Bloom: The Kingdom of Archer Series: Book I

by J Rose

  A long time ago maybe things would have been different had she stayed in our lives. It had been a long time since I thought about my mother. I hadn’t allowed myself to do so. Mostly because of the feelings that came with it. Before Lyric, before any of this mess. There were examples. Often I’d see soulmates walking together looking happy and in love. Then there were my parents. The kingdom looked up to them, loved them. For a really long time, things seemed okay. I would see her from my room and she would always sit by the flower beds reading, knitting, or simply just relaxing. She would never talk to us, look at us, or acknowledge us. The only time she ever paid attention was when we were around the council or had celebrations. Spencer and I would always look forward to parties. Mainly because it was the only time we could run to our mother hug her and she would reciprocate our affection. Spencer was five, and I was seven when she had walked away. That was something I could never forget.

  #

  The halls of the Archer Mansion were empty. Not a maid, butler, or any kind of servant remained in the mansion. Standing upstairs holding on to the rails of the steps Parker stood quietly holding Spencer’s hand. In the middle of the living room, his mother was standing holding a suitcase in each hand tears in her eyes while King Thomas stood in front of her.

  “I can’t do this anymore; the pretence. Having to live a life I didn’t ask for. A life that was forced on me by my parents,” Queen Annabelle cried.

  “They lied to me. They made me believe that I would be happy. But he’s alive Thomas. I know I lied to you but I can’t keep doing it anymore,"

  “He’s a bad man Annabelle.”

  “I love him. It’s stronger than anything I’ve felt before. It’s not something I can control. That any of us can control. Please try to understand.”

  “What about our children! You can’t just leave them behind.”

  “Even if I wanted to take them, Thomas. He would never accept them,” Annabelle said, tears in her eyes. Reaching to touch his cheek gently only to have him move away. She pulled her hand back slowly and smiled wryly.

  “You know I’m not a good mother. I can’t love them. As much as I try. I-”

  “So you don’t want to be a mother to your children but you’re leaving with him to raise his child,” King Thomas spoke bitterly.

  “They have you. They’ll be fine,” Annabelle spoke quietly.

  “I know I’m being selfish. That I always have been selfish. Maybe they won’t forgive me but I hope you can explain it to them one day so they’ll understand,” Annabelle spoke.

  “Good Bye Thomas,” She whispered before walking out of the castle grounds. Upstairs both Parker and Spencer were silently crying watching their mother leave them behind.

  #

  For a long time, Spencer and I resented our mother for her abandonment. Then one day when we were older fifteen and thirteen our father finally told us the entire story. Our mother had been forced to marry our father who had lost his soulmate and needed a queen. Her parents didn’t approve of her soulmate and separated them. Our father never did say who he was but neither Spencer nor I ever asked. Back then I didn’t understand why she had picked him over us. Even now I still can’t comprehend why she would leave us behind. But I did learn to hate. I learned to hate soulmates, to want to never find my soulmate. Spencer had been more understanding towards our mother. Maybe because he had Crystal when they were younger he could truly understand that bond and pull but I never could until now. Had I known Lyric from the beginning just like Spencer and Crystal had known each other, maybe things between us would have been different? Maybe I wouldn’t have ruined things so badly. Then again, maybe I would have.

  I had not realized how long I had been standing inside the room. Before I knew it Lyric was standing in the room silently looking down at the floor.

  “Sorry. How long have you been standing there?” I asked her.

  “Not long,” She whispered softly, nervously clutching on to the sides of her sweater.

  “Crystal wanted me to check on you,” I lie, not wanting to make this more uncomfortable for her than they already were.

  “I. I just came to get a few things out of my room. But I’ll be out of here quick,” I managed to say, not wanting to make her uncomfortable. Finding an excuse to leave her alone for now was easy, and I found myself reaching for my sketchpad that was inside my desk drawer.

  “It’s fine,” She whispered after a long period of silence. I wanted to leave her alone knowing my presence affected her, still, as I headed toward the door I couldn’t help but hear Crystal’s voice in my head.

  “Baby Steps.”

  “Right Baby Steps” I muttered to myself before turning to look at her.

  “I. We. I hope you don’t mind but Spencer wants to tag along with you and Crystal for the day and asked me to come along,” I tell her. For a second her posture goes rigid and she looks down not knowing what to say. I can’t control the feeling of hurt and guilt that comes with her reaction every single time she knows I’m going to be near her.

  “It’s fine,” She replies again quietly.

  “Oh. Okay then,” I manage to tell her, though I know she’s lying and feels uncomfortable I hope that one day she won’t feel like that anymore. Closing the room door behind me, I make my way downstairs.

  “So how did it go?” Spencer asks quietly once I’m in the living room where he and Crystal are already waiting.

  “Crystal says you slept outside your bedroom,” Spencer says.

  “I didn’t want to make the situation more uncomfortable for her than it already was.”

  “You could have slept in one of the guest bedrooms,” Spencer tells me.

  “I didn’t want to be away from her,” I think to myself.

  “I told her I would be going with you. She didn’t take it well.”

  “Did she say that?” Crystal asked.

  “You know her better than I do. She would never say anything like that to anyone. But. She didn’t have to say it,” I tell them and for a second their quiet, exchanging looks with each other.

  “If I could I would send her back. The last thing I ever want to do is make her feel like she’s forced to stay here,” I tell them. I can see Spencer’s eyes show understanding at my words before he speaks,

  “You know, it won’t be like that. Don’t you? Mom-”

  “Does it matter?” I ask him.

  “You’re Soulmates,” Spencer says before footsteps are heard and we all stand up to see Lyric with my father.

  “Father,” I say, wondering what he’s doing with Lyric and he must know it’s what I want to ask because he speaks.

  “Sorry to have kept all of you waiting for her. I spotted her in the hall on her way here and we had a small chat didn’t we?” My father speaks. His smile was kind and gentle as if speaking to a small fragile child. Lyric didn't seem to mind in fact she simply nodded shyly.

  “Yes.” Smiling at her Crystal then walks over to her intertwining her arm with Lyric who looks surprised at her.

  “Well then. Let’s go,” She tells Lyric before leading her toward the waiting car parked outside.

  #

  Once we're at the bridal shop Crystal immediately pulls Lyric inside where a blonde haired woman in a green dress is waiting for them.

  “Ms. Mane I’m glad to see you back here with Mr. Archer,” The woman says, offering Spencer a smile and bowing politely. There was always something about people behaving so courteous that always drove Spencer and I mad. His tight smile reaction was an indication that it made him feel uncomfortable.

  “Yes. I was hoping we could look at bridesmaid dresses,” Crystal says to the woman, who finally seems to notice Lyric. She looks at her up and down scrutinizing her almost and somehow I felt like putting myself in between them. Maybe it was the fact that Lyric seemed to want to shy away that made me feel this way. Her eyes seemed downcast and shy trying to avoid eye contact while she nervously looked around the shop.

  “The
re are a lot of options for her. A nice frilly pink dress maybe something short, open in the back. Elegant,” The woman continues. At her words, panic settles in Lyric and at first, I don’t understand why, almost forgetting myself, but just for a second my mind flashes back to that hallway. My hand reaching to touch her right shoulder, the fire, the hospital. Unconsciously I turn to look at her, guilt weighing me down once more. Lyric looks back at me and though we both understand what her panic is about, I can’t seem to say anything and neither can she. Not that there was time because Crystal is already pulling her along to pick out a bridesmaid dress for her.

  “Women,” Spencer mutters rolling his eyes.

  “Right,” I tell myself.

  #

  The more times goes on, the bigger the wait, the guiltier I feel. I don’t blame Crystal for not remembering something I myself had almost forgotten. What I couldn’t forget was the look of terror on Lyric’s face. There was panic in her eyes, terror at having someone look at the burn the fire had left her. That burn, that mark, was something that would never go away. I realized that, to Lyric, it would always be a reminder of something horrible in her life. For me, it would always be a reminder of the guilt, and everything that I had done wrong. Still, like that burn that had scarred her, I realized that even if I amended what I did to her she would always remember the hurt I had caused.

  “Relax she’ll be fine,” Spencer spoke up, breaking my train of thought. Though I tried to relax the more time that went by the more uneasy I began to feel.

  Crystal would walk into the dressing room with a dress then come back out minutes later with a look of frustration and determination. Each time Lyric would say the dress did not fit. I could tell Crystal was getting frustrated but it, of course, didn’t help the fact that all she chose were open back dresses.

  “Come on Lyric. Let me see,” Crystal says to Lyric for what felt like the hundredth time. There’s silence for what seems like hours until finally, Lyric responds.

  “It didn’t fit,” Lyric says, her voice soft and on the brink of breaking. As I turned to look at Crystal who wore a look of exasperation on her face I realize she too was over it. It became more than a little obvious that she was annoyed and was no longer listening to anything anyone else said.

  “You said that about the last five dresses,” Crystal says, her impatient and fierce nature showing just for a second before she sighs trying to keep her patience.

  “I’m sure it’s not that bad. Come on,” She tells Lyric, trying to calm herself.

  “Come on,” Crystal pleads, but when she isn’t met by an answer determination shows on her face.

  “I’m coming in then,” She finally says losing the small little patience she still had left. I knew Crystal’s explosive nature although she was never harsh toward Lyric, I knew she would still hurt her feelings. Even if she didn’t mean to do it. Before she could walk into the dressing room, I managed to grab her and pull her aside.

  “Hey!”

  “What’s your problem?” Crystal says.

  “You really don’t remember do you?” I question her and for a second she’s confused and unsure of what to say.

  “The fire,” I tell her before she grows quiet, recognition clouds her face, and no longer is there frustration written on her features but guilt and shame.

  “I forgot,” She whispers quietly, before looking at the pile of dresses laid out at the side of the shop on a red velvet couch.

  “I just. She didn’t say anything. She never says anything,” Crystal corrects herself.

  “She’s my best friend and she still can’t speak her mind to me,” Crystal speaks her eyes sad.

  “It’s not your fault,” I say to her, and she offers me a soft smile.

  “You know it’s not yours either Parker,” She says, walking into the dressing room with Lyric.

  “Everything okay?” Spencer asks.

  “Yeah,” I manage to say before we both walk over to the small bench next to the display window. Outside we could see people on the streets walking calmly. Interacting with each other and then… Chaos.

  Have you ever been in a moment where time stops? Where things seem to be in slow motion and before you know it. There’s a certain calm. A sense of peace before the storm that causes people to feel at ease. Still, instincts are instincts. Just like that the calm goes. People scream and run. In the distance, I can see a large rabid hyena running in our direction.

  “Cray.”

  “Parker!” Spencer yells. We don’t have to think twice because we both know who he is. Moving out of the way we shift instinctively and protectively.

  *Boom! *

  Glass shatters and falls everywhere although my mind registers a threat all I can think about is Lyric. Getting to her and protecting her. Both Crystal and Lyric have been hurled across the room and all I can do to soften her landing is leap in the direction she has been thrown in.

  “Where is she? Where’s my mate?” The Hyena screams angrily his red eyes blazing with anger. Growling back at him Spencer and I both stand protectively in front of our mates. Briefly, I turn to look at Lyric her eyes express fear and confusion as to what is going on.

  “Are you okay?” I ask and though I know she can hear my thoughts in her head, she does not reply.

  “Where is she?” Cray growls out again. It is only when Lyric's gaze shifts to him that her fear increases. My instinct and adrenaline seems to hit an all-time high as he turns to look back at Lyric himself.

  “Found you,” he says.

  CHAPTER 9:

  COLLISION

  (Lyric)

  Have you ever seen empty eyes? There’s cold in them, they’re void and all you can see is evil. I’ve only seen this kind of eyes once in my life. I came to fear them; I dream about them in my nightmares. Having him look at me was like having my father glaring back at me. There was no soul in his eyes, no emotion, only pitch black. I could see the same in this person, this nova’s eyes. The difference was that while my father's eyes had been pitch black, this person's eyes were blood red. His thirst for blood, torture, and death was evident in his eyes. I wanted to run, to scream, to hide away behind the wolf protectively standing in front of me and growling. Beside my wolf was a similar but smaller and furrier wolf protecting Crystal, whom I knew was Spencer. I was afraid that my body simply could not move even if my mind screamed for me to do so.

  All around me I could hear screams of terror from women and children while they ran in fear. Growls and howls could be heard on the streets that seemed to shake with the chaos.

  “Spencer! Take Lyric and Crystal out of here!” Parker growled out. The hyena in front of us hissed in anger, sending chills of terror in waves throughout my whole body. Spencer seemed to growl something back but Parker’s roar was louder.

  “Now Spencer!” He growled out in anger, his eyes turned to look at me and it had been the first time I had ever seen Parker Archer look afraid.

  “You’ll be fine. I promise,” He said to me before a loud screeching banshee-like noise was heard once more.

  “You’re not taking her anywhere she’s mine!” The Hyena yelled out. Leaping into the air with a feral screech the hyena was ready to fight. Parker then growled out angrily and ran towards the angry hyena. Both hybrids colliding midair while swiping their claws at one another.

  Looking at Parker fight for me once again was like being back in that fire; watching him fight my father. Except, this time he was not fighting another wolf but a hyena. A rabid bloodthirsty one. Hearing a growl before the ground shook I screamed covering my ears and closing my eyes afraid that someone else had come to kill me.

  “Lyric! Hurry! We don’t have much time! We need to go!” Crystal called out, her voice was filled with fear while she rode the large wolf that was Spencer Archer.

  Reaching for my hand Crystal helped me on to him and Spencer immediately leapt in the air running out of the ruined bridal shop. My heart continued to race and though I was afraid for myself, w
atching the surrounding chaos only increased my panic. Crystal’s was terrified, and she seemed to be clinging on tightly to Spencer while we rode away on his back. Though I was beyond afraid a loud pained howled caused my attention to drift back in the direction Parker still was. I could see his wolf self on the floor while the Hyena began to leap at him once more.

  *Bump Ba-Bump Bump*

  Faster and faster my heart sped with fear. While I looked at the scene behind me .

  “Parker!” I called out through the chaos. Even if we were far away from one another his eyes met mine from across it all. I could tell by the way he looked at me that he'd heard me. There was this look in his eyes which I could not understand, maybe it was determination and then… I watched as he leaped up into the air and attacked the hyena once more.

  “He’ll be fine Lyric,” Crystal tried to assure, but the fear in her eyes said otherwise. Why was this happening? What did that nova want from me? Why was Parker risking his life for someone like me?

  *Whoosh*

  It was like being hit by a car, the impact sent both Crystal and I flying off Spencer’s back both in opposite directions. Spencer was thrown against a building while I collided with a street pole. My back was immediately heated with pain and my head collided harshly on the ground. There was an immediate ache in my head as though my brain was being split in half. My ears began to ring as though a whistle had blown loudly in my ear... and then... nothing. Everything suddenly grew silent outside. I could no longer hear people scream though I could see them running I could not hear them. Everything began to look distorted and my mind began to reel. Although I tried to get up, to lift my aching head, I couldn’t. I could see three large bobcats approaching Spencer who was struggling up from where he had been thrown. They hissed at him as if he were their prey, surrounding him ready to attack him, to kill him.