Death (13 page)

Roland looks sickened but opens the door wide for us.

"I'm sorry." I say in a small voice.

"It is not your choice. Like me, you are but one of the
masses the Rose's use for their schemes."

"Oh, don’t be so dramatic Roland. The good doctor is on
borrowed time. You and I both know it. Before the potions worked, he and Aimee
here had a deal. A deal he is going to honor tonight." Dorian points at
the floor.

Roland puffs out his chest, "She is not a danger to
herself. She is not a danger to anyone. The deal was that he would let you take
him to spare her. She doesn’t need sparing."

I feel badly for him.

Dorian sits on the beautiful sofa and shrugs, "She does
now."

Roland points down a massive hallway, "This way my
dear." His voice is defeated. I've met them all before. I made the deal
when Marcus was certain he could contain the doctor. I walk to the room at the
end of the hallway where the door is closed. Roland taps lightly, "Miss
Aimee to see you sir."

The office door opens after a moment. I flinch when I see the
robust health across his face. He looks confused.

"Miss James. We meet again, prematurely I believe."

I tremble, "Hello doctor."

He opens the door further to let me in. I walk past him.

Roland asks, "Some tea, miss James?"

I look back and shake my head, "No thank you
Roland."

"I'll have some Roland."

"Very good sir."

The doctor closes the door and looks at me, "Tell me
what's going on."

I sit in the huge chair across from him. Tears slip from my
eyes as the story slips from my tongue. I get it all out before Roland is back
with the tea. Doctor Jekyll gives me a long stare and then shakes his head.
"Necromancer. You need a Necromancer."

I frown, "What?" My brain is translating the word but
it seems crazy.

He folds his hands and nods, "Yes. Necromancer. I know of
one in the south. Bad business that is."

He is an old gentleman who reminds me of my father, only
English.

"Raise her from the dead and as she takes her sister's
magic she will be cleansed. The magic of seven good witches over one bad witch.
You see what I mean?"

I clear my throat, "Hanna is the only way to get the
sister's magic."

He frowns, "I think I can help. Tell Oliver to take you
to Momma Holt. They all know her."

Hanna

My phone rings again. I sigh and pull it out. The asshole
behind me groans. I look back and glare. The three calls are from my dad's
house. I press my lips together and lean into Rebecca, "I gotta go. Dad is
calling over and over."
She shoves popcorn in her mouth and nods, "Text me later."

"Yup. See ya." I climb out of the seat and run from
the theatre. I try not to see too much of him but he's insistent that I sleep
over every now and then. He's been sick and as much as we aren’t close, I get
scared when he's sick. I run out to the car and drive over as fast as I can. I
park and run up to the door. Roland has it opened already, "My dear. What
brings you here?" He asks all jolly and sweet. I hug him and notice how
quickly he pulls away from me. He's always so cold. "Lighten up Roland.
It's a hug. You won't die from it." I've been coming over for the forced
sleepovers for a few months and he's still so odd with me. Cold and British.

"He's in his office my dear." He closes the door and
I run down the hall.

I knock on the closed door.

"Come in."

I open it and look at my father who seems robust and healthy,
expectantly.

He smiles and points a hand at a filthy girl with blonde hair
and black crusty stains all over her.

Before I can enter the office a man's voice speaks my name,
"Hanna." I look down the hall to see a sexy guy with dark hair and
eyes and a smile that kills.

I grin, "Hi."

He walks down the hallway to me, undressing me with his eyes.

"I'm Dorian."

"Hanna." I say it, realizing he knows that.

He smiles and looks down. I tremble inside.

My father calls out, "Hanna, come in here for god's
sake."

I look back at my dad and the dirty blonde and shake my head,
"Sorry." I step in. The Dorian guy comes in the room. He stands close
and then looks at my dad, "It's strong. Very strong." He says.

I look at him quizzically, "What is?"

The guy's face lightens back into a cheeky grin, "You
are."

I tear myself from his gaze and look at my dad, "What did
you want?"

He looks stern and annoyed, "I need you to do something
for me."

I raise my brows, "What?"

The blonde stands up, "Go and live with a friend of ours,
to keep you safe." I realize how pretty she is, behind the filth and the
old tear stains.

"Dad? What is she talking about?" I feel weird about
them all, like I know them. I don’t fear them.

Dad stands up and crosses his arms, "These are friends of
mine Hanna. They will be keeping you safe, while I'm away sorting out a
business deal. I've made some shady deals in the past that are catching up with
me."

I roll my eyes, "I don’t need to be babysat. I'm almost
twenty." I'm not surprised about the shady deals though. He's never worked
and always had money. Like a gentleman in an Austen movie.

He taps the desk, "The decision is made. You will go with
them. Now."

I feel anger burning inside of me, "I don’t want to.
You're barely my dad. You can't tell me what to do."

He slaps the desk hard, "YOU WILL GO AND YOU WILL WAIT
FOR ME TO TELL YOU IT'S SAFE TO COME HOME!"

The blonde flinches with me at his shouting.

"I hate you." I burst.

He crosses his arms, "Better to hate me alive, than love
me and be dead."

I point, "Who the hell are they?"

The blonde reaches for me and instantly we are standing in
front of a huge mansion.

I bend and throw up my meal from the movie.

"Sorry." She says quietly.

"Hanna, my love. My dearest precious." I glance up
at the sexiest man I've ever seen, walking from the mansion. Looking up, I see
it's more of a castle.

His arms are out. His smile melts my anger.

The blonde steps in front of me, "I want him done
now."

He sighs and nod, "You really are a pain in the ass,
Aimee." She is rigid and firm in her stance.

The sexy guy sighs again and turns back toward the house,
"Bring her in."

The filthy blonde girl, Aimee, grabs my arms and helps me up.
Panic starts to build in me. I turn and make a run for it across the lawn.
Instantly, the dark haired man is there. He grabs my arm roughly and pulls me
into him. He inhales the air around me, like he's smelling a flower. I push him
away, but he's strong. He winks his eye and we're inside of a huge room. I lean
forward and gag and heave again. I lose the rest of my slurpy and fries.

"Oh dear god. Get Suzette to clean that up." The new
dark haired man claps his hands. I wipe my face, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.
I just want to go home. Please, just take me home. I won't tell my dad you
never made me stay. I'll pay you whatever you want."

They all look at me, like they feel sorry for me.

"Just let me go home." I cry and throw up again.

"Oh for the love of god, this isn’t The Exorcist. Stop
the vomiting." I start crying. I can’t stop. I'm humiliated. The rug looks
expensive and I'm a hostage. The dark haired man looks annoyed and mutters
something about irreplaceable.

Aimee looks at me kindly, "You okay?"

I feel my lip quiver, "No. I want to go home. Please.
Just get away from me." I shake my head and look around, "Where are
we? How did we even get here? I want to go home."

The dark haired man, who I suspect owns the castle steps
towards me and smiles. "All of this is normal for you. You love traveling
by wink. You know all about it all." His eyes hold me hostage. I feel
myself get lost in the sea of words. His soothing voice floats me across the
room and my eyes close. I'm completely relaxed.

I hear the talking but barely register it.

"Bring him here. And Henry." One English guy says.

"Aren't you demanding? Maybe I want to be sure the
merchandise isn’t default. God knows what Ari's done this time." The
snooty guy with the eyes talks with a snooty accent.

"You will not speak of my daughter like that again."

"Guys, stop." I glance up and notice the girl is
between the two dark haired men. She is pushing on them both.

They look angry.

I feel relaxed, even though I know it's the wrong feeling.

"Marcus, bring him out. I'll text Aleks." The blonde
Aimee says.

The men sort of shove each other one last time and then the
one I can't stop staring at is gone. My mind tells me it's normal, but I can't
fight the feeling that I should be panicking.
 

I swallow hard, "Why has my father sent me here?" I
ask softly.

Aimee looks at Dorian, as if ignoring me and tilts her head,
"Fix that. Now."

He sneers, "I don't take orders from you."

"Please."

He smiles the most charming smile I think I've ever seen.
"Is there a chance you'll be grateful for this?"

Aimee crosses her arms, "Yes. I'll be so very
grateful."

He nods once and then turns to me. He saunters over and kneels
next to me. I'm panicking inside, but my brain and my body aren’t
communicating.

He brushes a hand against my forehead and whispers something.
He turns back around and shakes his head, "I can't. She hates him. If I do
it she won't stay. I can't do it."

"She's terrified."

He stands and walks back to her, "Not my problem. I need
my daughter back."

Aimee looks upset but then nods. She plays with her phone.

"Are you monsters?" I ask. I feel like I'm caught in
the spider's web and watching it, waiting for it to devour me. In the meantime
I'm frozen from the poison.

Aimee nods, "We are. We are monsters. Your father is a
monster. Your best bet for safety is here in this castle. There is a man named
Henry here. He will protect you at all costs."

I close my eyes and wait for things to make sense. I'm scared
I will never open them and see anything I recognize from my life.

Aimee

I hate her again. I can smell the siren and it makes me feel
awful. I'm not allowed to tell Sam that she's here with Marcus, but I want to.
I want to give him his chance. The air swirls with warmth. Aleks stands beside
me looking confused, "Hanna?"

I nod, "Hanna."

"Is her father de…?"

"No." I cut him off. "His idea actually."

Aleks looks disgusted, "To bring her here?"

I shrug, "With what's going on she is safest here."

His face is anxious, "I guess. Where is he?"

I know he's waited years for this moment. Dorian smirks at
him, "He's coming brother. You get your rest today. Your vengeance and
then rest."

Aleks looks at me funny. He looks confused about something. He
stands so close to me the backs of our hands brush against each other.

"Marcus never told me you were coming over Aimes." I
glance up to see Shane strolling out from the back hallway.

I clear my throat, "It wasn’t a scheduled visit. I'm here
for Roses business."

He looks so handsome, so perfect. He glares at Aleks and then
turns his face to mine and smiles again. I would hardly know him he is so
different. So prefect and calculated. He is like Marcus. I cringe imagining the
things he has done since I killed him. I can't imagine the amount of guilt I
have spilled all over my face.

"I've missed you." He says.

Dorian snorts.

"Well, you knew where I was." I say curtly. I don’t
want to have the conversation with Aleks and Dorian and sleeping Hanna in the
room.

He takes a step toward me and puts his hand out, "Come,
take a walk with me. I need to talk to you."

I hesitate and then put my hand in his. I let him pull me
away. It's not for the reason he wants it to be. It's guilt. I have a hard time
denying him because of the guilt.

His hand is warm and firm. It feels the way I remember, the
way it felt years ago.

I try not to see the boy I loved. I try to make myself see the
animal I have made him into.

He smiles and nudges me, "What's on your mind?"

I frown, "You asked me to come."

He shrugs, "I don’t like how that lug Aleks looks at
you."

I shake my head and look down, "He doesn't look at
me." The lie feels weird crossing my lips. I know he looks at me. He does
it all the time. Ophelia did something to him.

"He does and you know it." He grabs both my hands
and spins me around to face him. He plants his lips on mine. The kiss is forced
and rough. I try to push him away, but he forces it. I pull slightly with my
hands, zapping him almost. He snaps out of it and steps back, looking hurt.
"What was that for?"

I wipe my lips, "You didn’t have my permission."

His eyes darken, "Will I ever?"

I don’t hurt the way I used to when I'm around him. The guilt
and anger at myself are there, but I see it. The truth. I didn’t mean to do it.
I'm a victim of the circumstances as much as he is. "No. You won't."
I say with a great deal of tension I my voice.

He grabs my arms, "Why?" He shakes me and growls.

I pull back, "Screw you." I shove him against the
wall. He cracks a painting when he hits it. The frame breaks and the painting
drops to the floor. The lit wall sconce flickers from the vibration. It
flickers light across his face and fangs. He looks sexy and devastating all at
once.

"Tell me what I can do to fix things?"

I shake my head, "Shane, I liked the school boy you were.
I liked you for years. Years. But in the last couple we have become people that
don’t match anymore. You kill things for food and so do I, but I maintain a
strict diet. You feed off humans like they're cattle. I am against the things
you do. We can never make a relationship out of that."

His brow stitches together, "I love you still."

I shake my head, "You don’t. You don’t even know me
anymore. I'm not the same girl. You and me were always doomed. It doesn’t
matter how many times Ari messes with the time, you and I don’t work. We never
have and it's time we grow up and move on."

He snarls, "I don’t want to move on."

I grimace, "You have already. I can smell her on
you."

His face drops. He smiles sweetly, "I have to eat
Aimes."

I shake my head, "Not like Marcus you don’t. You chose
that." I turn my back on him to leave. He grabs my arm and drags me back.
He pulls me to a room and slams the door. I struggle to get away from him.
Memories of Oliver attacking me flood my brain. I shove him hard. He staggers
back. I point at him, "If you touch me again I end you. Childhood together
or no."

He smiles at me sadistically. I don’t know him anymore. Just
as he doesn’t know me.

I wink to the main hall. Tears have flooded my eyes. Aleks
looks at me concerned. I shake my head, "I'm fine. Just finishing something."

He takes my hand in his and squeezes. Marcus walks into the
room behind Henry. He walks holding a man that looks remarkably like Aleks,
only older

Henry shoves him into the middle of me, Aleks, Dorian and
Marcus.

I look for it. The monster. He is apparently out of control. I
always try to see the monster when I take their lives.

He looks normal, smug but normal.

He smirks at Aleks, "Aleksander, my son. It's been too
long. You never visit."

Aleks stands tall, "I need to say something to you."

His father grins stupidly.

Aleks steps into his face. "I forgive you for ruining my
life. For making it so I was cursed alongside you. For destroying everything I
held dear. For shaming me and making everyone think I hurt that woman. I
forgive you for being weak and pathetic. May the gods take a small measure of
pity on you. The small measure you never gave anyone else. Any of those
girls." He grabs his arms and plants a kiss on his father's cheek.

The man's face turns bright red. "You always were a weak
pathetic little shit." He growls and twitches. He makes a movement toward
Aleks, but Dorian is there in a flash. He grins, "I would like to say fuck
you, you asshole wanker. You never were the father you should have been to my
brother there and you have never deserved a son as remarkable as he is."
He pulls back and punches him in the face. The man's head snaps back. He comes
back with ferocity, but Dorian has already winked away. The man snarls and
twitches as the monster tries to get out. He looks the way they all do, when I
kill them.

My palms are burning with the need.

Aleks grabs my hand and an amazing thing happens. I suck from
him. I remember the way it was on the beach. The way he fed me back then. He
bends down while I suck from him and kisses my cheek. His father's face breaks
into a grin that’s full of contempt. "I don’t believe you introduced me to
your lady friend Aleks."

"I never will father."

Marcus grumbles, "On with it then Henry. Get your
revenge."

Aleks squeezes harder, "If I disappear with him, I need
you to know I have loved you with all of my heart for a very long time. I have
loved you everyway possible. As a girl, as a Rose, as a lover and friend."
My heart stops beating, I'm sure it has. I never realized that with the death
of his father he could go too.

I turn to face him, squeezing his hands, "I don’t
remember loving you but I know I do. I know I have."

He nods. We ignore the huge hands reaching for his father and
the bright white light of the magic neither of us has ever seen before. We stare
at each other. I hold my breath. His father screams, painfully. The room swirls
suddenly, with the electrically charged air and voices, girl's voices. Tears
stream down Aleks's cheeks. He grips me harder. He closes his eyes. The voices
become whispers. Gratitude and kind words.

They swirl above us in a storm like a tornado. The paintings,
drapes and lamps tremble with the movement. My hair is sucked up inside of it,
but my eyes never leave his face. I'm terrified he will be gone and I will
never have the chance to fall in love with him again.

The air becomes completely still. It stops so suddenly, I
almost feel an impact from it.

Aleks's hands grip mine. He opens his eyes one at a time. The
intense light, that never seemed real, is gone but the icy blue color remains.
I squeeze his fingers. He smiles a crooked grin making my heart beat start
again. I sigh and let him envelope me. Dorian rips him from my arms and hugs
him.

Marcus rolls his eyes, "The women are free."

I glance over at Henry. He stands perfectly still. A
transparent woman is before him. She kneels and offers her hand. He takes the
ghostly white hand in his, "Stand niece." Henry whispers.

Marcus looks confused.

Aleks looks sick.

The girl's head lifts. She looks toward Aleks and smiles,
"I forgive you." She whispers.

He bows his head, "I'm so sorry." His deep voice is
a whisper as well.

The girl turns back to Henry, "Let them all rest
uncle."

Henry nods once and she is gone, but the blue ghosts that look
just like Ophelia are there. They look the way she did.

Dorian nods, "Ophelia's body will be brought to the
Necromancer when it's all worked out. Aimee is about to go there. Oliver is
there already. It's being done. Be ready. You can't go near the dark witches
but when the necromancer raises her, you will need to release your power upon
her before she uses her dark magic."

They nod their heads and are gone again.

I lean in and look at Hanna. She has her eyes closed still.

Aleks sighs and looks around, "This is what it feels like
to live. The forlorn feelings that weighed me down are gone."

Marcus crosses his arms, "Time to go. I'm certain you can
have this conversation elsewhere."

Aleks laughs, "You're such an arse Marcus."

Dorian looks at me, "Go where the doctor showed you.
Oliver is there already. This lug and me are going to go guard O's body. Lorri
is with Sam chasing down Jonathan and Giselle is with the wolves and Phillip
and Tristan at Lydia's. We are meeting back there."

Aleks cups my face and turns it to his, "Be safe."
He looks like he's going to kiss me but he doesn’t. He steps away with Dorian
and then they're gone. Marcus watches me for a moment. "You know he's only
attractive because of the curse. The curse makes you love him."

Henry shakes his bowler hat covered head, "Curse broken."

I furrow my brow, "Broken? No more magic smell and weird
aphrodisiac on his skin? No more angel irresistible weirdness?"

The bowler hat shakes again, "Curse broken."

I'm stunned, "But I smelled. I smelled it just there. He
was going to kiss me and I felt that same feeling." I touch my lips with
my finger and wink before Marcus can mock me.