Spring

by Jessica Florence

  “What the fuck!” I cursed and squirmed.

  People watched the incident, so I knew I couldn’t unleash my powers upon this fool. I had to pretend to be a normal human or expose my powers to everyone. I kicked and punched the kidnapper and was thrown to the harsh ground. People yelled and my driver ran to me.

  “Help!” I screamed and flailed frantically. Had I not drank so hard at the after party my actions to get away would have been more clear. I knew very well how to take care of myself. Famous singer Hazel Kennedy by day, and Hero Society fighter by night.

  Only I couldn’t let anyone know that, or my life would be over.

  Chapter Two

  Hazel

  “Congratulations, Hazel, on your big win!” The front desk woman of Blue Wave Records waved to me as I squinted at her bronze name tag.

  “Thanks, Cari. I’m here for the meeting with Kelly and Joe.” My confident smile hid how shitty I felt. The aches and the migraine were one of the many reasons why I hated drinking alcohol. Tastes like shit, and yeah, I forgot about a certain someone for a little bit. But then I feel like shit afterwards. However, on the outside I tried to not look like a troll today. I also didn’t usually wear makeup since my platform was about embracing yourself as you are, including bags under your eyes from a party night, and wild hair wrapped in a beautiful red scarf. Yoga pants and tank tops were fashionable, right? My manager Shayla walked in the door shortly after I did and looked me over from flip flops to the tip of my scarf.

  “You should be glad I love you,” she stated with a smirk, then walked toward the glass doors with Cari chasing after her.

  Shayla didn’t take shit from anyone. She either liked you or she didn’t, and you knew it. She liked me for me and wanted to be on my team from the beginning.

  I followed behind them slowly, wanting to avoid any shouting that may or may not occur once Shayla reached the meeting room. Soreness jarred my senses. I had soaked in an Epsom salt bath, but it didn’t help much. I needed to be back in my garden where I had the perfect blend to help ease the ache.

  “There she is! Our beautiful Hazel! Didn’t I tell you she’d win?” Joe bragged and walked over to hug me. Despite being a short fellow, he never once rested his head against my breasts when he embraced me. I liked that he’d always been respectful to the women he worked with instead of using his position of power over those under him to be creepy.

  “We won,” I reminded him, since the album was a vast group effort.

  “Yes, we did. I’ll never forget how you are such a kind spirit. You’ve been with us since you were seventeen and have been such a blessing ever since.” He hugged me one more time before sitting at the long wooden table next to Kelly. I smiled, grateful for a wonderful team. I knew many artists who had been taken advantage of or stuck in awful contracts by greedy corporations. Somehow, I’d managed to get lucky in that department, and I never let myself forget that fact.

  “So, first round of business. We heard about last night. That must have been frightful. How are you feeling?” Kelly pushed her highlighted blond hair back and stared at me from across the table.

  “I’m OK.” I avoided the details of a bruised hip and a hangover.

  “We’re glad you’re all right. We’re very worried about you and your safety. So we are—"

  “Which we’ll come back to after we talk about what’s next. You’ve got a busy schedule coming up,” Joe abruptly cut Kelly off which earned him a punishing glare.

  “As you know, I’ve already started writing and playing around in the studio. I’m heading back to my Seahill home for a few weeks to rest before jumping into the soundtrack songs for that Hero Society movie.” Internally I smiled. I would write and sing songs for a movie about the society I was secretly a member of. Some people were in awe or feared the Hero Society so having a secret identity to fight with was a necessity.

  “Oh yes, we are looking forward to that. Maybe we can plan a short tour with the studio to promote the movie and your titles on the soundtrack.” Joe beamed, then launched into discussion with Shayla about making the plans.

  The Hero Society had come out about two years ago and had been saving lives ever since. While I didn’t struggle with my powers like many did, I was relieved when they told the world how people like me existed. The ancient Greek gods and goddesses of myth had been real, but the gods killed off their demigod children, which angered the humans of the time. Humans stopped believing in them. However, the gods and goddesses loved humankind, so once they disappeared without the faith of humans, they transferred their powers into the genes of humans. Until a human host turned sixteen, the host looked and acted normal. However, on the host’s sixteenth birthday, the power arose if it thought the host was fit to be a hero. If the host didn’t use the powers, the host would go crazy . . . literally.

  After the day in the woods with my old foster family, I never rejected my powers. I left and never looked back. I became emancipated, took care of myself, provided for myself, and hit it big on social media with a song I’d written about heartbreak. Blue Waves wanted me after hearing the song, and I knew they were the right fit. Shayla saw my story on TV and knew she wanted to represent me. I hadn’t even agreed to hiring her when she walked uninvited and unannounced into my negotiation discussions with Kelly and Joe. Taking care of my career was her personal mission, and she hadn’t let me down yet.

  “What do you think, Hazel?” Kelly asked.

  Crap! I’d been so caught up in my thoughts about the Hero Society, I hadn’t been listening. “Sorry, what are you asking me about?” Heat blossomed on my cheeks, I hated saying those words.

  Thankfully, no one cared that I zoned out. Hell, they probably expected it after my night. However, I liked to hold myself to higher standards.

  “We were talking about seeing if you could get a cameo in the movie. It would only help the buzz for both the soundtrack and movie. I don’t see why they wouldn’t go for it.”

  Everyone turned toward me as the excitement buzzed around the room. They waited for my thoughts. I’d been approached about getting into the movie business before but it just didn’t vibe with me most of the time. However, this movie was based off of the Hero Society, and I’d be happy to play a small role.

  “It sounds like a good idea. I know Shayla can make it happen.”

  My agent nodded confidently.

  “Now for the final piece of business before you are free to go. We are the label and Shayla agrees that you need more protection for your safety.”

  My mouth opened to object but Joe held up his hand.

  “It’s non-negotiable. We care about you, Hazel, not just because you are our highest-earning artist but because you are family. You’ve told us no to a bodyguard before, and we’ve relented. But not after yesterday. You will be getting only one, though I will say he is enough.” Joe slightly trembled, which made me curious about my new bodyguard.

  “He’s here, isn’t he?” I don’t know why I even asked. Of course he was here if he’d be with me all the time. I chewed on my bottom lip, thinking about how this would affect my nightly adventures of saving people.

  “Yes, and where you go, he goes.” Joe reached over to the speaker in the middle of the table and pressed a button to ask Cari to bring the bodyguard in.

  “How long do I have to have him for?” I wanted to stomp my foot in frustration.

  “Hopefully as long as he can last. If he fails at his job, another will take his place.” Joe mustered up a smile to ease the process. I didn’t want a bodyguard, I really could handle myself, but they didn’t know that. Sometimes living a double life sucked.

  The door opened, and I refused to look at my new guardian.

  “Welcome to Blue Waves, Mr. Vollan.”

  Everyone gaped at the newcomer while the air inside the room seemed to thicken, as if the man had brought in the humid air from outside with him.

  “It’s Maddox, sir.”

  I didn’t recognize the voice, and t
he intrigue on everyone’s face had me spinning slowly in my chair to see my new protector.

  Muscles bulged underneath the green shirt of a tall, well-built man. The strained material covered portions of his tanned skin, which appeared to be from days in the sun rather than a tanning bed. His messy blond hair slightly covered familiar eyes. He oozed dominance, and restraint, like a freaking Norse god. Held captive by his gray gaze, his lips tilted up into a half smile I’d know anywhere.

  My body froze, and my mouth gaped at the truth that stood before. I didn’t recognize this man because when I last saw him, he’d been a boy. Not this hardened, god of the male species before me, staring me down. He knew who I was and suddenly I sensed this was not a coincidence. My fingers lifted to my lips, shock etching my face.

  “Maddie?” I whispered, and my heart clenched saying his name aloud.

  Chapter Three

  Hazel

  “He who must not be named” trailed behind me like someone would pop out of thin air and grab me. The shock of seeing him in that conference room quickly evolved into anger.

  No one said a damn word about me recognizing him. Even said giant mountain man just nodded curtly and said my name—not Hazel but Ms. Kennedy—like a professional or something. I wanted to scream, to tell the label to fuck off, that this couldn’t happen but I knew it wasn’t a cause I’d win. I didn’t want to leave the label and that’s the only threat they wouldn’t want but would also call my bluff on. Now I had to deal with my past towering over me with a snowy mountain scent assaulting my senses.

  We didn’t talk, and I tried so hard not to look at him on the plane, then in the front seat of the SUV to my house. Seemed like not much had changed since his teenage years. He was still quiet, observant, and attractive.

  Scratch that! Not attractive. He was too . . . unyielding. He hadn’t even given me that half smile since our meeting. All he did was stay near me. I’d taken the time in the plane to look over the folder of his information given to me by Joe. He didn’t want me feeling like a complete stranger stood guard for me, and at first my stomach churned at the thought of the details I might find beneath the paper barrier.

  The mysteries of what he did after leaving would be exposed. Where did he go after he left me? Was he married? Did he wind up in jail? The truth was not like the nightmares I’d imagined in my youth, but not all unexpected, either. He managed to keep to himself until he was old enough and went into the Air Force, where he jumped out of helicopters and participated in elite secret missions that redacted on paper. He never married and had no attachments, not even a dog. He always tested negative on his drug tests and never went to prison.

  “Almost home, Hazel,” my driver announced and the vine-covered iron gates appeared, covered in purple-and-white blooms from the spring temperatures of Seahill. My sanctuary on two hundred acres contained everything nature could offer. Home. My home.

  The SUV stayed silent as we rolled down the long gravel driveaway to my three-bedroom home with a wraparound porch and abundant windows. My greenhouse and gardens would need some tending, but travel fatigue settled in as my comfy bed drew closer.

  “Welcome home!”

  I said my thanks and jumped out of the car. I breathed in the mixture of scents, which calmed and eased my mind. Lavender, gardenia, and peach flowers mingled with the cool breeze coming from the large mountain in the distance. I never wanted to live in the city. Nature was a part of me, but the drive to the metropolitan area was only about thirty-five minutes away.

  I grabbed my purse and walked to the little wooden gate leading to my house, which was painted in bright colors and abstract flowers greeted me. My hippie home . . . the one place I could be my true self. I had no staff to hide my powers from. I cooked and cleaned when I stayed here and protected my property with my gifts.

  Boots crunched behind me and I was quickly reminded that I would not be alone in my sanctuary anymore. My driver left, while my bodyguard carried my bags within his strong arms. Should have known he’d come here and take over everything, puff his chest and pound on it like an alpha male. I didn’t have time for men like that, and he wouldn’t get the satisfaction of my attitude.

  I opened the door and took a look around at the space for signs of anything unusual, an unfortunate habit of living as a homeless girl and in the foster system where people stole your stuff or wanted to hurt you.

  “Let me look around,” his gruff voice demanded from behind me. I whirled on him as my mouth opened to tell him who the boss was in this situation but he already started walking.

  I could have chased him and hammered out this thing between us, but instead I strolled to the kitchen and made myself a cup of tea. The past few grueling weeks had finally caught up with me. I plopped down in my comfy window seat and stared at my growing garden while the herbs seeped.

  “All clear.”

  I didn’t acknowledge his words. I knew nobody was here before he’d announced it.

  “Why are you here?” I’d thought about our reunion a lot in that first year without him. I didn’t know how it would happen. Maybe he’d come into the diner I worked at to pay for the room I rented my senior year, he’d order a cup of coffee, and tell me how sorry he was that he left me. Or maybe he’d come see one of my shows, with a sign that said he was back for good. Part of me hated that my heart seemed at war with itself and the rest of my body with his arrival.

  “To protect you.”

  My head shifted to his leaning form against the wood cabinets. He didn’t blend well in my home . . . my hippie to his ex-military bodyguard vibe. A meat and potato type of guy living with the vegetarian.

  “Why are you really here, Maddie?” His unreadable face gave me no inclination as to whether he was telling the truth or not.

  “To protect you,” he repeated, and I took a sip of my tea. There was so much tension between us.

  There were two questions I’d been holding onto since the day he left and I swallowed them down with my lemongrass and chamomile tea. He didn’t deserve my questions, and I didn’t care about his answers right now. He’d left me unprotected before; he’d do it again. At least this time I wasn’t defenseless and could hold my own.

  “You can sleep in one of the bedrooms until we figure out this arrangement. I’m going to bed.”

  There wasn’t anything in his contract that I’d been pressured into signing about his accommodations. He would be near at all times, not in the same room or in my space. I set my tea down and thought about how quickly it would take for a contractor to build a little one-bedroom suite somewhere on the property . . . the very edge of the property.

  “Still hardheaded.” He chuckled as I set my tea in the sink and stomped past him.

  “I’ve just learned when to pick my battles. I’m not the same girl.” My anger quieted into exhaustion. I went to my bedroom and shut the door. My clothes came off one by one as I walked. My comforter was soft as I snuggled in and closed my eyes. I trusted my safety in this house with him near, but that didn’t mean I’d let my guard down.

  Tomorrow. Tomorrow, I’d deal with him and muster up the strength to resist burying him under my purple rose bush.

  Chapter Four

  Maddox

  Brown eyes stared at me while his face turned blue from lack of oxygen. Gasping, he gripped his dry throat like he could claw air inside of him. My hands shook, and I tried to stop it but didn’t know how. Tears poured down my cheeks when nothing happened. The more I attempted to focus, the more he thrashed. Strong wind whirled around and whisked me away from the dying boy. I screamed for help, but nobody heard me over the sounds of the heavy gusts.

  “Fuck.” I sat up from the lavender-scented bed in a panic. My hands ran through the tousled hair on my head harshly as if the pain would release the agonizing nightmare that plagued me nearly every night. I’d hoped being near her again would soothe the torment raging inside me like she used to, but truthfully I had no right to such a balm. Hazel hated me, and I saw
the heartache in her eyes when she recognized me. I’d made a choice, the only one I could make, and it broke us both.

  Still, I was here now. Despite the attack on her life that pissed me off to hell, it gave me the “in” I’d been searching for. She was one of the world’s top singers, and a hard person to get close to. I’d wanted to return for years but knew she wouldn’t see me. Her best friend and protector had left her without a word. I betrayed her, and I wouldn’t apologize for it. I’d done what I had to do. So when I’d seen the news of her attack, I walked into her label and told them what they were going to do. I cared for her; they cared for her. Then with a few minor displays of my power that could suffocate them where they sat, I was hired. I didn’t need the money, it wasn’t about that. I wanted a second chance with my Hazel, to protect her. I’d fucked up any chance of our old pact to be together the way I always wished for, but I’d be damned if I’d let someone hurt her now.

  There’s been talk among the black market of a collector who wants special people . . . people with powers. I’d dug deep and found such rumors had merit. The thought of Hazel coming into her powers alone without me tortured my mind every damn day. I’d hoped she didn’t have any powers, but that was another reason I was here—to protect her from the Collector.

  I inhaled and released a sigh. I’d been to war, killed people, and done many things I’m not proud of. But being here in this house that had Hazel weaved into every part of it rattled me. I lived on control, and everything about her home screamed freedom and chaos, from the bright colors to the plant life covering her home like a jungle. She’d loved nature when we were kids, and it appeared her love hadn’t changed.

  Many things had changed, though. She was not the same girl. She had become a strong woman, who didn’t take shit from anyone and gave everything she could to help people in need. She championed justice in her music and fought in real life for those justices. I knew she was destined for greatness. Even apart I never stopped believing in her.