by B C Morgan
Okay, not completely unreachable, I certainly heard that one. Someone has claimed me… but who?
“Aeron, you may as well escort Miss Luna Carter to the front with you.”
We step forward, Tucker letting go once I’m in position once more, and the words fly out of my ears as he repeats himself from when Bradley claimed Daria.
“Congratulations Luna, welcome to the family… for now,” there’s no disdain this time, no something more dangerous is coming off him. Intrigue and something that is making his eyes flash every time he looks at me. Something that I’m too scared to name, because I seem to have ended up on Senior’s radar, and I don’t think any girl ever wants to end up there.
20
When the Prince Comes Home
I stand here, waiting to be dismissed, with Aeron’s arm hanging loosely over my shoulders. Emmet’s letter is choosing now to resurface in my mind with how I can choose who to give myself to, only he doesn’t really mean that. Because I wouldn’t choose any Harkwright here, I’d choose the one who got away and made a name for himself, and because of that, I’m going to hold on to it for as long as I can. It also means I’ll be safe from the Prince for the time being, there really is a silver lining in everything.
“Vanderbilt, get the girls out of here. I need to discuss matters with the boys,” Sir says as he looks at his watch once more, and Daria is on the stage wrapping my arm around her shoulders, and leading me away.
There’s nothing wrong with me, but I can’t seem to get my body to communicate with my head. Too much has happened, and I haven’t had anywhere near enough time to process it.
“One moment there Daria, I would like a moment with Luna,” Aeron steps forward but Tucker holds him back, as Sir Harkwright descends the steps and walks down to the last row of chairs. Leaving a seat at the end for me to claim.
Claim, I really shouldn’t want to laugh at that word right?
“I’ll wait for you outside,” D says, I know she doesn’t want to leave me, but she doesn’t have a choice. None of us do.
“A claimed girl cannot stay as a thirty it wouldn’t be right. Your room is much too far from the north wing, so we will have to move you up. Welcome to the top ten,” he looks at me as though I should be down on my knees thanking him, but I can’t bring myself to do it.
“Thank you Sir, although I am more than happy with my number,” I say quietly, keeping my hands under my legs so I don’t fidget.
“Your happiness doesn’t concern me, although there is something I have been meaning to ask you ever since your face looked up at me from the applicant list. It also makes me wonder if you know what a legacy is and why one would never fall to such a low ranking?”
I turn slightly to look at him as a scream rips through the air and even Sir looks startled. He climbs to his feet, the men rushing to stand behind him as he pushes through the doors and walks out of the room. Daria is quick to appear at my side and is pulling me up.
“Come on, we need to move,” she says quickly, and I have to rush to keep up with her as we leave the Academy and head towards the maze. It seems that everyone else has done the same.
I watch as the men disappear within and every girl in this place is waiting, whispering, and panicking. Although, I can’t work out what could have caused such a scream.
“I’m telling you, she wasn’t in the assembly. I haven’t seen her since last night, and the last person I saw her with was…”
“Shut up, you can’t be saying things like that.”
I don’t even know who’s talking, but for some reason that’s the conversation my ear locks onto right as Sir leaves the maze and all but two men are following behind.
“Get this area cleared now,” he bellows as nurses hurry over with a doctor that I haven’t seen before, right as the missing men appear, carrying a girl between them.
“That’s Carly,” her name falls out without me meaning to and Daria grips me harder before pulling me away, even though she was the one that dragged me here in the first place.
“Whatever you hear, just remember that rumors are very rarely accurate,” she looks off to the side before leading me around the side of the Academy, and towards the pool house where I saved Maddox’s life all those months ago.
“Carly was last seen with Emmet, so everyone is saying. I’m not sure how much I believe it, but he’s the last person to see her before today.”
“Hang on, they think Emmet did this?” I ask, feeling confused.
“Either she wouldn’t take no for an answer or he decided to let off a little steam during them getting hot and heavy. I don’t know what’s true, but you should hear this from me.”
“Hang on, how could you have heard this already?” I ask, feeling as though I’m missing a massive chunk here.
“I haven’t, I just know what they’re going to say. I have been around enough to hear the rumors about Emmet and I don’t even know if I can say they’re false. I said to you I never really knew him as a kid. He was older than me and kept to himself. Only girls back then used to say that he got a little rough at times,” she keeps looking around, and I don’t understand why she would say any of this.
“Is Carly okay?” I ask and all she can do is shrug in reply.
“I know as much as you, but the girls are scared and I think I even saw one of the groundskeepers being carried out. They say she fainted, it makes you wonder what she could have seen to cause such a reaction.”
Agreed, it does make you wonder, but all I want to know is whether or not Carly is alive because you sure as hell couldn't tell just by looking at her. If she is… dead, then what happens next? Because I can’t imagine Sir Harkwright would be welcoming if it came down to a police investigation. Although surely they wouldn’t try to cover it up, even a man with his reach couldn’t be capable of something like that. So why do I suddenly feel naïve just by thinking this way?
We’re all ushered back into the assembly hall after ten minutes have passed, and I can’t even imagine how they’re going to explain this one.
We return to our seats and technically I’m still a Thirty-Four, so I go to sit down but my arm is captured at the last moment before I’m pulled into… Aeron. Oh yes, my claiming, the story fairytales are made of. Insert eye roll here.
“You and Daria will be sitting with us, one time allowance considering the circumstances,” he says as he spins me around so I’m facing the stage, and I can see where two chairs have been added. Because God forbid either myself or Daria sit on the two vacant seats already in place.
He really could let me go anytime, but for some reason he keeps hold of me and even as I take a seat beside him he still keeps an arm around my shoulders. I watch as Bradley does the same thing with Daria. Only, she looks more than happy about this arrangement. At least that makes one of us.
Ms. Vanderbilt comes back to the stage, no sign of Sir Harkwright, unless I look to my left and then I can see him standing just off to the side of the stage, staring right at us.
“This is not a Q&A session, so I will give you the relevant information and then you will go about your evening as though nothing has changed. Do not even think about asking any questions, I will dismiss every last one of you if I have to.”
She looks over every last one of us and we don’t say anything, knowing it will only get us in even more trouble. Aeron squeezes my shoulder, but I don’t give into his touch. I stay strong and stiff, and hope that he’ll eventually get the message.
“Carly Monroe was seen leaving the ball in the early hours of the morning, she was not alone. Now I know who many of you are speculating she was with, but until we can confirm or deny it, we will not be discussing that matter any further. Although we all heard the scream over twenty minutes ago, it is not possible that Miss Monroe was the one who made it. We believe the scream came from someone who discovered Carly, we are interviewing the groundskeepers as we speak. Be that as it may, it is highly unlikely that what has befallen Miss Monroe could be con
sidered an accident. It is believed Miss Monroe will make a full recovery but considering the situation, she will no longer be a part of the Academy. We will not be calling in replacements and instead we will carry on with the way things are and we have already assigned your new numbers to you. You will find these in your current rooms once the retreat has taken place, along with any other relevant information should you be required to change your room,” she takes a deep breath in and I watch as a shudder passes through her. Whatever she’s about to say, I don’t think she’s overly happy about it.
“What happened to Miss Monroe is unfortunate but we fully believe it to be an isolated matter and are not overly concerned about a repeat happening.” I don’t believe her, I think she is concerned, but she isn’t going to admit it. “However, I will remind you that you are not allowed to venture out into the gardens after eight pm unless occupied by one of the men, and even then I will advise that even the Harkwright men stay inside after eight pm for the foreseeable future. Although many of you may like to point fingers and assume to know who the culprit is, you must also remember that it isn’t only the men who can cause suffering in this place, and it could very well be a female. Again, this is not to point fingers but you must know the culprit will be punished fully and they will not get away with this unless…” she looks to the side, right at Sir and his eyes are boring into her, not leaving any room for an argument to take place. “However, if this turns out to be an accident, then you should all be prepared to put this behind you and not dwell on things that cannot be changed. Unfortunately, sometimes in the heat of the moment accidents can occur, and we expect you to understand that. Whatever the case, no matter who is at fault, they will be held accountable, no matter what their surname may be.”
She walks off the stage, not even taking a second to look at us, I wonder if her mouth tastes like ash or if her deceit is eating her alive. How can she stand up there and say all of that bullshit? It’s a fucking joke, and I can feel my body starting to shake as my rage builds. It’s only staying in check because of Aeron and his hand kneading into my muscles, which is distracting me enough to keep a hold of my senses.
“One last thing before you leave,” Sir steps back out, and we all wait with bated breath. “I know many of you have already started to accuse Emmet of what occurred, and let me just say that I know what your names are and what you have said. Don’t forget, you may be an Academy girl but I own this place, and I hold your future in the palm of my hand. Any more slanderous comments, and I will crush you and every last one of your pitiful dreams until you are nothing more than a blip on my radar, a piece of trash swept up in an unforgiving sea. You will be torn apart and left as something that isn’t even half of what you once were. I will not warn you again, my son shall not face any more heinous allegations, especially while he is not here to defend himself.”
He looks out at the crowd, and I never thought I would be present to see him ever looking anything other than refined, but his shoulders are stiff and his mouth is parted. I can definitely see his chest moving faster than before.
“The fucking moron,” Aeron breathes against my neck, right as a shadow moves against the wall, only it isn’t a shadow. It’s a person, I’m guessing a man dressed all in black with a hood pulled down low over his head, concealing his face from view.
“What crimes am I being accused of this time?”
The voice that has haunted me, that captivated, and frightened me in equal measures and also… no it can’t be. I have to be imagining things right now, otherwise I’m a bigger fool than I ever thought. No, it’s because of my frayed nerves, besides no one with that much darkness in his voice can be that convincing.
“A girl was found in the center of the maze, there are rumors that she was last seen with you. That you left the ball together and headed towards the gardens, however we will discuss this in private Emmet, go to my office right now. I will be there in a moment, and you will not speak to anyone else until I come to you. Do I make myself clear?” His voice thunders through the room and chills me completely.
“Crystal clear, don’t worry ladies and gents. I’ll be back,” he bows low at this, but I still can’t see his face as he leaves the room. Sir wastes no time in descending the stage and following after. Oh to be a fly on that wall.
We’re sitting in the same room Tucker had me grinding in his lap to prove some point to Aeron, but no one is talking. Well, Bradley, Aeron, and Tucker are, but me and Daria are just sitting here staring at the door.
I have so many questions, is Carly really okay? What happened to her? Did she really go out there with Emmet? Did he hurt her? Do I believe he would? I know I should be able to answer the last one, but I can’t. I don’t know him or what he is capable of and my head and heart still won’t believe what I need to learn to accept. I just don’t know how.
Hours pass with nothing changing, other than Daria being as close to Bradley as possible and I’m trying to keep as much distance between myself and Aeron as I can. My hands are still covered in blood and the sight is now starting to turn my stomach, knowing that I wouldn’t have stopped hitting her if the guys hadn’t pulled me away. I was the one who stopped Carly from killing Chantelle back when we first got here and yet, today I was just as bad as her. How can I claim to be a good person, a better person when I couldn’t stop myself? I should have been stronger, I am stronger so where was that strength when I needed it? Why the fuck did I have to end up being stopped by the goddamn Harkwrights themselves? I just feel so mad, I can’t… breathe.
Standing up, I stumble into the coffee table, someone is saying something but I can’t hear it. It feels as though my head is being held under water and nothing is coming through. My chest is tight, and I can't force the air to fill my lungs as I drop to my knees, my hand splaying out on the floor beneath my head, holding me up as my body fails me.
I can feel nails clawing through my skin and I can’t take anymore of it, I need it to stop. I know I’m being moved but I can’t figure out how or where, until something cold hits my skin. A screech falls out of me as ice cold water pelts over my head.
I’m still struggling to catch my breath, but everything else is slowly coming back into focus. I look down and watch the water hitting my hands, washing the blood away, turning the water red, and the stinging as it hits my split knuckles makes me sigh in relief. I stiffen up as a pair of legs appear next to mine, followed by arms wrapping around my stomach until I feel… secure and safe.
“Aeron.”
“It’s me and you’re going to be okay, you were having a panic attack but you’re safe. I’m here and I’m not going anywhere, not while you need me,” his breath washes across my neck as the water slowly starts to heat up, and it isn’t lost on me that we’re sitting in his shower, fully dressed.
“You didn’t try to undress me,” it falls out through chattering teeth, and I feel his laugh reverberate through his chest as he drags my hair behind my neck and drops a kiss on my exposed skin.
“No, when I get you naked it will be because we want it, not because I feel like trying my luck. Besides, panic attacks are a cross even I have to bear sometimes. How do you think I got started on pot?”
“You are always surprising me.”
“Just you wait, you haven’t seen anything yet. Also I’m supposed to be leaving this evening, but I will rearrange for a couple of weeks, considering the circumstances I don’t think it will look good if any of us suddenly up and leave. That’s more than enough time to figure each other out a little more,” he drops another kiss on me, before standing up and stepping out of the shower.
I turn my head to the side and watch as he pulls his sopping shirt over his head, revealing tanned, toned skin that makes my mouth pool. I can’t stop watching as he slips out of his shoes and slides his jeans down over his thighs, past his knees and over his ankles. His eyes are on me, I can feel them, but I can’t stop watching until his thumbs dip inside his waistband and my eyes choose this moment to
shoot up to his.
“All in good time Little Zero, all in good time.”
“Could you get me something to change into please?” My cheeks are red as I ask Aeron freaking Harkwright to get me some clothes because he got me wet. Ha, gotta love irony.
“Of course, I’ve got just the thing,” he says with a sly grin and a twinkle in his eyes before moving out of the bathroom in nothing more than his wet boxers.
He returns in barely anytime at all with a pair of boxers and one of his shirts, and I can’t believe I’m going to be wearing his clothes. At least it’s only until I go and grab something from my room… right?
“Only stipulation, you wear these in my bed tonight, either that or naked. I’m a fair man after all,” guess that put me in my place.
I take the offered clothes and quickly slip them on before joining him in his room, and sitting down on his king size bed. I’m not even going to think about how many girls he’s had in here, and what he’s done to them. I’d never get a wink of sleep if I let those thoughts take root and fester in my mind.
“Hey Aeron, do you think it was a one-time thing?” I’m not expecting him to answer so him sitting down and placing my hand, palm down on his thigh, is shocking the hell out of me.
“Can I trust you Little Zero?” I nod my head, scared to say anything out loud and change his mind on whatever he is thinking about saying.
“Don’t make me regret this,” his eyes go dark and all traces of the jovial, humor loving Aeron is gone. I’m glad I don’t see this version a lot, it’s kind of scary. Maybe even more so than Tucker and Emmet, judging by what I’ve seen so far. “Carly had severe bruising around her neck, down her arms and her legs. Some are saying it was rough sex gone wrong, but I’m not sure. Either way I don’t think anyone would be stupid enough to do it again and you’re safe. You’ve got Darius, and you’re rarely alone anyway. Just don’t go off with anyone you don’t trust.”