I don’t care what anyone else thought, Sara and Reed were saints.
“Well,” Reed said and grabbed another paper. “I’ve heard a little about them over the years, even before the war. But I doubt you find anything too exciting. Just a bunch of dorks in coats with nothing better to do.”
He didn’t meet my eyes when he said it, and I tilted my head, catching Sara’s glance away. They knew I felt their lies, so they rarely kept things from me. It was something I’d been able to do for years, but it wasn’t reliable and didn’t work with everyone. When it did work, I didn’t always know what the lie was, but if someone wasn’t being completely honest I got a slight zap from it.
“What are you not saying?” I pulled the papers back and started putting them back in my folder.
“Nothing,” Sara said and handed me a plate of pancakes and bacon, I smiled but she didn’t. “I don’t understand why Thomas would have you guys researching them.”
“Don’t let Levi,” Reed started but I cut him off.
“Yeah, I know. Sebastian already gave Misty the talk.”
They changed the subject quickly, asking about prom and other nonsense I wasn’t interested in. We ate breakfast and all headed out for the day. I liked having meals with them, sitting down and talking like normal people. When I was a kid I never thought I’d have a family. After my biological mom tried to kill me, I’d ran away and lived on the streets until the war started. Andi’s the one who found me half dead on the side of the road and took me to a safe house where I was healed. Even then I didn’t expect much from them, but after Andi and Sebastian came back and got me, my entire life changed. They gave me something I’d never dreamed possible- a family to love me and my best friend, Misty.
When I’d think back to the years before the war, I wondered how I was able to survive. I’d not told anyone much about my past, but the day they found me on that road, I hadn’t ate in almost a month. It was amazing I’d been alive at all, not only from the lack of food, but from all the times my mother had tried killing me. I think the worst was when she’d tried to drown me, I remembered keeping my eyes open so I could watch her face from under the water. She was so calm about it, like seeing a child dying under her hands didn’t faze her at all. It was the day I realized she had no love for me, and I had none left for her. It’d been the last time I’d seen her.
“You’re evil, Max.” She didn’t cry or seem sad when she held me down. Her words were muffled by the water I was under, but I could still hear them. “Your devil father tricked me, and I was stupid enough to think he cared,” she said and pushed my down farther. “I shouldn’t have let you be born in the first place.”
It wasn’t the first time she’d said those things to me, but it would be the last. She kept me under long enough to wear herself out, but I was still alive. She fell back from the tub and yelled. Saying the reason I wouldn’t die was because I was a demon. I stood from the water and hugged myself to warm up. I was shaking and my body was stiff, but I forced my legs to move. I didn’t speak to her as I grabbed the towel and wrapped it around my shoulders. I glanced at her only once before walking out of the door and never looking back.
The days after I ran away were hard and scary, but I refused to return to the woman who hated me for being born. She was broken and fragile, hateful and afraid, and I was done with her. There had been times I thought about her and wondered what happened after I left, but I couldn’t bring myself to find out. She had probably overdosed at some point, or had been killed during the war. I wasn’t sure if it was healthy or normal to not have any feelings about it either way, but in my mind, she’d given up on me long before I gave up on her.
And I was lucky enough to find other parents- a mother who loved me even though I wasn’t her own, and a father who never turned his back on me. They were all the family I needed.
Chapter four
Misty
“We need to talk to you about something,” Sebastian said when I sat down at the breakfast bar.
“Whatever it is, I didn’t do it.”
“Ha ha, Misty,” Andi said and slid onto the stool next to me. She pushed an apple and cup of juice toward me. “Deny all you want, but we both know you’re always guilty in one way or another.” She bumped my shoulder and I nearly choked on the bite I’d taken. I smiled around it and glanced at her from the side of my eye. She was wearing her normal clothes, but I caught the outline of something over her shoulders. I leaned back and she followed, watching my eyes and widening her own.
“Why do you have your swords?” I asked after I swallowed.
“Just training,” she said and turned away, meeting Sebastian’s stare across the island.
“Anyway.” He cleared his throat and snapped his fingers at his side. “We need to take a short trip, and wanted to know if you felt comfortable enough staying home alone since Margarette won’t be back for a few more weeks.”
I nodded since I’d taken another bite.
“Ezra can stay with Uncle Eddie and Aunt Beth.”
I took a sip and sat my cup down, gulping the orange juice loudly. I gave Andi the stink eye before turning back to Sebastian. She knew I hated orange juice but she thought it hid the vitamins she’d sneak in. It didn’t.
“Why can’t he stay here? I’m old enough to watch him.”
They looked at each other, and Andi tilted her head. I rolled my eyes and finished my apple while they had a silent conversation between them.
“Alright, but if it’s too much you can take him to their house, or if you get nervous out here you could both stay there with them. I know they’d be more than happy to have you.”
I loved Uncle Eddie. He was by far the coolest person I knew, and that was saying a lot. Most of the adults I knew were pretty amazing. Although Uncle Eddie was the principal at school, he’d never seemed like one to me. And Aunt Beth was the most interesting person I’d ever met. She wasn’t technically human, or so I’d heard, but she looked like one. She was a Luminary, which was pretty much like everyone else if you asked me, but she had some powers. And really light eyes that freaked a lot of people out, but I thought they were beautiful.
“I think we’ll be okay.”
“We won’t be going for another week or so, just wanted to let you know,” Andi said and moved around the kitchen. She leaned her back against the sink and smirked. “Have you talked to Max about prom?”
I sighed dramatically and dropped my head. I didn’t want to ask Max about it, but I was pretty sure I was going to have to. Andi kept telling me I was an independent young woman and if I wanted something I needed to speak up. But I wanted Max to ask me, I wanted him to want to go with me without me pushing it.
“No,” I said and hopped off my stool. “I’m giving him the chance to ask.”
At least I hoped I was. A part of me was afraid he wasn’t going to. A year ago it wouldn’t have been an issue. We had gone to all our school dances together in the past, but recently things had been changing. He was acting different toward me and I wasn’t sure if it was because his feelings were changing into something more, or he was tired of being around me all the time. I hated it. I didn’t want our friendship to change but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think about having more. I’d never looked at another guy the way I did Max, and I didn’t think I ever would. But if I wasn’t what he wanted, I didn’t want to lose my best friend.
“You could always stay home,” Sebastian said and smiled.
“Or you could go with someone else,” Andi said and raised an eyebrow at him, then turned back to me and smirked. “Find someone really hot and make him jealous.”
I snorted and Sebastian grunted.
“Terrible parenting, Panda.” I loved it when he called her that. It was the nickname he’d been using since they were kids and it made me smile every time I heard it. Their story was unlike any I’d heard before. The fact they loved each other before they knew what it meant. When they were little they made a pack and shared th
eir blood, which bonded them in some weird way. It was why they were able to speak to each other in their minds, or at least that’s what everyone thought. I think they were able to do it because they were soul mates, but most people don’t believe in such things.
“If he doesn’t ask soon then I’ll talk to him about it. And if he doesn’t want to go then I’ll probably just go with Harvey and Levi.”
Sebastian smiled wider and said he liked that idea the most. For years he’d been telling me I didn’t need boys to give me attention. He always told me how beautiful I was and that I needed to be careful with my heart because some guys would take advantage of it. He made sure I knew how to protect myself against them physically but said it was up to me to protect my heart. Of course, I didn’t have to worry about guys in school, not with my family around every corner. Between my parents, grandparents, Thomas, and Max... there wasn’t much opportunity for a guy to get too close. And none of them ever tried.
Most girls my age would hate having Sebastian for a father, but I soaked it up. I knew how lucky I was to have him, to have both of them. My life could have ended up much different, and it hadn’t been for them adopting me, it would have been awful. When he got overprotective, it didn’t make me want to rebel, it made me feel loved.
“Well whatever you decide is fine,” Andi said and moved back over to the bar. She pulled out an envelope from her back pocket and held it up. “Pick out whatever dress you want, Misty. Find the one that makes you feel like a princess.”
“Thanks, mom.” She smiled and wrapped her arms around me. I’d called her mom for few years, not always, but it came out every once in awhile. It wasn’t something I’d thought much about, not until I’d see her choke up when I did.
“We’re going to be late!” Ezra yelled and ran through the kitchen, grabbing an apple from Sebastian’s hand and rushing out the door. We all watched with open mouths and then chuckled at the same time.
I picked up my bag and put the envelope in my side pocket, then headed toward the door. But Sebastian stopped me with his grip on my shoulder and a frown on his face.
“What are you wearing?”
I looked down at my black leggings and the tank top I had on, then up to his face.
“I have gym today,” I said and looked at Andi, she was smiling behind her hand and shaking her head. I pointed at her. “What’s wrong with it? It’s the same thing she wears every day.”
“Yeah, but she isn’t a teenager,” he said and walked away, coming back with a long sweater. One I’m pretty sure belonged to Margarette.
“Are you serious?” I took it from his hands and held it up. “This is a granny sweater.”
“Yep, and you’re going to be wearing it all day. Tomorrow you can wear something less revealing.”
I rolled my eyes, and Andi laughed out loud. I put the stupid sweater on and groaned when fell to my knees.
Sometimes I liked how protective he was, but other times it was super annoying. I didn’t dress anything like the other girls at school. He should be more worried about all the mini skirts walking around the hall than my leggings.
The sweater wasn’t bad in the morning, but by noon I had to take it off. It was way too hot for the wool and I looked ridiculous in it, especially considering everyone else was wearing skirts or shorts.
In my morning history class with Reed, we talked about what the world was like before the war. It wasn’t much different than it is now, just larger and more violent. The Watchers were still roaming the Earth searching for demons so they could take them back to their dimension, which I found fascinating. We didn’t see them much, but every few weeks there would be reports of demon activity and the Watchers would go.
He told us how the world began rebuilding, and cities were recreated. We lived close to the same as they had, but there were a few differences. We had one leader- who had a small council and one military. Most of the world's population had been forced to our country, and they chose to stay. During the war, the world had been taken over by darkness and chaos. Most countries were completely destroyed, and ours had almost been. The population had gone from close to eight billion to under three within a couple years. It was hard to imagine so many people, but to me, the world still seemed full.
There were some who stayed in their countries, who lived in rogue communities and fended for themselves, but for most of the world, we were all there. We were all living in the first new order. What had once been the United State, had turned into the U.E.- United Earth.
I’d heard my family talk about it over the years. About how they didn’t like the way the country was being rebuilt, or how everyone looked to one man to lead them. They didn’t trust the fact the council was all human, and the only one they knew was a man named Aidan. A man who had once been the leader of the Guardians until Andi stripped him of his soul mark when she found out he was working with the Society- the group of fallen angels who started the war. Aidan had been a good guy since, but you couldn’t erase that kind of thing from a person's past, even if he was only doing it to save his family.
There really was no excuse for kidnapping and selling kids, no excuse at all.
Chapter five
Max
Gym was my least favorite class. Not because I didn’t like to work out, not because I couldn’t control myself, but because of the outfits Misty wore on those days. It took everything I had in me not to stare, and not to react when others did.
Her skin-tight black pants and tight black tank top left nothing to the imagination. I was surprised Sebastian let her out of the house wearing it.
“You want to play ball or work with weapons?” Levi asked and took the seat next to me, propping his foot up to tighten his laces.
“Whatever,” I said and stood to stretch. Most guys didn’t want to pair up with Levi since he was fully human, but I didn’t care. I had no reason to test the limits of my power or prove my strength to anyone. The funny part about it was those other guys had no idea how strong Levi really was. He might not have been a nephilim or Guardian, but he was a better fighter than most. He was far smarter than any of us, and he used it to his advantage. He went into each fight with his brain, and using that along with his strength made him a monster in the ring. There weren’t many who could have beaten him.
Even so, I still held back.
“Weapons it is,” he said and jumped from the bleachers. We walked across the gym and into the back room where the weapons were.
“Max, Levi,” Sariel said and crossed his arms over his chest, nodding his head. I wasn’t a small guy, but Sariel made me feel like one. He towered over my six’ four frame, and his shoulders were a few inches wider. “What do you want today?”
Before I could answer he already had the sword out for me, knowing it was the only thing I ever chose. Some guys liked learning the guns, some even went for bows and arrows. But I’d seen the way the war was fought, and if I was ever in a position to battle with demons I needed to know the sword. The guns were nice if you were fighting humans, but the wouldn’t kill anything else. A bullet would slow a nephilim down, but unless you pumped him full with kill shots, it wouldn’t kill him either.
“I guess I’ll take one, too.” Levi wasn’t as big of a fan, but he knew he needed to practice. The kid was an amazing shot with a gun, but he was a bit awkward swinging the sword.
Sariel looked over the shelves and pulled one off for him. Most schools didn’t have weapons training as a part of their curriculum, but I thought they should have. Teaching us math and history was good, but teaching us to live and protect ourselves was better. When the war started, humanity was thrown into something they didn’t understand and many of them died because they didn’t know to fight against the demons. They didn’t understand how to stay safe from the darkness.
When Eddie, my parents, and Charles started the school, they made sure to add in the things we would need to know. They made sure to teach us about of powers and how to control them. They taught us
how to protect ourselves and how to fight if the time ever came again.
Weapons training was only for the older kids, and the class was stricter than any of the others. Sariel and Charles never took their eyes off us and hovered each ring. If someone showed too much aggression or didn’t stop when the bell rang, they were kicked out of the class. And if someone used power during a fight, they were kicked out and not let back in until they completed another control class.
All nephilim and Guardians were forced to take the control classes, and it was a non-negotiable rule that we weren’t allowed to use those powers outside training. We were taught how to master them, and how to keep from using them.
Levi and I signed our swords out and made our way to the open ring. Charles was waiting for us in the middle, wearing his black suit, and the usual scowl on his face. We got in place and paused until he told us to begin.
Back and forth we went, slowly at first and then sped up. Hit for hit, Levi was getting better, but I still held back. I’d spent years holding a sword, with my parents and Andi’s, they’d made us learn as soon as the war ended. We spent hours behind our houses fencing, being shown how to strike and how to block. Taught what ticks to watch for and which to ignore.
A commotion to my left caught my attention for a second, and it was all it took for Levi to attack. He pushed me back and unarmed me, I chuckled and looked over at him. He was smirking and holding my sword high, then he bowed. Someone whistled quietly and my head jerked toward the side again.
A group of guys were huddled together and watching the other side of the room. I slowly turned my head, knowing what I would see was something that would piss me off.
Misty was doing yoga on the side of the gym, not paying attention to her shirt as it rode up her stomach. I shook my head and jumped off the ring, quietly stepping up behind them.
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