Every Roze has its Thorn
By: BeautifulAli
Rating: G
Disclaimers:
The concept of the Night World and all its characters belong to L.J.
Smith, but Alyson, Garrett, and all other characters you don't recognize belong
to me. They can be borrowed only with
my permission.
Part 1
Alyson checked the silver knife hidden in her boot
sheath; it was secure and ready for wherever she might need it. Which might be very soon if Garrett didn't
show up soon. The alley where she
waited for contact was cold and damp from the morning rain, but it was
deserted. Alyson nervously twisted the
hematite ring around her right middle finger.
Hematite for power, she thought.
Where was that boy? He was never late, so did something happen
to him? Don't panic, Alyson. It's probably nothing.
But
it could be the vampires, the paranoid part of her mind whispered. Shut up, her rational mind
retorted. This is wonderful, I'm
having an argument with myself over the fate of one shapeshifter boy. What is my world coming to?
Alyson took a deep, calming breath. Garrett would be here soon, unharmed. She hoped.
The information he carried for her was dangerous enough to get them both
killed as traitors to the Night World.
Ah, the Night World. At one time
it had been her home, and she had followed its laws to the letter. That was before the Great Schism, when the
witches had made a treaty with the shifters and split from the Night
World. Only a few witch clans remained
loyal, and all but one of those were Circle Midnight clans.
Alyson's own Circle Twilight clan
had carefully chosen not to succeed, but not to become any more involved with
vampire politics than necessary.
But Alyson was not just a member of
the Briar Rose clan, she was a Daybreaker, and as such, a traitor to her family
and the Night World. And she was the
best spy Circle Daybreak had inside the Night World.
At a faint noise behind her, she
whirled around, automatically dropping into fighting stance, as sensei
had taught her when she'd studied kung fu.
"It's me," said a soft voice from the
shadows. Garrett's voice.
"About bloody time. You had me thinking that we'd been found
out."
"Nearly. I was followed. I had to
shake them before I could risk seeing you.
After tonight, I'm going to ask you to back off the council. You're too close; the vampires are getting a
little suspicious. This will be our
last contact for a few weeks, at least," warned Garrett.
"Jesus," whispered Alyson under her
breath. Her fingers reached for the
emerald cabochon at her neck. Emeralds
for calm.
She watched him as he listened
around them for any intruders, then sat down on the sidewalk. He looked at her as if he were about to say
something, but just sighed and hung his head.
"What is it?" she asked.
The boy, looked up, startled. "Oh, nothing, really."
"I may not know you very well,
Garrett, but I know when you are hiding something. You get very quiet and your eyes get that distant look. So just tell me what you want me to do, and
I'll decide if I'll do it."
"I…it isn't me that wants it. The Daybreaker council asked me to give you
a message. It's in a black envelope."
Alyson swore.
Black envelopes were often assassination assignments, or other black
ops, where there was no one to bail you out if you got in over your head. She had done one assassination in her life,
and her soul felt irredeemably blacked because of it. Alyson had promised herself that she would never do another. "I don't do murders."
Garrett shook his head. "It's not.
It's more spy stuff, I think.
They wouldn't let me read it, but I'm pretty sure."
"Fine. Give me the envelope." He
did. Alyson tore it open any pulled out
the dark green piece of paper within.
Greetings Alyson Roze, it
began, It has come to the attention of Circle Daybreak that a number of
Circle Midnight clans in your area are conspiring with the vampires against
us. Because of your qualifications as a
witch and one of our best spies, we ask that you accept this mission: infiltrate a Circle Midnight clan and bring
back information about their plans. Thank you.
It was signed, Thierry Descoudres.
Alyson let out a breath she hadn't
realized she'd been holding as she handed the envelope back to the shapeshifter
boy. "I'll do it," she said.
"I will tell the Daybreaker
council."
"Garrett?"
"Yeah?"
"Thank you. For everything."
"You're welcome."
Alyson turned to walk away.
"I'll leave my report in the usual place. I should be done in three weeks if all goes well," she called
over her shoulder as she disappeared into the night. And if it doesn't go well, she thought, then I will
probably end up dead.
