by Rose J. Bell
“This will hurt him.”
“You have no other choice.”
“I hate my life.”
Valerie patted her shoulder. “Life can be very mean.”
Rosa had always been afraid to be in situations like this. She had to tell Matt the truth. She had no other choice.
“You’re right, Valerie. I have to tell him the truth.” Rosa said, looking at her.
“Now?”
“No, later.”
“Then let’s go have a drink.” Valerie stood up.
“It’s only afternoon,” Rosa interjected.
“There is no rule that says that you can’t drink alcohol in the afternoon.”
“But I have to stay here. Andrea is mixing something for me.”
Valerie took Rosa’s hand. “You can pick it up later. We won’t stay all day, only one or two hours. It will be good for you. You almost never go out. You’re always on the hunt.”
Rosa smiled “Okay.” She stood up.
Valerie beamed. “Let’s go to the club we were at last.”
“You mean The Black Rose?”
Valerie nodded. “Yes, exactly this club.”
Rosa took her car keys. “I’m driving.”
“Like always,” Valerie said with a smile.
“Come on, man! Play finally,” Jason said, annoyed.
He had gone into the club, where he was playing billiards with a friend of Madison. Madison stood beside him and pressed her body against his.
“Yeah, I’ll do it,” said James, a friend of Madison. Then he lean down and kicked the white ball.
“Looks like you’re losing, buddy,” James teased, grinning.
Jason lifted his eyebrows. “Don’t rejoice too much, Gray. The game's not over yet.”
Madison put her arm around his shoulders. Her hand slipped on his shirt.
“Jason, finish this game. I cannot wait any longer.” Her mouth slid to his neck and kissed it.
Jason put his hand on her waist and pulled her closer to him.
“All right, we can go now if you want,” Jason whispered into her neck.
He was not attracted to her at all. She was like most girls these days: Too much makeup, arrogant, no naturalness and jump with every boy in the bed they could find—but they were perfect for distraction and that was what Jason needed now. Human girls were like toys for him, he only use them.
“Oh, guys!” James groaned. “Can you not wait until you’re alone? I would like to continue with the game.”
Jason moved away from Madison. “Calm down, James. I’m just getting a little warm,” Jason replied. James rolled his eyes.
When the door opened, the sunlight shined into the club. Jason looked up at the door. A wide grin spread across his face when he saw who it was.
Rosa entered the club. Everything was so dark and stuffy that she missed the fresh air from outside. They looked around, taking notice of the few older men at the bar who drank and laughed loudly, and a few young people. Rosa’s eyes went to the pool table where she saw Jason and his grinning face, Madison, and another boy whom Rosa didn’t know.
“Oh, man,” Rosa groaned, and looked away.
“What?” Valerie asked.
“You see this boy, beside the pool table?” she asked Rosa. “Look inconspicuous.”
Valerie looked directly to the pool table.
“Inconspicuous I said, Val!”
“That’s a Nephilim,” she said, smiling.
Rosa nodded and told her what she suspected.
Valerie looked at her. “You really think they have a plan?”
Rosa nodded. “Yes. So, act naturally, and don’t let on that I’m a hunter, okay?“
Valerie nodded. “That’s why the glove.”
“Yes,” Rosa said as they moved toward the bar. Rosa ignored Jason, but she could feel his gaze on her back. It didn’t take long until Rosa heard his voice.
“What’s going on, Ice Princess? No greeting?” Jason asked her from the billiard table, making sure everyone could hear him.
Rosa turned around and smiled at him. “Sorry! I missed you,” she replied.
Jason said something to Madison who nodded sullenly and took his cue. Then Jason came up to them.
“Be normal, Val,” Rosa told her. She nodded again and ordered a drink.
Jason let himself down on the chair next to Rosa, looking at her.
“You’re a pretty bad liar, Ice Princess,” he whispered to her.
Rosa raised an eyebrow. “Can you not stand it if somebody ignored you?”
Jason leaned against the counter. “Rosa, my authority is too huge to ignore it. You cannot miss it. I’m a Nephilim.”
She looked at him. His blue eyes were like magnets that attracted her.
”You like my eyes,” Jason noted and smiled proudly.
Rosa shook her head. “No, I only like my eyes.”
Jason raised an eyebrow. “Well, now who’s arrogant?”
Rosa shrugged. She took a long sip from her drink. When she felt a burning sensation in her throat, she grimaced.
Jason took her drink and drank the rest in one gulp.
Rosa looked at him. “Hey, that was mine!”
He leaned forward and Rosa could feel his breath on her face. She couldn’t take her eyes away from his.
“When is your birthday, Ice Princess?” he asked, and leaned back. Rosa looked at him confused.
“I don’t want any gifts,” she said, and ordered another drink. She looked at Valerie, who was not sitting anymore by her side, but flirted heavily with the boy who was at the pool table. Madison was nowhere to be found.
“Who said anything about gifts?” Jason replied. “I just want to know when your birthday is.”
She finished her second drink. “Why do you care?”
He shrugged. “I’m just trying to make conversation.”
Rosa sighed. She wouldn’t tell him when her true birthday was, so she made up a date. “The February 31st.”
Jason grinned at her. “Are you really sure about that?”
She frowned, running through the months in her head. Then it dawned on her. She gave herself an inner slap. February only had 28 days.
“I mean January 31st, of course,” Rosa corrected as she smiled coyly.
Jason laughed. “You’re really the first person who doesn’t know her birthday.”
Rosa suddenly felt a pressure on her bladder. “I have to go to the little girls’ room.”
Jason took her glass and lifted it. “I miss you already, Ice Princess.” The sarcasm in his voice was unmistakable.
Rosa snorted but said nothing. She walked along the dark corridor to the toilet. She pushed the bathroom door open. The toilet looked amazingly clean for being in a public place. She went to the toilet and washed her hands afterwards.
Rosa opened the door and stepped outside. She wanted to go, when she heard something. It sounded like a groan and came from the back. She heard it again. Rosa turned around. Beside the bathroom was a small room. It looked more like a storage room.
Rosa hid behind a curtain that separated the back area of the store. She knew that was not right to stand there and spy, but she wanted to know what the groan was. Curiosity usually got the best of her.
Peering through the curtain, Rosa saw Madison. Rosa rolled her eyes. She should have known. Madison, dress pulled up as she moaned again, was just having sex in the storeroom with some boy.
Can’t this girl live without sex? Rosa wondered. She wanted to turn away, when suddenly something strange happened.
The “boy” who Madison had kissed wildly, went very still. He stood before her and looked at her without moving. Rosa frowned and she took a step closer, still hidden behind the curtain.
Madison pulled down her dress and tied up her hair. Thereby she exposed her neck.
Rosa froze. This cannot be, she thought.
Yet she saw it with her own eyes. Something small shined brightly on Madison’s neck. It was sm
all like a pinhead. It glowed of white and red.
That could only mean one thing.
Madison was a shadow creature.
And created by the archangels.
Rosa tensed every muscle. Her mission was to kill a shadow creature immediately, but how could she? For one thing, if she attacked Madison now, the others in the bar would hear the fight. And then they would know Rosa was a hunter. Jason would find out and she could not let that happen. For another, Rosa never killed somebody she knew. That had never happened to her.
But Madison was another case.
Could Rosa kill her?
Rosa firmly clutched the curtain. She asked herself what Madison was?
A witch? A Half demon? Or a vampire? There were very few vampires in the world. The archangel didn’t create vampires, because they thought vampires would be dangerous to humankind. As if the angels were interested in the human race! The real reason was that the angels were afraid that vampires could be as strong as they were, and seize the power.
Madison pushed the boy against the wall. He looked directly into her eyes and opened his mouth.
Her implant shone brighter. This only happened when the shadow creatures used their supernatural power.
Then Madison stood still before the boy, during which the boy was getting flaccid.
Rosa knew that she should intervene, but the whole scene had her shocked—paralyzed. She had never thought that Madison was one of those creatures.
Rosa still couldn’t figure out what she was exactly.
She smashed her head, what could Madison be?
Then Rosa understood. Her mouth dropped open.
Madison was a mermaid.
Mermaids were water spirits that could change their shape and appearance at will. They could sometimes be seductive, sometimes dangerous, and sometimes vicious. Mermaids were said to take on their true shape at night, and lived in the water.
In addition, they fed on human souls.
Now Rosa understood why Madison was standing open-mouthed in front of the boy. She sucked out his soul.
Rosa dropped the curtain and went back to the bar. What she had seen confused her. Rosa didn’t know what she should do. Thoughtfully she sat down next to Jason.
“What took so long, Ice Princess?” he asked. He sounded slightly drunk. “Did you fall in?” Rosa didn’t answer.
“Is everything alright?” Jason asked her, now a little worried. Rosa looked at him.
She remembered that conversation that Jason had with Madison in the gym. They had arranged for this evening. Jason could not go to Madison, or she would suck his soul, too.
It should not have bothered Rosa so much, but Jason needed to be alive for her to know why he was in Boston. Besides, she wanted to be the one to kill him, and become a full member of the hunter clan.
First, she had to convince him not to go to Madison. But how?
Should she just tell him the truth, that Madison was a mermaid? If she did, he would surely be suspicious if he weren’t already. Most people didn’t know about the shadow creatures. She could tell him and then claim that she knows about the creatures, because one of her friends was a mermaid.
Rosa didn’t know which option she should choose. Then she decided simply to warn him. Rosa would kill Madison before she met with Jason.
“Ice Princess?” Jason’s voice brought her out her thoughts. She looked at him.
“Jason, you can’t meet Madison,” Rosa warned him.
He frowned. “And why not?”
“Don’t ask the why. Just don’t go to her. It’s for the best.”
“Ah, Ice Princess, don’t be jealous. I will have time for you, as well. There is no reason to worry,” Jason said, grinning.
She shook her head. “Jason, I’m not jealous.”
“Sure you’re not,” he said wryly.
Why am I actually bothering to warn him?
Rosa saw out of the corner of her eye that Madison was coming toward them. She looked fresh and happy.
The poor boy.
“Jason, let’s go. I can’t wait any longer,” she said, stretching out her hand to him. He finished his drink and stood up.
“Jason, don’t go,” Rosa warned him again.
He winked at her. “When this is over, I have time for you, Ice Princess.”
Rosa sighed deeply. It was not good that he now went to Madison.
Rosa had to kill Madison in her apartment when Jason was nearby, so there was a chance that Jason would find out that she was actually a hunter.
Very good.
Madison und Jason disappeared through the door. Rosa stood up and walked over to Valerie.
“Valerie, I must go,” Rosa said.
She turned towards her. “Rosa, I’m talking,” she said, making it clear that this was not a good time.
Rosa did not want to lose any time. “Okay, good. Then you stay here. I have to go.”
“Who should drive me home then?” she asked.
“Me,” the boy next to Valerie said.
“Well then. Bye, Rosa,” said Valerie and waved to her. Then she turned towards the boy.
Rosa smiled and left club. The sun had already disappeared and the evening drew on. She had spent more time in the club as she had intended.
She climbed into her car and drove off. She had to fetch the paralysis spell before she headed to Madison.
Madison closed the door to her apartment.
“Do you live here alone?” Jason asked her.
“No. I live with my parents, but they’re not home,” she answered.
The apartment seemed expensive and large, yet simple in whites and browns. Jason immediately went to the counter and poured himself a glass of whiskey. He was a little drunk, but one more drink would not hurt. Madison threw her bag on the couch and came over to Jason. She sat down opposite him.
Jason looked at her. He didn’t know why Rosa told him he shouldn’t meet her. He didn’t believe that Rose was jealous, but she was different when she came back—as if she’d seen something that had shocked her. Could this have something to do with Madison? If yes, what was it?
He regarded Madison. What could happen when he was with such a beautiful girl?
“And how it´s to be an angel?” Madison asked.
Jason took a big gulp from his glass. “What’s it like? Well, you are stronger than men are, and prettier, too. It’s okay.”
“I would be happy to be an angel.”
Jason grinned. “Madison, you’re already an angel.” She giggled as she came over to him and stood behind him. She wrapped her arms around his neck.
“You’re a real charmer. You know that, Jason?” she asked him softly, her hands beginning to open his shirt.
“I know,” he said. Jasmine came to his mind, and he felt guilty. He was amusing himself with a girl while his sister was missing.
Don’t think about it now, Jason. A little break cannot hurt.
Madison laughed and pulled off his shirt and started to kiss his neck. Man, this girl knows how to seduce a man, Jason thought.
She stopped kissing him and he gave a frustrated sigh. He did not want it to stop. She took his hand.
“Come. Let’s go into the room,” she said, looking at him seductively.
Jason grinned. “I’d love to.”
Madison smiled and led him to her room. He wasted no further thoughts of what Rosa told him.
It was going to be a very nice evening.
Evening was breaking when Rosa parked her car in front of Madison’s apartment.
Something in her did not want to kill Madison, but the hunter in her ordered her to do it. It was her task. The hunter in Rosa had convinced her. She had to do her job, even if the victim was someone she knew.
She had the paralysis spell with her, so when she took a sip of it, her gift would be “paralyzed” for six hours. She would need it for later to kick Jason’s ass.
Rosa felt the icy hunter rising inside her. Her hunting instinct fille
d every inch of her body, every inch of her being.
She was now herself: a born hunter.
Rosa put her dagger in her belt, and the vial of magic in the pocket of her leather jacket. Also, Rosa used glamour to hide her mark. If Andrea had not remembered to hide her mark with glamour, Rosa would not have remembered either. Glamour had the ability to make things invisible. So she had put a little of the glamour on her mark so it wasn’t visible anymore.
Rosa got out of her car and went up the apartment door. Knowing Madison lived on the fourth floor; she jogged up the stairs and quietly stood outside the door. Looking around, she quickly took out her knife and began to pick the lock. It wouldn’t be a good if someone saw her now.
Rosa heard the lock click and she opened the door. She quickly slipped inside and closed the door softly behind her. She saw Jason’s shirt lying on the floor and Rosa rolled her eyes.
They aren’t wasting time, she thought.
Quietly, she made her way down the hall where she approached the only bedroom with a closed door. The closer Rosa came to the door, the higher her adrenaline rose. She could hear her blood rushing in her ears, and her heart began to throb. It pulsated like a powerful drug in her veins. Rosa stood in front of the door and listened for a moment. She heard nothing.
That could only mean one thing: Madison was about to suck Jason’s soul.
Rosa clutched her dagger, kicking in the door with all her strength, causing the wooden door to shatter.
Rosa entered into the room, just as she thought, Madison was about to suck Jason’s soul. She just hoped she was not too late.
Madison turned towards her. Jason’s body collapsed to the floor. Madison looked at her in surprise.
“I’m sorry for disturbing you, Madison, but I would like to kill Jason,” Rosa said to her as she rushed at Madison with her dagger drawn.
However, Madison instantly dodged out of the way, as Mermaids may not be very strong, but they have excellent reflexes. Some even knew how to fight.
Madison tried a punch, but Rosa easily avoided it. Grabbing Madison by her throat, Rosa pressed her against the wall.
“I know what you are,” Rosa hissed, slamming Madison’s head hard against the wall. Madison screamed.