Taurus: Book 3 in a Young Adult Paranormal Romance Series (The Zodiac Twin Flame Series) Read online

  Taurus

  A Zodiac Twin Flame Novel

  By Rachel Medhurst

  Copyright © 2015 by Rachel Medhurst

  Sign up to my mailing list for free books and updates: Rachel Medhurst Website

  About Taurus

  Drug addict. Lazy. Useless. Drunk. Names that my siblings called me. Seeker of Truth. That's what I preferred to be known as.

  When our arch enemy Nick offered me the opportunity to go back in time to see why we had become obsessed with hunting each other down, I couldn't refuse.

  When I agreed, what I thought were hallucinations took over. The past would not only answer questions about my life, it would reveal who Nick was too.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty One

  Gemini

  Avoidables

  Copyright

  Author

  Chapter One

  They knew I was right, so why did they ignore me?

  ‘Aries, the best way in is through the back entrance,’ I said again.

  He scowled in my direction but didn’t make eye contact. The wind howled around us. The trees bowed down to it. If he wasn’t going to listen, I wasn’t going to mess about.

  ‘Fine, you stay here, then.’

  The crack of thunder was the perfect cover as I shot out from between the trees and made a run for the back door. The grass was springy under my feet. My cap was pulled by the storm, but it stayed firmly on my head. The rain was coming. The air was moist.

  Aries would be swearing behind me, but I didn’t care. The darkness enveloped me as I reached the backdoor. The house looked empty but Mother had promised that Nick was keeping Father there.

  When our father had been kidnapped seven months ago, we thought we would find him straight away. I wasn’t bothered about him to be honest. He had left us years ago. Why should I worry about him now?

  ‘Will you wait?’

  The hiss came from behind me. It was time for me to ignore my brothers. Aries and Gemini had been waiting in the shadows for the perfect opportunity. There was no such thing.

  ‘Taurus, stop being so bull-headed,’ Gemini said.

  What did they expect from me? I wasn’t going to sit around and wait for someone else to get on with it. We stood in the garden of a house in the south of England in the middle of a thunderstorm. It was a very expensive house on the harbour front. A few trees lined the garden. We had jumped over a wall to gain access and then hidden in the shadows.

  ‘He’s in the back bedroom.’

  I tried the handle of the back door to see if it was open. It didn’t move.

  A whirring sound from the front of the house made us pause. The front gate was opening.

  ‘Go check,’ Aries ordered Gemini.

  The tall, lean shadow of Gemini left us. I took out a hair pin from my pocket and bent down to the lock in the door. Why had Aries expected it to be easy to gain access? He hadn’t even thought about how we would get in.

  ‘It’s Nick,’ Gemini announced as his shadow moved back to us.

  Aries grabbed my arm to still my efforts when a light came on behind the back door. The pin was stuck in the lock. It didn’t budge. Maybe Nick had learnt his lesson from the last house we had broken into.

  ‘What do you mean you don’t know where they are?’ Nick’s voice reached us from inside. The sound of his footsteps accompanied his words.

  I crouched in my spot, trying to stay completely still. My legs weren’t as strong as they had been before I dropped out of my fitness training course. Aries and Gemini were pressed against the wall. It was almost midnight. What was Nick doing out so late?

  ‘Stop sitting on your arse and find them! You know the deal, always keep tabs on the boys, they’re the threat!’

  I glanced at my brothers. I couldn’t see their faces enough to know what they were thinking.

  We had tracked Nick to the house. When he’d sped off earlier, he had been on the phone, arranging a meeting in London. We had no clue that he would come back to the house.

  ‘Yes, I know it’s too late to stop Aries from uniting, but he’s still dangerous,’ Nick said.

  Aries’ chest would be puffing up like a bird trying to attract its mate. He had a big ego. It didn’t need any more stroking.

  ‘I’m going to bed. Just get on with your job. Oh, and one more thing. Get some food when you come in tomorrow. Trevor is getting hungry.’

  My ears pricked up. I hadn’t heard my father’s name for a very long time. We just called him Father. No one else knew him, so there was never any need to introduce him as Trevor. It was such a dull name.

  The light clicked off, followed by the sound of retreating footsteps. This was our best chance. Nick was alone and Father was only a few feet away. I was going in.

  ‘We need to—’

  Aries cut off as I sprung up and looked back towards the trees. Nick didn’t play nice, so why should we? A light came on in the window above. I calculated the height of the nearest tree.

  ‘Taurus, what’s got into you?’ Aries hissed.

  The wind whirled around us, almost carrying his words away. I glanced at him but didn’t reply. They thought I was worthless. My brothers and sisters were all so perfect, with their perfect jobs and the mission of a lifetime.

  I was a stonehead. A man that had shown promise but had fallen into drugs. Why did they think drugs were so bad?

  ‘We can’t get in quietly, so let’s cause a disturbance,’ I whispered.

  Aries stepped forward at the same time as Gemini. Were they going to restrain me? I would break free of them, but it would be easier if we were on the same team.

  ‘What’s your plan?’ he asked.

  There was no point trying to explain. Nick could hear us at any point. We needed the element of surprise.

  ‘I’ll make some noise. You’ll know when to break the door down and rescue Father.’

  I stepped away from the house before they could respond. Aries tried to grab me back. I skipped out of reach.

  Looking up, I picked the tallest tree. I lifted my arm so it was upright like the trunk. Closing my eyes, I felt my energy connect to the energy of the tree roots. The wind still swirled around us, which gave me the perfect excuse for what I was about to do. Clenching my fist, I slowly moved my arm down in the direction of the house. The simple move looked like I was doing an arm wrestle on my own.

  The tree started to move in the same direction. A creak echoed as the roots wrenched out of the ground.

  Making sure my arm was pointing in the direction of Nick’s bedroom, I thrust my arm down quickly.

  ‘Go!’ I shouted.

  There was no need for me to say anything. The tree crashed onto the roof. The boys kicked the backdoor in as the house vibrated with the smashing sound of a heavy object hitting tiles.

  I unclenched my fist, breaking the bond with the tree. Rushing into the house
behind my brothers, I paused when I came into the hallway. Their footsteps thundered up the stairs beside me. My father was shouting above, which was a good sign. There was no sound from Nick.

  ‘That was clever,’ came a voice from the open living room door.

  Nick had come back downstairs, instead of being tucked up in bed. It didn’t matter though. I would beat the crap out of him. As long as the boys rescued Father, I could take care of Nick.

  ‘I must admit, you’re getting good,’ Nick said, gesturing to my arm.

  The corner of my lip quirked at his compliment. ‘Come on, then,’ I replied.

  His forehead creased as he eyed my biceps. I had been studying to be a fitness trainer when I dropped out of university. I still religiously did my pull ups every day. It helped to release tension.

  ‘You scared?’ I asked, flexing my muscles unintentionally.

  His grey eyes met mine as I struggled with the urge to launch myself at him. I had no personal beef with the man so far, but as he stood watching me, my fingers bent in on themselves and clenched into balls.

  ‘We’re all scared, wouldn’t you say?’

  The sound of another door smashing came from upstairs. The boys had broken down Father’s door. Nick didn’t flinch at the sound. He leant against the door frame and crossed his arms. The black jumper he wore was snug over his own muscles. He wasn’t unfit himself, but his smaller frame was no match for me.

  ‘I’m not stupid. I know you’re trying to distract me. Let’s go,’ I said, gesturing for him to approach me.

  He stayed where he was, cocking his head to one side.

  ‘Fine, have it your way.’

  One step was enough to bring us face to face. I threw my fist towards him. He ducked out of the way and under my arm.

  ‘Taurus! We have him, and Nick isn’t…’ Gemini’s sentence trailed off as I rushed at Nick.

  The sound of his feet skipping down the stairs distracted me as I opened my arms and tackled our enemy to the ground.

  ‘Aries!’ Gemini shouted.

  Tumbling to the floor, I managed to wrench Nick’s arms behind his back. He didn’t struggle. In fact, he allowed me to capture him with no resistance. Something wasn’t right.

  ‘A car’s just pulled up!’ Aries shouted as he came into view at the top of the stairs.

  Father trailed behind him, rubbing his wrists. He looked thin and was limping as they climbed down the steps.

  ‘Let’s get out of here before—’

  The front door burst open. Two men stormed in with guns. Nick laughed under my weight. I hauled him to his feet, keeping hold of his wrists.

  ‘Taurus, duck,’ Gemini shouted.

  I dragged Nick down with me as a flash of light burst over my head. A fireball whizzed past and exploded into one of the men. The wind outside howled into the hallway through the open door, causing the fire to expand. The man that was hit fell to the ground, screaming as the flames licked around his black outfit.

  ‘Get them!’ Nick shouted at the second man.

  He raised his gun. The sound of whooshing made him pause. I glanced over to see Gemini standing at the bottom of the stairs. His eyes were wide as he spun his finger in a circle. He stared towards the open door, his concentration fully on his power.

  ‘What the hell is that?’ The man gasped as he turned to face the whirlwind that hovered just outside the door.

  The miniature tornado moved suddenly. It reached in and grabbed the man into its swirling centre. He vanished as the whirlwind pulled back from the house and spat the man high into the air.

  I chuckled as Gemini clenched his hand and the whirlwind puffed out.

  ‘Let’s go,’ Aries announced when the gates started to open again.

  Nick had more backup. That was why he wasn’t struggling. ‘What should we do with him?’ I asked, pulling him towards the backdoor.

  ‘I want to kill him,’ Aries said, taking hold of Father’s arm to hurry him along.

  We stepped straight over the ruined back door.

  ‘Leave him!’

  We turned to Father, who now stood on the grass outside. The rain went ignored as it spat on my cap.

  ‘Leave him?’ Aries asked. His deep growl was almost drowned out by the wind.

  Father shook his head, came over to me and pulled Nick out of my grip. ‘You can’t kill him. You need to prove him wrong by completing your mission. Not by using violence.’

  My own growl rolled from my throat as I watched Nick hurry back into the house. ‘Are you serious?’

  He gripped my bicep, pinching the skin. ‘Trust me, Taurus.’

  My eyebrows rose. I ripped away from his grasp. Trust him? After he abandoned us and married someone other than our mother? He was having a laugh, wasn’t he?

  ‘Let’s go!’ Gemini called.

  Nick would be getting his men ready to attack. I wanted to stay and fight. My blood was boiling, but not in the same way as Aries’ did. I followed the others as they vaulted over the wall. My foot slipped and I had to hold on to the top.

  ‘Do you need some help?’ Aries called.

  I kicked my feet against the wall and pulled hard. My body rose up as I threw myself over. The ground came up to meet me before I could get my feet ready. Arms caught me before I smashed against the concrete. The stink of Aries filtered up my nose as he cradled me against him like a little girl.

  ‘Aw, brotherly love,’ Gemini shouted as I thrust away from my rescuer.

  The van pulled up, so we jumped in. My breath was short. The others glanced at me as we made our escape. Being caught by Aries was the most embarrassing thing I had ever experienced.

  As we made our way back to London, I swore to myself that I would never feel that weakness again.

  Chapter Two

  The smoke filtered down my throat and into my lungs. The haze that surrounded me made me sleepy. I had done my pull ups for the day. That was all that mattered.

  ‘Do you have to do that so early?’ Gemini moaned when he came into the room.

  It was lunchtime, I would hardly call that early.

  ‘Why aren’t you at some bird’s house?’

  He picked up his aftershave and sprayed some on his neck. I only ever smoked when my brothers were out, contrary to what the others thought.

  ‘I was, but I got bored. Been there before, you know?’

  I didn’t know. I wasn’t a manwhore like Gemini and most of the others. Aries was the only male that was tied down in a relationship. I didn’t fancy being whipped like he was.

  ‘Anyway, I’ve got a big game tonight, so I need some practice. Will you play a game?’

  I couldn’t move my head, let alone try to play poker. Slapping my tongue against the roof of my mouth to try and clear the furry feeling, I nodded.

  ‘Great, put out your joint and come with me.’ Gemini grabbed a pack of cards from his bedside table and left the room.

  Putting my lips around the stub of the joint, I inhaled one more time. If I was about to lose the money I did have, I might as well be stoned.

  The room spun as I stood. I giggled and tried to make my eyelids lift higher. They were almost covering my eyes. It didn’t work. My steps were slow, but I found my way to the kitchen table. Sitting in one of the chairs, I looked around. Gemini sat on the chair opposite me. His hair was funny.

  ‘Okay, where’s your money?’ Gemini asked.

  I stared at his hair. It was long on top and gelled away from his head, just like the fashion. My mouth opened as I tried to figure out how he got it to stay so still. A giggle escaped. I wasn’t sure where it came from. Another one came. I looked down from Gemini’s hair to see him scowling at me.

  ‘Why do you do that with your hair?’

  The laughter had started and there was no way to stop it. I put my hand over my mouth. The sound of giggling erupted from me as I glanced back up at his hair.

  ‘Will you shut up?’ he muttered, shuffling the cards.

  Coughing, I tried t
o pull the laughter back, but it didn’t work.

  ‘He’s mashed,’ a voice said from the kitchen area. ‘Again.’

  Aries stood there. I hadn’t even noticed him. I straightened my face, or tried to, when I caught him glaring at me.

  ‘I’m fine,’ I said, clearing my throat and picking up the cards that Gemini had dealt.

  The red and black pictures were pretty. I couldn’t grasp what I was doing. It had been a while since I had played poker. Gemini was a professional. Why was I even attempting to go against him?

  ‘Gemini, are you going to take his money?’

  Aries came over and stood at the edge of the table. I looked down at his metal legs and squinted. The sun came in the window and reflected off them. He was steadier on his feet than I was and they weren’t even real.

  ‘I didn’t realise he was this bad.’ Gemini snatched the cards out of my hands.

  I stared at the empty space. The lines in my palm were deep, but my skin was smooth. It was fascinating how many lines were on the hands. Why had I never researched what the creases were for?

  ‘You can’t play him like that. You’d be robbing him.’

  I tried to glare up at the fireman. He was a funny man. I started to laugh again. ‘You can’t rob me, I have nothing to take.’

  It was true. I didn’t work and any money I had kept from our parents, I spent on drugs. It was my rescue fund.

  ‘Isn’t it about time you started to earn your keep?’

  Aries could do one. He always looked down his nose at me. I was sure he thought I was a waste of space. He never said anything, but I could see it.

  ‘You know what? I’m going out,’ I announced, clambering to my feet.

  ‘Really? And where are you going?’ Gemini asked.

  I creased my forehead as I thought about his question. It was a good question and one I didn’t know the answer to.

  ‘Just out…’

  Leaving them to it, I stumbled over to the front door. The kitchen was ten miles long. It took forever to make my way to freedom.

  ‘Taurus, you’re forgetting something,’ Aries called.

  When I looked over at him, he pointed to his chest. I glanced down. My own chest was bare. It was funny to see my bare skin. Why did men have hair on their chests? I rubbed my hand over my stomach. Maybe I shouldn’t go out without a top on.