Riot Girls: Seven Books With Girls Who Don't Need A Hero

by Sara Roethle, Jill Nojack, Rachel Medhurst, Sarah Dalton, Pauline Creeden, Brad Magnarella, Stella Wilkinson

  ‘This way,’ he gestured with his gun. We were in a hallway. The walls were bright white with pictures of famous Perfects on them. This surprised me in a government building.

  ‘These people are so shallow,’ Purple whispered. We walked side by side as Artie led us. I turned to see a guard following close behind. They were all very handsome. Before Jason, I would’ve flirted with them. An ache settled in my chest at the thought of Jason and his other life. I was only a tiny part of it and I was a secret. The driver hadn’t looked at me once. He probably reacted the same way his son had when he’d first seen me in the club. That seemed so far away now, but in reality it had only been a few months.

  ‘You will now meet with William Davies,’ the guard announced as he stopped in front of a door and opened it. He nodded for us to go through. We did as he said and entered a large dining room. A wooden table with about thirty chairs around it was in the middle. A chandelier hung from the ceiling and paintings of government officials hung on the walls. I’d never seen anything like it. I knew my mouth was hanging open. I’d read books and seen pictures of a few of the luxuries that the Perfects had. We’d all had them at one point. Before someone had decided that people with defects, or what they classed as ugly, were below those who were physically gorgeous.

  ‘Welcome,’ said one of these gorgeous people. He was extremely tall, the same height as Purple but a lot slimmer and less broad. His suit fitted extremely well and he had dark hair with tiny bits of silver running through the side. His skin was light and he had blue eyes. All in all, he radiated power and I had to lick my lips when he came up to me and smiled. His smile was the best thing about him. The corners of his lips formed dimples as they rose into his cheeks. His white teeth were in perfect alignment. My cheeks heated as he took my good hand and kissed it. He didn’t even glance at my stump like most Perfects did. I could feel Purple stiffen next to me. Artie was chuckling again.

  ‘Artie,’ the man greeted, nodding with a smaller smile.

  ‘Will.’

  I looked at Artie and saw that he knew this man.

  Just how involved was Artie with the government?

  Chapter Ten

  ‘SO YOU'RE SAYING that the Perfect government are willing to offer Sandor two witnesses to testify for her?’ Purple growled.

  We were sitting at the table opposite William. He kept smiling at me with a knowing look. Did he really think that I’d be attracted to him? Okay, for a moment I was looking but as soon as he’d started talking I’d gone off him pretty quickly. It wasn’t just about how you looked.

  ‘Yes,’ William said.

  ‘You want us to do it, don’t you?’ I asked. I wasn’t sure what they were up to, but my gut was telling me to refuse.

  William nodded and winked at me. I raised my eyebrows as Purple stifled a laugh by coughing.

  ‘I’m not sure, William, why are you giving Sandor a trial? Usually you would just kill her and be done with it.’ Artie stood up and started to pace the room. Being in such a grand place was uncomfortable for us all.

  ‘Yes, we would, but things are starting to change. You know that Artie. All your work hasn’t been for nothing.’

  I looked between the pair of them. I was feeling more and more like I was in the dark about everything. Purple had a knowing look when our gaze met. He’d always been in charge of our missions. I’d even been clueless then.

  ‘Why us…?’ Purple said as I was about to open my mouth.

  ‘You know her better than anyone,’ Will replied leaning back in his seat. His back was completely straight. I was trying my hardest not to slouch on the uncomfortable wooden chairs.

  ‘Something doesn’t feel right,’ I said quietly. I was watching Will as he looked at me. A flash of something tiny in his gaze made me pause. His half smile returned and I looked away. What had that look been? Fear…?

  ‘There is one condition,’ Will said.

  Artie stopped pacing as stood behind his chair. We’d been waiting for this part.

  ‘Hope and Purple stay here in the compound with Sandor.’

  I couldn’t help the gasp that came out of my mouth. Purple jumped up and growled. His tall frame didn’t intimidate William. He sat completely still with his arms folded on the table.

  ‘No,’ I said, standing and turning to leave.

  ‘Hope, wait…’ Artie said, sitting back down opposite William.

  ‘Are you mad, Artie? I’m not going to be imprisoned. This was just a trick to get us over here. They’re basically arresting us too.’ I’d spun back and now started around the table. ‘You really think we’re that stupid?’

  Purple grabbed me and pulled me away from William. My arm was shaking as a hot flush travelled from my feet to my head.

  ‘Hope, Purple, sit back down,’ Artie ordered. The tone in his voice was something I’d never heard before. We both sunk into our chairs.

  ‘That’s not going to happen, William, and you know it. Why don’t you tell me why we’re really here?’

  William genuinely smiled as he looked at Artie. ‘Never could get anything past you, could I?’

  They both started to laugh and I felt myself start to rise again. What the hell was going on? Were they in this together? Was Artie working for the Perfect government?

  ‘We’re after the rebel,’ Will stated.

  I let out my breath and frowned at Purple. Sandor’s lover hadn’t been caught with her?

  ‘What have we got to do with that?’ I asked.

  ‘I can’t tell you too much, you know that, Artie,’ Will replied, ignoring me now. It seemed that all the flirtation was gone now that he hadn’t got the response he was after. Artie nodded and stood up. We all followed suit.

  ‘You have a choice to make, Will. These Avoidables will not stay here, but they will testify for Sandor,’ Artie said. I hissed and opened my mouth, but Purple pinched my arm. I growled at him, but Artie put his hand up before I could do anymore.

  ‘In the meantime, I will try and find the rebel and bring him to you.’

  I was trying really hard to keep my big gob shut. What the hell was going on? Will started to nod slowly. It seemed he was happy with this deal. Was he really going to give up that quickly?

  ‘I know how good you are,’ he replied, holding out his hand. Artie took it and they shared another laugh. Purple shook his head and smiled too. I knew I looked like an idiot as they all looked over at me.

  ‘Don’t worry, Hope, everything is as it should be,’ William winked at me again and I gasped. Was William…?

  ‘Okay, let’s go,’ Artie said turning and heading towards the door. William shook Purple’s hand and then came to me. As soon as our hands met, my back started to vibrate and my shoulder started to grow.

  ‘Oh crap!’ Purple said, grabbing my hand and trying to pull me. It was too late, my wings burst through my top, and my arm was suddenly there.

  ‘Sir, the chancellor is here to see you all,’ a guard called from the other side of the door. William just stood there staring at me. His eyes were wide and filled with awe.

  ‘I’ve never seen it done quite like that,’ he whispered.

  ‘Sir…?’ The knocking grew louder and we all looked around.

  ‘Put them away, Hope,’ William said, going over to the door, ‘Just one moment please,’ he called.

  ‘I can’t,’ I said looking around for an escape route.

  ‘Yes you can, close your eyes and pull on the muscles of your wings.’

  I opened my mouth to respond but he shook his head. Was it really that simple? I was unsure if he was an angel himself or whether he was just aware of us. It seemed that he was one of us if he knew how to pull our wings in. I closed my eyes and concentrated. It took a moment but eventually I felt the muscles moving. My wings started to fold and retreat into my back. I then looked at my arm and did the same thing. It was such a weird sensation. I had to swallow a couple of times before I was able to look up again.

  ‘Well done,’ Purple
said patting my back.

  William opened the door. There was a short man with very blonde hair waiting on the other side.

  ‘Chancellor, you’ve missed the meeting, they were just leaving.’

  The man looked over at us and cringed. I didn’t hide my own disgust as he walked into the room. This was a genuine Perfect.

  ‘And is everything sorted with these…?’ He gestured towards us. His handsome lip was curled up and I had to laugh. He glared at me as he looked at my shoulder stump.

  ‘Yes, everything is sorted. You may go back to work.’ William’s face was screwed up, but I couldn’t tell if he was doing it for his benefit or because he found the man as repulsive as I did. The chancellor spun on his heels and walked away quickly.

  ‘It’s time you got out of here,’ William said, leading us out of the room.

  Chapter Eleven

  ‘WHAT ARE YOU doing?’ Jason said as he watched me from the stage. We’d brought him out into the open room so he could move a bit.

  ‘I’m practicing,’ I replied, pulling my wings in once again. I’d done it a few times since getting back from the meeting. I was getting the hang of it quickly.

  ‘You didn’t know that William was one of us?’ Jason asked. I walked to him and sat on a chair that I’d pulled up next to his.

  ‘No, in fact, I don’t know enough. It shocked Artie too. I want you to tell me everything.’

  He frowned at me and took my hand.

  ‘Hope, I…’

  ‘Hope, we need to go,’ Purple said, rushing out from the back of the stage. I jumped up automatically. It had been a few weeks since we’d had a job but I knew Purple meant business.

  ‘Wait,’ Jason called as I turned to leave.

  I turned back to him and looked down into his gorgeous face. His hair was sticking up and his face was still pale.

  ‘Hope, there’s something you need to know…’

  ‘There’s no time. The rebel is in the city and we need to act fast.’ Purple grabbed my arm and pulled. I sent an apologetic smile over my shoulder. I tried not to think about what Jason had wanted to tell me. Was it something to do with the women that Artie’s brother had mentioned?

  As we walked outside, I pulled my arm in so no one else could see it. In the Lower Side everyone knew me. If I all of a sudden showed up with two arms they’d freak out.

  ‘I don’t know what you see in him,’ Purple said as he wrapped his arms around me and lifted us into the air. I relaxed and allowed the motion to take us. We flew south, away from the river and to the very border of the Lower Side. What did I see in Jason? I’d spent hardly any time with him. I didn’t know a lot about him. Yet, every time I saw him, or even thought of him, my heart went funny.

  ‘There he is,’ Purple shouted.

  In the distance, the wilderness stretched away from the city. A small car was speeding away across the dirt. There were several red lone mountains dotted between the cities. Rebel and roamer camps were often set up at the base of these mountains.

  ‘Where the hell did he get a car from?’ I shouted.

  Vehicles in Lower Side had been destroyed long ago. Riots had taken place and the Avoidables had been so stupid that they’d torched all the cars we’d had.

  ‘Purple, we can’t really go…’

  ‘Yes, we can,’ he shouted back, ‘Use your wings, Hope, we’ll get there quicker. Just make sure he doesn’t see you. I’ll grab you when we get there.’

  I pushed out my wings and Purple let me go. Flying out here was so freeing. The wilderness was deserted apart from our stupid friend. We were slowly catching up with him. Purple went ahead. He was more experienced at flying and his huge wings took him further than mine did. We started to get nearer the car. It was going really fast. The dirt was billowing out behind it which was good as it gave us some cover. I caught up with Purple and he grabbed me. I pulled my wings in and he swooped us down towards the car.

  ‘I’m going to drop you on the bonnet,’ he called.

  ‘What!?’ I shouted back. He was going to kill me if he did that.

  ‘Okay, the roof then. You can grab on to the roof.’

  ‘Are you mad?’ I screamed. We were getting nearer and I started to panic. I squirmed in his arms and he grunted.

  ‘Stop, Hope, you’ll be fine.’

  Then he dropped me straight on top of the car. I thudded and flew backwards. Swearing in pain I threw my hand out to the side and managed to clamp onto the top of the door. Thank goodness the window was open. My body swung with the effort of trying to hold on with one arm. I was just about to fall off the side when Purple grabbed my legs and swung me back. I pushed out my arm and grabbed the other side of the roof. The car was stopping. The rebel was swearing and breaking hard. I was thrown forward as the car stopped beneath me. I landed on the dirt just in front of the car. Purple had landed and was pulling the rebel out of the car.

  ‘What the…?’ The man spluttered. He was a skinny short guy with a huge nose. He was staring at Purple as he held him up in the air by his t-shirt.

  ‘You okay, Hope?’ my supposed best friend called.

  I wasn’t alright. I slowly began to rise and cried out in pain. Purple was beside me in an instant, the man still in his hand.

  ‘What is it?’

  ‘It’s my arm,’ I replied through clenched teeth. The pain sliced through me and I couldn’t quite work out what was wrong. I managed to sit up and look at my arm. I gasped at the same time as Purple did. It was bent the wrong way at the elbow.

  ‘Oh man, Hope, I’m so sorry, I…’

  The rebel managed to kick Purple in the shin. The dragon half breed spun and threw him. He flew through the air and thudded against his car bonnet, landing on a heap on the floor.

  ‘What is it with you today?’ I asked wincing as I cradled my arm to me. Purple bent down and I saw a flash of anger cross his face. Had I made him angry because I couldn’t do the job properly?

  ‘No, it’s not you, Hope,’ he said, reading my mind, ‘It’s something else. I can’t tell you but…’

  I swallowed and knew he was talking about Jason. This mystery was getting too much. I wasn’t prepared to be left in the dark anymore.

  ‘Tell me, Purple, I know something’s not right and I want to know now. You at least owe me that!’ I said, gesturing at my throbbing arm. He glanced over at our prisoner. He was quiet for a moment and I thought he might refuse to say anything, but when he looked back at me, I knew I wasn’t going to like what he said.

  ‘Jason is engaged.’

  Chapter Twelve

  ‘JASON, WE NEED to talk,’ I said. He was sitting in a chair in Artie’s dressing room. Purple’s father had put a cast on my arm and I was not feeling so good.

  ‘Hope, your arm!?’ Jason sat upright in his chair. ‘What happened? Why didn’t you come to see me when you got back?’

  I lowered myself onto the sofa on the other side of the room and avoided his gaze. Instead, I looked down at my not even dry cast. It was massive and went all the way down my arm, bending at the elbow. I let my dark shoulder length hair fall forward over my face.

  ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’ I whispered, fighting the knot in my throat.

  ‘I tried…’ he said, after what felt like forever.

  ‘No you didn’t,’ I growled. ‘It’s been months since we met.’

  I jumped up and stood in front of him. When I looked into his eyes I could see the reflection of my pain. ‘How dare you be upset?’ I went to try and raise my hand to hit out at him but it wouldn’t move. Stupid cast!

  ‘Hope, listen to me. The angels advised that I did nothing to cause suspicion. Did you not think that I may have had a life before you came and stole my heart?’

  I slumped back onto the sofa. I could feel the muscles in my face screwing up. That was hardly an excuse.

  ‘What else should I know? Do you have kids?’ I could feel heat running up and down my aching arm. I needed to calm down or else I’d end up breaking
something of his.

  ‘No, I don’t have children. It’s to be a marriage of convenience, Hope,’ he sighed and looked away from me whilst I looked closely at him. Why couldn’t he meet my gaze? Did he just say…?

  ‘What do you mean it’s going to be a marriage of convenience?’

  I tried to move away but he reached out and grabbed my waist, pulling me so tight to him that I ended up standing against his knees. God! I wanted to extend my arm and punch his beautiful face. His hand locked around my knees.

  ‘Look at me,’ he whispered, and I couldn’t help but let my gaze meet his. Tears sprung to my eyes when I saw unshed tears sitting in his. ‘This has been arranged for a long time, Hope, it’s all part of the plan.’

  ‘What plan? Do you love her?’

  If he loved her, then I’d let him go willingly. He claimed we were soulmates but if he married another woman then I’d know it wasn’t true.

  ‘No! I’ve never loved anyone until I met you. I asked you to read that book, Hope. I’m assuming you didn’t.’

  I tore my gaze away from him. He was planning on marrying someone he didn’t love, when all the time he was having a relationship with me?

  ‘You know what, Jason, forget us,’ I said, ripping away from his grip and storming out of the room. He yelled out to me, but luckily he couldn’t follow.

  ‘Hope, where are you going…?’ Purple called. He’d been talking to Artie.

  I ignored him and stormed out of the theatre, I needed some air. Pushing my wings out, I felt my top rip. I didn’t think I’d be flying anywhere, but in the end, I flew to our hide out and made up a bed for myself. Purple had managed to go back to the flat after the guards had left it and got our things. We’d stashed them in our mountain hide-out for safety. Digging into my bag, I pulled out the book that Jason had given me. Crawling into my makeshift bed, I opened it. It was a journal. I hadn’t realised. Jason said that it was a history book that contained information about our mission on earth. He’d said that he knew quite a lot about it when I’d first met him. I’d been so caught up in our new love that I’d forgotten all about it. The first lot of handwriting was misshapen but small.