by Tara Brown
We stood silent for a long time, waiting. I just didn’t know why.
The wolf whined a little so I reached over and patted the fur on his back, earning a snarl.
“Sorry.” I pulled my hand back. “I just thought maybe you needed a pet or something.”
Ari laughed. “Oh my God, that was awesome. I’m his girlfriend and I’m barely allowed to pet him. I try but I know I’m pushing my luck.”
“Why are we here?” I asked her. She never really spoke to me much.
Ari pointed to the apartment above us. “We need to see if the man who lives there is alive or not. This is an area where the Dark Ones live, nice and close together.”
“In Rome?”
“Yeah. They love the ancient cities.”
“My sister does too. She is going to freak when she hears I came here. We have this planned for when we both graduated. Backpack Europe for the summer.” My heart ached for her. “Oliver told me she’s alive still.”
“I hope he isn’t lying. I know how it feels for all of this to hit you. It's not fair. Not even a little.”
I dismissed the tears in my eyes and turned my face to watch Lorri as she flashed onto the small metal deck. In the dark, her bright-red hair appeared brown.
She crept inside the apartment through the glass door and disappeared into the blackness.
Ari walked along the brick wall, but kept her eyes on the other patios and decks facing the alley.
I felt uneasy. My fingers made small sparks from the nerves. The flashes made slight amounts of light in the alley. Lucas glimpsed back at me and shook his wolf head. I clenched my fingers into balls. “Sorry,” I whispered into the silence.
A hand brushed along my back. “You are more powerful than any of us here. Just try to remember that.”
I turned to see Aimee forcing a smile.
There was no way I was as powerful as any of them.
Lucas sniffed the air and suddenly Ari made a half scream and vanished.
Her scream continued from a rooftop above us as abruptly as it had stopped. My stomach twisted as I eyed the pointed rooftop where Ari stood alone. A pair of feet hung over the edge next to her.
Aimee smirked and in a flash Ari was beside me once more.
Aimee flashed again and when she reappeared, she stood next to the feet hanging off the edge. Aimee leaned forward, reaching her hands for the person. The feet twitched for a second and then stilled.
The silhouette of Aimee on the rooftop was terrifying in the night sky. She was long and lean outlined by the storm behind her, across the city. Her blonde hair blew in the wind and her eyes glowed like platinum. She was the scariest thing I had ever seen.
My right arm was grabbed, a sharp wind hit me in the face, and then there was an abrupt stop. New smells filled the air around me. A forest and dead leaves mixed in the cool night air. I stood alone in the forest. “Hello?” I spoke softly, scared.
My fingers sparked nervously.
“Hello, thithter,” a guy with a lisp spoke from somewhere nearby.
I turned to see a guy standing far from me. His breath was visible, like smoke in the damp forest.
“Where are we?”
“Ireland. It will take them a minute to find you.”
My hands trembled. “Who are you?”
He laughed and stepped into the light of the moon. I gasped, seeing the male version of me, exactly. Dark hair, one light eye and one dark, pale skin, and striking features. There was one noticeable difference: he had fangs in his smile. My stomach dropped, seeing them. I whimpered and stepped away.
“Don’t be thcared.” He laughed. “Thorry, they're new. Father had Daniel turn me latht week. I am having a hard time. They jutht pop out.”
I remembered Giselle and started to laugh. The fear melted away. “How is this all possible?”
He closed his eyes for a second as if concentrating. When he smiled again, only bright white teeth filled his mouth. “You grew up in a normal family. I keep forgetting that.”
“Have you always known about me?”
“I have,” he whispered in the moonlight. “Always. I thought you were dead for a while but our sisters told me you had to be alive. They said you never crossed over and joined them.”
“Is it all true?”
“There are things you can't imagine. Werewolves, vampires, and witches are just the fun stuff you see daily. The fae are a broad spectrum. Sirens, elves, goblins—whatever you can imagine.” He said it like he was reading a menu.
“This is so weird.”
“We only have a minute before they get here. We need to help each other. I don’t want to die. I'm sure you don’t want to. I sent a friend to help you. His name is Oliver. He has a plan to get rid of Father. It's the only way any of them will leave us alone.”
I gulped. “Have you seen Mother?”
“Never. Not even a glimpse. He keeps her trapped in this ungodly tower, like in a fairy tale.” He took a step toward me. “Please, trust Oliver. He's there to help us. Father killed his son.” Tears filled his eyes. “He was my best friend.”
“I’ll do whatever I can. I just haven’t caught up on all of it yet. I don’t know what I'm supposed to actually do.”
His gaze lowered. “They will explain it to you. Don't trust them, O. Trust yourself and our sisters.” He reached for my hand. “It's good to finally meet you.”
I lump grew in my throat. “Again.”
His laugh was weak. “I suppose it is again.”
“Have you seen Abbey?”
“She’s fine, so far.” He winked and then he was gone. He had called me O. Was it a message from Abbey? How had he learned to flash travel?
“O, I got a text to come and find you.”
“What?”
I turned to see Sam standing at the edge of the dark forest. “Are you hurt?”
“No. My brother came to see me.”
“I've never met him.”
“He seemed really nice.” I blinked a tear down my cheeks. For whatever reason, my brother was the confirmation I needed to believe. It definitely was all real. And Abbey was alive.
Sam put a hand out for me, and before I could open my eyes from a blink, we were in Giselle's massive living room. Everyone else was already there.
Lorri stormed across the room, gripping my shoulders with intensity. “What happened?”
“Nothing. My brother came to see me. He seemed sad and alone. He wanted to talk to me. Alone.” I didn’t want to tell any of them anything.
Lorri gripped harder. “What did he say?”
“He said he needed my help and that you would explain what I was supposed to do.”
Lorri looked annoyed as she processed the information and let go with a slight shove. She paced the huge room. Everyone sat in silence, spread across the grand furniture.
All eyes were on Lorri.
Lydia spoke after a moment, “It's time to tell her what she must do, Lorri.”
Lorri snarled and continued to pace.
Oliver watched me from the corner. His eyes never left me.
Lorri strode over and grabbed my arm.
Cold wind swept around me. My feet stood on rocks. I gagged a little from all the travels.
The night sky was filled with stars. Lorri sat on a rock outcropping. The night air was warm and dry compared to where we had been in Portland or the forest in Ireland.
“Have a seat, kid.”
I sauntered over, trying not to look down the mountainside. “Where are we?”
“Iran.”
I frowned. “This is random, even for you.”
“This is where it happened.”
“What happened?”
“Where your mother lived, before we fell.”
I decided not to ask any more questions. I sat on the sharp, crumbling stone hillside.
“Below us here is the original Garden of Eden as you people have called it. It was the sacred garden. God could speak to Adam and Lillith there
. He taught them how to grow food. He taught them how to build a hut. He tried to guide them with love and kindness.”
“So much for that.”
Lorri snorted. “You have no idea. Lillith was defiant and obstinate. Adam was, well, he was a man. He thought with his dick. He asked God for a companion. It was his only request. God told him his wife would show herself to him. He misunderstood. He came upon Lillith bathing in the lake. Anyway, the story takes a turn for the worse. Lillith erupted in rage, like any woman would. She drew the magic from the ground and the garden, and cursed him as he was inside her. He got her pregnant. She had intended herself for the king of the elves. She wanted the magic and purity of their life. In an instant, she was ruined. Adam impregnated her. When the king came, she was pregnant. As her babies grew, so did her sadness and pain. When she gave birth, each of the children was already cursed. Not only with magic but also with vulnerability.”
I had no response. I couldn’t imagine such a lonely and painful existence.
“When she took the magic, she stripped the garden of its natural magic. She gathered it into herself and made it something corrupt and polluted. She cursed the land and the garden. The Middle East has never recovered. The strife here is the direct result of the anger and pain she suffered. The land can never be at peace. Not while Lillith lives. She must die to remove her stain on the world. And to give back the magic she took, the magic that didn’t belong to her.”
My stomach twinged. “Die?”
“Die. There is only one way to kill Lillith. Each of her children have a piece of her power in them. Once they die, their power is left behind. They are part of her stain on the Earth. You must kill your brother and convince your sisters to give you their power. Then you will be strong enough to kill her.”
“You want me to kill my own mother, after I kill my twin brother?” The sentence didn’t even seem accurate.
Lorri swallowed. “What I am asking of you is a sacrifice, obviously, but no one is planning on letting this continue. Your father is planning the same thing, only in reverse. He intends to have your brother kill you and use the magic to strip your mother of her powers. Once she's stripped, he can kill her but maintain her stain and darkness. He can use your brother so they can take over, defeat us Roses. Humans will truly become sheep.”
“This doesn’t make any sense. So both my parents are evil?” How was this possible?
“No, Lillith isn’t evil. She can't help what she has become, any more than you can. Magic was never meant to be inside you people. The garden was the magical birthplace of your mother and Adam, and eventually, Eve. The magic came from the Earth. God didn’t create the Earth. God just needed a birthplace of creation, something strong and powerful. The Earth is her own being. She, Mother Earth, and God worked together to create you and your existence. That's a whole other story, and I'm not giving a history lesson because I like talking. I’m trying to explain what you need to do. Lillith took the magic and the power. That's why God needed something magical to create Eve; there was no more magic after Lillith took it. He couldn’t create another human without magic. So he took a magical rib from Adam.”
“Why can't we just kill my father and free her?”
Lorri focused up at the starry sky. “I know this is hard to hear, kid, but they both have to go.” When she glanced back at me, her eyes were fiery. “He's mine though. You wouldn’t stand a chance. He would flash and be gone before you reacted. Your magic is subjective to your circumstances.”
“What about that Ari girl? She could push my mom or dad and make them change their minds.”
“She would knock them out for a bit. The soul has to be pure and intact.”
“Oh.”
“We need to go back.” She offered me her hand.
I was numb when I took it. Numb with the choice I didn’t even have.
Chapter 17
Dead inside
Sam
“I have a plan,” Ari spoke to the group of us.
“Sweet God, tell me it fixes homeboy here. I'm getting tired of his part in this crazy play, portraying the coma patient.” Aimee pointed at me.
I didn’t bother looking up. It took too much energy. I could see them in my peripheral anyway.
Aimee pulled her hair into a ponytail, nodding in my direction. “This thing over here has to change. He’s driving me insane.” She turned and wrinkled her nose at Ari. “Yesterday he slept for sixteen hours. Not even kidding. I thought he was dead twice.”
Hanna walked into the living room in a skimpy pair of running shorts and a small tee shirt. Luke made a noise low in his throat.
“Hanna.” I pointed at her knee. “You have some dirt on your leg.”
She drank from the water bottle in her hand and craned her neck to see the dirt. “I was running in the hills.” She sat on the chair opposite me.
“Cool,” I offered.
Aimee breathed like she was feeling hostile but Lydia had made her swear to be nice to everyone in the house.
“Anyway, I have a plan,” Ari said again, sounding frustrated. “Wanna hear it?”
“Sure,” Hanna replied. “I'm in.” Her eyes bore down on me. Her cheeks flushed as she made eye contact. Luke made another low sound.
Aimee snarled. “Great.”
“We can't tell Lorri whatever your plan is. She murdered my father on purpose.” I said it plainly.
Aimee's eyes flashed at him. “What?”
“Yeah. I guess once upon a time, Lorri fell in love with my mother. She felt the pull of the siren. Oliver said my dad fell in love with my mother at the same time, and Lorri used the Devil's Roses to kill him. She used the excuse that he mated with a mortal but really it was to get rid of him as competition.”
“Lorri’s a lesbian?” Luke cocked an eyebrow.
“Bigger question is why over a siren?” Ari raised an eyebrow. “Sirens aren’t human.”
“Yeah. I never knew any of this. I guess she was jealous that my mom chose my dad.” I shrugged.
“You must be pissed,” Hanna blurted.
“Nope. Can't even get angry that my father was murdered unjustly, out of jealousy.”
Aimee shook her head. “Lorri’s a bitch; there’s no doubt about that, but there is no way she murdered your dad. Where did you hear that?”
“Oliver.”
“He's lying. He's Jonathan's pawn. He's trying to separate us from the Roses Academy. He wants us on the Dark Ones’ side.”
“Either way, we need to keep the management out of this mission. Lydia will tell Lorri. Lorri might not be on our side.”
“Lorri’s a lesbian?” Luke asked again.
Ari growled at Luke, “Focus.”
“What. It just explains so many things.”
“Oh my God.” Aimee rolled her eyes. “Can we keep the lesbian stereotypes to a minimum and stay focused?”
Ari put her hands on her hips. “We tell no one.”
Hanna nodded. “We tell no one.”
“We need Ophelia’s help. Her sisters and brother have to help us. Plus, we have to find out how to get in. We need Oliver to tell us.”
“He’s asked me about O a million times. It got annoying actually. I bet she can weasel it out of him.”
Luke raised an eyebrow. “Oh shit, he's like Dorian, dude. You don’t want to mess around with them.”
Ari frowned. “Ophelia’s stronger than Annabelle and Lydia. She could probably kill him.”
Aimee smiled sweetly. “And O has a very strong reaction to your siren thing. You should be the one to tell her to go hang with Oliver and get the info on the way in.”
Hanna's eyes flashed. She got up and left the room.
Aimee smiled, satisfied.
I didn’t know why but I got up and followed Hanna out of the room. “Hanna, wait up.”
She turned, wiping her face. I noticed the slightest of twinge in my stomach. It was the first thing I’d felt in forever.
“I don’t want you to hurt.�
�� I said it, not sure if I meant it.
Her shoulders slumped, hollowing out her shoulder blades and throat. “Why can't you just undo it and love me again, Sam?”
“I don’t know how.”
Tears streamed down her flushed cheeks. She took a step toward me, placing her hand on my chest. The smell of her so close flooded my head but it did nothing. “I will love you as long as I live. My heart will belong to you forever. Even when a thousand years have passed and you don’t remember me, every heartbeat will be for you.” She leaned in and swept her soft lips against my cheek.
I remained wooden as she brushed past me and walked down the wide hallway.
I knew that deep down it hurt. My stomach ached in a manner I remembered being associated with pain. A tear found its way from my eye. I dragged my fingertip across my face and collected it. The simplicity of the tear was lost in the abyss that had become my heart. I walked along the hall in the opposite direction she had gone, knowing I needed to find O. She had to fix me. I sensed the dark of the world swallowing me.
My feet moved, my mouth breathed, and my heart beat, but nothing felt real.
The fog in my head kept me preoccupied enough that I nearly walked past Ophelia. She was curled up with a huge old book in the library. I stopped and backed up to the doorway, poking my head in. “Hey, can we talk?”
“Oh hey, Sam.” She smiled and blushed.
“I need your help.” I went and sat in the huge overstuffed leather chair across from her.
In the dim light of the library she looked young. Her dark hair and one dark eye made her appear how I’d imagine a young witch to look. Dark and ominous. But the light eye appeared sick, like a cataract, so the seriousness of her face was lost in it.
“What do you need?”
“I need you to get close with Oliver. Get some answers from him. We’re going on a rescue mission. We aren’t telling Lydia or Lorri. Their agenda has nothing to do with your sister or Aimee's sister. They just want the plan they have hatched to work, even at the expense of Alise and Abbey.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. So we were hoping you'd learn the way into the Alaska fortress for us. Oliver knows it. We can't trust him so you have to be sneaky. Can you do that?”