The Second Coming: Rogue Academy, Book One

by Aarons, Carrie

  The headline beneath the photo reads, “The Prince of the Pitch off to Prison?”

  I can’t help it, I flip to the page number the cover story gives and read through the piece. It paints Jude as a constant cock up. Says he is arrogant and entitled. The writer claims that the future football legend cares nothing for anyone in his life and that he is a disappointment to the country. Words like playboy, womanizer, brawler, and troublemaker are used.

  The article paints him in the worst light possible … the author clearly doesn’t know the real man behind this photo.

  No matter how much I loathe Jude at this moment, no matter how he has broken my heart in a million ways, I can’t get on board with this hack job.

  I know the real Jude Davies, despite what the world thinks of him. Despite how he is trying to self-implode.

  35

  Jude

  A scraping noise jolts me from sleep, and I must sit up too quickly, because suddenly it feels like the entire world is tilting.

  “Jesus Christ …” I curse, steadying my hand on the bed.

  My right eye is nearly swollen shut, and the pounding in my head threatens to explode. It wouldn’t surprise me if, at any moment now, my brain matter were to splatter all over the nearest walls.

  Speaking of the walls, and the bed … they aren’t mine. As I twist around, my torso screaming in pain while I do so, I’m met with antique furnishings and old tapestries hung on every available inch of wall. It’s like I’m sitting in the middle of a Game of Thrones set or some shite.

  A harsh knock sounds on the door. “Get up or you’ll miss breakfast and we don’t wait for daft blokes in this house.”

  Barry’s voice comes through the wood, and I groan. Bloody hell, it’s not enough that I took a literal beating, but now I’m apparently at Barry’s house and will have to take a verbal lashing from him?

  Walking into the hall, I glance around. I’ve only ever been to his house, one of those gigantic London brownstones in a posh neighborhood, once before. The whole place is decorated with a style akin to that of my grandmum, and the sound of children floats through the place.

  Children? Since when does Barry have children?

  Making my way toward the smell of beans and bacon, I find the kitchen … and a family of four seated in it. Barry, his wife—whose name I forget—and two small primary-school aged boys. They’re in uniforms with their hair combed slickly back, and his wife gives me a wry smile like she knows I’m about to get a proper lashing.

  “Let’s eat in my office,” Barry says gruffly and picks up two plates, expecting me to follow.

  I do, only because I have no idea what the hell is going on.

  “How did I get here?” I ask once we’re alone in the study with the door closed.

  Barry places a napkin on his lap. “You got into that brawl with Nasri three days ago. After you were arrested and released, you went home and proceeded to drain every liquor bottle in your apartment. I found you passed out that evening around ten p.m. when I basically knocked your door down because I hadn’t heard from you. I took you back here to make sure you didn’t suffocate on your own vomit, or worse, make any other press mistakes. You’ve been asleep for almost twenty hours.”

  “Christ …” I wipe a hand down my face, feeling ragged.

  Barry tucks into his breakfast and doesn’t look at me while addressing the situation. “To say I’m disappointed would be too obvious. You’re my client and I’m paid to fix your mistakes, but, Jude … you really cocked up this time. And you were doing so well. While I do damage control, you have a sit down with Niles at noon today. So best eat that breakfast and then shower, because there is a nine in ten chance he’ll make the decision to sell you. You better put your bloody charm on today, chap.”

  “He said something about Aria,” I deadpan.

  “Who, Niles?” Barry’s eyes are full of confusion.

  I look away, not even able to stomach the thought of breakfast right now. “Nasri. At the club, he started talking shite about me dating average birds. I lost it. I already miss her so much …”

  The emotion steals my voice in a way I never thought possible, and I have to swallow against tears. My life is on the brink of disaster, and the only thing I care about is defending Aria’s honor. The only thing I can think about is how she’s not here right now, and that when she finds out what I’ve done, she’ll think the worst of me.

  Barry sighs, setting his fork down. “Mate, I wasn’t going to tell you this … but I think it’s necessary. It’ll be the kick in the ass you need on the pitch, but also to grow up and tell the girl you love her. Long distance isn’t the end of the world, you know. My wife and I did it for two years before we were married. You’re a fool for leaving Clavering and not telling Aria how you feel.”

  My skin suddenly feels two sizes too small. “Tell me what?”

  “Once the academy heard about the brawl, or Headmaster Darnot more specifically, he … he used it to give Aria the sack. I got the call from them two days ago that she’s been relieved of her duties. And then I got a call from Ian Rethal yesterday, the music label bloke. Seems he couldn’t get a hold of you and wanted me to try to convince you to convince Aria to give an interview. Said she refused because her father is in hospital, but that the interview would help launch her new single. This Ian fellow seemed in a panic, like if she didn’t talk to this reporter, the song might flop.”

  Barry keeps speaking, but I haven’t heard anything past “her father is in hospital.”

  “Aria’s father is in hospital? And she was sacked because of me?” My heart, what is left of it, goes up in a puff of smoke.

  This is all, every single bit of it, my fault. Her father is ill, hanging in the balance if Aria was so distracted that she wouldn’t take a phone call from Ian about an opportunity that could change her life. The hairs on the back of my neck stand up, and bile begins to rise in my throat.

  I’d finally caused the ultimate downfall, and it wasn’t even to myself. Aria’s job at the academy is everything to her. It means her family can live another day, that she can provide food and shelter to her ailing father. It’s close to home, so she can access the campus without a car and can go home over lunch to check on Edward. My delinquent behavior has robbed her of the very thing she needs most.

  “You need to … I need to …” My thoughts are scattered between figuring out how to help Aria, talk to Niles, do damage control on my career, and be with her while her father fights through illness.

  Barry seems to understand and sets a calm hand on my shaking one. “I have already been in touch with Aria’s loan officers, and I’ve pulled from your accounts to cover their monthly expenses for the next year. Don’t ask me how I did it, you’re not privy to know nor do we want to anger anyone more than necessary when Aria, the stubborn girl, finds out you’ve paid all of her bills and then some. But it’s already done, so she won’t be able to argue too much. Next, you need to go talk to Niles. Tell him everything. I will take care of the press, your reputation, and having the charges dropped once I tell the police Nasri instigated it. I have some dirt I’ve dug up that will convince him pressing charges isn’t the right way to handle this. The most important thing right now is cementing your place on the pitch, and then you can go to Aria. Focus, Jude. Do you understand?”

  I knew I employed Barry for a reason. Just his simple instructions seem to bring a dead calm over me, smoothing out the chaos that was about to erupt in my chest.

  There’s one chance to get this all right, and if by some stroke of luck it works, I’ll have everything I ever wanted.

  36

  Jude

  “You’re … early.”

  Niles pauses as he walks into his office, visible shock on his face as he takes in the image of me sitting ramrod straight in a chair opposite his on the other side of the desk.

  “I can take direction. And I know that you say on time is ten minutes late, so.”

  “I do say that.” He
sighs as he sits down in his leather high-back chair. “You fucked up, Jude. Again.”

  “I did.” I nod in agreement.

  Niles Harrington raises an eyebrow. “No if, ands, or buts? No excuses? Well, I can say I expected this conversation to take a very different tone.”

  Shrugging, I look my coach right in the eye. “Those things would do me no good. I fucked up, as you said. It’s been the last of a long line of cock-ups, and I do mean the last. I won’t sit here and tell you the reason I beat his face to a pulp, although it was a justified one. I’m not sorry I did it … but I am apologetic that it was at the expense of the Bock Club and that it embarrasses RFC. I understand that there are going to be consequences, but I wanted to tell you that if you extend me one more chance, I will never besmirch the Rogue name again. I came to London on a mission, leaving everything I love and know behind to fulfill my potential and win you trophies. It’s what I’ve always wanted since I was a boy.”

  “And yet, you’ve continued to laugh in the face of rules and cause havoc left and right.” Niles jaw clicks, and I know he’s getting angrier by the second.

  “I was a reckless youth, I admit that. I’m still young and learning how to be the role model I need to be to those young fans. I won’t sit here and wax romantic … you know there is a girl in my life. Committing to her has grounded me. And before that, I cared for my brothers as the lone adult and authority figure in their immediate family. I’ve taken on far more responsibility than a lot of your adult players, at a time when I couldn’t even legally walk into a pub and order a pint. Struggling with the weight of that duty, growing up in the public eye with so much expectation, it would be tough for anyone. Aria, my girl … she’s shown me that I don’t get to use those excuses anymore. That I’m here, I’m grown, and it’s time to start acting like it. She sure as bloody hell does. I may be spitting out my shite at you, but I want you to understand where I’m coming from. And why I deserve to stay at Rogue Football Club. Moving forward, I’ll be the model player.”

  He regards me for a second as I suck in a breath. The diatribe was not only vocally exhausting but mentally.

  “I’ve given you a lot of chances, Jude. When you were first signed to the academy, I was impressed at the talent in such a young child. As you grew, you kept proving that your style of play was going to be unmatched when the full extent of it could be unfurled on the pitch. In your first match in the stadium here in London, I was floored by your ability. The type of player you are only comes around … maybe once or twice in a lifetime. I had Killian talk to you a while back because he understands where you sit. He knows the pressure his talent puts on him, how it makes the world look at him. And he also knows what it’s like to fuck up and have to deal with the heartbreak that life and scandal bring.”

  I hang on his words, my heart threatening to burst from my chest. And any moment, he can drop the anvil over my head and end my career in London as I know it.

  “One more chance, Davies. Because you’re too bloody talented for me to let you go without exhausting every option. And … I think you’re a stand-up guy, at the heart of it. Show the world the man who confessed all of that to me, and maybe I won’t ride your arse as much.”

  Yeah, right, he gets off on using scare tactics on his players. But I’m not about to argue.

  “Thank you, sir. Truly, you don’t know how grateful I am.”

  Niles waves me off. “Yeah, yeah … now go suit up, we have to beat Milligan today or I may reconsider how lenient I’m being.”

  Now I clear my throat. “I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. And I know I just testified that I would never let you down again … but I have to ask for one more favor.”

  I try not to let my voice waver.

  “What?” Harrington looks down his nose at me.

  “My girlfriend’s father is in the hospital. He’s fighting cancer, and I’d like to be there for her.”

  “We have a match today,” he points out.

  “Yes, we do … but family is more important. If there is anything I’ve learned over all of my mistakes and lessons through the years is that there is nothing above family.”

  Niles points at me. “That is the kind of answer I can respect. Now go, before I change my mind. I expect you back here in a week, completely ready to annihilate our opponent.”

  He doesn’t have to tell me twice, on any of the fronts.

  37

  Aria

  Dad seems groggy when he wakes up today.

  Sometimes, the nurse told me, patients can feel good in the hours directly after surgery, and those feelings can even bleed into day one post-operation. It’s the days or even weeks after that can be the toughest.

  I see that now, on the start of day three in the hospital. He’s irritable, in pain, has no appetite and doesn’t want me fussing over him. This scares me, although the staff here have made it perfectly clear he’s going to recover nicely from the ruptured ulcer. But, as always, I’m a bundle of unspoken panic. The tears that have been trapped in my chest ever since I walked into his hospital room feel like they’re searing me from the inside out. I can’t break down in front of Dad, I’m supposed to be the strong one.

  Unfortunately, in the rush to leave for the hospital, the only things I grabbed were my house keys and mobile. The crappy laptop, a change of clothes, Dad’s favorite slippers … they were all at home. I haven’t showered in two days, and I know I have to log onto the computer to pay this month’s bills. One was due yesterday, and the others at the end of this week.

  Not that it matters … I don’t have enough money to pay them anyway. The last paycheck from Rogue Academy won’t come until next week, and with no overtime, it will be less than half of what we need to keep the lights on. My nerves tense and my heart beats in an unsteady fashion any time I try to figure out how we’re going to survive now.

  “Aria, will you stop it!” Dad snaps at me as I try to fluff his pillows for the third time in an hour.

  I pull my hands back as if he’s burned me. “I’m just trying to take care of you.”

  “I’m the parent, you’re the child. I’m supposed to be taking care of you!” His voice takes on a frustrated note, and I can tell he either needs to sleep or another dose of pain meds.

  “I’m going to go find the nurse.” Ignoring his need to try to cut me down, I walk into the hall in search of some relief for Dad.

  And bump straight into a person who looks so out of place in a Clavering hospital, he might as well be a mystical unicorn.

  “Hi,” Jude says, steadying me as I barrel into him.

  Everything goes still for a moment as I look into his perfectly magnificent face. He’s here, holding me up, looking at me in a way that has tears pooling in my eyes.

  “What are you doing here?” My voice breaks on a sob but I rein it in and move out of his gentle grip.

  My voice must be too loud, or those around us are starting to notice Jude Davies standing in the middle of the hospital because he steps into me and turns us quickly down the hall and slips into the first empty waiting room he sees.

  “How is your dad? Is it the cancer, has it progressed?” Jude asks first thing when I step into the room behind him.

  The anger, the one that overrules the heartbreak he caused, surfaces in bubbling, furious emotions. “What the hell are you doing here, Jude? You have no right to come here, to … to what? Act like some knight ready to save my kingdom from burning to the ground?”

  I don’t need him to come to my rescue. He left without a backward glance … we haven’t spoken in a month and a half. Off he’d gone to London, to fulfill his destiny without so much as a consideration into how deeply I feel for him. This isn’t the time to play the hero, and I won’t let him. My stubborn pride, and my shattered love, will not allow Jude Davies to get the best of them ever again.

  But, it appears Jude is going to fight just as hard as I am. “Maybe I am! Would that be so horrible of me, Aria? To care about you enou
gh to come running when your world is hanging in the balance? I cocked this all up before, it doesn’t mean I can’t correct it! I came here to see how your father is doing, to lend you a shoulder to lean on in troubled times, and to tell you that I am so in love with you that I’ll gladly stand here fighting with your pigheaded ego because I even love that part of you!”

  I physically falter, visibly stutter where I stand as those three very big words come out of his mouth. “You … what?”

  Perhaps I’m in shock because I can’t even form a sentence, much less a thought. Looking back, I’ll wonder if this was a tactic of Jude’s to stun me so much that he just collected his prize and won me over easily. It wouldn’t be a surprise, given his talent for catching his opponent off guard.

  “I love you. It’s that simple, and that complicated. I never should have left Clavering without telling you, and I never should have let you push me away. You’re so strong, Aria. You balance the world on your shoulders and bare your teeth at anything or anyone that threatens your independent struggling. I’m not going to let you do that anymore … and I’m not going to be frightened of how I feel any longer. I’m a grown-up, and since the day I met you, I’ve slowly realized that I need to start acting like one. So, yes, I’m going to be here for you. To check on how not only your dad is doing, but how you’re holding up. I’m going to make sure you both have everything you need, and you can try to bang your chest and make me leave. I’m not going anywhere.”

  Now I crack, coming apart at the seams as Jude scoops me into his arms. Ugly cries, the kind that shakes my core and causes me to use his shirt as a tissue, break free from my throat. Everything comes out; the fear about my father, the relief that Jude came back for me, the knowledge that he loves me just as much as I love him … it all drowns me like a tidal wave.