“That’s not what I meant. You have no right to psychoanalyze anyone. Apologize to her.”
“I was just—”
“Fucking apologize to her!”
This was nothing like their teasing banter earlier. She swallowed hard.
Levi held up his hands in surrender. “All right. Fine. Sorry, Loren. I’ll keep my perceptions to myself and I won’t put you under another evaluation. I’m sorry.”
She couldn't help but detect a small note of bitter sarcasm, but she let it go.
“No, it’s okay. You didn’t mean it.”
Her words earned a snort of disbelief from Avery. Loren soon focused on the foam covering the table, wishing she could be somewhere else.
“What the hell is your problem anyway?” Levi kept his distance. He leaned over to grab a cloth napkin and attempt to clear up some of the mess in his immediate area. He shot Avery a sharp glare.
“Bad mood. Wrong side of the bed. What fucking difference does it make?”
Levi scrubbed at the tablecloth, worrying his lip ring between his teeth. “You set the table on fire. That’s not something you do. Not unless—” He trailed off, lifting his gaze to Loren.
For a couple of seconds, she held his stare. There was something knowing in Levi's eyes. His mouth twitched upwards in a smirk.
Before he could say a word, Avery pushed back his chair and diverted Levi's attention.
“You’re a lucky man,” Avery told him in a low voice. “Lucky you didn’t finish that sentence and lucky I can’t use my powers right now.”
Levi didn’t move but his gaze dropped to the table. Loren noted the clenching of his jaw. The tension was thick. She didn’t doubt the sincerity of the threat and was thankful Avery couldn’t use his power right now.
Loren feared Levi might say something, but the swinging door opened and Eva and Callum entered the room. The smiles and conversation between brother and sister dropped immediately.
“Oh dear.” Eva's lips pursed.
Callum observed the destruction of the tablecloth first before he looked between the three of them. He finally settled on his brother.
Loren held her breath and waited. She expected a shouting match or a scolding. The silence made her nervous.
Avery lifted his head defiantly.
There was no scolding, no shouting. Callum nodded to Eva and she sighed, stepping over to the intercom. As she called for someone to clean up the dining room, Callum glanced to his watch.
“Ten-thirty-two.” He gave Loren a tiny, jaded smile. “It’s going to be a very long day.”
Chapter Five
Levi led the way with Eva close beside him. They talked so quietly Loren couldn't hear, but it didn't seem that important. Levi appeared somber now; the entire ordeal in the dining room left a lasting mark on his demeanor.
Loren tried to keep her attention focused ahead of her, but her gaze drifted to look at the decorations on the walls.
“Did you have any difficulty this morning?” Callum walked beside her.
“Difficulty?” She glanced back briefly at a sullen and silent Avery as he trailed along behind. “I uh—”
“In finding the dining room, I mean. I have been told before the manor is quite the labyrinth.”
“Oh, um.” Her face warmed. “I uh got sidetracked at first but was set straight. It’s a big place.”
Callum’s smile was kind. Loren liked it. As many times as she'd seen it in the media, it was wholly different in person. It was genuine, not put on to appease the masses. Loren found herself smiling back at him.
“And very old,” Callum added. “My great-grandfather won the property in a poker game—if you believe the stories.”
“Is that true?” Loren had always wondered.
He chuckled. “There are records somewhere, I'm sure. It’s a marvelous urban legend. It creates an air of mystery.”
“I guess that does make sense. It’s kind of like with Avery.” She looked over her shoulder at him. He met Loren’s eyes before she quickly looked back.
“What do you mean?” Callum asked.
“I just mean with the uh superhero bit. The mystery of the masked—or um hooded—figure, looking out over the city. Even if there aren’t many who know and no one writes or reports it. He has that urban legend mystery vibe about him.”
Callum looked thoughtful at her words but said nothing. Had she said something wrong?
They stopped. She looked curiously at Callum as he stepped closer to the wall and pressed his palm against it. It seemed like an ordinary wall. The wood paneling was dark and decorated with the same sconces she'd noticed in the dining room.
Levi must've seen her confused expression. “Oh, you'll love this.”
“What? The lamp?” she asked.
Avery snorted. Eva silenced him with a sharp look.
“Yeah, the lamp.” Levi toyed with his lip ring before he joined Callum. His fingers sought out the sconce, pressing a small button. Instead of the light flickering off as Loren expected, a small square panel opened beneath Callum's palm.
Loren took a step back and bumped into Avery. How warm hands steadied her as she stared at the wall.
“Is that—?”
“A secret passage?” The pleased tone in Levi’s voice wasn’t subtle at all. “Yep.”
“It’s less of a secret passage and more of a secret door,” Callum explained. A red light glowed under his hand. It scanned from fingertips to wrist, pausing before it reversed. The light turned green.
The entire wall panel slid to the side in a way she'd only seen in sci-fi movies. “Whoa.”
Callum chuckled and stepped back. Eva entered the doorway first and Levi followed, grinning smugly to himself.
As Avery stepped by, his hand brushed Loren's arm. The warmth of his touch lingered long after he stepped through the door.
“That's incredible. It opens with a scan?” she asked.
He nodded and gestured for her to enter the room. “Only we and Levi have access. He designed it, hence his arrogance.” He paused. “We’ll have to put your information into the system soon.”
When Loren made no move to step forward, Callum's hand moved to the back of her shoulder to guide her. His touch was much cooler than Avery's, she realized. Her face suddenly flushed.
The room they entered was much brighter than the hallway and Loren’s eyes adjusted to the sudden light. The floor was concrete and the lighting came from an array of fluorescent fixtures along the ceiling.
There was a large state-of-the-art computer terminal in the center of the room. Levi sat in the large chair facing it. A quick glance at the screen revealed several video images. Loren couldn't focus on just one. She saw the interior of the dining room and the foyer. Another screen showed the outside perimeters. She saw a corner of the swimming pool. In the last one, she caught a glimpse of a few buildings and a street corner.
It was an impressive display of technology. Loren realized she'd stared for too long and drew her attention to the look over the rest of the room.
There was a sitting area off the side, with a couch and a table. Beyond that, there was a door leading into another room. A large window revealed a hospital bed and various cabinets—an infirmary.
Loren turned to find Callum's ice blue eyes on her. Quickly, she glanced away.
Blue and red mats covered a section of unyielding concrete floor. Various weapons lined the walls. A punching bag stood dead center. A training room.
She took it all in and tried to shake off the feeling she'd just stepped into a comic book. “It's uh—”
“You don't need to say anything.” Callum stepped over to the terminal with Levi and bent to view a screen. His mouth drew into a small frown. “We’ve worked hard over the years to keep this room safe. Secret. Just as we’ve worked to keep what we can do safe and secret.”
Levi shifted in his seat. “That means you can’t tell anyone or we’ll have to kill you.”
His comment earned a s
harp look from Callum, but Levi didn't even look at him. He picked up a bag of jellybeans and dumped out a handful into his palm.
“I won’t tell anyone.” Even if she had someone to tell, no one would believe her. She’d was used to the disbelief over the years and found it easier to stay quiet, especially when it concerned superpowers.
“Good. That puts my mind at ease.”
Her attention drifted to Avery. Eva held out a pair of boxing gloves to him. As he put one on, he looked at Loren. Deftly he laced up the glove to fit properly—suggesting he did this often. Loren wasn’t surprised at all. She continued to watch his preparations until Callum spoke again.
“We want to show you what we can do.”
“Okay.”
“This way.” Callum walked beyond the terminal and into the open room. Avery took sharp jabs at the punching bag, barely looking in their direction. He drew back a muscled arm and the hit made the punching bag swing.
Eva left her younger brother's side to join them. “Avery showed you his abilities. We know this.” She had her Callum’s stern look, but it softened as she smiled. “He always had a penchant for trying to do everything first.” She glanced over her shoulder at Avery. “His ability is far more temperamental than mine. Fire always is.”
Callum’s hand touched Loren’s elbow and drew her back to him. His touch made goosebumps dance along her skin. She wasn't sure exactly he pulled her back until she noticed Eva clear the space between them.
“Levi? Could you please?”
“Yeah.” He was suddenly there with a planter of potting soil. He placed it on the ground and stepped back.
Eva moved toward the planter and gracefully knelt down, adjusting her skirt. She dipped her fingers into the soil, withdrawing a small fistful.
She dropped the clumps of soil onto the bare concrete and spread it out. As she did, Loren saw the soil move on its own. It expanded, growing larger. The particles multiplied.
From within the center of the dirt, something shifted. The soil parted. A vine grew from within the earth. It stretched up, leaves sprouting. Loren held her breath. A large bloom unfolded into a magnificent white lily.
“That’s amazing.”
“I know.” Eva dusted the residual soil from her hands and stood. She smoothed the wrinkles from her skirt, smiling. “Earth. That’s my power.”
Fire. Earth. Air. Loren chewed on her lip again and looked at Callum. “Your power is water.”
Callum didn’t reply. Instead, he held his hands a few inches apart. Small beads of water formed in his palms. The droplets fused together and created a ball of water. Callum cradled it between his hands.
“Wow.” Loren let out a breathy laugh. “That’s cool.”
When Callum released his hands, the ball of water remained suspended. Too tempted, Loren stretched out to touch it. She withdrew a wet fingertip a second before the ball collapsed and hit the floor. Water splashed over herself and Callum.
“Oh! I’m sorry!”
The others laughed and Eva shook her head. “It’s okay. It’s not the first time he’s done that.”
“It’s funny.” Callum grinned. “And it doesn’t harm anyone. Although, that's the only time someone ever had guts enough to touch it. Most are afraid and prefer to disbelieve from a distance.”
She blushed and chuckled nervously. Glancing over, she saw Avery had stopped his workout. He removed his gloves as he made his way to them.
“Fire, Water, Earth, and now Air. All the elements are present,” Eva said. “It feels as if we’ve been waiting a lifetime.”
“Eighteen years, but who's counting?” Avery crossed his arms.
Loren glanced down at her wet sneakers. Maybe now was as good a time as ever to ask the questions plaguing her since yesterday. “Avery said there wasn't much he could tell me. Just that I wasn’t alone, that there were others with powers. And that I had to help save the world?”
Eva replied first, one slender eyebrow arching high. “Saving the world? Is that what you told her?”
“It’s not a lie,” Avery defended. “What else are we doing?”
“Perhaps not, but there really was no need to frighten her. I can only imagine the level of urgency you put into the matter.” There was an edge in her tone. “No wonder the poor girl is a nervous wreck.”
Before Loren had a chance to speak for herself, Avery turned to Eva. “We were told the reason we were given our powers was to one day save the world. I wasn’t wrong.”
“I didn't say you were.” Eva lifted her head, her dangling earrings catching the light when she did. Before they’d even settled, that stern pointed look directed toward Avery once more. Loren waited for Eva to say something more, but in the end she sighed.
“Can we move on?” Callum asked.
Avery kept gaze intent on Eva. “By all means.”
Callum smiled softly at Loren. “Would you please demonstrate your abilities for us? Something small. It doesn’t need to be flashy.”
She nodded and stepped away from the group. She fiddled with the string around her neck as she walked. After a few feet, she turned. All eyes were on her. She took a deep breath and held it.
It had always been difficult to contain her power, but if she focused, she could manage to do it. As she exhaled her breath slowly, she brought her arms up before her. She moved her hands. The air shifted beneath her fingers. Carefully, she directed the air and sent a powerful gust toward the punching bag. It hit with some force, causing it to swing wildly back and forth on its chain. With a flick of her wrists, Loren moved the air current to rustle the flower Eva had grown.
The gust was too strong for the delicate flower, and several petals and leaves tore from it. Loren winced and muttered a small apology. It didn't help with her anxiety at all. This was the first time she had displayed her power to a group of understanding people, people who had powers as well. Even knowing that, it didn't stop her from conjuring all sorts of images.
Fear. Anger. Laughter and pointing fingers. Worse—no one noticing anything extraordinary at all.
Those brief thoughts were enough to break Loren’s concentration. She let out a shaky breath. “Oh no.”
The air rushed and she couldn’t control it. It whipped through clothing. Something clattered to the floor. Her hair flew in her face and she brushed it away as she spun.
Strands from Avery’s ponytail came loose. Eva moved back against a wall, hand clutching at her fluttering skirt. Levi fell and Callum pulled him back up as he shouted something Loren couldn’t hear over the roar of the wind.
She had to calm down and stop the whirlwind. Everyone and everything in the room was in danger of blowing away.
She gripped her hair, pressing her hands against the sides of her head. She couldn’t stifle it. Her eyes squeezed shut tightly.
It was no use. There was nothing but her and the air around her. She lifted her head as weightlessness consumed her. She focused on that as she brought her arms down. The wind caressed her skin and moved between her fingers. It became a part of her.
A sudden, sharp prick of pain in her leg brought her back to her senses. The wind stopped and the world came crashing back. Loren gasped and braced herself.
A pair of strong, warm arms caught her. Her eyes opened to stare at Avery.
“Oh. I fell.” She was breathless and her head swam.
A line formed between his brows. “Are you all right?”
“Uh yeah. I um...” Loren trailed off, unable to finish the sentence. He was close and strong.
She didn't want to move away, but then she was on her feet. She swayed, thankful that he had one arm around her for support.
“I’m sorry,” she murmured. She forced herself to look away from him to survey the damage of her windstorm. The planter, flower, and all the soil had swept aside. Some of the items on the walls littered the floor and the punching bag lay ripped from its chain. It rested in the corner, far from where it had swung.
No one seemed hurt,
only windblown. Eva’s hair was out of place, but she remedied that and let her long hair loose. Levi stared at Loren with wide eyes. Callum’s shirt was rumpled and a lock of hair brushed across his forehead. He pushed it aside.
No one said a word.
Loren's head buzzed. All eyes were on her. It was as she had envisioned it. Fear. Judgment. Anger. She bit down harshly on her lip.
“I—I think I need a few minutes. I just—” She staggered at first before her feet reacquainted quickly with the ground and she walked to the door.
As she expected, no one followed her. She left the room and didn’t look back.
Chapter Six
Loren wanted nothing more than to run from here and pretend none of this had ever happened. She could easily convince herself it was only a dream. Going back to the city was laughable. Even if she could remember how to get back, what did she have left?
Loren knew better than to think she could ever go back to that life.
The sun dipped behind the clouds, reaching closer to the horizon. This was a quiet spot and Loren was thankful her room had a balcony. She hadn’t noticed it last night, or this morning when she’d gotten dressed for breakfast, but here it was. A nice secluded perch overlooking the terrace. From here, she had a great view of the backyard and gardens. There was the swimming pool she’d glimpsed before. It looked clean, cool, and inviting—or it would’ve had Loren been in a better mood.
She folded her arms on the railing and leaned against it. It was better if she wasn’t around people for a while. Even so, deep down inside her she longed for someone to check on her. Her mixed feelings on the matter always drew some confusion. What did she really want?
She'd been asking herself that question her entire life and there was still no answer.
Her leg stung where the pen device had pricked her. Loren still wasn't sure what it was, but it averted chaos and calmed her powers instantly and she was glad of it. She hadn’t meant to lose control. She never meant it.
Loren sighed. She'd made a mess of everything. How could she be part of a team when she couldn't control her power? She wouldn't be surprised if they told her to leave. It didn't matter if she was their fourth. She wasn't any use to anyone.
Caution to the Wind: Book One of the Elementals Series Page 4