Elemental

by Serena Pettus

  “Really? That’s amazing!”

  “Jonathan has the same abilities. Throughout history we’ve been referred to by the Supernaturals as Elementals,” he explained, absently running his fingers in small circles over her back. It felt good to touch her.

  “There are more like the two of you?”

  “No,” Nicolas sighed, “We are the last of our kind.”

  “But what about children? Would your kids carry the same gifts?”

  Mandy seemed genuinely interested and didn’t appear to be scared at all, which begged the question, “Why aren’t you frightened by all of this?” When she merely frowned at him, he elaborated. “You’ve only been here a handful of hours and already you’ve been attacked by a werewolf, saved a Fey princess, been clawed open, then healed, and now you know about mine and Jonathan’s abilities, yet you seem to be completely fine with it.”

  Nicolas watched as she took in all he’d said, her eyes widening a bit more with every word until they seemed too big for her small face. “Oh, damn,” he muttered, noting her current pallor. “Don’t pass out on me again, I was just kidding.”

  “No, you weren’t,” she breathed. “So, they’re real?”

  Jonathan, bless him, picked the perfect time to walk in. “So, how are you feeling?” he asked, oblivious to the conversation.

  “Like I’ve stepped into one of my folklore books.”

  Nicolas noted the puzzled look his brother wore, but remained silent. He’d already put enough of his foot in his mouth, so he wasn’t willing to embellish on anything until he got a better feel for how she would react.

  Chapter Four

  Jonathan gazed down at her with concern in his obsidian eyes, and asked, “Do you remember what happened?”

  She thought for a minute, then replied. “I remember seeing a woman running out of the trees shouting for me to run, and then he came out, and I recall thinking that I’d never seen such a big wolf, but I never thought about it being a werewolf. I mean, before now, I thought they were just a myth.” Mandy shook her head and watched as Jonathan glared at his brother.

  What was he mad at Nicolas about? He’d been nothing but sweet to her.

  Suddenly recalling that she was still perched on his lap, Mandy made to move, only to have Nicolas’ hold tighten about her waist. When she looked back at him, he smiled. It would seem he liked having her right where she was. Well, that was just fine, because she was pretty comfortable herself, which was a bit of a surprise since she’d never really indulged in physical contact with the opposite sex.

  “I kind of like having you here,” he admitted, a crooked grin gracing his full lips.

  Not really sure of how to reply to that, Mandy looked at Jonathan, but he only shrugged. Yeah, that was helpful. “I told you you guys would get along.”

  Braggart.

  Mandy frowned up at him from her perch. “Actually, I practically threw myself at him because I thought he was you. I didn’t realize that I was blubbering all over the infamous Nicolas Mondragon.”

  “Infamous?” Nicolas asked, arching his dark brows.

  “Oh, yeah. All I’ve heard was ‘You’ll love my brother’, or ‘I think the two of you would get along great’, or even ‘Everything will be perfect once you meet Nicolas’.” Mandy knew her imitation of Jonathan’s voice was awful, but she still laughed when he scowled.

  “You have a really nice laugh, Mandy. It’s very open and free. I like that.” Nicolas was flirting with her and Mandy could hardly believe it. He was just so gorgeous—just like Jonathan—and she was so…not.

  Luckily, Jonathan intervened. “Enough, Nicolas. How are you feeling, Mandy? Any pain?”

  Suddenly remembering her injury, Mandy looked down and felt her side, only to find smooth skin. “I don’t understand.” She felt a little disoriented, but then something Nicolas had said popped into her head. “You said I was healed. How?”

  “Not how. Who,” Nicolas replied. “Anna, the girl from outside is Fey. Their kind have many talents, and she obviously has a very strong skill at healing. She healed you in return for saving her life.”

  Mandy felt like her entire world had just been knocked off its axis, her head swimming. “But, all I did was push him back, and not far enough if I recall correctly, because he managed to claw me pretty good.”

  “Pretty good? Mandy you were nearly killed!” Jonathan barked. “I told you to stay inside. I even warned you about going out after dark, but you still went out anyway. And at sunset! What were you thinking?”

  “I just wanted to get my make-up bag and my purse,” she replied, before ducking her head. “I wanted to look my best when I met your brother, but I guess that ended up being a wasted effort because you ended up seeing me at my worst apparently.”

  “Oh, I don’t know,” Nicolas said softly. “I think you look very nice in my clothes.”

  Good grief, Mandy didn’t think she could possibly blush any more than she was. The man was just too much! Too handsome, too charming, too sweet, too understanding…just too much. “So, back to what we were talking about,” she desperately needed to steer this conversation away from her attire, or lack thereof. “In the village, when you gave me the warning about being out after dark and I was teasing you about monsters being in the mountains, you were trying to warn me about werewolves?”

  Jonathan looked a little uncomfortable. “Well, yeah, but I couldn’t very well come out and say that or you would have thought I was crazy.”

  He had a point there, but still, this was too much and Mandy’s head was feeling a bit fuzzy again. Werewolves, Fey, Elementals, next he’d probably say that… “Are vampires real too?”

  “Sure,” Nicolas shrugged, “but they don’t come around here, so don’t worry about them.”

  And that effectively pushed her reality over…along with the room.

  * * * *

  “Damn it, Nicolas!” Jonathan bellowed. “She’s not used to all of this!”

  “You said she studied mythology.”

  “Yes, but studying it and discovering these things actually exist in your reality are two totally different things,” Jonathan raked his fingers through his hair and scowled at his brother.

  “Don’t look at me like that! If the Wolf decides to make another attempt on her then it’ll be good for her to know what it is.” Nicolas glanced down at the unconscious beauty in his arms and conceded. “I’ll admit to the crash course being a little too much to dump at one time, but think of all the time it could save.”

  “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “She knows everything now. She’s seen me use my fire and didn’t even flinch, so I’ll take that as a positive sign.” Nicolas rose and carried Mandy over to the bed.

  “I’ll turn on the intercom and we can go into the study while she rests. I imagine she’ll need some time to digest everything,” Jonathan replied.

  “No doubt,” Nicolas grumbled as he gently placed Mandy on the plush bedding. He drew a light blanket over her, admiring her fiery hair which framed such a lovely and peaceful face. Nicolas could have watched the firelight dance over her unruly curls glinting with shades of gold and deep amber for hours. He was loath to leave her for any reason, but the fact that his brother was waiting—rather impatiently—to speak to him, meant it was inevitable.

  “You turned the speaker on?” Nicolas whispered.

  “Yes, we’ll know as soon as she wakes up,” Jonathan assured him. “I also left the speaker on in Anna’s room.”

  The brothers made their way down the ornate staircase to the study below, both silent in their thoughts.

  Nicolas was the first to speak once they entered the study. “So, you think Anna will be forgiving of our role in her brother’s death?” There was no need to ask if she was his destined mate, the answer—and the worry—was written all over Jonathan’s face.

  “I’m not sure,” the somber tone gave way to a frown. Jonathan was definitely in a difficult spot, and Nicolas prayed
things worked out for the better. “I wonder if her father would even allow her to remain here. It’s not like we’re overly popular with the Fey,” he pointed out.

  “No, but you did save his daughter, so you have that in your favor.” The soft voice startled both men into action as they shot to their feet. “I’m sorry to interrupt.”

  “No, don’t worry, you’re not interrupting anything,” Jonathan rushed to assure the clearly unsure female. “How are you feeling? Do you need anything?”

  A shy smile graced her full, pink lips and she quickly glanced away before answering, “I feel a little better now that I’ve rested.”

  Jonathan frowned, “You didn’t rest for very long.”

  “I realize that, but I do feel much better already. I am not sure how that could be, though.” Anna appeared to be thinking over it all. “I should have been down for at least half of the day after the extensive healing I performed. Usually only the presence of one’s Bound mate could hasten the recovery.” Anna glanced around the room, studied Nicolas for a moment, and then settled her enchanting gaze on Jonathan.

  The brothers watched as realization dawned in her expressive lavender eyes. A strangled, “Oh, no,” whispered through her trembling lips before she fled the room.

  Jonathan was rooted to the spot, while his tormented eyes followed her retreat through the door. Nicolas, however, crossed to the door, and quickly explained, “She’s not leaving, just retreating, I think.”

  “She hates me,” the defeat in his voice was clear, even to his own ears “I found her Nicolas, just too late.”

  “You don’t know that,” Nicolas was clearly concerned as well. “Give her some time to digest all of this.”

  Jonathan cut his dark eyes to glare at his brother and gave a humorless laugh, “Gee, doesn’t that advice sound familiar?”

  “Well, then I guess we’re both in the same boat. What do you say we go and get the luggage out of the car? With any luck that cagey bastard may still be lurking about.”

  Nicolas was no doubt counting on Jonathan needing to release some energy, so the thought of a potential fight should be right up his alley…and he was right. “I hope that mangy mutt is still around. I’d love nothing more than to gut the bastard for attacking our women,” he snarled as he stomped through the door.

  “Now, that’s more like it.”

  * * * *

  Mandy awoke to the sound of soft sobs. She glanced around and saw the woman who had healed her, sitting on the sofa before the fire. She wept as if her heart was breaking and Mandy rose to try and comfort her.

  “Are you alright?” Mandy asked softly while she approached.

  Startled, the girl swiped at her eyes and rose to face Mandy. “I will survive. How are you?”

  “Fine, thanks to your healing, I’m Mandy, by the way.”

  “I am Anna. It is nice to meet you.” She extended her hand, but was pulled into a tight hug instead. “Um…”

  “Sorry, but you saved my life, so a handshake just wasn’t cutting it in my book. Now, tell me, why were you crying?” Mandy watched the beautiful woman struggle with her thoughts for a second, before she obviously decided to share.

  “I have discovered Jonathan is my destined mate, but the past complicates things to such a degree, that I cannot see a future for us.” Her eyes filled with tears again and Mandy ushered her back to the sofa. “My brother was an evil man. He was the youngest and felt he was owed certain things in life my father knew he was not ready for yet. He wanted his own realm, a castle instead of the fairy mounds, and followers. He was selfish and uncaring of who he hurt to gain what he sought, and when he was sent here to represent our family, he committed a heinous crime.”

  Mandy wasn’t sure if she wanted to hear this, but gave a murmured “Go on,” anyway.

  “Bear in mind that our kind live for a very long time. We are referred to as immortals, but we can be killed. Anyway, eight hundred years ago, when my brother came to Mondragon Castle, he decided this would be a perfect place for him to begin his own rule. He had his guards assist the Elementals in setting out the food and wine, only they were instructed to add a poison to the fare.” At Mandy’s gasp, Anna gave a small nod. “Yes, he killed all who were here. The brothers, Jonathan and Nicolas, escaped that fate only by luck. They had been sent to the village to gather more things for the party, and returned to the slaughter.”

  “Dear God! What did they do?”

  “They were furious, and rightly so. They killed every one of the Fey who had not already fled the grounds. My coward of a brother called to my father to save his wretched hide once they set their sights on him, but my father saw what had been done and disowned him then and there. He gave the brothers permission to punish him as they saw fit…and they killed him.”

  “Oh, Anna…”

  “No! Don’t you see? He will never want to be with me now. My brother, even in death, has stolen the most precious gift I could have ever received.”

  “I’m sure Jonathan would never hold your brother’s actions against you,” Mandy stated. She was sure that Jonathan would never be so unfair. “Would you hold it against him for killing your brother?”

  “Of course not! He was right to end him. His evil would have only festered and grown if he had continued to live.”

  “Then why would you think that he would hold anything against you?”

  “I share the same blood as the one who destroyed his family,” Anna replied softly.

  “But you aren’t like him,” Mandy persisted. “He was selfish and evil, by your own definition, and yet you saved my life without even knowing me. Now tell me, would he have done the same?”

  “He likely would have left you and fled to save his own hide,” she mumbled.

  “Then in my book, there’s no question as to whether or not his life and how he lived it has tainted you in any way. You’re nothing like him, Anna, so don’t let that stop you from going after Jonathan. He’s a real catch. We’ve been friends for a while now and I can assure you that he would never hold anything against you because of your brother.”

  “Thank you, Mandy,” Anna gave a tearful smile before asking. “So what about you and Nicolas, would you have a problem being with an Elemental?”

  Mandy squirmed a little in her seat, unsure of herself now that the conversation had shifted to her as the topic. “I’m not sure. I’ve only just met the man, but if he’s anything like his brother, then I might have a hard time not falling for him.” Anna’s brows puckered and Mandy just laughed. “Don’t worry I’m not in love with Jonathan. I’ll admit to a physical attraction, but the actual emotions were never there for me. His brother, Nicolas, does seem to like to have control. I can remember hearing him barking orders when I was injured, but everything from then on is kind of fuzzy. Earlier, when he came to check on me, I thought he was Jonathan and ended up blubbering all over him because I was scared he would hate me after seeing what I can do.”

  “Why on earth would he hate you because of your gift?”

  “Well, at the time I had no idea the guys had gifts of their own. I thought I was a freak of nature growing up, so I kept my abilities hidden. Hell, I’ve never even had a real relationship with a guy because my ability seems stronger when my emotions are running high. I’m almost afraid to think about what would happen if I were to have an orgasm,” Mandy admitted with a blush.

  “I’m sure it’s nothing the two of you couldn’t handle,” Anna proclaimed. “You should give things with Nicolas a chance. They’re the last of their kind. It would be a shame if their race died with them.”

  “So, if they were to have children, then they would have the Elemental powers too?” Could Mandy handle having kids who could potentially hurl fireballs at each other if they got into an argument?

  “They would likely inherit your abilities as well, which would make them very formidable indeed.”

  Well now, that didn’t make the images of sibling rivalry in her head lessen in any way. It ac
tually scared her senseless.

  Conversation began to filter into the room and both women looked around to see where the voices were coming from. A tiny box on the wall seemed to be the source and they made their way over to investigate.

  It was the brothers.

  Chapter Five

  “Well, that’s all of the bags. It’s just too bad the damn werewolf wasn’t out there. I’d like to tear a chunk out of that bastard’s hide,” Jonathan growled. “I can’t believe he had the balls to come all the way up to the castle.”

  They had been outside? Looking for the werewolf? Mandy feared she might faint again. Were they insane?

  “He may have thought you were still away,” Nicolas explained. “I’ve had no problems while you were away but that doesn’t mean your absence has gone unnoticed. Even the villagers have learned to tell us apart, and they have not seen you in many months.”

  So their presence was enough to deter the other Supernaturals from coming around? Interesting, Mandy thought. They must be very powerful to accomplish such a status.

  “They saw me today. I took Mandy into the market before we came in.”

  “Did you?”

  “She needed a heavier jacket and some snow boots. The girl works herself to death to pay her tuition and barely takes care of herself.” Jonathan had made the same complaints to Mandy herself, but it didn’t change anything. She was stubborn almost to a fault—something he reminded her of often—and insisted on finishing school and making a better life for herself.

  “I’ll take care of her. She’ll have anything and everything she could desire. Damn, Jonathan, I’ve waited centuries to find her. There’s no way I can live without her now,” he admitted, and Mandy felt her heart race. “As soon as you arrived, I knew. I felt my soul lift. It was like something inside me had come alive, awakened just by her proximity.”

  “I know what you mean. I felt the same way when I realized Anna was destined to be mine. Now I’m afraid the part of me that has longed for her for so long may very well die if she leaves me.”