Aries: Book 2 in a Young Adult Paranormal Romance Series (The Zodiac Twin Flame Series) (6 page)

‘Okay, fill us in,’ Antony said. He looked like he was part of the family, which made me feel better. Maybe one day…

‘Last night we went—’

‘Wait! I need to know what’s happened over the last week.’ I interrupted the man I now viewed as my usurper.

I was being unreasonable. They had looked for Father without me and so they should. There was enough of them to be getting on with it. I felt useless again so I sat back in my chair.

‘There’s no time,’ Gemini said.

My eyebrows rose as I glared. I couldn’t help it. He was arrogant, and annoying.

‘Aries needs to know, Gemini,’ Pisces said gently, putting a hand over my clenched one.

I pulled away as Gemini nodded. He had got used to not having me around but that was going to change. Just because I no longer had any legs, didn’t mean I couldn’t lead them.

‘You know we interrogated the couple?’

I nodded as he sat next to me. His gaze didn’t even touch my wheelchair, which I respected.

‘We visited the house they told us about and saw Mother. She came out and went about her normal routine.’

I swallowed. A picture of the woman that had taken care of us for so many years came into my mind. She wasn’t our real birth mother. We had lost contact with all of our parents when we were born. Heat radiated up my arms as I thought about how we’d been taken away from them. If only I had been left to grow up normally, I might have kept my legs.

‘We’ve been following her for the last two days. It seems she likes to spend Nick’s money.’ Gemini rubbed a hand over his face. The bags under his eyes were from actual work. Was he doing a lot of the investigating himself?

‘That’s where Taurus is now,’ Leo said.

I wanted to kill Nick. My hands thumped the arms of my chair. The sound of it echoed around the room. The others stared at me. I shook out my shoulders.

My dreams had been so vivid. In previous lives, Nick had made sure that my soulmate and I, could never be together. This time, I wouldn’t let it happen. My family was a stronger unit than ever before.

‘I can smell burning.’ Antony sniffed.

The scent of burnt plastic filtered into my nose. I blinked as I released the arms of my chair. My hands left singe marks on the heated plastic. I was lucky that a fireball hadn’t erupted from them. It had been a while. It had happened all the time when I was a teenager.

‘Anyway, we’ve not seen Father or Nick. Last night, Taurus followed Mother to another house, outside London. We think they may have met there because she stayed the night.’ Gemini fingered the scorch mark. He pulled back when he realised it was still hot. ‘Make sure you keep an eye on that around Natalie.’ He pointed at my hand.

I hadn’t created fire since the accident. Not that I had tried very hard. I hadn’t had the opportunity. From the smell in the room, it was obvious that my powers were still with me.

‘I’ll be fine.’

‘We need to get you out and about to find your soulmate,’ Gemini said, patting my forearm weakly. The sudden change in topic made me glance towards the hallway.

‘No need,’ Leo muttered, looking at Pisces. ‘Told you so.’

She nodded and I frowned, wondering what secret they shared. ‘What did you tell Pisces?’

‘Can we just get back to—’ Gemini started.

‘Yes.’ I cut him off.

He looked around at the others and started to squirm. He liked being centre of attention but wasn’t used to it when I was around. I fiddled with the hem of my shorts as they watched him for the next update.

‘We’ve decided to break into Mother’s house next time she’s out. We may find something if we do a search. We know her routine enough to determine how long we have until she returns. Once we’ve done that, we were thinking of—’

‘Storming the other house?’ I butt in again.

He growled at me so I scowled in return. It seemed like the best and quickest option. They had done well in a week but Father had been missing for almost a month. He must be wondering what was going on. If I had been there, he would have been rescued by now.

‘How is Bev doing?’

Bev was Father’s new wife. They had only been married for two years. I had been shocked to learn that he had moved on from our mother, his twin flame.

‘She’s moved to a safe house. Derek is taking care of her,’ Antony said. Derek was Antony’s brother and a trained bodyguard.

The update was energising. It made me feel like my old self. A buzz went through my body but washed away as the energy drained out of me. I slumped forward as the world tilted and my head started to spin.

‘You need to get some rest, Aries.’ Pisces got up and pulled me away from the table.

‘Wait, I need to know—’

‘We’ll keep you informed,’ Gemini said as Pisces wheeled me away.

I wanted her to stop looking after me but if I said anything, she would ignore me anyway. I didn’t say goodbye to the others as we left the kitchen and approached the bedroom. The door had been widened. Pisces pushed me straight into the room. There was a hospital bed in the corner and a commode beside it. My hands clenched into fists to prevent myself from picking something up and throwing it.

‘I got your favourite bed cover.’ Pisces pointed at my fiery red duvet.

I uttered my thanks but didn’t look at her. The room looked like a sick room. It was like I was still in hospital. There was an en-suite bathroom. I could see straight into it. They had fitted a wet room with a pull down chair. Just like an old person’s shower.

‘You’re all unpacked. I’ve got to get going. You don’t need to do any exercises today,’ Natalie said, going to leave.

‘Where are you going?’ I snapped.

She ran a hand over my hair and looked down at me. The curls bounced on her palm. The first thing I needed, was a haircut. It had grown out, which made me look like a girl.

‘I’ve got a few things to do. I’ll be back tomorrow. The boys are going to help you get into bed.’

She turned and left without another word or backward glance. She probably had a date with an able bodied man.

‘It looks so clinical in here,’ I said, looking at Pisces.

Her face flushed. She must have sorted the adjustments. I didn’t care. I wasn’t in the mood to be nice. She went to fuss with something. When I frowned, she stepped towards the door.

‘I want to be left alone now.’

She nodded as tears sprung to her eyes. I was glad when she left without trying to convince me that everything was going to be all right. It wouldn’t. I picked up the nearest thing to me, which was a dirty magazine, and threw it towards the bathroom. The paper smoked as it flew. I needed to calm with my temper. If I wasn’t careful, I would start a fire. Maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing.

Chapter Eight

The ground smacked my cheek. I grunted as my breath left me. The carpet was rough against my skin. I came to and looked around me. It was dark, which told me that it was still the middle of the night. Was I in hospital?

‘Bloody hell,’ I moaned.

I had fallen out of my bed at home.

A part of me wanted to find the humour in the situation. I hadn’t fallen out of bed since I was a child. Another part wanted to throw a fireball at the stupid railings that I had forgotten to put up last night. The last part wanted to bury my face into the rough material that rubbed my cheek and sob like a baby.

‘Aries, are you okay?’

It was Scorpio. I hadn’t seen him since I had returned. Why was he outside my door? I didn’t know whether to tell him to go away, or get him to help me.

‘Yes, I’m fine,’ I shouted back.

I couldn’t let him see me sprawled on the floor. We had been warriors. We had fought side by side. I was no longer a warrior. No matter how much I hoped I could go back to how I once was, I had to accept that it wasn’t going to happen.

‘I’ve missed you, mate,’ Scorpio called out.

He wanted to talk but I couldn’t face him. There would be no more clubbing with him and Leo. There would be no pulling girls and bringing them back to our room to share. I was alone now. Stuck in a room that smelled of cleaning products.

I didn’t reply and eventually heard his footsteps move away. I pulled myself into a sit. The shadow of my legs looked odd against the carpet. They stopped where they shouldn’t. The bandages were bulky but the length was wrong. I grabbed hold of the skin on my thighs and squeezed hard. The pain shot through me but I didn’t stop. I wanted to feel. I needed to know that I still lived.

‘Crap!’

The smell of singed hair, and the sting of my burnt skin, made me pull my hands away. Gemini had been right. I needed to control my temper. It was no good sitting on the floor all night. I leant sideways to grab the wheel of my chair. I pulled hard and it started to fall on me. I managed to catch it with my other hand just before it hit. Using the momentum, I rocked it upright.

‘Will you just—!’ I hissed through gritted teeth as I pushed on the wheel. The chair flew away from me so I punched the floor.

The tears came. They ran down my cheeks and dripped onto my bare chest. I sat there feeling like half a man as my body shook.

‘Can I come in, mate?’

Scorpio was back. Why wouldn’t he go away? I didn’t need anyone to see me. The door opened and light flooded the room. I didn’t look up. I closed my eyes and pulled back the sobs that tried to escape.

He didn’t say anything. I heard him sit down in one of the armchairs. I was surprised. I thought he might try to help me but instead he gave me my space. I wiped my face and glanced over at him. His light hair was ruffled where he had run his hands through it, or had a woman do it for him.

His blue eyes pierced me when I dared to make eye contact. He had always seen straight through me. His tall frame slouched in the chair. He crossed his arms over his chest, causing his biceps to bulge.

His intense stare inspired me to move. I couldn’t sit there with him watching me. I would get in the bloody wheelchair. I would join my friend around the small table and talk to him, like old times.

‘It’s bloody cold in here,’ he said as I placed my fists on the carpet and lifted my body.

‘Turn the heating up then.’ I puffed as I swung myself towards the wheelchair.

Scorpio got up and grasped the handles. I glared at him. He stepped back and went to fiddle with the heating. I lifted myself and swung forward again. The muscles in my thighs burned as I struggled to keep them straight. My arms shook as I put my whole weight onto my fisted hands.

‘Got you a lager,’ Scorpio said, coming back into the room.

A bark of laughter left me. I hadn’t had a drink for a while. He was the first one to think of it, even though he didn’t drink himself.

‘Thanks.’ I grunted as I reached my new mode of transport.

I had never pulled myself into the chair from the floor before. I switched the brakes on and stopped for a moment. Scorpio handed me the can, and I clicked it open. I sipped the froth as it bubbled over and grinned at my friend. He was back in his seat, drinking from a mug.

‘That tastes good,’ I said, putting it on the floor beside me.

I glanced at my friend. He nodded. He wasn’t much of a talker in general but he was always there. A strong presence in a hard situation.

I felt small looking up at him but I wasn’t going to let that stop me. Reaching up, I put my hands on the wheelchair arms. I was lucky that my body was longer than average. I pulled myself onto my stumps. I almost collapsed as a shot of pain radiated through me, up into my head. I gasped, trying not to show weakness. They had warned me not to put any pressure on my stumps. Now I knew why.

‘Even without the bottom of your legs, you’re almost as tall as Cancer,’ Scorpio said.

I didn’t look up or reply. My teeth gritted tight together. I couldn’t say anything, even if I wanted to. Using my arms, I pulled on the arms of the chair again and managed to swing my body enough to get one of my butt cheeks on the seat. I hung off sideways before I shuffled around and somehow ended up in the chair properly.

‘I might get ridiculously long prosthetics so I look like I’m on stilts all the time.’

Scorpio spluttered his drink.

‘You git, I just burnt my tongue!’

I laughed as I tried to get my breath back. It felt good.

‘Thank you.’ The room fell silent.

‘What for?’ He blew into his cup. The brown liquid rose up in a wave. He pulled back quickly to avoid the splash. He often forgot that he could make liquid move. His power was one that I admired very much. In fact, I admired all of my siblings’ powers.

‘For not helping me.’

It was a strange thing to thank him for.

‘No use in helping you. You’ve got to get on with it, or you’ll never…’ His words trailed off but I knew what he meant. He didn’t want to say that I would never walk again but he was right. If I didn’t learn to do everything for myself, I would have less chance of surviving. I needed to do it on my own.

‘You know me too well,’ I muttered.

He nodded and ran his hand through his hair.

‘Did you not use your hairdryer today?’ I asked, looking at my can of lager on the floor.

He bent down and grabbed it, holding it out of reach.

‘Say that again.’ He brought it forward and pulled back when I went to grab it.

‘I’m sorry. I forgot that we’d agreed not to take the piss out of your hair drying habit.’

He shook his head and thrust the lager towards me. I took it and saluted him with it.

‘Here’s to…’

I froze. There was nothing I could toast to. What did I have to look forward to?

‘Here’s to the fact that you’re still alive, you lucky son of a—’

‘Will you ladies keep the noise down?’ Leo sang as he came into the room.

The door was wide open. Leo had a six-pack hanging from his hand and a chocolate birthday cake in the other.

‘Whose birthday is it?’ Scorpio asked.

Leo’s darker blonde spikes had glitter in them. He stank of fags and alcohol. His T-shirt had his band logo on the front. It had been ripped at the back. He had obviously got lucky.

‘It’s my very happy un-birthday cake. I was on the way back from the club. I had worked up a bit of a sweat so I popped into the shop and saw this beauty.’ He sat in the other chair and put his stuff on the small table. ‘Who wants some?’

I smiled to myself as he ripped open the box and pulled the cake out very gently. He placed it on the table and looked at us.

‘I’m always up for some cake with my tea,’ Scorpio said.

Leo looked at me and pointed at our brother. His nickname was Grandpa. We hadn’t called him that in a while.

‘Grandpa’s back!’ I downed the rest of my lager.

‘Here, have some cake.’ Leo held his hand above the cake as if he was about to do a karate chop. He did actually karate chop it, sending chocolate icing flying everywhere.

‘Why didn’t you get a knife, you knob?’ Scorpio said.

Leo’s mouth dropped open. ‘I’ll have you know, I’m a black belt.’

‘Yeah, a black belt in bull crap,’ I joked.

They laughed as Leo somehow managed to cut the cake roughly in three. He picked up a chunk and handed it to me.

‘Why didn’t you—’ Scorpio started.

‘Why don’t you calm down, Grandpa,’ Leo said, handing him his slice.

For a moment I forgot about everything. I was back with my boys, and we were living life as we did before. We would often sit up in the middle of the night, eating and drinking. Especially if we had been on a night out.

‘Had fun tonight, then?’ I asked Leo.

‘Groupie…’ he answered, shoving the chocolate cake in his mouth and smearing it over his face.

‘You wish.’ I slapped my thigh.

They both looked at me as the sound of my hand hitting flesh bounced around the room. I was only wearing pants but I hadn’t felt uncomfortable. Until they started to stare at the end of my stumps.

‘It’s going to look even weirder when you’ve got metal things sticking out the end. You’ll be able to stab someone with them. Actually, when you come and help us rescue Father, you can walk over Nick with your stumps and metal rods. That would be cool.’

I could tell Leo was drunk. He would never say something like that when he was sober. It didn’t bother me though.

‘That would be cool,’ I replied, smiling at Scorpio’s horrified expression.

Leo nodded as he licked his hands clean of the cake he had devoured. I started to laugh. The sound bubbled up and out of me. I couldn’t hold it in. Images of a bloody Nick where I stabbed him with my stumps came into my mind. I loved Leo’s sense of humour.

‘You’ve set him off now.’ Scorpio grinned.

Leo grabbed his drinks and threw me one. I was laughing too hard to catch it. It fell on my lap. The cold tin shut me up. I grabbed the can off my thighs.

‘Good job it was just your legs that were blown off.’ Leo looked pointedly at my pants.

‘I know. Although, even if anything else had blown off, it would still be bigger than yours,’ I replied, laughing when he squirted his mouthful of lager over Scorpio.

‘Mate…!’ Scorpio chuckled, wiping it off his face.

‘Least I’ll get all the girls now,’ Leo said.

‘Not when they see me walking on three stumps, you won’t,’ I replied.