Hillcrest Academy

by Cassie Pierce

  “Language,” Braxton laughs, walking into the room and coming to stand in front of us. He does not seem the least bit bothered by the fact that he just interrupted us.

  Beside me Jaxon lets out a slow breath, addressing his blond brother with clear annoyance.

  “Ever heard of knocking?”

  Braxton rolls his eyes, taking a seat beside me on the tiny futon. A move that squishes his large muscular thigh against mine. I swallow, a little ashamed to admit that being sandwiched between the Lux brothers isn’t the worst place to be.

  “Why would I knock? You summoned me.....” he says with an eye roll that even C.J. would be impressed with.

  Boy has skills.

  Jaxon’s face scrunches up in confusion, but before he can say anything the air ripples again and Ryker appears. This time, it is my turn to laugh.

  Ryker is wearing batman pajamas, and a headset, like the gamers wear. Complete with mic and everything. His Xbox controller is still clutched tightly in his left hand. His eyes find us as soon as his feet hit the floor.

  “This better be good bro! I was on my last life! My last one!” he gripes, waving the controller like a weapon.

  Jaxon tenses beside me. “Did I summon you here?” he asks Ryker with urgency.

  Ryker looks at him like he is stupid, before rolling his eyes. “No shit. Why else would I be here?” he says, like the idea of spending another second with his brothers is painful for him.

  It isn’t the first time that I have noticed tension between the brothers, but it is the first time that it has really clicked for me. There is a story there. A big one. It would have to be, to drive brothers apart.

  Right?

  “Look. I don’t have time for your bull....”

  “Jaxon didn’t summon us. Did you brother?” Braxton says, his sharp mind already assessing the situation, and putting together that something isn’t right.

  Jax slowly shakes his head, a look of worry marring his features as he gets to his feet. He walks to the window, pulling the curtain aside before turning back to us.

  “Well then who in the hell did?” Ryker snaps, gently sitting his controller on the table.

  “Someone powerful,” Braxton cuts in, his eyes snapping to mine for the first time since he arrived. I quickly look away. He still scares the shit out of me, and I haven’t forgiven him for that little stunt in class.

  “Who is more powerful than the three of us?” Ryker asks, serious this time as he snaps his fingers and his clothes change from his batman pajamas to a badass all black outfit.

  I gasp. Ok. Now that was cool as hell.

  “Angel power,” he says with a shrug, turning his attention back to his brothers.

  I seriously hope I get that power. Instant shopping with a snap. Hell yes! Sign me up!

  The ground starts to shake, and I cover my head as wood starts to fall from the ceiling. Apples hit the roof of the once perfect tree house, before crashing to the ground below. Jaxon makes his way to me as the shaking picks up.

  An intense light blinds me, as a wave of raw power washes over us. I try to close my eyes, but even behind the safety of my shut lids the light seeps through.

  “I think we are about to find out,” Jaxon grunts, pushing himself to his feet and taking me with him. He gently picks me up, sheltering me softly in the safety of his arms.

  “No matter what happens next, don’t tell him anything princess. Nothing. You can’t trust anyone,” he says before wings, more glorious than I have ever seen, sprout from his back. They are soft like silk, and each feather is as white as fresh fallen snow. They are massive, and perfect. The wings of a warrior.

  My warrior.

  “I trust you,” I whisper, as Jaxon spreads those glorious wings and flies into the garden.

  ∞

  ~ Chapter 11 ~

  I wish I had more time to enjoy the fact that I am flying! Actually.....freaking....flying! My enjoyment is severely short lived though, when we land in the garden. The power that slams into me so intense that it nearly steals my breath. I can feel Jaxon tense underneath me, and I instinctively know that whatever I see when I open my eyes is going to change everything.

  I am not going to lie. The cowardly part of me wants to squeeze my eyes shut tightly and refuse to open them. Like if I don’t look.....if I just refuse to see....that my life won’t get any more screwed up. I guess that’s the thing about life though. It doesn’t really give a damn what we want, and despite the fact of whether we are looking or hiding, it doesn’t stop.

  So..... despite every bone in my body screaming at me to not do it. To hide just a little bit longer, I put my big girl panties on and open my eyes.

  I instantly regret it.

  Standing in the center of the beautiful garden, looking like a God among men, stands the source of the power that nearly stole my breath. He is at least six feet four, and is all lean muscle over golden skin. Massive white wings brush the ground behind him, giving him away as an angel. His hair is the color of spun gold, and his eyes are the brightest blue that I have ever seen. A soft golden light shines softly from his skin, making him appear otherworldly. Which I instantly know that he is.

  Nothing in this world could ever expend such power and beauty.

  Jaxon gently puts me on my feet, taking my hand in a death grip, and holding on for dear life. Beside us, his brothers appear, folding their wings into their backs as they turn to face the stranger with weary expressions. I want to ask a million questions, but I bite my tongue. None of the brothers have made a smartass remark yet, and that speaks volumes to me.

  Whoever this stranger is.....he is important. Maybe even more important than them.

  “Michael......”

  It is Jaxon who breaks the silence. His jaw clenched tightly as he all but growls the name.

  Michael?

  How do I know that name?

  “Boy,” the stranger— Michael sneers, looking at Jaxon like he is a nuisance that he would rather not have to deal with. He says his name with distain that instantly gets under my skin, setting me on fire.

  “To what do we owe the pleasure?” Jaxon growls, and beside him Braxton curses under his breath. Something tells me that he does not approve of the way that Jaxon is talking to the mysterious Michael. Based on the look of cold pissed off fury on Jaxon’s face, I don’t think that he cares.

  He does not like Michael. That much is clear by the rigid lines of his body, and the tight set to his jaw. He takes a protective step in front of me, and despite the urge to tell him that I can take care of myself, I give him this. Something tells me he needs it.

  Across from us, Michael smiles. It is cold, and calculated.....and wrong. A smile that says I know a secret that really sucks, and I can’t wait to tell you. I hate his smile.

  “Easy boy,” Michael says with a laugh that is just as cold as his smile. “I came for my daughter,” he says, pinning me with those ice blue eyes.

  Daughter? My eyes quickly scan the garden, but a quick sweep only confirms what I already fear. I am the only girl here.

  Shit....

  Then it hits me. The place that I heard his name. The memory slamming into me like a bucket of ice water. Cutting me like a knife, causing me to bleed from the now open wound over my heart.

  “Arise Maci, daughter of Michael.......”

  That was what Jaxon said the night that Ashlee died. The night that death stole my best friend from me. The night that my humanity was stolen with my last breath, and these powers were left in its place. The night that changed everything.

  I look at Michael again, this time not with awe or fear, but with a hatred that I did not realize that I harbored deep within myself. This angel.....this powerful freaking angel is my father! The man who abandoned me! The man who left me with a mother that was so broken that she would rather work than be a mom! How dare he! How dare he come here and demand anything of me!

  “Yeah.....not going to happen,” I snap, unable to hide behind Jaxon any long
er. I tried...I really did, but letting someone else defend me isn’t me. I am a badass. I can defend myself.

  All eyes snap to me as I step closer to the all mighty Michael, but I ignore them. I get it. He is a big...bad....angel boss who could probably break me in half just by thinking it, but I don’t give a shit. He isn’t anything to me. Anything except for the sorry piece of crap who left me.

  “Excuse me?” he asks with a laugh as he crosses his hands over his chest, looking at me like I amuse him.

  “Maci....” Jaxon hisses, trying to catch my attention. I ignore him, stalking closer to the mighty Michael. He looks weary as I get into his space, taking my bony finger and digging it right into his chest.

  “I said no. N-O. It is a word. It means...well....no. nope. No way. I am not going anywhere with you.”

  Michael arches a brow, but it is Ryker who speaks. His rough voice breaking the bubble of rage that threatens to suffocate me.

  “I am going to come back to the whole daughter thing in a minute,” he says with a shudder. “What do you want with our little Maci here?” he demands, stepping forward so that he is beside Jaxon.

  “I would also like to know the answer to that,” Braxton demands, cracking his knuckles.

  “And why would I explain anything to you three?” Michael laughs.

  “You will tell them.....because it is the only way that I am going to listen to you,” I demand, pointing another angry finger into the center of his chest. His eyes cut to me, looking at me much like one would an annoying fly. Jaxon steps up to me, taking my hand and pulling me back.

  “Easy Princess,” he says with a laugh, tucking me easily into his side. I let him pull me away, mostly because I don’t trust myself not to kick my long-lost daddy in the balls.

  Michael releases a long, annoyed sigh, clenching his jaw as he speaks. “Very well. I guess I should start at the beginning. Would you like to know how you came to be?” he asks, looking a little unsure.

  I must make a face, because he burst out into a fit of laughter. “Oh heavens no. Not literally. I mean surely your mother told you about....”

  “Sex?” I finish for him, purring the word just to make him uncomfortable.

  “Yes. That,” he says, clearing his throat as the three brothers fight back laughter beside me. I know I am being a brat, but I can’t seem to stop myself.

  “Tell me,” I demand, putting an air of seriousness behind my voice so that he will know I am not messing around. Michael has answers, and no matter how much I may dislike the sperm donor I need answers.

  “I am Michael, Arch angel to Paradise, and the warrior angel of Justice,” he says as a formal introduction, placing his hand over his heart and bowing his head. “I am also your father.”

  I nod, silently telling him to continue. “I have lived for thousands of years, and for thousands of years I have had one task. I fought beside the Divine bloodline during the holy war, but my mission was specially selected by the Creator. I was given the task of protecting the soul of the fate Jahar. After the fall, the Fallen bloodline became aware that I was in possession of her soul, and they wanted it for themselves. I knew that to keep it with me would be permeant death for us both, so I hid her soul in the one place that I knew no Fallen would ever look.”

  I hold up a hand, really confused about how any of this has anything to do with me? I must not be the only one, because Jaxon voices my question before I can.

  “What is the point of this story old man?”

  “I am getting there boy,” Michael sighs, looking like he wants to hit Jaxon.

  “Where did you hide her? I mean...where would you even hide a soul?” I ask, confused about how that is even possible.

  Michael’s eyes fix on mine as he takes a step forward, giving me time to pull away. I stand still, curious to see what he will do next. When I don’t hit him, he steps forward, taking his hand and placing it softly over my heart. His hand is surprisingly warm, and something inside me ignites with joy at his touch. There is nothing sexual about it. It feels more like getting a hug from your best friend after years apart.

  A gasp leaves my lips as realization settles into my bones like lead, pulling me under. The power I felt before, when I basically tried to drain Bianca’s soul. The power that I was all but certain was not mine.

  “No.......” I cry, clutching his hand as tears spring to my eyes.

  His eyes soften, crinkling at the corners, and for a second I think I see pity there, but he quickly tucks it away.

  “I am sorry,” he says, refusing to look at me. Jaxon curses beside me, and I know that he knows. That he can feel my anger and hurt through our bond.

  Braxton and Ryker exchange confused looks, before Braxton rolls his eyes. “What are we missing?”

  “In a human....a vessel. You hid her soul in Maci....didn’t you?” Jaxon demands, almost shaking with fury has he confronts my father. My father...who only created me to use as a hiding place for his precious Jahar.

  “Yes,” he answers simply, not sounding the least bit ashamed.

  “That doesn’t make sense,” Ryker argues, looking at me like I am some mystery that he can’t figure out. “Maci is like what eighteen? They holy war happened thousands of years ago? If you have been hiding Jahar all this time, how can one eighteen-year-old girl be her vessel? She’s human. Last I checked they don’t live that long. No offense,” he says, looking at me and winking.

  None taken. Mostly because he is right. It doesn’t make sense. If you would have told me this yesterday, I would have laughed. Today is different though. Today I know better. Today I had a memory that I am fairly certain was not mine, from a life that I know I did not live. Except......I did.

  “Because it isn’t my first life,” I whisper, knowing it is true even before I see Michael nod. I can feel it. Whatever power that is hidden inside of me is older than time...older than me. Sharing my body, using it until she no longer needs it.

  “It is true,” Michael confirms, running his hands through his golden locks. “The vessel that holds the soul of the fate Jahar has always been a Nephilim. A mere human cannot contain her power, but a half-blood can. I choose you in your first life from a village in London. You were a pretty little thing, and the only child that I had ever sired. I loved your mother, but I loved the Creator more. I used my power to render you unconscious, and then I used it to merge Jahar’s soul with yours. Except....I did not anticipate the consequences.”

  “What consequences?” Jaxon demands, looking at Michael like he wants to kill him. I would let him, except I kind of want to know the answer to that question as well.

  “By merging your souls, it changed something in you. It made your soul immortal, but not your body. I watched as lifetime after lifetime you were killed to protect the very thing that I cursed you with keeping, and each time you were reborn into a different life. Your face was always the same. Your voice always the same. Your soul was always the same, and it was always merged with Jahar’s. The perfect hiding place. The only downside was that in each life the Fallen found you, and you died.”

  Michael does have the decency to at least look a little sorry as he tells me this, but all I see is red. Pissed off fury that the man who cursed me to forever live to protect someone else’s life would dare ask a damn thing of me!

  Cold laughter beside me startles me, and I turn to see Jaxon, looking like every bit of the avenging angel that he is. His eyes are hard and his voice cold as he steps into Michael’s space. No one stops him. Hell....I am not so sure if anyone could.

  “And you think after that story that we would let you anywhere near her?” Jaxon seethes, clutching his fist so tightly that they turn white from lack of blood flow.

  “No,” Michael says with a sigh. “I imagine that you wouldn’t. Not that you would have a choice. Make no mistake. If I wanted to take her.....it would be no contest. She would be coming with me. I guess it is a good thing for you, that I never said I was taking her anywhere. Now did I?” he laug
hs, looking rather bored.

  Come to think of it...he didn’t. He simply said that he was here for me. That could mean a lot of things. That’s good too, because I have a feeling that the only way that Jaxon would let Michael take me anywhere would be over his dead body.

  “Who is Jahar?” I ask, curious about the soul that hides inside of me. “And why in the hell is she so important?”

  Michael steps around Jaxon, looking at me with a gentleness that I did not know he could possess. He reaches out, taking my hand and turning it so that it is palm up. He stares at it, like it holds the key to the universe. Jaxon clears his throat, and I can feel through our bond that he is irritated. That father or not, he does not like Michael touching me.

  “Jahar was one of the three fates. She was the fate of justice. Her job was to watch the world, and deliver justice to those who deserved it. She was the deciding factor about how someone died. She was beautiful....and kind.....much like you. She provided balance to the afterlife, helping the Creator decide who entered Paradise and who belonged in Tartarus.”

  His eyes are sad as he talks about Jahar. Kind of the same sad that mine are when I talk about Ashlee. Which makes me wonder just how well my father knew Jahar. One look at the tight set of his face lets me know that he isn’t the caring and sharing type. So, I ask him something that I have wanted to know since I first heard the word.

  “What exactly is a fate?”

  Jaxon’s voice answers the question that was meant for Michael. “A fate is the highest angelic power. She is blessed with sight, both past and future. The three fates keep the balance between good and evil. Jahar, the fate of justice. Jahar’s job is a lot like vengeance. Some call her karma.”

  “Lydia the fate of life. She is responsible for each new birth. Some believe she reigns over fertility, but she does much more. She knows exactly how long each life is meant to be, and can so choose to extend or shorten them.”

  “Then you have Delilah, the fate of death. I think hers is pretty self-explanatory,” Jaxon finishes with a shrug.