The Black Rose

ELLIE That was the first time in years I'd let myself cry. After years of being disappointed and hurt by both my family and my bad taste in men, I'd grown an immunity to tears. But seeing my brother in that state was enough to open the floodgates I'd sealed shut for the past five years—the last time I cried—and it reminded me of all the reasons why I'd stopped giving in to my emotions. The lack of control, the weakness. I hated it. So fucking much! Even now, with the barrel of a gun staring down at me, I hated how I couldn't stop the tears that streamed down my face. But my years of training seemingly went down the drain the second I learned of my brother's death. My entire form trembled, a chill consumed me from the inside out. I wasn't just sweating; I was shivering from it. My fingernails dug painfully into my palms as I set each arm by my sides, or rather, I was forced to. I was shoved into a small black car not too far from the entrance without being given a moment to brea

ELLIENoir was the last sight I remembered before I was taken by slumber, my body unable to continue after the day's events. I shut down and embraced the darkness like it was the warmth I never truly got growing up.A warmth I'd told myself I would never need.I awoke with a start, my chest constricting as my throat closed up and I struggled to breathe. Shock, anxiety, fear—they all melded into one heavy feeling that seemed to squeeze my throat until I'd forgotten how to breathe.My eyes snapped open, and sunlight immediately burned through my blurry sight, making my eyes water even as I struggled to catch my breath.It was like being dragged out of a lake in the middle of the desert.For a moment, I wondered if Dylan, my best friend, had snuck into my apartment again and opened my curtains just to annoy me, an activity she enjoyed more than anything.But then, the unmistakable pain in my left arm hit me, and with it came the memory of how it came to be.The bald man pulling me out of

ELLIE The dress Noir brought was a size larger, but it had tiny sashes on both sides that helped me hide that. It was black, almost as dark as the feelings that clawed their way up my throat. I didn't even have a say in my own brother's burial. I wasn't even given enough time to mentally prepare myself. To see him that way again...to say goodbye for good. I wasn't sure I had it in me. All of my anger and eagerness to escape was replaced by a heavy feeling I couldn't shake. It settled on my chest, making it hard to breathe, making it hard to focus on anything else but the weight. There was a sharp knock on the door, one that startled me from my thoughts and made me avert my gaze from my reflection in the vanity mirror, back to the door. I found the door open, Noir standing by the doorway, filling every inch of it with his large body. The man should be seven feet tall, if not more. His fervid gaze was trained on me, stealing the breath from my lungs as his eyes

SILAS Her hair was soft. Too fucking soft! It slid through my fingers like silk, unlike anything I'd ever touched. And her eyes...those fucking eyes. The beauty of the sea couldn't compare to those blue orbs. They burned with a fire I didn't expect, flames that I shouldn't dare touch, yet every inch of me screamed to do so. I hate it. I hate her presence. I hate how long her fucking hair is, how pink her lips are, how her skin looks flawlessly flawed with every bruise and scratch that lingers. I hated just how small her body is, how it looks like it would fit easily against mine like the final piece to a fucking puzzle. She is...unlike anything I'd ever seen, and she infuriates the fuck out of me. Why the fuck does she have to be here? Why now of all times? The fucking bitch! How dare she speak to me that way? My heavy, angry steps were muted as I marched back to my bedroom, heaving from emotions that only made me angrier. This was Enzo's idea,

ELLIEI froze, like lead had been injected into my skin, keeping me in place.Everything in me wanted to go back into the elevator, to go far away from the noise. But it didn't stop—the screams didn't stop. They only worsened as each second passed. I shouldn't have done it, but I did: walked toward the direction of the sound, heavy legs trembling, yet my mind determined to see what lurked behind the darkness.A person was in danger. It wasn't supposed to be my business... but I had to see. I had to help. Right?There was an entrance at the end of the short hallway—no door, just a frame that led to a wide room, a room almost as big as the living room.The smell of rust hit me before I could think twice about stepping in: pungent, thick, and it made my stomach churn. Blood, I realized. It was the smell of burning flesh and stale blood. The cement floors were ashy and crimson, looking like something red had stained and dried on them over and over again. Further down, into the large spac