Beautifully Unnatural: A Young Adult Paranormal Boxed Set

by Amy Miles

  No, I won’t leave. Not this time.

  “Catch any bad guys today?” Gabby asked. Bringing up his job was always risky, but she couldn’t think of anything else. She’d learned to hate the government over the past few years with all the moves and secrecy.

  “Not today, but I’m close.” He sighed heavily and wiped his palms down the front of his dark green pants.

  So far, so good.

  She inched forward. “Dad, couldn’t you take a break? I know your job is important, but I want to stay in one place for a while. No more name changes, or moves.” She took another step toward him. “Please?” Her insides curled around her desperate hope and she willed her father to understand.

  “Gabby, we’ve been over this a hundred times. I have to do this—”

  “The government can find someone else, can’t they?” Her heart began to beat faster.

  “Not with my unique skills. There are few with the military and civilian skills I possess,” her father retorted, clutching his knees.

  “What does that mean? How many different ways is there to kill a bad guy?”

  His brow furrowed as he glared at her. “I’m not getting into this again. I have a job. It pays the bills. I keep you safe. End of discussion.”

  Wanting the conversation to end without another declaration of danger being just around the corner, the news of another forced midnight move, she turned to leave. “Fine. I’m going to shower then start dinner. You going to be home tonight?” She paused but didn’t look back at him, hoping he’d feel guilty for leaving her home alone, again. She’d use any weapon in her arsenal to stay put for awhile.

  “What do you think about attending school this year?”

  She whipped around, staring at him, convinced he was only teasing her. She hadn’t attended public school since the age of ten when her mother began homeschooling her. Cookies and milk, laughter, and plenty of hugs were all part of the school day with her mom. Reading became adventures with play swords and princess tiaras. Her heart ached, remembering how her mom would stroke her hair while she sat at the kitchen table working on math problems. But now the seat next to her remained empty.

  After the accident, her father hadn’t seen a point in putting her into public school when he’d only have to pull her out again a month later, but she’d always hoped. Homeschooling without her mother was depressing, and lonely.

  “You mean it?” Gabby hesitantly stepped toward him again, afraid any movement would shatter her father’s words, still hanging in the air.

  His gaze held hers and then he said, “Yeah, I mean it.”

  Gabby took two long strides and lunged forward, throwing herself into his arms. She’d never done that before, not with him. Those were Mom hugs. But her happiness at his declaration was too much for her to contain.

  She pulled back and looked into his face. Deep creases lined his eyes and his mouth was stretched wide into a grin. He slugged her shoulder playfully, like a father would to a son. He’d always been awkward around her, not quite sure how to interact with a daughter, especially after her mother’s accident. But finally maybe he was trying.

  She shuffled backward, knocking into a side table. “Thanks, Dad. I’ll do great, I promise.” She pivoted and ran upstairs before he could change his mind, biting her lip to keep from squealing with happiness.

  Closing the bathroom door, she fell against it. Was it a dream, or did her dad really just give her permission to attend school? Would she really be able to hang out with people her own age for the first time in six years?

  Did Sammy and Alexander go to the local school? They appeared to be about her age.

  She took a long, deep breath. Fisting her hands to her chest, she recalled how happiness had penetrated the darkness inside when Alexander had touched her. How she thought she’d lose herself in his blue, caring, yet tortured eyes.

  Yanking a towel from the slanting shelves that served as their linen closet, she tossed it on top of the chipped counter. Finally, her father seemed human again. He’d actually smiled after she hugged him. How long had it been since he’d smiled? A year? Maybe this town wasn’t so bad after all.

  She leaned over the tub and cranked the old handle, causing water to sputter from the showerhead. Removing her shirt, Gabby noticed a small, puffy, zigzag pattern on her abdomen, and she traced the stinging mark with her fingertips. Her ankle also burned with another reddish bruise, like a handprint wrapping around her leg.

  She stared at the bruise on her ankle and that all too familiar zing of electric warning shot through her. She knew she hadn’t been tangled in any weeds. Something was out there. Creatures, come to life from her night terrors. The ones she woke from, soaked in sweat.

  Shivering at the flashback of orange eyes and rippled skin, she hugged herself. She’d been so sure she was just having another episode, but hallucinations didn’t leave behind raw, stinging bruises. Did they?

  Her lungs tightened and she fell back against the door, gasping for air. With a hand held to her pounding heart, she slid down to her butt and pulled her legs into her chest. Smell of burned flesh, screams in her head and bright light shocked her system into stuttering with strings of maddening electrical pulses through her body. The overwhelming sense of death slammed into her like a wrecking ball.

  “No, not now.” She closed her eyes and willed the panic attack away, but once it started it was too late.

  The images of their arms around her torso strangled the air from her body. If the dark shadows she’d encountered out in the ocean were anything like the ones in her dreams, then they were evil and deadly, but were they real?

  ****

  The minute darkness fell, Alexander stood at his window. An entire world waited beyond the tree line. Maybe Grace was right and he could fly, if he let go of his grief. But how could he let go of the images of the woman’s death? Her gasps of white air in the dim light of the moon as she lay surrounded by blood stained snow.

  He ran his hand through his hair and teetered on the edge of the window molding. Time to test if his powers really were returning. Heaven’s stamp of approval to protect Gabby…his second chance.

  He concentrated on opening his skin and bones to free his wings. The top of his ribs shook. His breath lodged as if his wings filled the space between his spine and ribs, collapsing his lung. Tension took hold of every muscle, vibrating against the strain. Fear crept in, but he shoved the thoughts of failure from his mind and willed the lock of his human body to release.

  Cracks echoed in his ears as muscles and bones elongated painfully. A feathery light touch brushed through his insides causing him to shudder. As if burned by the sun, a thick line etched down both sides of his back, and he gasped with hope. The thin line opened with scalding pain that warned him to stop, but he didn’t listen. If he could free his wings, he could free his soul. Flexing his back and upper arms he arched forward, rounding his shoulder blades apart and forcing the pressure out of his torso. With a sharp release of air, his glorious wings shot from his body, shattering something behind him in his room. He didn’t care, it didn’t matter, he could fly. He took one large step out the window and glided to the ground. With the freedom of space around him, he elongated his wings and reveled at their power. Good thing angel wings didn’t atrophy.

  The darn brown mutt darted from around the front of the house and barked at him. He jumped in the air as if to ask to take him for a flight, but Alexander ignored him.

  He looked down the length of his right wing and watched it ripple. With a deep breath and a flutter of his wings, he pushed off from the ground, only to land a few feet ahead.

  He kicked a rock and sent it sailing down the sand dunes into the ocean. The dog raced after it, halting at the water’s edge. He closed his eyes and drank in the sea’s night air then launched himself toward the sky.

  With determination, he soared toward the clouds and broke through the white fluff in the sky. He tasted the damp air and the cool breeze swept through his hai
r. He fought the muscle spasms calling him back to the ground and continued. His heart lifted higher than he flew, he was free. He’d earned his wings back.

  Grace could’ve been right, but it could also be a sign from Heaven.

  He reveled in the joy and freedom of flying. The wind caressed each feather as he circled around skimming treetops.

  He spotted the rooftop of Gabby’s lone house in the woods. Diving into the shadows of the trees, he landed silently on the soft grass. Unable to see her from his position, he relaxed, allowing his angelic gifts to lead him, and felt her stirring in her sleep. He leapt deftly up the branches of a tree a few feet from her house, quickly climbing until he spotted her through the bedroom window.

  She cried out, but he didn’t sense anyone inside the dimly lit house. His hands shook and his insides hummed as he felt her toss and turn in despair.

  It was happening again. It had to be his powers. There was no other explanation for this feeling, despite what Grace said.

  Concentrating on her mind, he located the negative energy invading her dreams and reached deep inside. A vibration rolled through his body, exiting his hands, and she settled into a deep sleep. He’d calmed her dreams. If his powers were truly returning, then the ability to heal wouldn’t be far behind.

  A dull ache welled up within him as he jumped down from the tree and paced back and forth outside the home. What was this? Why was he feeling so agitated? It had to be a warning. Danger approached.

  The hair on the back of his neck stood up as everything went silent. His stomach lurched as the pungent smell of rotting fruit assaulted his nostrils. There was only one demon with a smell that rank.

  “Alexander,” a smooth voice called from above, enunciating each syllable of his name. Forras leapt down from the ten-foot high branch of an old oak tree, landing in front of him. “Since when does Alexander Lohr fly?”

  “Am I supposed to feel honored that you’ve taken an interest in me today, Forras?” Alexander gritted his teeth, suppressing his hatred. It wouldn’t do any good to give into the anger and lose focus.

  “Boys? Does anyone notice something different about Alexander?” Forras glanced up toward the canopy and Alexander could hear snickering. “I think he might be ill.” Forras looked back at Alexander, his expression set in mock concern. “Is there anything I can do for you?”

  Alexander met Forras’ gaze, hardening his features and refusing to react to Forras’ taunting. Despite the demon’s large athletic build, he moved with the grace of a gymnast. It wouldn’t be wise to engage him in such a confined environment.

  “You appear a little flushed,” Forras continued, unfazed by Alexander’s silence. “I hope… no, wait a minute, I know what ails you. It’s obvious.” A sneer spread across his thin lips. “You’re in love. You’ve fallen—pardon the pun—for that little blond human.” Eerie chuckles echoed through the woods around him.

  “Are you finished?” Alexander said, forcing his voice to sound indifferent. As he made his way around Forras to leave, the other three jumped down from nearby trees. Fists clenched at his side, a hot flash ran through his body. He was just itching to take them on, to vent some of the frustration that had been building since this morning. But if he started a fight here, there could be collateral damage. Maybe even Gabby.

  “Alexander thinks he’s so much better than us.” Forras and the others closed in around him. “Who do you think you are, spoiling our fun this morning? What does one little human matter anyway? You should just stay out of it and let us have her.”

  Alexander’s blood boiled. “Stay away from her, Forras!”

  He threw his head back and laughed. “There, that’s better. I told my friends here that you’re too pure and perfect to get involved with a human girl. But do you know, they didn’t believe me? They wanted to know what’s so special about her.” Forras glanced up at her dimly lit window. “So, what is it? Her bright blue eyes, her tight body—”

  “There’s nothing between us,” Alexander ground out.

  Forras jumped in front of him. “You think you have some sort of higher purpose here on Earth? Wrong. You’re only one step away from becoming a demon, just like us.”

  A tickling of doubt slithered into his soul like a snake into a rotted out tree. No, his soul was pure and he’d never follow the path to the underworld. “You’ll never turn me. I’m nothing like you.”

  “It’s not you I’m thinking of turning.” His lips curled, revealing crooked yellowed teeth. His demon teeth, not the perfect white ones he displayed to humans. Forras pivoted on his heels and jumped to a branch six feet overhead. The mangrove and oak trees swayed, producing a creaking sound that radiated through the woods.

  “I told you to stay away from Gabby,” Alexander warned.

  “Gabby? Hmm, I like that name. It sounds… spunky.” Forras stared down at him with a wicked grin. “It was fun playing with her, but she isn’t the one I’m referring to.” He jumped from the tree, landing on all fours, then stood erect before him. “Have you seen your little Sammy lately?”

  Rage surfaced with an explosive desire to attack. “Touch her and I’ll—”

  “It’s her choice, not yours. But I’m not the one that’s going to win her over. Boon is with her right now, on the beach outside your home, whispering sweet nothings to your little sister,” Forras drawled.

  Alexander spread his wings, but hesitated, glancing back at Gabby’s house. He could protect one or the other. Going to Sammy would leave Gabby defenseless.

  Forras stepped back and leaned against a tree. “Torn, are we?”

  It would only take a moment to reach the beach and return but that would still give Forras time to do some real damage.

  “I’ll make a deal with you.” Forras gave a derisive smile.

  “No deals.” Alexander snapped back.

  “Not so fast.” Forras looked at the other demons. “Gabby’s off limits for tonight. After all, we don’t want to miss Boon and Sammy getting it on at the beach.” Forras turned, removing his high school letter jacket. His shirt shredded into long strips of dark blue cloth as massive gray biceps and monstrous shoulders exploded through the fabric. Two horns on each side of his head shot up and red eyes shone for a moment before Forras turned mid-transformation, saluted Alexander, then bolted into the woods. The others followed.

  Alexander took flight with such speed leaves were knocked off the large oak tree and floated toward the ground. Racing along the canopy to avoid detection, he punched at the air, swearing under his breath. He grabbed the top of a tree and tore it from the ground, roots and all. A loud crash echoed, followed by dirt and dust erupting from behind him.

  A cyclone of sand rose into the air when Alexander landed on the beach. Boon and Sammy were tumbling around on a blanket, arms wrapped around each other in a kiss. Boon’s small, pasty white frame was on top of his sister, his glasses resting on the edge of the blanket.

  Alexander’s jaw twitched. His hands wrapped around Boon’s throat, throttling him.

  “Alex, don’t.” Sammy’s wings exploded in a spark of rose light and she took flight, landing beside them. “Alexander, I promise. Nothing happened. We were just talking.”

  “Talking is how they win you over. Don’t you know that? Haven’t you listened to anything I’ve said?” he bellowed.

  Sammy jumped at the sound of his voice echoing across the ocean. She moved slowly toward him, her wings still outstretched, obviously ready to fight in Boon’s defense if needed.

  “It’s my fault. I asked her to meet me here,” Boon snapped.

  His brow arched at the entreaty in Boon’s voice. “Shut up. No one asked you.” Alexander released Boon with a shove.

  Boon rubbed his throat as he stepped back, putting distance between them. Then he reached down to retrieve his glasses.

  Alexander turned on Sammy. “Why would you fight your own brother to save this demon?” A demon that hangs with Forras. He swallowed, his words caught in an iron trap of f
ury and remorse.

  “He didn’t do anything wrong. Never once did he try to seduce me, or attempt to convince me to be one of them.” She took a cautious step toward her brother. “He isn’t happy with the others. He’s different. If you give him a chance, you would see—”

  “Never! And you will never talk to him again. He’s a demon. They’re all the same. I swore to protect you and that’s what I’m going to do. I’ll make up for our fall and earn our right back to heaven.” The muscles in his face twitched with rage as he turned to face Boon. “You will stay away from my sister or you will die.”

  “You must not. Such a sin would destroy you. Murder leads down a dark path,” Boon said in a calm, hushed voice, his brown eyes wide as though he spoke from experience.

  “Boon’s right,” Sammy whispered. “You swore to protect humans. You believe we were put on this Earth to protect them. If this is true, you have no right to pass judgment.”

  “I didn’t have to pass judgment to know that he is not innocent. And I will risk everything to protect you.” Alexander stepped closer, laying his hands on her shoulders.

  Sammy looked up at him, her expression pained. “Isn’t protecting me what caused us to fall in the first place?”

  Chapter Four

  Gabby awoke refreshed and ready for a new day. She couldn’t remember the last time that happened. Since the death of her mother, she had to concentrate on just getting out of bed, but today… today she was different. She would have people around instead of being alone. Maybe even have a real friend for the first time in forever.

  Inspiration for a new piece hit her the minute she opened her eyes. She pulled her art supplies from an old trunk her mother had given her. Then she perched on top, sitting cross-legged with her drawing board on her lap.

  The colored charcoal pencils seemed to have a mind of their own as the picture took form and life. Exhilaration filled her.