Death (8 page)

"Aimee, you are such a nerd loser. Why are you even here? I know
you're jealous."

I sigh and continue to scroll and read. "Frig."

Blake comes out, pulling a space camp shirt on. "Dude, why are you
here?"

"We have a problem. I need your help."

"So you brought Giselle with you?"

"She's part of the problem." I slump back in the chair,
"Let's say I had an issue with sucking the life out of other people, what
would you say?"

He grins, "That would be sweet. Just like Rogue on X-Men. Is it live
role play day?" He looks panicked for a moment and glances at his
calendar.

I shake my head, "No. Giselle and me are having some issues. Her
with the mouth and me with the hands. She killed Mr. Mac after he tried to
attack her. She sucked his soul out of him. I almost killed Shane. I
think." The words don't feel as crazy as they sound. Like I know they're
true. Somehow.

Blake stops rifling the calendar and frowns, "What?"

Alise storms out of the bedroom at the back of the hall, "Oh my god
Aimes. You will stop at nothing to ruin our happiness. I get that he's more
your type but he said he's liked me for years." She crosses her arms and
glares at Giselle. "Why are you here?"

Giselle leaps at her and grabs her face. Alise screams but her scream
fades as Giselle's sucking thing starts.

The air changes as Giselle sucks from her. I jump in and grab her. I drag
her off and hold her to me. Alise coughs and chokes. Blake grabs her, scowling
at us.
"What the hell?"

I sigh. Giselle turns back and growls. I sooth her, "Shhhhhh. Don't
do this. You'll regret it."

She shivers, "She tastes nasty. Alise you taste sick."

I laugh.

Alise coughs again and shakes her head, "What the hell was that for
bitch?"

I narrow my eyes, "Stop now. Neither of us has a hold on this."
I look at Blake, "You know me. You know I wouldn’t make this up."

He nods and crosses his arms over himself, hugging. "Aimes, you need
to tell me everything."

Alise gets up and staggers, "She tried to kill me and that’s all you
have to say. You're pathetic. You two are freaking crazy." She storms down
the hall.

Blake tries to go after her but I shake my head, "She gets past
things quickly. This is important."

He clears his throat, "Okay. Start at the beginning."

I sigh and start where I think it started, with chocolate soymilk.

By the time I finish the story his face is cold, he looks confused and
scared.

"Do it one more time."

I blink my eyes a few times and then shut the right eye. I wink my left
and think about the other side of the room and then I'm there.

He takes a deep breath and nods once, "I believe you, but I'm having
a hard time with it all. The science doesn’t make sense. You two, why her? I
can see you becoming like this but her? What does she do for society that she
deserves a super power?"

I laugh and look back at Giselle, who has fallen asleep on the couch.

"She will look killer in the leather suit." My laugh is bitter.
My heart is breaking. I don’t know what to do and I know Shane is out there,
with those others.

He nods, "Duly noted. Skintight shiny leather is definitely going to
be killer on her. So no oddly glowing space rocks or weird visits in the night
by strange men and you haven’t been to any test facilities?"

"No."

He grins, "Just checking."

The air warms. The sensation is familiar.

"There you are." The blond man smiles at me. Behind him is the
dark haired girl. She's with a redhead I've never seen before.

"Blake, stay back. They're weird like us." I speak in a warning
tone.

The redhead cocks her head at me and grins, "Aimee, we need you and
Giselle to come with us."

"How do you know me?"

She shakes her head, "Long story." She looks past me and waves,
"Hey Blake."

I look back at him. He shakes his head, "This is awesome." He
almost chuckles. "It's like Doctor Who."

"What are you?"

The dark haired girl with the black eyes looks like she might cry,
"We're the Devil's Roses. We need you to come with us."

I know that name, although I've never heard it before. I take a step
toward them and look back at Blake. "Make something up. Tell them Giselle
took me prom dress shopping so my parents don’t worry."

The others laugh.

I look back confused, "What?"

The redhead shakes her head, "Prom dress shopping."

Blake points, "They know you for sure."

I scowl.

He puts a hand up, "Just saying."

"Dorian has gone to speak to both your parents and told them
stories. Giselle you're going to be filming a movie and getting paid a lot of
money and Aimee you are part of a research grant."

Blake nods crossing his arms, "That actually sounds good."

The redhead smiles at him, "We've gotten good at this." She
shoots a look at the dark haired girl.

A dark haired man, more beautiful than anything I have ever seen, is in
the room suddenly. He grins at me like he might devour me, "Aimee love,
you look well." He has an English accent. It makes his dark hair and eyes
even more attractive. He claps his hands together, "Well, parents are all
done."

My face splits into a smile. I swallow and have a hard time focusing.

Blake crosses the room, "Who are these people?" He whispers
into the side of my face.

I shake my head, "I don’t know. But I know them, somehow."

"I know. Me too. I totally believe all this and I never believe
anything."

The sad face of the dark haired girl is torturing me.

I know her, I know I love her. Like a sister.

The dark haired man saunters toward me. He bends his face and plants a
soft warm kiss on my cheek, "I've missed you." My stomach twists. The
smell of him is amazing, like incense and lust.

My breath gets lost in my lungs. He walks past me to Giselle and scoops
her up. He winks at me and he's gone. Panic fills me. I turn.

"Where did he take her?"

The redhead looks annoyed, "Home." The blond grabs my hand. The
air is warm as I see the redhead walking toward Blake.

"NOOOO!" I shout but it's too late.

Cool damp air and squishy grass are the first things I notice.

"Aimes!" A cute guy with green eyes and dark hair runs at me.
He scoops me up and kisses my cheek.

I struggle, "What are you doing? Who are you?"

His face drops. He raises an eyebrow and looks past me to the blond guy,
"Damn. Both of you?"

The blond guy shrugs and walks up to the house, "I'm out. My father
is nearby." He speaks to an old woman standing on the front porch of an
old mansion.

My feet touch the ground again as green eyes puts a hand out,
"Ben."

I scowl, "How do you know me?"

He puts his hand that’s lingering, waiting for me to shake it, up to my
face. "You are one of my best friends."

"How?"

"Aimee, come inside. We need to debrief you. Giselle is already
inside." The old lady on the porch speaks impatiently.

My feet move, even though my brain argues with them. I trust her. Her old
face and white grey hair reminds me of someone I love.

My cell rings. I ignore it and walk up the creaky old steps. The old
woman takes my hand in hers and pulls me inside.

The house smells familiar. "I've been here before."

She looks back at me and nods, "You have. Many times."

She pulls me to a huge room with many couches and fireplace.

She sits and begins speaking, "Two years ago, in two thousand and
ten, I met you. Dorian, the man who changed you into what you are, was given a
task. He was asked by the leader of the Devil's Roses to create one like him. A
soul sucker, death deity, angel of death, death dealer, whatever you want to
call it. He needed one like himself to end the battle between good and evil on
earth."

I frown, "It's two thousand and ten now. You know that right?"

She frowns and puts a hand up, "Let me finish my story."

I nod and she continues, "Dorian was also asked, at the same time,
to save you. Aleksander had fallen in love with you and needed you to be
spared. The only way to save you was to change you. Dorian was in need of one like
himself so he agreed. He agreed on the condition that Aleksander gave up his
lifetime of useless wandering and become a Rose. Aleksander agreed and you were
changed. Fearing you would begin to understand your own power, Dorian used
threats and cruelty to handle you. You ran from him. That is when I met you. I
was walking past an alley and I sensed you. You were living on the streets,
starving and cold and wet. You had forbidden yourself to kill anyone and thus
you were starving. You had swam into the Portland harbor and hidden amongst the
homeless. I brought you home here and cared for you. It took months to get you
to stop being so crazed and ravenous. Things like you have to eat, often."

My head spins. I don’t know how to argue with the words. They feel like
truths. I can almost picture every moment she has described. I glance at the
floor and close my eyes to listen to her voice.

"Do you believe it all?"

I look at her and nod, "I don’t know why but I do."

She bites her plump lip, "Me too."

I lie back on the bed in our room. "It makes more sense than rocks
from space or science labs."

A knock at the door interrupts us. The handle turns and a guy close to my
age walks in.

"Damn." Giselle whispers. I nod in agreement.

"Hi."

He beams, "Aimee and Giselle. Back from the never lands I see. Did
you miss me terribly?"

I want to say yes. My heart twinges and I have the strangest feelings for
him.

"I'm Sam."

I frown and mouth the name. "I know you."

He nods, "Yup. You know us all obviously, but you and I were special
to each other. Me and you and Ari."

"The dark haired girl?"

He climbs on my bed. His proximity to me is intense. I want to touch him.
"What are you?" I ask. I feel like I've been saying it all day.

He grins, "Nephilim and Siren. My dad was one of the fallen, like
Lorri and Dorian."

I grimace, "They can have babies?"

He laughs. I glance at Giselle who is batting her eyelashes, "So did
you and I, like know each other?"

He grins, "Yes. Of course. We did Roses training together. You both are
my dearest friends."

Giselle scowls, "Just friends?"

I laugh. I feel the same way.

Giselle leans forward and sniffs the air around him, "You guys are
all so hot and you all make me feel, well different."

I turn to her, "Dude."

"Naughty." Giselle blurts out, ignoring me.

"Angels all make everyone feel like that. Automatic attraction. Plus
I'm part Siren. So yeah, it's not going to help you out at all."

"It's the strangest feeling. So intense."

He nods and purses his lips "Aleks has it too. And Marcus."

I frown, "Who?"

"The one with the fangs. Marcus. The OG."

I laugh, "Right. Lydia mentioned him." I glance at Giselle,
"When you were a vampire for a short stint."

Giselle shakes her head, "It feels like fog is in here." She
rubs her head.

I laugh, "I know. Like I can't get past a wall in my mind."

"Maybe Marcus can get rid of it."

Sam shakes his head, "No. We don’t want him to. We still have some
monsters to collect. Ophelia and her brother Tristan and Phillip and Oliver. We
don’t have time for the whole Shane versus Aleks fight." He rolls his
eyes.

I feel a stab in my guts, "What?"

His face reddens, "Oh nothing. You just dragged out the whole
whoever will I pick for about two years."

I swallow hard, "I dated them both? Shane and the big blond guy who
does the flashy thing and makes me feel funny?"

"Yeah, and believe me it was brutal on everyone. I've died once,
Aleks has died once and Ben has died once and Marcus I think once or twice and
all of it could have been avoided if you weren’t such a sucky baby."

His words cut into me.

"Dude, what the hell?" Giselle growls.

He puts his hands out, "No. I didn’t mean it like that. It's just
better with you focusing on work and not boys."

I shake my head, "I've never even dated a boy. My first kiss was a
near death experience for the boy I like and then some stranger on the
beach." I feel sick thinking about it. My face pales, "How is
Shane?" His face comes crashing back into my mind.

His eyes dart, "What? Why? What happened to him?"

I look at Giselle, "Has anyone said anything to you about him?"

She shakes her head, "No."

I climb off the bed and run down the hall and the flights of stairs.

When I get to the kitchen I see something more horrifying than anything
I've ever seen. A dark skinned girl is standing in the kitchen cooking, but I
can see through her. Her body is see-through.

I scream. I blink my eyes, panicking. I close my right eye and wink my
left.

Instantly I'm on the beach. The secret beach. I shake.

"You okay?"

I look at Sam and start to cry, "No. No. I'm not okay. I'm never
going to be okay."

He drops to his knees in front of me and hugs me. His warmth and smell
are more than I can bear. My hands spark. He shoves me suddenly and I'm across
the beach on my back. I groan.

"You can't do that to me. I could die."

I moan and sit up. The pain is fading fast. He walks to me and offers me
a hand. "This was why they locked you up in the room last time."

"Why?"

"You couldn’t control your powers. Let's go back."

I take his hand and instantly we are back at the old house. The dark
haired guy is there. The one with the black eyes and dirty smile. He makes me
think things I shouldn’t.

"Thanks for fetching her, Sam. I'll take over from here." He
walks over like he owns the world and offers his arm. I take it. A spark hits my
hands when he touches me and then we're in a dark room. I gag from the way we
start and stop.

He slides a hand up into my hair. "You owe me something,
Aimee."

I pull back, "I don’t know you."

He grabs me and crashes his lips on mine. My body erupts. My hands slide
up into him. Sparks fly. He grabs my wrists, laughing in my mouth. "Tsk,
tsk, tsk, you naughty thing. If I didn’t know any better I'd think you
remembered more than you’re letting on."

I jerk my hands out of his, "Why? Did I hate you? Did I want you
dead?"

He steps into my face, "You wanted me as much as I wanted you. You
were just stubborn."

I cross my arms, "I'm not stupid. I can feel your effect on me. You
all have it." My stomach aches.

He grins, "You haven’t been eating."

I shake my head, "I have. I've eaten a sandwich and some eggs and
some cereal and a bowl of pasta. I've never eat so much in my life but I'm
starved still." Sweat trickles down my face.

He sighs and grabs my hand. Warm thick air crashes into me like a brick
wall. I pull my hands away, "Okay enough. I'm done with the flashing here
and there and everywhere. Jesus. Stop."

He puts a hand out, "Pick."

I look around at the seedy alleyway and dirty concrete. I step closer to
him. He chuckles and puts an arm around me.

"I'll keep you safe."

The warmth of his body is comforting. My nose catches something. A smell.
It makes my belly rumble. The dark seedy alley moves with something I never
noticed before. I notice a figure staggering towards us. He trips. My nostrils
flare. A guttural sound rolls through me. I step away from the dark haired guy
and immediately notice the sparks in my hands. I snap my fingers making flashes
of light flicker in the dark alley. As the staggering man gets near enough, my
hand lashes out at his throat. I pull hard and fast. I cry out as the intense
heat and seductive warmth fills me in a rush. I drop to my knees next to the
dead man who has dropped to the ground in a heap.

"Oh my god." I moan.

Chuckles fill the alley behind me, "You really are an animal, Aimee."

I glance back, "What have you done to me?" My heart is aching
but the glorious feeling inside of me is too much. It wins out over my guilt
and pain.

"Made you something so strong, even time can't change you back
apparently." He sounds like he is in awe of the horror show in front of
him.

"Where is Shane?" I ask, terrified he has 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?"

I nod and look 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."

His fingers bite into my arm and we are standing on the porch of the old
mansion. The redhead is standing on the porch, as if waiting for us. "It
might be easier to give her back her memories."

The redhead stands, "Do you remember me?"

I nod, "Somehow. I know you but not in a memory."

She shrugs, "Good enough for me. This way is better. No more mopey
Aimee."

I frown, "Hurtful."

She shrugs, "It's the truth. You were god awful to be around. One
minute it was Shane then it was Aleks and then it was Shane and then it was
none of them and you were kissing Dorian here in secret and thinking no one
knew." She rolls her eyes and storms into the house.

I glance back, "Dorian. I know you. I know you all."

He grins, "Not quite as well as I would have you know me."

I blush and turn to walk back into the house. He grabs my arm and spins
me. His lips meet mine. The intensity is there but the hunger isn’t. His kiss
is passion and darkness. I know I shouldn’t kiss him, but I want to.

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

He lets me go and looks over me at the redhead, "Lorri, it can wait
one more day."

"No. Do it now, and stop messing with the plan." Her tone is
sharp.

He steps away from her and then is gone.

I look back at her, "How do you know him?"

Her eyes glass over, "He's my best friend."

"He's a good kisser. Weird and kinda creepy but, wow."

She rolls her eyes and takes my hand, "Come on. I want to show you
something."

She pulls me inside and down the dark hallway. Her hands are hot.
Uncomfortably hot.

"What are you?"

"Angel. Didn’t Lydia explain?"

I nod, "She did. I just don’t get it. I don’t believe in God. I
believe in science."

She stops and looks at me, "He believes in you. Why do you think he
asked me to fall?"

I shake my head, "I can't see it. It doesn’t feel real."

She snorts sarcastically, "Well it is. It felt real on my end. Let
me tell you."

"Can you show me?"

She looks uncomfortable and then puts her hand up, "Lace you fingers
through."

I do it and instantly I am somewhere else. Her voice narrates in my mind.
It's 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 was chasing the sun across a plain in front of
me. It felt like the battles going on in the cities below. Good was chased to
every corner and snuffed out by the dark that somehow always felt stronger. I
wanted to be indifferent to it all. I wanted to watch them kill each other and
not get involved, but I knew my turn was coming. I could feel it in the
electrically charged air all around me. Even there on the mountaintop, the
sparks of the changing winds reached for me. He was calling me.

"Daughter."

I glanced up into the shifting skies, where 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 there, 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 of
us were no longer welcome. None of the fallen could ever enter. It was the last
haven for my kind.

I watched as light slithered silently along the cold stone
columns and floor. It found me, even in the small corner where I stood 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 them. 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 silent 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 filled 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
couldn’t turn away from him while we were loyal. We would follow his desires
and commands, no matter what. 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 be
free.

"Thank you Lucifer. I can 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.

I watched as the light left the room silently. It left me
in the shadow I had been 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 would 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 has 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.