The Roses Academy- the Entire Collection

by Tara Brown

  Reality slapped me in the face, using the wind to do it.

  “No.” I started to cry. “No. No. I'm not okay. I'm never going to be okay again.”

  He came too close and wrapped himself around me. His warmth and smell were more than I could bear. My hands sparked but he shoved me hard across the beach on my back.

  “Ow,” I groaned. “Why did you do that?” I wiped my tears, anger welling in me.

  “You can't do that to me, no using the hands on me. I could die.”

  “Sorry,” I moaned and sat up. The pain was fading fast.

  “This was why they locked you up in the room last time.”

  “Why?”

  “You couldn’t control your powers. You need to this time. Let's go back.” He grabbed my arm and all of a sudden we were back at the old house.

  The dark-haired guy, the one with the dark eyes and smug grin, was there. He made me think things I shouldn’t. I didn’t even know him. “Thanks for fetching her, Sam. I'll take over from here.” He strolled over like he owned the world and offered his arm. “Come with me.”

  I took it. I didn’t know why. But the moment we touched he flashed us to a dimly lit room.

  He turned, lowering his face to mine. I could barely see him. “I’ve missed you, Aimee.”

  “What?” I pulled back. “I don’t even know you.”

  “Yes, you do.” He grabbed me and pulled me into his arms. “You remember me; look at the disdain on your face.” Sparks flew from my fingers. He grabbed my wrists. “If I didn’t know any better, I'd think you remembered more than you’re letting on.”

  “Why?” I jerked my hands out of his. “Did I want you dead?”

  “Sometimes.” He stepped closer again, holding my hands between us. “But most of the time you wanted me as much as I wanted you. We just never really got to have the conversation about it.”

  My stomach ached and rumbled between us.

  “You haven’t been eating?” His eyes lowered and he cringed.

  “I have. I've eaten a sandwich and some eggs and some cereal and a bowl of pasta. I've never eaten so much in my life but I'm still starving.” I wrapped my arms around myself.

  “That’s not exactly what I meant, obviously.” He sighed and grabbed my wrist and warm thick air crashed into me like a brick wall.

  “Stop doing that!” I pulled my hands away. “I'm done with the flashing here and there and everywhere. Jesus. Stop. All of you do everything before you talk to someone. There’s no warning, just grabbing hands and flashing. It’s rude.”

  “We can have this conversation after you eat.” He put a hand out. “Pick.”

  “What?” I scanned the seedy alleyway and filth-covered concrete and stepped closer to him for protection.

  He chuckled and put an arm around me. “I'll keep you safe.”

  “What is that?” My nose caught a scent. It made my belly rumble. The dark, dodgy alley moved with something I hadn’t noticed.

  A figure staggered toward us, tripping.

  My nostrils flared as a guttural sound rolled from me. I stepped away from the dark-haired guy and immediately my hands sparked. I snapped my fingers, making flashes of light flicker in the dark alley.

  As the staggering man got near enough, my hand lashed out at his throat. I pulled hard and fast. I cried out as the intense heat and warmth filled me in a rush. I dropped to my knees next to the man who collapsed to the ground in a heap, dead. “Oh my God,” I moaned. “What was that?”

  Chuckles filled the alley behind me. “You really are an animal, Aimee.”

  “What have you done to me?” My heart ached but the glorious sensation inside me was too much. It won out over my guilt and pain.

  “Once upon a time, I made you something so strong, even time couldn’t change you back apparently.” He sounded like he was in awe of the horror show in front of him.

  “Where’s Shane?” I asked, terrified he shared the fate of the man on the ground.

  “He’s in Portland. He’s safe. Stop worrying about him. You have work to do. Did Lydia tell you the entire story? About the things we need to accomplish in the next few months?”

  “Yeah, but they don’t make sense.” I glanced down at the ground. “It can't be real. This can't be real. I must have some kind of tumor. I need an MRI and blood work done.”

  “Not likely.” He grabbed my arm and we were standing on the porch of the old mansion. The redhead was on the porch as if waiting for us. “It might be easier to give her back her memories.” The dark-haired guy sighed.

  The redhead smirked at me, giving the impression she didn’t like me. “Do you remember me?”

  “Somehow. I know you, but not from a memory. More like I just know it.”

  She shrugged. “Good enough for me. This way’s better. No more mopey Aimee.”

  “Mopey?”

  “You were god-awful to be around. One minute it was Shane you were in love with, then it was Aleks, and then it was Shane, and then it was none of them and you were kissing Dorian here in secret while thinking no one knew.” She rolled her eyes.

  “Kissing Dorian?” I glanced back.

  “Told you.” He grinned.

  I blushed and turned to walk back into the house, but he grabbed my arm and spun me. His lips met mine and there was no denying the intensity. I knew I shouldn’t kiss him, but I wanted to.

  “Stop kissing her and go get Aleks. He won't leave until we kill Jon.”

  Dorian turned to the redhead. “Lorri, it can wait one more day.”

  “No. Do it now and stop messing with the plan.” Her tone was sharp.

  “See you later?” He stepped away from me and then was gone.

  “How do you know him?” I asked her.

  Her eyes glassed over. “He’s my best friend.”

  “He’s weird and kinda creepy but—” I didn’t even know why I was telling her this. It couldn’t have been more awkward.

  “Come on.” She grabbed my hand. “I want to show you something.”

  She hauled me inside and down the dark hallway. Her hands were hot. Uncomfortably hot.

  “What are you?” I had to ask everyone that.

  “Didn’t Lydia explain?”

  “She did. I just don’t get it. I don’t believe in God. I believe in science.”

  “You don’t believe in God?” She stopped and grinned. “He believes in you. Why do you think he asked me to fall?”

  “It doesn’t feel real.”

  She snorted sarcastically. “Well, it is. It feels real on my end. Let me tell you.”

  “Can you show me? Help me understand?”

  She looked uncomfortable and then put her hand up. “Lace you fingers through mine.”

  I did it and instantly I was somewhere else. Lorri’s voice narrated in my mind. It was soft and distant.

  “The mountaintop was a vantage point I didn’t get to appreciate often. I sat on the stones of the ruins where once, a long time ago, Adam met Eve and the world fell apart.

  The darkness chased the sun across a plain in front of me, much like the battles going on in the cities below where good was chased to every corner and snuffed out by the dark that somehow was always stronger. I wanted to be indifferent to it all. I wanted to watch them kill each other and not get involved, but my turn was coming. I could feel it in the electrically charged air. Even there on the mountaintop, the sparks of the changing winds reached for me. He was calling me.

  “Daughter.”

  From shifting skies his voice beckoned me to the meeting place. I had ignored the call as long as I could. I closed my eyes and when I opened them I was at the meeting place.

  I stood amongst the columns of the old world. The world where we could see his light and feel his presence. The old world where many were no longer welcome. None of the fallen could ever enter. It was the last haven for my kind.

  Light slithered silently along the cold stone columns and floor. It found me, even in the small corner where I s
tood in the shadows.

  A voice, a soft whisper that blew through the drafty stone columns, spoke to me, “You must save them. You must save my creations. You will select four to go with you, and you will fight for my people. Only from the ground may you defend them. Only from the Earth will you find success.”

  I couldn't breathe or gasp. The air sat stuck in my windpipe. I remained quiet as I processed the request.

  Finally, I was able to speak, “You wish me to fall as others have?”

  A snake filled with doubt and fear slid through my insides, wriggling and twisting.

  “I wish for you to help them fight fire with fire.”

  I ignored the single teardrop that slipped down my cheek and invaded the silent darkness with its splatter as it hit the cold stone floor.

  “As you wish.” My voice was strong as was my instant resolve to succeed in my mission. It was a problem with my kind. We were loyal. We would follow his desires and commands, no matter what. We didn’t have freewill. I dreaded the fact that soon that wouldn't be an issue for me. Soon I would be free of him. For the good and the bad, I would have freewill.

  “Thank you, Lucifer. I could trust no one but you, the light bearer, the morning star. You are my constant, and you have my heart.”

  My lower lip trembled, but my eyes steeled against the pain desperately trying to spread across my face.

  I gave a single nod. I spoke nothing to the light.

  The light left the room silently. It left me in the shadow I had hidden in before he came. I touched the column and knew I would never be back.

  I thought of my best friend and instantly stood before him.

  He smiled at me. “You look like Michael has been taking a piss again.” He could see there was a difference in my eyes and the way they saw the world.

  I shook my head slowly, wondering what expression my face held. No matter what it was, it could never be close to the feelings that roamed my insides.

  “I have been asked to do something and I need your help.”

  His smile faded. He tilted his head to the side. “Whatever it is, I'm out.”

  I grinned bitterly. “You're in.”

  “What is it?”

  The grin that claimed my face had taken hold of my heart. “We fall tomorrow.”

  The reality of my words slipped across his face slowly. Watching it was like watching the clouds move across the sky.

  “Dorian, I need you.”

  He licked his lips as if stealing one more precious second before answering me, “Of course, love. This place was just getting boring anyway.” His words didn’t match his tone or the heartbreak in his stare.

  “We must get the others and prepare. We fall at dawn.”

  Lorri’s words faded out and the picture left my mind but her fingers still burned my skin. I pulled back, not sure how to take that.

  “Wow,” I whispered. “Your life sucks.”

  “Yeah. But no different than anyone else who serves in a time such as this.”

  “How long has it been a time such as this?” I couldn’t believe it.

  “I don’t know.” She shrugged. “A damned long time. Now, enough chitchat. I want you to come with me. We made a picture for you and Giselle. It’s a chart of events and how they happened. Major events. After this, I want you to begin tagging along with Dorian.” She turned sharply. “Not to screw him either.”

  “I don’t screw.” I flinched.

  “Not yet,” she grumbled and pulled me into a room with a wall of pictures and timelines. I glanced at Giselle.

  Lorri let go of my hand. “Behave.” She turned and left.

  Giselle peeked her head out the doorway. “She’s super mean.”

  “I know,” I agreed. “I think it’s my fault. Turns out in the other time I was a major slut. She told me not to, well, anyway, I think I did bad stuff.” I made a face.

  “Girl.” Giselle beamed, “Have you seen the hotties here? I hope I was a slut.”

  I laughed. She made me feel better and I realized how much I liked her.

  “I want that Aleks guy. Wow. He’s a beast.”

  “He’s a big man.” My cheeks got hotter imagining him and me together. It was impossible.

  “Just so no one shits where anyone else eats, who you calling dibs on?” She cocked an eyebrow.

  The sentence almost took me a minute. I frown. “Wow. That was super gross. Okay. Uhm, none. You can have them all.”

  She shrugged. “I'm a succubus. Some dude named Oliver made me this way. If I have to kill people to eat, I'm going to need a hobby. Sex with all these hotties seems like a pretty sweet gig.”

  “Gross.”

  “We need some perks to this shit, Aimes. We didn’t even do anything to have this happen. I've already killed three people.”

  My brow furrowed. “Three?”

  “Yeah.” But her mood lifted. “At least I ganked Mr. Mac's ass before he got to rape Jaime. Did you happen to hear Lydia say how bad he got us all? Jaime died in the other world.”

  “I'm glad you got him too.”

  “Hi.” The emo girl with dark eyes interrupted us. “I know you know who I am but just for the record, I'm Ari.”

  “Hey.”

  She rushed me, wrapping her arms around me. Confusion hit hard but I hugged back.

  Her sobs vibrated against me but I didn’t know what to say.

  “I-I-I'm so sorry, Aimes. I-I just thought it-it was a g-g-g-good idea to free you. I never knew that once an archangel changes you, my power can't take it back.”

  “No. No, don’t feel bad. Lydia told me how it was before. My mom was dead and my sister, you saved them. This is better. Jaime didn’t die, and Giselle and I never got sick. It’s okay. And besides, I’m not mean and mopey, and no one seems to hate me. So there’s that.”

  “I guess.” She sniffled and wiped her eyes. “I never knew how much I would miss you. You don’t remember how much we love each other. You're the only sister I've ever had.”

  Giselle jumped into the hug. “What about me? Were we close?”

  Ari stiffened and snorted. “Yeah.” Her tone told me otherwise but Giselle was clueless. Ari pulled back and wiped her face. “I'm sorry.” She shook her head. “I didn’t mean to lose it like that.”

  “It's okay. I understand. I had a moment on the beach.”

  She glanced between Giselle and me. “I know, right? You both must be freaking out.”

  “Déjà vu. It’s been brutal. Like I can’t react the way I want to because the imprint of everything is still in my brain so all of this is normal for me, but it’s really not.”

  Giselle added, “I keep getting déjà vu too.”

  “Yeah. It’s part of my thing.” She turned to the wall. “So this is the timeline. This is the series of events we have already concurred, even though you weren’t with us this time. Be glad you only have two. I have many.”

  There were two timelines, thank God. One was the old way and one was the new way. I couldn’t believe how integral a part of the team I was in the old way. We go over it until I'm bored and Giselle’s sleeping.

  Chapter 11

  A hunting we will go

  Aimee

  “Miss Aimee, Mr. Marcus is in the yard. He’s waiting on you to have a talk with him.”

  “Marcus?” I got up from the couch. “Thanks, Annabelle.” I shivered when I walked past her.

  The dark hallway was foreboding.

  Marcus was one of the things I didn’t trust and I wasn’t sure why. The timeline suggested he was a jackass, but he hadn’t actually done any of the things he was guilty of in the past, so I didn’t like him based on possibility. That felt wrong.

  I opened the porch door and tried not to act too scared. The whole fangs thing still flashed in my mind.

  “Aimee, my dear sweet Aimee. Have you gotten those fingers of yours under control?”

  I did like his accent and his spooky seductive eyes though. “A bit.”

  “Well
then, I have news. The boy you tried to kill, he’s fine. Better than fine. He’s one hundred and fifty percent.”

  I was relieved. “Oh, thank God. No one would tell me anything, except that he was here in the city.”

  He grinned. “Well, he isn't here, here. He’s in the city. You can flash me home if you like and see him for yourself.” He put a hand out.

  I took it nervously, surprised by the warmth of him. “Shouldn’t you be cold? You’re dead.”

  “Dead isn’t what everyone thinks it is.” He chuckled and held up his cell phone and nudged me. “Think of the place in the picture and wink.”

  The house was a grand castle. In fact, it was crazy beautiful. I stared at it, lost in the massive size and beauty. I winked and we stood outside the huge castle. “Where are we?”

  He appeared confused. “Well, this is my home.” He said it like I should have known that. I supposed I should have.

  “A castle? What country are we in?”

  He eyed me the way I looked at Alise whenever she spoke. “Did you bang your head this morning? The USA. We haven’t even left the city or the state. I live in Portland too.” He walked through a giant archway into the massive front door. “How the bloody hell do you think I got to Lydia’s house in the first place?”

  I almost said “turned into a bat and flew” but he still scared me.

  He was like a mean girl at school. He and Alise would be perfect for each other.

  A large man in a bowler hat was at the front door as we walked through it. He grinned at me. I grinned back. His bowler hat was awesome.

  “You remind me of the bad guy on James Bond,” I murmured.

  His grin faded.

  I quickened my pace to catch up with Marcus, tripping from checking back at the look on Bowler Hat’s face.

  Marcus caught me in his arms. “Careful, Aimee, I tend to read into things. A lot.” He lowered his face close to mine.

  “My hands are getting warm,” I muttered and prayed my face wasn’t nearly as red as I expected.

  “Lighten up.” He nudged me. “You’re a lot less fun than you used to be. You were sort of, well, badass. I suppose that’s the way to say it.” He said the word like he had never said it before.