Elementris, Exposure, Eruption Box set: The Vangeretta Curse Series

by Christina Mobley

  He flushed red, “I have to go.” He moved quickly to the door, stopping right before opening it, “I’ll see you tomorrow at gym. Back gate,” and he slammed the door behind him.

  …Ava…

  Ava stood on the balcony with Alec. She wanted to just ask him if Bianca had tried anything with him. She couldn’t though. She looked into his eyes and saw nothing suspicious as he looked back at her. “What are we going to do, Alec?” she asked, disappointed by her lack of courage.

  “I don’t know,” He sent a glare towards the boat. “We have to get rid of him, though. You’re just going to have to keep sending storms. If he finds something down there, he could expose us all.”

  There was a knock at the door. Alec walked over to open it and Shawn entered the room. “I need to talk to you, Alec. That new Green, Reid, is causing problems again.”

  “What has he done now?”

  “He got into a fight with another Green. Maybe he just isn’t cut out for the Clutch.”

  “No,” Alec stiffened and shook his head, “I just need to work with him more. He has some anger issues. I can handle him.” Looking at Ava, Alec said, “I’ll be back in a while.”

  Ava smiled at him and nodded her head.

  Alec paused on his way out the door, “I know you don’t like it, Ava, but you have to do it. We have to get rid of Blake Sanders; the sooner, the better. We have other issues to deal with.”

  “I know,” Ava said.

  “I love you,” Alec said.

  “Love you too.”

  Alec shut the door, leaving her alone in her room. She caught her reflection in the mirror. Her blue eyes were highlighted by a shimmery eye shadow and her red hair was intricately braided around the crown. It had taken Nisca two hours to do her hair. More visitors would arrive today and Ava would have to pretend like she had everything under control.

  She walked back out onto the balcony and picked up her binoculars so she could look at the boat. She could clearly see Blake Sanders and what appeared to be a small ring that he was showing to someone. She was preparing to send a storm when Nisca appeared behind her.

  Ava jumped, “You scared me!”

  “I’m sorry,” Nisca said. I saw Alec on my way up and he said that I should just come in because you were out here. I wanted to apologize for running out after my seizure. I should have apologized earlier, but I…”

  “No, you don’t need to apologize.” Ava took her hand, “I just want us to be friends.”

  “Okay,” Nisca nodded. She looked towards the boat “Do you think they really found that old ship down there?”

  “Yeah, I think so.”

  Nisca shook her head, “Sorry, I shouldn’t be nosy. Everyone has been talking about it.”

  “No, it’s fine.” Ava looked at the boat and then at Nisca, “I just wish I knew what to do.”

  Nisca looked up suddenly, her dark skin and honey eyes shimmering in the sunlight, “You have to get rid of them. If you don’t, it’s going to be bad. I saw him.” She stopped abruptly.

  “You saw him?”

  Nisca backed up, “No, I didn’t see him,” she said as she turned away. “I don’t know why I said that.”

  Ava nodded slowly. “Is there anything I should know, Nisca?”

  Nisca looked at her for a long moment, “No, I have to go.” She rushed for the door, and quickly slipped out of the room.

  “Well, okay then,” Ava said. There was definitely something weird going on with Nisca.

  As the door shut, Ava looked at the boat again and sighed. She watched as Blake continued to stare at the ring in his hand. He lifted it up and slid it on his middle finger. Then the craziest thing happened. Blake took two steps back, fell over a box on the boat deck, and an amazed look crossed his face. He was looking right at her!

  Ava froze.

  …Lyssa…

  It had been nearly five hours since Zack had left and Lyssa had done nothing but lay around and think since the door had slammed shut behind him. She had felt the strange attraction forming between Zack and herself for a few months now. She’d tried everything to stop it. It was just too complicated. She and Zack had been friends since they were eight. Ms. Shelby had arranged for her and Zack to meet and she had also encouraged them to try and find the others in their circle, but they hadn’t. They’d had each other; they didn’t really need anyone else. She wondered what would happen if she kissed him back and let it turn into something after all this time. Zack knew all of her secrets, all of her habits, all of the things that only a best friend is supposed to know. Their friendship was too valuable to both of them to risk it. She had to find a way to push him away and keep him close at the same time.

  There was no way she could begin to analyze their relationship, not with all of this other stuff going on. She had more important things to worry about. She took a long shower, washing the dust, blood and tears off. After looking at her bruises in the mirror she got dressed and went into her room. She sat on the edge of the bed and hugged her pillow to her chest “Where is Thomas?” She thought. “Is he out there somewhere watching me? Did he see the kiss?” She stood up suddenly and shut the curtain. She turned around and screamed.

  Thomas stood there, leaning against the doorjamb, one foot crossed comfortably over the other.

  “What the hell!?!” She rushed over to him and pushed him as hard as she could, “You scared the crap out of me.”

  He took both of her hands in his and looked at her face, “Are you hurtin’?”

  “No,” she said, trying to ignore the throbbing headache that pulsed relentlessly behind her temples, “I’m fine. Where were you?”

  “I was,” he paused and looked closer at her black eye, “around.” He dropped one of her hands and tugged her along with the other, “Come on.”

  “Where are we going?” she asked.

  “Garage,” he replied.

  “For what?”

  He didn’t say anything. He pushed the door open and moved a box out of the way. He bent over and pulled out her dad’s old punching bag, setting it in the middle of the floor in front of her, “Here.”

  Lyssa shook her head, “What am I supposed to do with that?”

  “Don’t stand there like a bump on a log, get your hands unfolded. You’re gonna learn how to take care of yourself.”

  Lyssa put her hands on her hips, “I know how to defend myself.”

  He glanced at her eye.

  Lyssa cocked her head at him, “You said yourself Amber was pretty messed up. It was four against one. I think I held my own pretty good.”

  Thomas smiled, “Don’t get your feathers ruffled. I ain’t making fun of ya, girl, but you better learn how to fight cuz the people coming for you ain't gonna be no rich, hair pulling, little girls who are worried about breaking a nail. I don’t want you going off, half-cocked, thinking you’re ready to throw down. The people coming after you will probably be highly skilled and heavily armed. I’m going to make sure you don’t wind up laid up somewhere.”

  “Heavily armed with what? Guns?”

  “I don’t know, maybe. Spells, guns, there ain’t no telling.” He adjusted the punching bag “You need to know some basic combat.” He pulled back and gave the punching back a quick lick. The punching bag jumped back and forth, shaking wildly as the chain rattled. “Every dog has his day, today was yours. Next time you wind up in tussle, you need to come out on top.”

  “I was on top. It wasn’t luck either. One against four. Seriously, I’m not superwoman,” she huffed.

  “Quit running off at the mouth and get over here.” He stepped back from the punching bag.

  Lyssa smiled walking past him. “Whatever, I’ve got this.” She balled up her fist and swung as hard as she could. “Owww!” She spun in a circle cradling her fist at her chest, “Damn it, that hurt!”

  Thomas cracked a small smile, “I told ya, now slow your roll and listen.”

  Lyssa sent him a razor sharp glare, “That didn’t prove anythi
ng.”

  “I reckon it did”

  “No,” she cracked her knuckles, “It didn’t, actually.”

  “Okay,” He said sarcastically, “Do you want me to show you what’cha did wrong now?”

  Lyssa rolled her eyes at him, “I guess I have nothing better to do.”

  Thomas waved her over, “Watch my movement.” He squared his feet in front of the bag, held his fist up at his side, and did a slow motion turn. As his upper body turned and his shoulder lined up with the bag, he slowly extended his hand and touched the middle of the bag. “See how my feet don’t move? I use my hips to pivot, not my feet.” He did it a couple more times and then stepped back “Give it a tap.”

  Lyssa stepped up to the bag.

  Thomas nudged her legs with his foot. “Spread them wider. Okay, now pretend that your feet are bolted to the ground.” He stepped back, “Now do what I did.”

  Lyssa pulled back to her right, twisted, and hit the bag. “Crap,” she said, clutching her fist to her chest again and hopping up and down.

  Thomas laughed. “Don’t practice hitting the bag as hard as you can right now. Practice position. I guarantee, no matter how hard you hit that old bag, you won’t hurt it none.”

  “I know that!” Lyssa felt more determined now. She tried it over and over again. Thomas kept telling her to stop moving her feet.

  After the twentieth time, he sighed, “Hold on.” He plundered through the shelves in the garage and pulled out an old pair of leg weights that Lyssa remembered her mother wearing around the house.

  Thomas bent down and strapped them to her ankles. Lyssa looked down at the muscles in his back as he bent over her feet. When he finished he looked up at her. Their eyes locked and Lyssa felt her insides turn and her heart rate speed up. She couldn’t blink as she stared into the dark brilliance of his eyes.

  Thomas stood up and cleared his throat uncomfortably, “That should help you.”

  Lyssa tried again and again. Thomas shook his head and stepped behind her. “Here,” he said gripping her hips with his hands. “Turn like this, move with me.”

  Lyssa tried to push the stirring inside her away as she swiveled her hips, practicing the slow motion turn over and over again. As her fist made contact with the bag she began to feel a small release; her father, his words, the pain inside her, this whole thing. Everything was escaping the deep crevice in her heart that it had all been building in. The hole opened with each turn. A small amount of the pain escaped with each blow landed.

  She didn’t stop until she felt actual physical pain. Her shoulders slumped and then Thomas’ strong arms wrapped around her and pulled her away from the punching bag. It was then that she realized her knuckles were bleeding and that tears and sweat were pouring down her face.

  “Simmer down,” He held her tight and used his hand to grip both of her wrists. He forced her shaking arms to be still, “It’s gonna be okay.”

  She laid her head against his big chest and let the rest of the pain go as deep, wrenching, sobs erupted from within her.

  …Ava…

  Ava scooted her chair closer to the balcony railing. Aunt Avalene and Brea sat beside her. All three of them sat with binoculars pressed to their eyes. They were on a stakeout. Or that’s what Brea was determined to call it anyway. After sharing what she had seen yesterday, she’d expected the council and everyone else to be in an uproar. Instead, Vincent discredited her strange discovery with a wave of his hand. She nearly drowned him where he stood. The only thing that saved him was the fact that she knew he wanted to make her look bad. He was good at pushing her buttons. At least Alec had posted Greens at different vantage points on the island. Ava tried not to feel offended that he had posted Greens instead of real Clutch guards.

  Ava couldn’t explain how, but she was sure that Blake Sanders was able to see the island when he slipped that ring on, and she was sure he had looked right at her. “Thank goodness for Brea and Aunt Avalene,” she thought.

  Brea grabbed the binoculars, “Look, here comes the boat.”

  Ava and Aunt Avalene quickly brought their binoculars up to their eyes.

  Brea cleared her throat, “Wouldn’t it be crazy if he could really see the island with that ring on?”

  Ava looked over at her.

  Brea quickly removed the binoculars from her eyes, “Not that I don’t believe you.”

  “Course not, you sound like you have complete confidence in me,” Ava said sarcastically. She put the binoculars back to her eyes and watched as the boat moved closer and closer to the island “I’m telling you, he looked right at the island and then right at me. I know he saw me.”

  “The council has already checked his birth records and family history,” Aunt Avalene said. “He’s definitely not born of the Element. His father owns the business and his mother is an accountant. He’s an only child.”

  “Do you see the ring?” Ava asked, adjusting her binoculars.

  “No,” Brea said, leaning forward with her binoculars.

  “He’s still too far away,” Aunt Avalene said.

  Brea let out a groan, “I still can’t see him good.” She lowered the binoculars, “Where is Alec?”

  “He’s setting up a mission. Apparently someone put my picture on another missing kid’s website a couple of days ago. This time they offered a reward for any sightings of me. Guess I’ll never get to leave this island.”

  “You will, Shug,” Aunt Avalene said. “You just have to be patient and let Alec do his job. He’s only trying to protect you.”

  “I know,” Ava sighed.

  “Is he leaving again?” Brea asked.

  “No,” Ava said quickly, “I would have killed him. He’s not happy about it, but he’s sending Shawn and Bianca to lead the mission. I guess he has a lead from the missing kid’s website. Some techy guy in Michigan was able to track the IP, BC or whatever, address to an actual address.”

  “So,” Brea said, “there’s like people all over the place who are born of the Element? How do you know who they all are?”

  “The council keeps records, with contact info, and other things.” Ava shook her head, “I was surprised myself how many people there actually are.”

  “Has Thomas reported anything back about Lyssa Relic yet?” Aunt Avalene asked.

  “Not yet,” Ava said, “but Shawn is supposed to call him when he gets off the island and he’ll report what’s going on when he gets back in a few days. I don’t think we have to worry about her anymore.”

  “I know she wants to save her family home, but how long are you going to leave Thomas with her?” Brea said.

  “As long as it takes, hopefully everything will cool off. I guess if nothing happens soon we will call off Thomas’ watch. It will make me feel a lot better when we figure out where her Keeper is. It’s strange that we can’t find her.”

  “Look!” Aunt Avalene said excitedly, “They’re close enough to see now.”

  Brea bent down, tilted her head, and looked through the iron railing, “He’s got the ring on. It looks like a gold vine.”

  Ava pressed the binoculars to her eyes, “What do ya'll think? Does he look like he can see the island?”

  “I’m not sure,” Aunt Avalene said, leaning forward.

  Brea stood up, “I know! Why don’t we do something that he couldn’t help but react to? I’ll moon him.”

  Ava laughed, “What’s with you and mooning?”

  “I don’t know; too much college life I guess; got that spring break itch to flash something.” Brea smiled at her, but quickly cast a shamed look in Aunt Avalene’s direction. “College life…um…”

  Aunt Avalene shook her head “You will do no such thing, Brea. That’s not lady-like at all. And if I see you on one of those drunken girl, thing-a-ma-bobs, I’ll come hunt you down myself.” Aunt Avalene stood up, let out a sigh, and looked back towards the boat, “I don’t think it’s a good idea to let him know we’ve realized his secret if he really can see the island.” She turn
ed to Ava, “Give him a few more minutes so we can see what he’s up too and then send a storm to get rid of him.” She stood and braced herself with the chair.

  “Okay,” Ava said, staring at Blake through the binoculars. He stood on the deck and looked like he was preparing to go down. He already had a wet suit on and was turning knobs on a green tank that sat at his feet. He wasn’t looking at the island at all. “Maybe I was seeing things yesterday,” she thought.

  “Do you need anything?” Nisca said as she came up behind them.

  Ava turned and smiled, “No, we’re okay.”

  Nisca nodded and spoke to Aunt Avalene, “Your guests are here, Ms. Vang..., I mean, Aunt Avalene.”

  “Wonderful, tell them I’ll be down in a few minutes.”

  Nisca nodded and stepped back into the room.

  Ava waited for the door to shut and turned to Aunt Avalene, “So you still won’t tell me what all that was about the other day?”

  “Nope,” Aunt Avalene set down her binoculars and touched Ava’s shoulder, “It’s something that you have to find out for yourself.” She moved her chair and turned for the door “I’m going to go down and meet Sherri and the others. Come down soon. They are all dying to see you.” She looked out over the water, “Don’t let him go down, Ava. Send that storm before he has a chance to go down. Okay?”

  “Okay,” Ava said.

  Brea waited for Aunt Avalene to leave, then she slid her chair over by Ava’s and sat down “So, what is it?”

  “What is what?” Ava said.

  “The big secret? Duhh! What were you and Aunt Avalene talking about?”

  “Oh,” Ava shook her head, “I’m not even sure yet, something about Nisca that I’m supposed to figure out on my own.”

  “What do you think it is?”

  “I have no clue.” Ava stood up, “Whatever it is I’m going to find out.”

  “We could sneak in her room. I wonder if it’s something bad?”