by Louise Rose
“Boarding school?” I did a double take.
“Yes. Before you started here, we were told that you were transferring from an exclusive boarding school in Switzerland.”
“Seriously?” It is all I can do not to burst out laughing. “Is that what you all think?”
“Well, yes.” Milly frowned. “Why? Isn’t it true? Were you not homeschooled by a governess, hidden away in your father’s mansion until he thought you were old enough to take care of yourself?”
So close.
“N-no.” I laugh nervously, realising that much as I liked Milly, I don’t know her well enough to be able to trust her yet. “You’re right. I did go to boarding school. I just didn’t think Dad would tell you all where I was since it was all such a big secret.”
“So what was it like?” Milly asks. “I always wanted to go to boarding school, but Daddy wouldn’t let me out of his sight for a moment. He said I needed to stay close to home where he can keep me safe. Is it like those Enid Blyton books, you know, St Malory’s and Clare Towers?”
“Malory Towers and St Clare’s,” I correct her. “And no, it isn’t. I had a lot more freedom. I could pretty much study whatever I liked.” Katy always said you learned best when you are excited about the subject. “We were able to put together our own curriculum and choose when we wanted to work.”
“Wow,” breathed Milly, hanging off my every word. “That sounds incredible. It must have been one of those progressive type schools. I wish we were able to do that here. I’d be able to study dress design and business studies so I can set up my own fashion label one day instead of Daddy making me do ‘useful’ subjects like French and German so I can take over the family business abroad one day.” She pales and put her hand over her mouth. “I wasn’t supposed to tell anyone that. Please don’t mention I said anything.”
“Of course not, Milly,” I say. “Your secret’s safe with me.”
Though I’m interested in what she said. So, they have business outside of King Town? What exactly do they all do there?
“What are you two talking about that’s so serious?”
Archer leans over the back of our sofa, his head suddenly between ours, making me jump. His hair looks wild today and I like the look on him. He grins, stretching his muscular arms out as he looks at me.
Dammit, his smile could stop my reckless beating heart.
“Where did you spring from?” I gasp.
“I saw my two favorite girls, and I wanted to hang out,” he explains, coming around to squeeze himself between the two of us. He smells so good too. “So, come on. What are you talking about that has you looking so concerned?”
“Oh, I was just explaining to Milly the horrors of boarding school,” I reply. “You know, the place I went to before my dad whisked me away…”
“Ah. I see.” And of course, he really did. Archer knew full well I have never been to boarding school, so he can tell I was lying to him, but he can’t call me out on it without exposing the details of my kidnapping to his beloved sister who saw him as an innocent teddy bear. “Is it like they say it is, you know, all lesbian orgies and romps with the stable boy?”
“That stable boy is the happiest guy alive,” I shrug, as Milly giggled, eyes wide as she tried to decide if I was being serious or not.
The room goes oddly silent and I look up to see Romy walking in with a girl I don’t know clinging to his arm. His eyes are on me, well, more like how close I am to Archer. His eyes narrow and I look over to see Archer smirking at him. “Are you two friends?” I question as Romy walks off to the seats on the other side.
“No,” Archer’s reply is sour at best.
“They are the kings of the academy. They don’t like each other but they have to get along or there would be riots,” Milly informs me and I chuckle until I realize neither one of them are joking.
“Kings?”
“My brother, Romeo Navarre and Declan Dauphin are the kings of the academy and hold it all with a tight balance. Nothing goes on here without them knowing about it,” Milly tells me.
“Like you being bullied?”
Archer narrows his eyes at me as Milly answers. “I asked Archer not to get involved. I wanted to be brave and deal with it on my own. I’m a Knight and I can’t let everyone push me around or expect my brother to save me.”
“You should have let me help,” he all but growls at her.
“No,” she sticks out her chin.
“Stubborn brat,” he mutters, running a hand through his hair.
“Well, you’re a dickhead,” she huffs and it makes me smile a little to see Archer’s playful side with his sister. A peaceful silence falls between us all.
“So, are you going to Romy’s party?” Archer asks me.
“What party? And will there be stable boys? I don’t want to go if there aren’t.”
That is it. Milly erupted into fits of laughter. Even the oh-so-cool Archer can’t stop himself from smiling at my sarcasm.
“Silly Ivy,” Milly finally replies. “Romy doesn’t have a stable!”
Archer and I exchange a look. Sometimes I wish I grew up in a world like Milly did where you didn’t have to search for the seriousness in everything people said. To search for the lies. Milly has been sheltered from everything in this school, in this town. The darkness hasn’t corrupted her yet.
King Town soaked my soul in sin the moment I arrived.
“Seriously, though, Ivy, you should come,” Archer suggests with a secretive smirk.
“But I haven’t been invited,” I point out.
“It’s one of Romy’s many, many parties,” Archer explains. “You don’t need a specific invite. Anyone who’s anyone is welcome and you’re the embodiment of House Archaic. It’s practically compulsory for you to go. I think your father would approve–it’s always good to see what people are like outside of the Academy.”
“Well, if you think Dad would want me to go…” I sarcastically sigh and Archer raises one of his eyebrows. Shit, I need to get better at acting like I want my dad’s blessing. “Fine. I guess I’m going to a party then. Just what I need–an evening sitting in the corner while everyone ignores me.”
“No one will ignore you,” Milly reassures me. “Besides, you’ll have me to talk to. I can fill you in on all the gossip. We’ll sit in that corner together and make fun of everyone.”
“That can work,” I nod slowly, coming round to the idea.
“Awesome! Why don’t I come to your house before the party to help you pick out the perfect outfit?”
I thought about the bars on my windows and my permanently locked bedroom door. Archer catches my eye and gives a very subtle shake of his head. Yep, my “home” is not going to work.
“Maybe Ivy should come to ours instead?” Archer suggests. “You two look about the same size. You can lend her something of yours.”
“Ooooh, yes! It’ll be so much fun! Come to my house, Ivy. I’ll put together the perfect outfit for you. It’ll be a chance for me to practice my design skills. Please say you’ll let me dress you.”
“Sure,” I say. “If my father will let me, I’ll come to your house before the party.”
Chapter Ten
Ivy Archaic
Before the ‘fun’ of the party that now everyone is suddenly talking about, there is still the rest of the school week to get through and the one thing that makes the Academy bearable is that I get to spend lots of time with Declan. He is as serious about music as I am and the pair of us are determined to write the best song Mr Metcalf has ever heard.
He inspires me to be my best, so when we aren’t working together, I spend all my spare periods in one of the music rooms practising our song. Declan is such an amazing guitarist and I don’t want to let him down by making any mistakes when it is our turn to perform. I have mentioned to my dad about not wanting to risk damaging the Gibson by taking it to school, so he has bought me a second Gibson. I don’t think he really understands that the guitars are so expensi
ve that having two of them doesn’t really solve the problem–it just means I have two guitars to worry about. Having grown up with foster parents who made it clear there was no spare money for luxuries, I don’t think I will ever adjust to having more money than I could possibly count.
It is pretty clear that if one of the Gibsons is damaged at school, Dad would just buy me a replacement, but that seemed sacrilegious to me. Guitars are my life, each one of them having a unique personality. I can tell the difference between my two Gibsons by the way they played, even though they are exactly the same to look at. If anything happened to the one I kept at school, I would be heartbroken. A new one wouldn’t be the same.
Wanting to mix things up a little, I started strumming one of my older songs. It has been a long time since I played it and I realise I can’t remember the words to the second verse.
“Ugh! This is stupid!” I play the chorus again, hoping that if I run into the verse, the words would magically come to my mind, but they are stubbornly elusive.
“What’s up?”
I look up to see Declan standing in the doorway, leaning against the door frame. My heart pounds in my chest every time I see him, even when I’m aware how dangerous he is. Declan doesn’t allude danger, but his name and title at this damn academy gives him away. Under his playboy charm and elusive attitude, lies a hunter who gets everything he wants.
Declan is a king at the academy for a reason…but my heart doesn’t listen one bit. It just sings him a damn song and makes me far too aware of him.
“Nothing.” I wasn’t going to admit I can’t remember my own song to him. He is a god at music and I doubt he forgot a single note to anything he wrote.
“Do you want to play it to me? Maybe I can help.”
Nope.
“Okay.”
He grins before he comes to sit opposite me and gestures for me to start playing. Our eyes meet as I strum the guitar, like two magnets dead set on finding each other. I have to admit to myself…I’m attracted to Declan Dauphin and I think he feels the same way. I tuck my blonde hair behind my ear, wondering exactly what he sees when he looks at me.
I close my eyes when I have to sing, his gaze way too intense for me to cope with and remember any of the words at the same time.
“Let it keep,
I’m strong, but I can’t stand,
The deceit, the games, your dishonest ways,
I’ll still love you.
‘Cos under the blanket of lies
I see you.
And you are always haunting me.”
Just like last time, although I know the chorus, I can’t remember the second verse, so I stop playing and open my eyes.
Declan stares at me intently, something I can’t figure out shining in his eyes. Understanding, perhaps?
“That’s all I’ve got.” I shrug awkwardly. I’m shocked silent when he moves closer, placing us inches away from each other.
“I’m a fucking monster and a liar. You should tell me to leave, Ivy,” he murmurs against my lips. Damn, I’m a traitor to myself because there is no way I want to push him away.
I don’t care. I lean closer and kiss him, gently at first and then with more urgency as he kisses me back like a man without a soul. Like I can somehow pour my soul into his, we battle against each other with each kiss, the connection I felt between us blasting to life and weaving this kiss into my mind forever.
We break apart, but Declan stays close, leaning his forehead against mine. He sinks his hands into my hair and closes his eyes as he takes a deep breath.
“I never do anything for me. It’s always for my family...except for this,” he whispers to me.
“Then own your own crown and do whatever you want, Declan,” I suggest. His eyes look pained as he stares back at me. I know it’s not that simple…this town isn’t simple and I’ve only cracked the surface with all the lies and evil that it owns.
“I’m so glad we teamed up for music,” he tells me, back to his playful self, the guy I briefly saw washed away like a sandcastle on the beach.
“Me too,” I smile. “You’re one of the few people in the Academy who’s actually nice to me.”
“The other girls are just jealous and the boys are mad they can’t get into your pants,” Declan replies with a cheeky grin. “I mean, look at you, Ivy. You’re smart, funny, talented and one day rich. And you will be head of House Archaic one day. Who wouldn’t want to be with you?”
Declan lets me go and I miss his touch right away, like someone just cut the air supply off and I can’t get it back.
“Can I borrow your guitar? Mine’s at home,” Declan asks me and I stare at my baby. Well, it’s Declan…I can share it. I try not to look nervous as I take the strap off and hand it to him. He looks amused.
To my surprise, Declan starts playing my song, the song he has heard just once. It has a strange poignancy being sung by a man. I can really feel the heartbreak in every note.
After the chorus, he went straight into a second verse as if the song is an old favourite of his. Improvising lyrics, what he came up with is way better than anything I could have written. Frantically, I scramble about in my bag for a pen and paper so I can note down his words and use them as inspiration later.
“What do you think?” he asks after finishing.
“It’s amazing,” I breathe, and I mean it. “Just what the song needed.”
“We can submit it to Metcalf instead of the one we’ve been working on if you want,” Declan suggests.
I blushed. “No, we can’t. It’s something I wrote years ago. I was trying to remember how it went when you walked in. I was just too embarrassed to tell you I can’t remember my own stupid song in case you thought I might let you down when it’s time to perform our song to the class.”
“Don’t be daft,” Declan laughs. “Everyone forgets stuff. It’s no biggie. And I really like that song. Nobody would know it is something you wrote before you came to the Academy.”
“But that would be cheating.”
Declan laughs again, but something like guilt flickers across his eyes. “Don’t you get it, Ivy? This is King Academy and you’re the first queen it’s ever had. You can do whatever you want.”
Being called the Queen of King Academy reminds me of my mother telling me an odd story about kings and queens once. I wonder if when she walked around in this school she was someone or no one until a king like my father noticed her.
I want to ask my dad about my mum but I feel like I couldn’t trust anything he told me.
“I still think we should focus on our new song,” I suggest, clearing my throat. “I’m not really comfortable lying about something as important as music.”
“If you say so.” There is a twinkle in his eye that suggests he is mocking me but with his charm, I soon forget it.
Somewhere in the depths of my heart, a warning bell rings clear. Declan is dangerous to me after all.
Chapter Eleven
Ivy Archaic
Just as Archer had predicted, my father thought it was a great idea for me to go to Romy’s party when I got brave and asked him if I could go. He said it would be a perfect opportunity for me to “assess the opposition.”
So now my driver is pulling up outside The Knight mansion and it is very different from my father’s house, all boxy with big windows. I think it is the ugliest building I have ever seen, but I don’t plan on telling that to whoever the woman and man are waiting in the door frame. Gathering from their age, I would guess they are Milly and Archer’s parents. Well, one of them is. I remember Milly telling me her step mum was pregnant with twins, but I never did ask what happened to their actual mother.
Milly’s stepmum has thick black hair, gathered up in a bun on top of her head and slim black glasses rest on her nose. Her cream dress screams designer as well as her tall heels. Her baby bump is quite large, and she keeps her hands rested on top of the bump.
I focus on their dad as the car comes to a stop and my driver ge
ts out.
The head of the Knight house is an imposing man who looks just like an older version of Archer. His skin is a tad darker, possibly from spending more time in the sun, and his suit is a dark blue colour, which makes his eyes almost brighter.
“Miss Ivy,” my driver says, holding a hand out for me. I ignore his hand as I climb out on my own.
“Thanks,” I tell him and walk up to Mr and Mrs Knight with my head held high. I won’t bow down to them because they run this goddamn town.
At some point I have to accept I’m Ivy Archaic and I have my own damn crown in waiting. And when I get it? I’m not going to be pushed over and commanded around like a slave.
“Ivy Archaic. We are happy to welcome you to our home,” Mr Knight speaks first and holds his hand out for me to shake. Every moment with him I get the sense I am being highly scrutinised. I shake his hand as hard as I can to make a point, but he doesn’t let go. “I remember your mother well and she was a great woman. I am truly sorry for her loss and I wish she had come to me in the end.”
“You knew my mum?” I ask as he lets my hand go and stares at me.
“Well enough to see her in you. We should talk when you wish to know where your mother came from and how she changed King Town,” he suggests and not giving me a moment to get over my shock, he takes his wife’s hand and they walk back into the house. I stumble after them into a giant hallway with a monstrosity of a winding glass staircase in the middle of it. The walls are all white and the bright lights in here hurt my eyes.
“Wait!” I call and they halt. Mr Knight turns back to me, his eyes meeting mine.
