Free Spearwood Academy Volume Five by A.S. Oren

 
Previously on Spearwood Academy…
     

    T he semi-sweet aroma of cocoa wakes me up from a peaceful dream. I stretch my arms above my head and open my eyes. I’m still on the couch in the Cabin.
    We fell asleep here while we were cuddling. I smile. I’m glad he was okay with not going any farther than what we did last night. I’m just not ready for something like that yet.
    It felt so good just lying in his arms though. Through the entire night; never once feeling the pull of the moon.
    I look to the coffee table. On it sits a steaming mug of cocoa. He remembered. I sit up and grasp it in my hands before standing. I wonder where he is. I walk around the living room. “Mav?” I call.
    “Out here!”
    One of the windows near the front door stands open. I go outside and cup the mug with both hands. “What are you doing out here? It’s kinda chilly.”
    “I don’t feel it. Look at how beautiful the sunrise is.”
    Hues of pink and purple mingle together amongst the fluffy clouds. The clearing around the Cabin gives a perfect view of it. “Absolutely gorgeous,” I say.
    I stand next to him and he wraps his arm around me and gives me a kiss on the head. I sigh. I wish we could stay here forever.
    “I’m sorry about last night. I didn’t mean to ruin it.”
    He sets his mug down and turns me so my back faces the Cabin. “You didn’t ruin anything. I love you and nothing could ruin that.”
    “I’m so glad I admitted my feelings to you in the barn that day. I don’t know what I would do without you.”
    “That was the happiest day of my life.”
    He leans over and kisses my forehead, nose and lips.  I run my hand through his black hair. The white forelock hangs in front of his eyes, and I push it behind his ear. I like that he hasn’t tied it back yet for the day. “Let’s just stay here forever. No one knows we’re out here. We could just live in the forest.”
    Maverick sighs. “You know we can’t do that, Lon. We have to fix my brother and yours. We can’t leave them in that state.”
    He’s right. I wish he wasn’t. “Then let’s just stay here for the morning and make out. I don’t want to have to think about the rest of the world.”
    He grins. “Now, I think that could be arranged.”
    His warm lips meet mine in a gentle kiss, but a  thump makes me pull away from him. Where did that sound come from? No one else is out here.
    Maverick grunts, and I look to him. He grips at his chest and falls to his knees. A gasp escapes him.
    “Mav?” Cold rushes over my body. I fall to my knees with him. “Mav, what’s wrong?”
    Blood trickles down the corner of his mouth. I can’t breathe. I look over his shoulder. The end of an arrow sticks out near the left side of his back.  Red feathers attached at the fletching. “Oh God!” I gasp. “I need to heal you now!”
    He rips open his shirt. A black spot spreads out over his heart. He shakes his head no. “You can’t,” he gasps. “I’ve been poisoned by nightshade. There’s no cure.”
    His body falls forward into me. “I have to try. My Angel powers will cure you.”
    He shakes his head against my shoulder. “No. That will kill you.”
    “I don’t care.”
    “I do.”
    A sob erupts from me. My fingers go into his long black hair.   “Please don’t leave me.”
    “You need to live, Lon.” His gasps are becoming shorter.
    “I don’t want to live without you. This isn’t the end.”
    Maverick uses my shoulders to push himself up to look at me. He kisses my forehead, his lips blue.  “I . . .” He sways and falls forward again. His body convulses in my arms before he goes still.
    “Maverick?” I can’t feel his breath on my shoulder.  I lift a hand to check for a pulse. Nothing. “Maverick!”

 
Judgment
     

    One Week Later…
     
    M y wrists turn in the golden cuffs, their magic keeping mine at bay.
    “Do you understand why you are here, Miss Roseman?” asks one of the men sitting behind a judge’s stand, which is