Chapter Fifteen
“What’s wrong Rissa? Did I make you mad? Do you miss yours?” Sage asked getting in my face.
“Mess with me and you are going to miss yours too,” I said smiling the most evil smile I could.
“I’d rather you just spank me,” he said as he bent over and stuck his butt in the air. I rolled my eyes and kicked him causing him to fall over on Gabe’s leg.
I almost fell over laughing when Gabe started screaming for Sage to get off. Of course Sage, being the perv he is, began humping Gabe’s leg and moaning his name.
I was almost going to stop Lorik when he ran over to Gabe. I thought he was trying to pull him away from Sage only for Lorik to start humping the other leg. I don’t think I had ever laughed so hard.
“Oh wow, I didn’t know the three of you went that way,” I said between laughing fits.
Suddenly they stopped and looked at me. I stiffened because I knew what that meant. They looked at each other and I heard Gabe, “Get her.”
I screamed and shot across the room, jumping onto the bed to get away from them. Of course that made Sage grin even bigger. I faked a right and ran left, jumping onto the end table and running across the back of the couch only for Gabe to grab me and hand me over to them.
I would have screamed at every one of them if I could have done anything besides laugh at them. They both had a leg and were as bad as a naughty dog.
“Okay, okay. I get it.” They didn’t stop. “The next one that humps my leg, I’m going to hump myself.”
Lorik stopped and looked at me. Sage kept on, telling me to bring it on. I watched as Lorik grabbed something off the entertainment center before I grabbed Sage, pulled the back of his shirt over his head and spun him around. I got in behind him and began humping him like he did me.
“Oh yeah. How’s that feel huh? Who’s ya momma?” But I started laughing too hard to try to keep it up as he started talking about how much he liked it. Finally I just back away kicked his butt and caused him to fall to the floor.
“Now get back in the kitchen and fix me something to eat.” Every guy in that room started howling with laughter. And it only got worse when Lorik told how he recorded it and sent it to everyone on his list.
“No, please tell me you didn’t,” I begged only to hear the beeps of phones going off across the room and one outside the door.
I tried opening the door and telling Dean not to watch it but it was too late. I could hear myself and Sage coming across the speaker of his phone and I couldn’t do anything but stand there mortified as Dean watched it confused.
After it was all over I bit my top lip and waited for Dean to say something. He looked up from his phone, looked around the room, and smiled.
“Well I came to tell you Archer is here. So Marissa if you and the boys will come to my office, I’d appreciate it. And don’t forget to bring Princess with you,” he said motioning to Sage. That brought on another round of laughter as we filed out of the room and walked to his office.
Dean opened the door to his office and Archer stood as we entered. The smile on his face looked genuine but he still made me edgy.
I walked over, shook his hand, thanked him for coming and had a seat across from Dean’s desk. Shayden sat in the chair beside me. Dean sits down in his seat and waited quietly as the others shuffled around looking for a place to sit or stand. After a few minutes, Dean cleared his throat.
“The reason I asked Archer to be here is because he knows more about what we’re getting ready to discuss. He was there when the information was given to your father.”
I watched as he took a drink of water.
“Over seventeen years ago your father was approached by the director in New Zealand. She is a very superstitious woman one might say, but the things she told your father have so far become true, even though we have done everything in our power to stop it.”
Dean motioned for Archer to continue. Shay and I turned to look at him.
“She told your father that the two of you would be born. Even though most men and their wives within the field would seek a specialist to insure that a son is born, there were few that didn’t. Your mother and father were one of those.
See for years now there has been an old prophecy told that there would come a day when a child is born, a girl that would change things within the FOA. She would remove those from power that she felt wasn’t worthy. She would turn sons against fathers, mothers against their own children and would kill hundreds of men in the process.
She would be known as the Black Rose. She would start an order among the assassins; building an army of brothers that would stand at her side and fight hand and hand to protect her. They would be the elite of them all and they too would wear the black rose, swearing their allegiance to her.”
I tried swallowing but my throat had gone dry the more Archer spoke. Goosebumps had risen on my arms and were starting to trail down my back and legs. I didn’t want to sit here and listen to them swear that I was the black rose. I refuse to turn people against each other, it wasn’t in me to.
“The director of New Zealand’s assassins approached John the day your mother found out she was pregnant. He didn’t know it at that point in time. She told him that his wife would bear twins. Twins so strong and intelligent, they would make every one rethink how things can be done within the federation. The female would bear the black rose.”
“Being the respectful man he was, he acknowledged what she was saying as he spoke to her. After she left however, he laughed about it. That is until your mother phoned him to tell him that she was pregnant. With twins.”
I turned back to Dean as he spoke. “Your father came to me and told what had been said. He was thinking of moving away, quitting his job, he had considered putting the two of you up for adoption out of fear for your safety. There are some out there that would rather see the black rose dead than to do what is right. Those that would kill your brother in an attempt to stop you from whatever it is they think you’re going to do.
“John had heard quite a few of them. He knew how some of them felt. We still hadn’t figured out what to do by the time you were born. Your mother refused to give either of you up. Truthfully once John held you both in his arms, so did he. There is nothing like a father’s love, the two of you need to remember that.
“So he did the only thing he knew to. He left. He took you and bought another house. At the time we lived in Florida. We were both apart of the southern regions. But as luck would have it, a position opened up in the eastern regions, and I was offered the job as director.
“I gladly accepted and contacted your father. I knew he had moved back to Virginia. Dawn had followed later so there wouldn’t be suspicion. When I spoke with him, he accepted the offer. I helped him. We told everyone that he had moved here to be near his brother’s widow to help with her son. We said your mother had passed at child birth and he had hoped she would be able to help.
“That would have worked until someone noticed how much the two of you looked alike. He had no choice but to insure you two weren’t together as babies. So that was when I asked my wife to help. For a few years she did. I believe you were five when she passed away. But the boys and I had gotten so used to having you around that they would grieve even harder when you weren’t there.
“When you were six, Sam; Zavier and Sage’s father, saw you playing with Gabe and Lorik. Because you were John’s daughter and you were all homeschooled, he thought it best he introduce his boys into the group as well.” I heard Archer laugh. “Sam had hoped that you would marry one of his son’s, that the two of you would produce the ultimate child.
“He was ecstatic when he saw that you took an interest in Zavier; even more so when he caught you and Sage kissing when you were fourteen. When Sage told him that he wanted to live with me so he could be around you all the time, he quickly agreed.”
“He allowed Zavier to stay as well to help keep an eye on things. It worked out perfect. Sam was
so busy planning your future with one of his sons he never even noticed how much you and Shayden were alike. Shayden could come and go from the house and no one thought any different.
“When you were all old enough to train at the academy some were upset about it. They didn’t want a female in the midst but I assured them that you were not the only female in the entire FOA. Considering whom your father had become at this point, most was too scared to voice their opinions on the subject and accepted you freely.”
I stood from the chair and paced back and forth. That had explained a lot of things from my past. I never understood why I always stayed at Dean’s and never at Shay’s. It explained why Sam was always looking at me like he was the proudest father ever. It also explained why Dad always made me wear disguises when I came to the academy.
He had tried telling me that it was best that no one knew what my real appearance was. That way no one could blame things on me that I didn’t do. He just didn’t want people to see I looked like Shayden. To this day, Dad, Dean, Kyle, and the guys were the only ones that knew what I really looked like. Braydon and Braxton only knew because of the hospital. Archer still didn’t know. I was tempted to pull the wig off and take the contacts out.
It bothered me though. Why hadn’t he at least told me and Shayden? Why did he make Shayden go without a father for so long? And how do they get that I’m the black rose? Then the tattoo crossed my mind. Everything they were talking about. Three things had come to pass already.
One, Shay and I had been born. Two, I had killed too many people. And three, I tattooed more than one black rose on my body.
I stopped and looked around the room, so had the guys. That made four. I didn’t want this. The only ones that even had a mother living were me and Shay, and Sage and Zavier.
“I don’t want to turn people against their own family. How could someone think I’d want that? Not only that, these guys haven’t sworn their allegiance to me and I’m not asking them to do it either. We would protect each other, yes, but that is a little far-fetched. Don’t you think?”
I took my shirt off and opened my suit up so I could take my arms out and let it hang to my waist. I had a tank top on underneath so I wasn’t being improper when I did.
“You’re telling me that this,” I pointed to the black rose on my arm, “Makes me the black rose? I got this tattoo because of all the lives lost that day, all the people that suffered. People the FOA wasn’t able to save because everyone was out looking for me.”
“Let me ask you something first. Why did you kill all those men? Could you and Braydon have made it out alive had they lived?”
“Yes, we would have had to take a few down but we could have found a way out otherwise,” Braydon spoke up.
I stood from my chair and spun around to look at him. He wasn’t looking at me and he didn’t seem upset by what he said. That wasn't what he told Dean earlier. Why was he lying?
“Then why? Why did you have to take the lives of all those men that day?” Archer continued.
They weren’t going to give up until I told the truth. They had known all along that I had been lying. They each had gone along with it, letting me lie to their faces. My heart began to pound in my chest but I kept my breathing calm. Something flashed in my peripheral vision and I turned to see what it was but the television screen in the room was black.
I felt the needle prick my arm and turned my head to see that Gabe had administered some kind of medication. I wasn’t sure if it was my muscle relaxant or not. Either way it wasn’t enough to harm me, just enough to relax my mind. Meaning they were planning on getting the truth out of me one way or another.
“You can punish me if you like but I’m leaving,” I told Dean and turn to go to the door only to find it blocked.
“Why? Why are you doing this to me?” I asked when I looked back at Dean.
“Why did you kill those men? Just talk to us. No one here is going to hurt you. I know you were lying to us Marissa. So sit down and tell me what really happened.”
I didn’t have much of a choice. The medicine was kicking in and soon I wouldn’t be able to do much but sit. I could feel my eyes drooping a little. My arms felt heavy. Still I stood there. I wanted to move. I didn’t want to be the center of attention like this.
Without me telling my body to do so, it walked over to the window. I stood there staring out over the ball field.
“I lied. I lied because I don’t want to tell you the truth. I don’t want to cause you and the boys more pain than you all have already suffered. I don’t want them thinking I’m a monster. So I’m begging you not to force me to do this.”
“How can you telling me what happened cause more pain?”
My breathing was deep and slow. My movements felt sluggish. I tried running my hands over my hair only to pull the wig off in the process. I drop the wig to the floor and licked my lips. I was parched. I hated that medicine.
I turned and spotted Dean’s liquor bottle sitting on the cabinet beside me. I reached over and picked it up slowly. I just wanted a taste. I just wanted something to wet my mouth so it wouldn’t be so dry. Someone took it out of my hand and replaced it with a soda. My hands wouldn’t work though; I couldn’t even bring it up to my mouth to take a sip. I don’t know how I was even standing. I just stood there and stared at it.
Someone, I assume it was Dean, put a straw in the can from behind me and moved my hand to bring it to my lips. It was cold and refreshing but the can was moved away too soon. I could have drank all of it.
“I don’t want you getting sick, princess. Just relax and tell us what happened,” Dean whispered beside me as I watched him sit the can down on the window’s ledge.
I lost it.
Adrenaline surged through my body and I released it with a swipe of my hand across the table Dean’s glasses set on. The scream that had been building for days finally ripped from me as a roar. Everyone stood up. I knew they were waiting. Dean waved them off and wrapped his arms around me.
“Don’t make me do this!”
“You have to. You need to get it out. You can’t continue to live the way you have.”
“They had me chained to the floor. They knew who I was. I didn’t even have to tell them. They broke my nails in half then they would take glue and put it on my nails and press fake nails on. They kept saying, ‘isn’t this what you do to change how you look?’ Then they’d rip them off.
“They took the bag off my head and before my eyes could adjust, they would drop blood into my eyes. “Let’s change your eye color too,’ they’d say. They stopped when another guy came in. He told me he was the leader. They listened to everything this guy said and followed his orders to a T. But then he sent them out of the room.
“‘I know who you are, Marissa Stone. I know your daddy, John. I know your friends. How’s Dean doing? Has he been lonely over the years? Oh no, don’t struggle sweetheart. Now look what you did. Does it hurt?’” I looked down at my hand. I watched how long it took to even move my wrist around. When I blinked I realized that I wasn’t facing the window. Dean had turned me around to look at the room.
“‘I bet everyone is just going crazy looking for their little princess. I’ll make sure they find you.’ I don’t know what you’re talking about. My name’s not Marissa, its Nicole. I don’t know a Dean or John,” my head jerked to the side as I remembered him hitting me.
I didn’t know if I was scaring them as I told what was happening. My voice would deepen to mimic his, and then I would use a different tone to pretend I was someone else.
“‘Don’t lie to me! Here let me take that wig off for you. Oh do you like having it on? Let me ask, how do you keep it on so well? Oh I know I bet you use this don’t you? Here let me staple that down for you. Oh I didn’t get it right.’” My head shot back as I remembered him ripping it off.
“Why are you doing this to me? I haven’t hurt anyone. ‘No, no I’m sure you haven’t Rissa. That is what they call you right? Rissa? Sweet,
beautiful, Rissa. Isn’t that what Sage calls you? Sage will be the next one. He will be easy to get. I’m told he’s a real ladies man. Then we’ll go with Zavier. He’s shy, but I know enough about him. I know enough to get him right where I want him.
“‘Then your cousin. What do you call him? Shay? He looks so much like your father. John will love seeing what I do to him. Then little Lorik, thinks he’s so tough. I’m going to shut that mouth for him real quick. I think Gabe maybe the hardest. He doesn’t trust many people. It doesn’t matter. They’ll all die. One by one I’ll catch them. One by one they’ll fall.
“‘Isn’t that cute, you think you can escape. Where should we leave you? In Dean’s pool? Maybe on the front door?’” I mimicked his smile and laugh. “‘I know. We’ll leave you for a few days in his car. He won’t know until the fragrance overcomes him.’ You’re wrong. I’m Nicole. Please just let me go. I won’t tell. Please.”
“‘Oh no. We’re not done with you yet. We have to make you beautiful. Just like I did for Maria.’”
I fell to my knees and slowly raised my head. The laugh was the evilest thing I had ever heard as it echoed across the room. My head snapped back from his fist connecting with my jaw.
“You think beating me will stop me from killing you? You think I won’t get loose don’t you?” I laughed again. I knew I had gone insane.
“I will kill you slowly, I promise. The things you do to me will be nothing compared to what I am capable of doing to you. You know there is a reason they kept me close by don’t you?”
I could see his face as the fear in his eyes surfaced.
“’I’ll kill you before you can get loose,’” he told me.
“Do you believe in ghosts? I do. Oh I see you do don’t you? I believe you can feel her around you right now, just like I do.” He was almost hyperventilating as I spoke slow and steady.
“There is a difference between me and Maria. She may just haunt you, I won’t. I will torture you until the day of your death and then the day your ugly face dies, I’m going to be right there waiting for you.”
I grinned at him. I had never felt more evil than I did at that moment. I was no longer in the office I was there. I could see him, smell his fear, and taste the blood in my mouth.
“I will be your biggest fear. You know how I know? Because your nothing. But. A. coward.”
I held my arms out as if I were still in chains. I lunged for him and laughed as I watched him jump back. The fear must have drove him to extremes because he ran for me and knocked me back. He began choking me. I wouldn’t give him satisfaction though. I kept the smile on my face as the black took over.
I came back to myself when I blinked. I was back in the office with everyone. Dean was hovering over me. I had fallen back as if he had actually been there.
“I woke up with him doing CPR. He had put me back on the table. He left after he saw I had come to. He put the bag back on my head. He let them have their fun with me. I was glad none of them were child molesters. They were just sadistic killers. When they left and Braydon came in, I thought it was him coming to kill me. I had never been happier in my life than to see that beautiful face.
“When he let me loose, I made sure we were the only ones in the building. I didn’t know all the assassin’s so I didn’t want to take a chance. When Braydon got hurt, it pissed me off even more. I refused to let them take another life.” I tried to swallow. My mouth was so dry I had to keep clearing it. I tried using my tongue to wet my lips but it felt more like sandpaper.
Dean got up to give me a drink of soda. I looked at him as he raised the can to me. “I had to kill them. I had to kill them all. I heard him order that even when he left for a few days, they were to finished out what he was doing.”
He put the straw to my lips and I took a long sip. He moved it away and wiped the corner of my mouth off. I grabbed his shirt. “Please. You have to understand. I had to kill them. I couldn’t let him get to you guys.”
“How do we even know you’re telling the truth now?” Gabe asked. I didn’t blame him. I had lied to them so much.
“Because he carved your names in her back,” Braydon said from the door. He was leaning against the door watching me.
I guess Gabe didn’t even believe that because he rushed across the room spun me around as Braydon screamed at him to stop and raised the back of my shirt up. When he turned me back around, he moved slower trying to be more careful with me. The color had drained from his face as he looked into my eyes.
“I tortured him. I tortured him for you, for Lorik, for Dean, for her. I put him in as much pain as I could before I had to take his life.”
Tears rolled down Gabe’s face. Maria was his mother. The sweetest woman I had ever met in my life. I didn’t remember everything about her but I remembered something special she had done for me.