone about my mother’s death, and yet, for some bizarre reason, I felt like I could trust him.
He wasn’t human, I knew that. He was something so much more, and he meant me no harm. I’d felt it all in that white expanse. I felt the purity and honesty, and the safety.
This man, he was someone I could trust. I wanted to know why, but I also had a feeling I’d find out soon enough.
“I was in my room, listening to music, Avril Lavigne ‘Skater Boy’. I remember that so well for some reason,” I murmured. “I heard her shouting over my music, so I pulled my headphones out and went to my door…”
I drew in a shaky breath as the scene flooded into my mind, and I relayed it to him.
‘Mom?’ I called out as I yanked my door open.
The sound of things crashing in the kitchen made me flinch, and I leaped into gear, rushing down the hall to the open kitchen and dining area.
Mom was on her knees before a man in the kitchen, who was holding her head with one hand, like he was trying to crush her skull.
Plates and other kitchen items were strewn across the floor, and a photo-frame with us in it lay smashed just before me.
I just stared at the man, frozen in place as terror overwhelmed me.
He was staring at me, his eyes filled with the deepest darkness I’d ever seen. No irises, no pupil, no whites, just black.
And he was grinning maniacally.
“Ah, there she is,” he chuckled, the sound echoing around the room.
Just his voice made me start to tremble as my mouth dried up.
And then a faint, sickly green began to seep into his eyes, creating an eerie iris with no pupil.
“You’ve hid her from us for so long, but he can’t hide her from us, not even with your help,” the m
an hissed, looking like he was going to come after me.
I fell to my knees as my mother’s scream pierced the air, a sound that made me cover my ears and close my eyes out of sheer terror.
The wail increased to an insanely high pitch, and my ears rang as I curled into a ball, squeezing my eyes shut as hard as I could.
I vaguely heard the sound of glass shattering, and the backs of my eyelids lit up, like someone had unleashed a million powerful torches in our living room.
I dare not look out of fear I’d go blind, and I didn’t move.
I wasn’t sure how much time had passed, or how long ago my mother’s scream had ended.
My ears still rang as I slowly opened my eyes and sat up.
The windows were blown out, the sliding door in the living room, even the oven door. All the photos had exploded, the glass littering the floor.
But none of that mattered.
Because my eyes were frozen on one thing.
My mother’s body.
I gritted my teeth as I shook my head in an attempt to banish away the memory.
“What became of the man?” Dezikiel asked, not shocked in the slightest by my retelling.
“He was gone,” I mumbled, blinking at the blurriness in my eyes. I wasn’t going to cry, the past was the past.
And yet, I also knew that what I’d seen that day was not something made from my mind.
That man, he’d been there. I knew that now.
“And your hellhounds appeared?” Dezikiel continued.
“Yes. They came before the police did. Someone else must have called them, because I was still sitting with my mother, crying. The hellhounds appeared, they just stood in the room with me. I felt… safer, with them there,” I admitted softly.
“And did they say what your mother’s cause of death was?” he asked.
“Brain aneurysm. They couldn’t explain the shattering of glass,” I murmured.
Dezikiel nodded as he came to a standstill before a wooden door.
“Lily, you must never tell another person how your mother died, you understand? Her death is something no one must know about,” he said, his tone low as he turned to me with a fierce look.
“Why?” I gulped.
“Just trust me, please. You must keep it a secret. Now, this will be your room from now,” he said, the strange look in his eye disappearing as he swung the door open.
I sucked in a breath at the lavish room. There was an open door off to the right which revealed my own private bathroom, and then there was a dresser with a mirror, a reading nook looking out onto the extravagant gardens.
The huge king bed was luxurious, with a gold and white wooden frame.
There was even a walk-in closet beside the bathroom, and a bookcase and desk, along with a wall mounted TV that lined up with the foot of the bed.
It was huge.
“This is my room?” I squeaked.
“Yes. I’ve taken the courtesy of having all your belongings moved here already,” he said, indicating at the large suitcase at the end of my bed and a few small boxes.
“Who got my stuff? I haven’t been here that long,” I asked, completely baffled.
“Your hellhounds assisted,” Dezikiel gave me an amused smile.
Right. My hellhounds.
“Now, why don’t you get dressed and do whatever you need. I know this is a lot for you to process. I’ll send someone to collect you in about half an hour. You’re safe here, Lily. I promise you that,” Dezikiel said, those dark eyes unwavering.
I just nodded as he strode out of the room, so graceful and quiet.
He’d mentioned angelic creatures.
Was he…?
I sighed as he closed the door, and I took the few steps forward so I could collapse on the bed.
God, it was so comfy. I’d never lain on anything so lavish and soft. This definitely outdid my crappy little single bed in my shitty apartment.
I stared up at the high cream ceiling, frowning as thoughts swirled through my mind.
For so long, I’d believed I was crazy. And now I was told I was something else. I rolled my head to eye the letter in my hand, and I quickly unfolded it to reread it.
‘An Academy for demonic creatures who retain their souls.’
Wait…
What the hell did that mean I was?
Five
I practically moaned at the water pressure in the shower, the jet of warm water hitting my skin and washing away some of my worries.
I’d not had a damn nice shower like this in years. My shitty apartment shower was pathetic.
Speaking of, I needed to figure out what I was doing. If I stayed here, I needed to get rid of my rental. Which meant skipping out on my six month lease.
Ugh.
But did I want to stay?
Well, knowing now that I wasn’t crazy, and that there was more to this world than I thought, maybe I needed to.
I couldn’t just walk away knowing what I now knew, could I?
I closed my eyes as I gave my hair a much needed wash too.
At least I was out of the fast food service industry.
But this Academy, did it cost? How could I afford it?
So many questions were rising up in my mind, and I finished up my shower rather quickly, unable to enjoy it like I’d wanted to.
I’d found my toiletries in my suitcase, but the new toothbrush and toothpaste in my bathroom looked like a much better quality, so I tossed mine in the bin under the sink and brushed my teeth.
Once I was presentable, I headed back to my suitcase, eyeing the boxes stacked at the end of my bed.
My hellhounds had helped gather up my stuff.
I still couldn’t quite believe my monsters were real.
But touching stuff? They’d never really done that before.
I knelt down, opening the first box and smirking. I pulled out the Pringles tin and checked inside it. All my cash was still in there, untouched.
I set it to the side, checking the contents of the box a little more.
A photo-frame of my mother and I, along with a jewelry box she’d gotten me. I inadvertently touched the silver pentagram necklace I wore that she’d given me for my fourteenth birthday.
I’d joked she was trying to turn me into a satanist, but she’d said it was not an inverted one, so it actually meant protection. The red and black opal encrusted into the center of it was not cheap, but I’d never considered pawning the gift from my mother. I never took it off.
I still remembered her words, that it was mainly a gift from her, but it was also a reminder that I was never alone.
I sighed as I investigated the other boxes. Mostly the things from my bookshelf, a few books and keepsakes, my phone, my stuffed koala I’d gotten when I was younger named ‘Blinky Bill’. How original for me.
Hell, there was even the last of my chocolate bar in there.
I snorted at this.
The other box contained my boots, my leather jacket, and my emerald green dress I’d picked up cheaply at a second-hand store.
All my most valuable belongings, nothing missed.
I smiled at that.
Jorkan. Dezikiel had called one of my… hellhounds that. So they had other names. And Magnus.
I glanced around the room and frowned. I wasn’t used to not seeing at least one of them hanging around. And it bothered me. Where were they?
A knock on the door made me stand up and narrow my eyes.
“It’s open,” I called out. Who had Dezikiel sent to collect me for breakfast?
The door swung open and a rather tall, lean man stood in my doorway, giving me a lopsided smile that made my breath catch.
Damn, he looked mighty good. With that strong jawline, straight nose, dark, arched brows and piercing black eyes. His dark brown, nearly black hair was slicked back in a stylish manner, and that light sprinkling of stubble looked hot as all hell. I was practically swooning at the sheer sight of this stranger.
“Lily,
breakfast is ready,” he said, his voice low and velvety smooth. Crap. He was devilish, and his presence was making me giddy.
He rolled up the sleeves of his navy long-sleeved tee, and I quivered. Men looked so good like that. And his arms were muscled and lean, along with the rest of him I’d imagine.
“You done staring?” he smirked, raising an eyebrow at me.
Fuck.
I had been staring. And not just because he was hot as fuck, but because I felt like I knew him already.
“Do I know you?” I asked as I headed towards him, trying to figure out where I knew him from.
“Kind of,” he smiled, revealing his dazzling white teeth. His canines were rather pointed and longer than most people, but it only added to his attractiveness in my opinion.
I mentally slapped myself for drooling over him.
Now was not the time. I had a million questions that needed answering now that my initial shock had worn off. And that meant finding Dezikiel.
“Are you coming?” the man cocked his head at me. Hell, he couldn’t have been older than me.
“Yes, what’s your name?” I asked as I strode over, brushing past him as he held the door open for me. I drew in his unique scent. A little musky, and a little… burnt. It reminded me of camping with a fire-pit, but ten times better. I had gone on a few camping trips with my mom, which would surprise most people. A woman going camping with her young daughter with no man was always looked at as unique.
He closed the door and stepped up beside me to lead the way.
He towered over me, but not enough to make me lose interest in him. And he wasn’t lanky either. He worked out, clearly, and it benefited him.
He probably wasn’t single either, not looking that good.
“People call me Jack,” he chuckled, and my heart skipped a beat as I came to an abrupt halt.
“What?” I muttered, turning to stare up at him.
“But my real name is Jorkan, you can keep calling me Jack though,” he smirked knowingly at me.
My eyes just widened as my mouth fell open, and I knew I looked stupid, like a poor little goldfish.
But it couldn’t be possible.
“My Jack?” I blurted, then mentally facepalmed.
“Well, I didn’t realize you’d laid claim on me, but yes, your Jack I s’pose,” he chuckled, cocking his head at me.
Wicked Souls: A Limited Edition Reverse Harem Romance Collection Page 83