Hungry Earth (Elemental Book 2)

by Oxford, Rain

“Five minutes might be too late.”

  “Gotcha. Over and out.”

  Jackson and I continued the search as I focused on Astrid’s mind. “Astrid, can you come help me with this?”

  “Five minutes.”

  “Oh, god,” Jackson said, slamming the door across from me shut.

  I left the empty room I was checking, pushed him aside, and opened the door. There was a boy who couldn’t have been more than ten fastened upside down to the ceiling. His clothes were shredded and barely hanging from him. Although the rope had strands loose from being scratched at, it held.

  He was unconscious and covered in blood, but still alive.

  “Go get the knife so we can cut him down,” I said. I didn’t bother to avoid the blood this time as I tried to untie the ropes on his wrists. My magic reacted instantly when I touched his skin and my vision changed.

  * * *

  From his perspective, I saw the boy in the living room of this house. There was a hard knock on the door and a man got up from the couch. He was an average sized man with a light sweater and dark pants. Through the child’s mind, I could feel that the man was the boy’s father.

  He only took two steps towards the door before freezing. “Go to the safe room,” he whispered.

  The boy had barely gotten to his feet when the door burst open to a huge man. The intruder came in slowly, scanning the room like a thug. He was a good six-foot seven with an overabundance of muscle, but he didn’t strike me as a paranormal.

  Of course, I was seeing him through the eyes of a child.

  The father’s hands shifted into claws and his gray sweater tore as huge wings grew out of his back. These weren’t pretty or dainty wings, but black leathery ones ending in sharp spikes. He struck the larger man and retreated several steps before the thug even knew he was hurt. Blood gushed out of his chest, but he just laughed. The father was about to strike again when he gasped. As his wings and claws slowly retracted, he backed away further to block his son.

  “What the hell are you?” he asked, trying to disguise his fear with anger.

  Another man came through the doorway. After the mountain that entered the room first, this man was almost harmless in appearance. He wasn’t particularly tall, thin, or otherwise ominous. His fitted black t-shirt tucked into his black jeans didn’t indicate what kind of paranormal he was. He was in his mid-forties with medium blue eyes and clean, dark brown hair that was just starting to turn gray.

  “We’re human, Mr. Thankachen, which is more than I can say about you,” the man said.

  “You don’t know what I am.”

  “Oh, but I do. I know you are an abomination. Fortunately, I have the power rid the world of all abominations.” The twins entered behind him at that point.

  “Close your eyes, Jake,” the father whispered, reaching behind him for his son’s hand. Jake did, and wondered why the humans were attacking. His father never did anything to hurt anyone. He heard horrible noises and felt his father’s hand slip away.

  * * *

  Jake fell, snapping me out of the vision, and I was barely able to catch him before he hit the floor.

  “Pay attention!” Jackson barked. He had burned the rope with a fireball. Hunt entered the room right behind him, causing the young wizard to scream from the unexpected movement. Henry, who followed the headmaster in, looked a little shell-shocked.

  “How did you get here so fast?” I asked.

  “Darwin said you needed us immediately.” He took Jake from me and laid him out on the bed.

  “Jackson and Henry, find anyone else who might be alive,” I said. They both nodded and left, so I turned to the headmaster. “What do you need?” I asked, forcing my voice to be steady. Experiencing Jake lose his father was too much like what I went through myself.

  “Water for him to drink when he wakes,” he answered.

  Glad to have an excuse to get some air, I went back downstairs and found the kitchen easily. I felt her presence as I searched the cabinets for glasses, so I didn’t spook when I grabbed one and turned to see Astrid only a foot away from me.

  “Sorry, I’m late,” she said.

  Oddly, I wanted to hug her before saying anything. Instead, I took a step back. “Help Henry and Jackson. They’re upstairs looking for survivors. See if you can find someone they can’t, but pay attention to scents.”

  She nodded and left. After filling the glass with the water in the fridge dispenser, I returned to the room where Hunt was healing Jake, having already freed the boy’s hands from the rope. He sat on the bed when I entered. “He isn’t badly hurt. The shock of this must be the problem. Can you communicate with him?” He took the glass from my hand and set it on the nightstand.

  “It would be better if we find his father alive, but I’m afraid we’re too late.” I sat beside the boy, took his hand, and closed my eyes.

  This time, when I felt the boy’s mind, I pictured the scene. I felt his father’s hand and spread my power through the boy. My vision changed to the father’s perspective. His power was dark, and dangerous, like that of a vampire’s, but it didn’t make him a bad person. He was a peaceful person. He also wasn’t the one I needed to see.

  I pushed my magic out further and felt the mind of the thug. Instantly, I recognized the hate; he was the man who blew up the club. I sensed the minds of the twins, who were as alike in mind as they were in body. They were vindictive little bitches. Both of them were spoiled and in it howerower. They wanted to kill people who had more than them.

  I focused on the remaining mind and instantly hit a wall. When I tried to push, I felt my power stumble and falter. I wasn’t an idiot; I pulled back until I was only in the mind of the boy. “Can you hear me?” I asked gently.

  “Why did they do this?” he asked.

  “I don’t know, but I will find out. Can you open your eyes?” I mentally felt him shake his head. “Okay. You don’t have to open your eyes. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to right now. Remember something happy. Think of the last time you spent the afternoon with him.”

  The image of Jake and his father fishing at a lake came to mind. The sun was shining and his father was smiling. “Dad said we had to live as much like humans as possible. I thought humans were good,” he said.

  “Most of them are, just like most shifters, most fae, most wizards, and… and most vampires are. Everyone has bad apples. Keep remembering this. I have to go check on the others, but I’ll be back in a minute.”

  I opened my eyes and broke the connection, but when I tried to get up, his eyes snapped open and he screamed, then squeezed my hand like his life depended on it.

  “Okay, okay. Hush, I’m not going anywhere. A little help?” I asked Hunt.

  Henry returned then. “We found three more alive and two more dead. There is a woman dying from blood loss. She will not survive another five minutes.”

  “Can Astrid turn her?” I asked.

  “She is fae, and they can’t be turned.”

  Hunt stood and followed Henry out. I picked up Jake and found my way to the room two doors down, where Hunt was already working on her. She was flat on the ground, he had one hand on her forehead and one on her stomach, and there was a white glow emanating from his hands.

  It took him about ten minutes before the woman gasped, started coughing, and reached for her throat in a panic.

  “I will have Stephen send for a car to take the survivors somewhere safe,” Hunt said, standing.

  “Why can’t you take them back like you brought Henry here?” I asked.

  My roommate shook his head discreetly and looked directly at Jackson.

  Hunt left the room, only to return a minute later. “Stephen is on his way. Mr. Michaels, you are aware the rules state that you cannot leave the school during the semester without permission. The punishment for breaking that rule is permanent expulsion.”

  Jackson’s face turned ashen.

  The image of the motel door invaded my mind again. I’m on my
way,” I told Clara. “I think Clara found something. Henry, Astrid, and I will go back to the motel and see what’s going on there.”

  Hunt nodded and tried to take Jake from me, but the child wrapped his arms around my neck in a death grip. I reached back into the child’s mind and pulled up memories I had seen in Remy’s thoughts. Hunt was overprotective, but he was extremely patient, kind, and loving to his daughter. To everyone who opposed her, he was a nightmare.

  He stopped struggling when we saw Hunt taking Remy to the state fair from her eyes when she was no older than Jake. After a few minutes, he let me pass him to Hunt and I let his mind go.

  Astrid, Henry, and I left and returned to the motel. Unfortunately, I could sense something was wrong before it was in view. Astrid stopped and grabbed my arm. Henry growled at her quietly, but didn’t say anything.

  “By the way, Henry, I’m sure you have figured out, but this is Astrid, the vampire who nearly killed my mother, made me jaded my entire life, and has lately been sneaking into my bed at night.”

  “Devon, I thought we were okay,” Astrid said.

  “I didn’t tell him to kill you, did I?” I continued to the motel. A sinking feeling started up in my stomach as I turned the corner and saw the SUV, which had a large dent in the driver’s door. I froze when I saw the motel door open with blood on the handle.

  Chapter 8

  There was no one in the motel room, not surprisingly. I tried calling to Clara, but her thoughts were too muddled. We found a few small smears of blood on the blanket, which Astrid said were human blood. Other than that, the only sign of a struggle was the blood on the doorknob and a knocked-over lamp.

  “Stephen is going to kill everyone,” Astrid said.

  “I think I need to be let into the loop,” Henry said.

  “A few humans have gotten the amulet and teamed up to kill paranormals. You are now in the loop. Can you find the amulet?”

  “I can. It may not be legal, though.”

  “Astrid, give us a minute, please. Go outside, stick your fingers in your ear, and sing.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’ll be in the truck.” She left.

  “Henry, are you a thief?”

  “Not exactly. I retrieve objects that have been stolen or are being used for harm. Sometimes it’s honorable work and sometimes it’s not. I attempted to get the amulet over the break, but it had already been stolen before I could get it. It seems to me like I need to team up with Darwin.”

  “You didn’t think to tell me you knew why the council was here?”

  “You found out before me that they thought Hunt took it. Whether he did or not, I don’t have any information that can help you.”

  “And your parents?”

  “My parents are thieves. They raised me to be exceptional at stealing and taught me how to get away with it. When I shifted for the first time and they realized I was not typical, they wanted to use me. I hated stealing when we had too much money as it was, so I told them I wasn’t going to do it anymore. My mother told me I was disgusting and my father beat me until I shifted and nearly dismembered him. They told me if I didn’t steal for them, then they would turn me in.”

  “You realize that’s messed up, right?”

  “I do. However, they can be very loving and supportive as long as I provide them with what they want. We came to an agreement that I would give them money that I attained however I choose and they would never demand that I steal something if I felt it was immoral. They began finding me jobs for other people.

  “My first assignment was a woman whose apartment was broken into. She didn’t care about anything except for a necklace, which was the last gift her father left her before he died. The manager’s son took it and a lawyer wouldn’t even talk to her. I got them back and suggested she move, because there were quite a few objects in the thief’s apartment that he was preparing to pawn.”

  “Well, that was good, at least. You didn’t hurt–”

  “That was not the end, unfortunately. The manager wouldn’t let the woman out of her lease and his son broke into her apartment again. So I shifted and broke the legs of the manager and his son. My parents were proud that I hurt them. They consider themselves to be rebels, which is why they loathe the wizard council.”

  “But you’ve never been caught?”

  “My parents taught me how to cover my tracks from the time I could walk. Hell, they taught me how to steal food out of the fridge of our own house without getting caught. Everywhere we went for as long as I could remember, they were teaching me to steal, so I thought it was normal until I was six or seven. I remember the moment when I realized the cops were the good guys and we were the bad guys.”

  “It broke your heart, didn’t it?”

  He nodded. “When I got caught for Ashcraft’s murder, I was confused and I thought I was innocent in it, but I felt like it was justice. I also thought it was very unfair that I was in a cell and my parents were not. The first thing I did when I saw them again was swear to them that if I ever got caught for anything and was going to jail, I would kill them both first.”

  “That might not help your case.”

  “I am willing to risk it.”

  “The council mentioned your parents. Do they know your parents are thieves?”

  “They may suspect my parents, but they will never get any evidence.”

  “Is this your big secret you don’t want me to see in your head?” I asked. He gave me a hard look and slowly, emphatically shook his head. So what could he be hiding that’s worse than being a thief? “If you can get the amulet back from this killer, I don’t think the wizard council will care what you have to do to get it.”

  “Giving it back to the council is a bad idea. They are already on the verge of trying to take over the paranormal community. Depending on who takes John Cross’s position, war may be imminent. The amulet could make them invincible.”

  “So how would you get it?”

  “Normally, the object is in a secure location and I unsecure it. In this case, I need to find the person who has it. The easiest method would be to get in on the investigation and ally myself with someone who can read the person’s mind.” He gave me an expectant look.

  “His mind is blocked, most likely because of the amulet.”

  “In that case, my fastest method of finding him is to shift and get his scent.”

  “Okay. That sounds fine by me.”

  “My jaguar doesn’t listen to me. If I shift now, away from the school, I will probably hunt Holli down and kill her.”

  “Great. And if we don’t get the amulet soon, more people might die. John could control you. Maybe I can now that I have his power.”

  “If you want to try, I will agree to let you. However, if I kill my fiancé, my parents will start a lot of trouble.”

  “Do you think I could do it?”

  “No.”

  “Well, we have to do something. Can you help us find Clara?”

  “I will assist you in any way that I can. If it comes down to a fight, my jaguar will fight our enemy instinctively.”

  “Good. That could help.”

  “Only after our enemy is dead will he turn on you.”

  “Great. Except when we do face this enemy, he has the amulet, which can turn you human.”

  “Impossible.”

  I paused. “The whole point of the amulet is to–”

  “Render the victim powerless,” he interrupted calmly. “I understand the function of this object, yet you do not understand the genetics of a shifter. We’re called shifters because it is our power to shift between forms. Thus, we are not called werewolves or were-jaguars.”

  “Wait, then there are werewolves?”

  “No, of course not. There is no virus that can make a human change into a wolf or wolfish beast under the full moon.”

  “It’s just a myth stemmed from shifters? Why is it just werewolves then?”

  “The myth has more to do with skin walkers than shifte
rs.”

  “Huh?”

  “Using old magic, a person can supposedly change into animals, but this has nothing to do with viruses or genetics and I am not convinced of it. If you’re interested, Darwin knows a lot more about the history of it, including why werewolves are the most known. All I know is that it is not the origin of shifters.”

  “But both shifters and skin walkers use magic to shift?”

  “A skin walker, hypothetically of course, is still a person and would revert to being one if their power was taken. When I shift, I’m using my inborn power, just like you read a person’s mind. Once I am a jaguar, I no longer require or use my power; I am a jaguar. I have several powers unique to me, such as my camouflage and invisibility, but I am in no way a person in my jaguar form. Therefore, a device that renders me powerless will not force me back into my person form. That would actually require magic to do.”

  “Okay, good to know. Let’s go before the sun becomes a problem.”

  I locked the key in the room and we got in the SUV. Henry drove a perfect two miles over the speed limit. As other cars passed us, Astrid and I didn’t say a word. We were heading back to the club to see if we could find another clue when I saw a red Crossfire. Its top was up, but it was definitely a convertible. I was about to tell Henry to follow it when my instincts demanded I leave it.

  “Henry, drive straight,” I barked. My magic lashed out without my control and Henry growled. He shook his head, whether fighting my magic or his cat, I didn’t know. His hands on the steering wheel partially shifted before returning to their normal shape. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to.”

  He accelerated and didn’t say anything.

  “Turn left,” I said, careful to stay out of his head. He took the next left. After about twenty minutes, we arrived at another motel. Henry parked and the three of us got out. Instantly, Astrid and Henry started for a specific door. “What is it?” I asked

  “Blood.”

  We got to the door and Astrid grabbed the knob. I heard a small snap as the lock broke and she threw the door open. Henry shoved me against the wall in time to avoid getting run over by one of the twins. Astrid and her collided and the vampire went down on top. In the blink of an eye, my childhood friend tore the human’s throat out.