[Zodiac Twin Flames 01.0 - 03.0] Boxed Set Read online

  What would I have done if he had wanted me? Would I have given him a chance to get close? Probably not.

  ‘Where have you been?’

  The hissed words made me jump. I put my hand to my chest and took a deep breath. ‘Don’t do that to me, Cancer, you know I can’t deal with it!’

  My senses were heightened, like all of the water signs but I was extra sensitive for some reason. When I heard loud noises for long periods of time, or watched continually flashing lights, my senses would go into overload. I knew when it was time to cocoon myself and so did the others.

  ‘Sorry,’ she said, grabbing my arm and pulling me into the house. ‘The boys said that you went off on your own and I thought you might have run away again.’

  ‘I didn’t run away.’ I took her hand to release the grip she had on me.

  We made our way to the bedroom. I swallowed my sigh as the four walls enclosed around me. Cancer and I had shared a room since we were children and I was sick of it. I was twenty years old. I could do without sharing a room with another woman. However, I would be happy to share a room with my twin flame soulmate. If I ever met him.

  ‘Pisces, I missed you!’

  Cancer hugged me, which caused me to stiffen. Despite us being good friends, I still wasn't a fan of physical contact.

  ‘No offence but—’

  ‘Don’t say it. I know,’ she said, backing off.

  I glanced down at her wrist. The bracelet she wore was a different colour to mine but still a shade of blue. ‘Do you think we’ll ever be able to take them off?’

  The bracelet made me feel like I was branded. We were trapped in the house of weirdness and had been our whole lives. Cancer glanced down at hers. Her bobbed blonde hair fell forward and covered her face as she looked at her own birth sign charm. Whenever we had tried to take the bracelet off, we found that we couldn’t. It wouldn’t budge. Even though it wasn’t tight.

  ‘I don’t want to.’ She moved over to the window.

  Her slim frame was curvy in all the right places. We had similar figures but I was taller. We often shared clothes, except trousers. My hips and legs were bigger than hers but I didn’t mind.

  ‘It seems you’ve lost faith in our mission.’

  The words were said quietly. They shot straight into my heart. They were true and I hadn’t acknowledged it. I sighed and lay back on my bed. Closing my eyes, I fought against the lump that rose in my throat.

  ‘I think I have,’ I replied, not able to lie to her.

  She gasped and came over to the bed. She looked down at me. I kept my eyes closed but could feel the heat of her gaze.

  ‘Go away,’ I muttered, feeling my energy drain.

  ‘You will meet your twin flame.’ She grabbed my hand and shook it.

  When we were young, our parents had explained that we were to complete an important mission. There wasn’t enough love on the planet. People had lost faith in happily ever after and stopped believing in romance. All twelve of us had agreed to be born on earth to show the world that true love exists.

  Being told by someone else was in no way the same as experiencing it yourself. I couldn’t remember my life before I was about five. How was I supposed to know what had happened before I was born? Mother always chastised me for being impatient. I wanted more answers. Apparently it would all become clear as we got older.

  ‘Do you really believe that? Twelve of us are literally here to find a soulmate and live happily ever after?’

  She let go of me. I opened my eyes and watched her move to her own bed.

  ‘It’s not just any old soulmate, though, is it? And no…I don’t believe that’s all we’re here to do and neither do you.’

  I swallowed as I shifted onto my side. The bed felt familiar. I was bored with familiar. I needed something new and exciting. I had been trapped in the same house my whole life. I had to find a way to breathe…I had to get out somehow.

  ‘You don’t know what I believe,’ I whispered.

  Her laugh was typical. She assumed that I was having one of my emotional sulks. She was right, of course. I hated that I had lost confidence but I couldn’t help it.

  ‘You’ll find him, Pisces, just keep the faith.’

  Chapter Three

  ‘When are you going to bed, Pisces?’ Aries called.

  He sat on the sofa with the boys. They were playing on one of their game consoles.

  ‘Not yet. Why? Do you want to play one of the dancing games?’ I laughed.

  He growled as he spun in his seat to look at me. I was at the kitchen table with my laptop. The combined kitchen and living area was big enough for twelve people to gather. Six men and six women living under the same roof made it hard to compromise sometimes.

  ‘No, we were thinking of inviting some friends over,’ he said.

  I glared at the back of his head as he turned away. His definition of friends actually meant girls. All six boys turned and looked at me.

  ‘Are you serious? Can’t you just go out and meet them at the pub?’

  The boys turned back to their game and I bit my lip as I watched them.

  The three men who had come to fetch me back were wearing nothing but jeans. The heating was high. They were getting worked up as they played a fighting game. The others had clothes on but were no less handsome.

  Swallowing a mouthful of water, I wondered whether to give in and go to bed. It didn’t look like the boys would leave me alone anytime soon.

  The phone rang. Everyone in the room froze. The only person that called was our mother. She had moved out two years ago.

  ‘Hello,’ I answered after a mad dash to grab the phone before the men did.

  ‘Pisces, it’s Mother. I need to let you know that he’s back…’

  The phone cut off and I swallowed hard.

  ‘He’s back,’ I announced, turning to the boys.

  They swore and jumped up from their seats, getting ready for a fight that hadn’t even started yet.

  ‘Did she say anymore?’ Aries said.

  I shook my head and came away from the phone. Father couldn’t find us; Mother had made sure of it but we needed to be on our guard. I didn’t believe Mother when she had said that he would harm us. When their relationship started to breakdown he left, leaving bad blood between them. After his departure her obsession with keeping us away from the rest of the world resulted in her installing cameras in every room. When she eventually left two years ago, we tried to get rid of them but she claimed that she was protecting us. We felt liberated after she’d left to some degree but being watched 24/7 was a constant strain. We all hated it.

  ‘It’s been five years. Why is he back?’ Leo came over to me.

  I shrugged as he grabbed me and wrapped his arms around my shoulders. The hug was reassuring. I hadn’t even been aware that I needed one.

  Father was married to Mother when they had collected us from our birth parents and brought us to live together in the townhouse. As we grew older, Father had tried to persuade Mother to give us some space so we could get on with our lives and live more independently. Mother would have none of it; it was one of the reasons why their relationship fractured. We’d begged her to let us lead a more liberated lifestyle but she constantly told us that she had been entrusted with our care by the universe. She felt that it was her duty to safeguard us. She was also protecting us from the Dysfunctionals, who were out to destroy any goodness and love our mission enforced. Their aim was to create hatred and fear; ours was to bring love and unity back to mankind.

  When I had questioned her about the universe and who had entrusted her, she avoided the answer, which made me even more curious.

  We all rebelled in our teenage years but she still wouldn’t grant us freedom. I would cry at night, wishing I could go out and meet new friends. She tried to get us to see that our lives were bigger than ourselves. We were not on Earth to be free. We were home schooled and were never allowed out on our own. Of course, when we reached eighteen, we had l
imited time out and about to go to libraries and parks. When Mother left, the pub opened the boys’ eyes. And the women…

  ‘Do you think he’ll try to destroy us?’ Aries stepped forward and picked up the phone.

  ‘That’s only what Mother said. I don’t think he would. Not in a million years. She harbours a grudge since Father left. What are you doing?’ I snatched the phone from him.

  Aries’ face darkened. ‘Things have got to change,’ he said, holding out his hand.

  I looked between the men as they stepped forward. Something felt different somehow. I had always followed the rules, in spite of yearning to be free. We all had. It looked like the boys were about to go against the grain.

  ‘Pisces, we need to take charge of our own destiny but we need to stick together to do that.’ Handing him the phone, I took a step back. I couldn’t stop them. He was right. I had been dreaming of the day that I could leave the house and be on my own for good.

  ‘But…’ I stuttered.

  ‘Don’t you think we would make better partners for our soulmates if we experienced life more? You of all people know that.’ Scorpio said.

  Admitting he was right, even to myself, was hard. None of us were ready for love. The boys usually went to flirt with women, no commitment was ever involved. We had no experience of socialising with the opposite sex on a one to one basis, never mind leading an independent lifestyle. Finding our soulmate was our lifetime purpose. We needed to be ready for that. It seemed that the more I thought about being a soulmate, the less I wanted to carry out my mission.

  ‘We need to stick together but we promise to give you more freedom. We really do know how you’ve been feeling, it’s time for a change. Our lives can’t be governed by Mother any longer. We need to grow.’ Aries pressed the buttons on the phone.

  The distant sound of ringing filtered to my ears. He frowned when someone answered.

  After some awkward banter, Aries went straight to the point. ‘Mother…it’s time for us to become independent. It’s time to let us go. We need to start living a normal life, so we can find our soulmate naturally in a natural environment. We’re moving on.’ After a long silence, she spoke, leaving Aries hanging up the phone. ‘We should have done this years ago.’

  I was relieved that he had finally told her. The others reacted in different ways. Leo high-fived Aries. Scorpio just grinned.

  ‘What’s the plan?’ I asked.

  They became silent and avoided looking at me. I knew they had been hiding something. I had suspected for months. It was another reason why I had wanted to get out.

  ‘We have another house set up. We’re all going to live there.’ Scorpio took my hand.

  I blinked as I tried to wrap my head around what they were saying. They had obviously been thinking about defying Mother for a while.

  ‘We need to see the world without someone breathing down our necks,’ Aquarius said.

  I nodded, because I agreed. The house we lived in was more like a prison. ‘Great. When do we move?’

  ‘As soon as we’re all ready. Here, take this.’

  I looked at the address in Clapham on the card Aquarius gave me.

  He smiled and shrugged. ‘A good place to keep a low profile.’

  I shook my head. The boys could never be discreet. They always found themselves in trouble. I couldn’t help the small smile that came to my lips when I thought of their escapades.

  ‘We’ve set up a pretty amazing place. You’d have your freedom there.’

  I stilled as I looked at the card. I wanted my freedom but if I was honest, I was still scared. Okay, I had a couple of weeks living with Kat but it was scary at first. Also each one of us had an ability that we had to keep hidden. We always looked out for each other. If anyone outside our family discovered that I could breathe underwater, like Kat almost did, I would be turned into a science project.

  ‘Come with us. Everyone’s packing. If we go there now, we can be the first in. If you don’t like it, you can leave. We’ll come back tomorrow to pack our remaining belongings. Okay?’ Leo tried to take my hand.

  I gave a weak smile.

  ‘Let’s go,’ Cancer said, coming out of our room with Aries.

  I nodded, defeated.

  They stared at me. They were probably trying to predict whether I was going to melt down in tears or just get on with it. They wouldn’t get any tears from me. I was ready for this, although a small part of me still felt trapped.

  ‘Let’s go!’ Scorpio called from the end of the hallway.

  We were leaving the safety of the nest. This time I wasn’t attempting to make it on my own. Leaving with the others made it more real somehow. Although we were still going to live together, it would be different. We would finally be free from our parents.

  ‘Let’s hope neither of them will find us now,’ Leo said, picking up my suitcase and throwing it on his shoulder. We went to his room where he put on a coat and grabbed his own suitcase. I took his much loved guitar and slung it over my back. He was right. If we wanted to be free to live our lives, we had to hide from them both. Father allegedly wanted to harm us and Mother just wanted to control us. It was time to leave.

  Everyone met in the hallway, before the boys shepherded the rest of us into the living area. Aries droned on as he explained the new plan. Now that Father had reappeared, we were all going to move to the new place. I looked around the room we had called home for most of our lives but didn’t feel anything. I was ready to leave the past behind. I had held on for too long.

  It was time to start again.

  Chapter Four

  ‘Keep running.’ She panted behind me.

  Spotting the men at the station, we managed to sneak out before they saw us. It had been a month since we had moved. We knew that Mother would send someone to try and find us. So far we hadn’t seen anyone. Until now. They wore suits and talked into their phones as they looked around them. I had recognised one. That had been enough to make me grab Cancer and get out of the station.

  We were running on the concrete path alongside the river Thames, hoping we didn’t look too conspicuous. There wasn’t a lot of people around during the middle of day. Most of them were still at work. It was cold. My breath huffed out in a puff of white mist as I tried to get more air into my lungs.

  ‘I think they saw us. A car just skidded over there,’ Cancer called.

  I looked but couldn’t see anything as my hair swept into my face. I pushed past a tourist group, apologising when I pushed into one of them.

  ‘Pisces, jump in!’ Cancer called.

  I spun to see Cancer pointing down to the river. I nodded as her body changed and she turned into liquid. The shower of water hit the ground. I turned to where she had been standing. Wishing I was fitter, I grabbed the green railing and lifted my leg over it. A shout from behind made me look back briefly. I recognised the man’s face as he ran towards me but I didn’t have time to place him. Had he been one of our bodyguards when we were younger? He didn’t look old enough.

  Jumping into the river, I thanked the universe that it was high tide. The iciness enveloped me as my mouth flew open. I inhaled deeply. Somehow the water flowed into my body but it didn’t kill me.

  My breathing underwater ability had come to light when I was a toddler. Mother had left me in the bath on my own and I had gone under for a long time without dying. Taking water into my lungs had been instinctual, and although the memory was a blur, I would never forget that first time.

  My body started to float to the surface of the river. I put my hands in front of me and pushed through the water. The water was so murky, I struggled to see where I was going. My long coat pulled me down, which actually helped, as it concealed me. My bracelet caught my eye as I pushed my hands forward. I breathed in deeply and felt the water enter my lungs. I didn’t know how I survived but apparently I could. The silver of my Pisces charm sent a bolt of annoyance through me. I hated being tied to my mission.

  After swimming for a
while, I allowed myself to float upwards. Water poured from my mouth and nose when my head broke the surface. I was on a quiet part of the river. I pulled myself out and sat shivering for a moment.

  ‘Are you okay?’ Cancer asked from behind me.

  She had a weird way of knowing where someone was. I nodded. She looked dry, not soaking wet like I was.

  ‘How did you get here?’

  She grinned and pointed at my boots. ‘I attached myself to your feet.’

  Shaking my head, I got up and wrung out my brown hair. The length of it was heavy when it was wet. I let go and it fell to my waist.

  ‘We need to get you out of those clothes,’ she said, taking the arm of my coat.

  ‘Are you okay?’ The voice was deep and sent chills up my spine. The man that approached was tall and slim with dark shaved hair. My skin flushed when he looked at me and smiled.

  ‘I’m fine. I just fancied a swim.’ I glanced down at my hands when his gaze met mine.

  His eyes twinkled. ‘Well, that’s commendable. Although, a bit crazy too,’ he said.

  Taking off his coat, he wrapped it around me. I shivered even more when his hands brushed my shoulders.

  ‘Pisces, we need to go.’ Cancer stepped in front of me and grinned up at the man.

  I was tempted to push her out of the way. It would only make her worse. She loved men and they loved her.

  ‘Pisces, that’s a rare name,’ he said, ignoring my sister.

  The man seemed to be focused on me. That was unusual. They usually spoke to Cancer, or Sagi. I was far too quiet for them to take notice.

  ‘It’s pretty,’ he added when I didn’t say anything.

  Cancer grabbed my arm and started to pull me away.

  ‘Wait. Where can I find you? So you can return my coat?’ he called.

  I was usually shy but I felt strangely confident. Mother had told us to look for any signs when you are around a possible soulmate. This immediate surge of confidence was one of them. It was a pretty big sign. ‘Meet me in that coffee shop in an hour,’ I said, pointing to a nearby coffee house.