Cleansed by Water: The Nature Hunters Academy Series, Book 3

by Quinn Loftis

  “Damn,” he groaned, separating his lips just long enough before diving back in. Liam shifted her until she straddled his lap. Her heart pounded in her chest, and Gabby had to pull her face back just to get some air. Her lungs were on fire, burning right up with the rest of her body, though for different reasons.

  Liam wasn’t deterred when she broke the kiss. His lips were instantly on her cheek, moving down her jaw line and then her neck until he ended at the hollow of her throat.

  He paused, his lips pressing tenderly against her skin. Gabby closed her eyes, leaning her head back a bit to give him more room.

  “I’ll never let you go,” Liam whispered against her throat. “Bloody hell, woman. All I’ve done is kiss you, and yet I’ve never felt more complete.”

  “I feel it, too,” she admitted.

  “Our magic is dancing,” he said. He pulled his head back and looked at her, a grin spread across his handsome face.

  A brow rose on her face. “Dancing?”

  He nodded and then seemed to consider something. “Actually, it might be doing a bit more than dancing.”

  Gabby felt a sizzle down the bond connecting them, and her eyes widened. “Are you telling me our magic is…”

  “Getting busy?” Liam asked with a laugh.

  Gabby groaned and covered her face. She felt her skin heating. Okay, so she’d just thought she couldn’t be embarrassed in front of Liam. Apparently, her magic was a shameless hussy determined to get busy, as Liam put it, with his magic.

  “Don’t be bashful,” he said, pulling her hand away from her face. “I’m not ashamed to admit I’m jealous. Close your eyes,” he commanded.

  Gabby obeyed. It was easier not to look at him in that moment.

  “Look inside your mind. See the strands? Fire and water,” he whispered in awe.

  Gabby’s breath caught as she looked in her mind as Liam instructed. She saw the cord of flame wrapped, as in an embrace, around a cord made up of water. “What about the gold cord?”

  “That’s the soul bond,” Liam explained. “This is our magic.”

  “It’s like they missed each other or something,” she said as she watched the two cords shift and move, though never separating.

  “It’s how I feel every time I see you. I just want to wrap you up tightly and never let you go.” Liam’s voice wasn’t playful in the least. He was dead serious.

  “Stalker,” Gabby mumbled, unsure how to handle his open confessions like that. She wasn’t used to people saying nice things to her. Nothing more than a “good job” when she’d done well at the academy.

  “Are you all right?”

  Gabby’s eyes opened at the sound of his question. She was still sitting, straddled on his lap, his face only inches from hers. Her hands rested on his chest, and she could feel every shift in his muscles. He was warm and felt like home. Like she was where she was supposed to be. “I think so,” she answered.

  He stared intently into her eyes, as if looking to see the truth in her words. After a moment, he nodded. “It won’t last.”

  A huff of laughter whooshed out of her. “Thank you for the vote of confidence.”

  He brushed a few strands of hair from her face. “I don’t mean it to be rude. I just mean, this is new. It’s going to be overwhelming at times. Especially since I know I’m going to drive you insane with never wanting to be away from you. You’ll probably try to hide from me again. I’m giving you permission to have the freak-out that is bound to come. I promise I won’t get mad and decide we’re through. Deal?”

  Gabby knew she was looking at him like he’d lost his damn mind. “Give me permission?”

  “After you have your freak-out and throw something at me or try to lock me out of your room, you’re going to worry that I’ll get tired of taking your abuse, which is just foreplay to me, by the way, and worry I’ll leave you. I’m giving you the heads-up that you don’t need to fear that. Ergo, permission to freak out with the security that I will love you through your tantrum.”

  Gabby wasn’t sure if she should be offended that he was so certain that she was going to throw a tantrum, angry that he was implying she was like a child, or in awe that he knew she would need his reassurances when she did freak out. Jeez, relationships were hard. All the feels were going to make her head explode.

  “I’m going to say okay because I don’t really know what the right answer is to that weird-ass declaration you just made,” she finally said.

  Liam smiled, leaned forward, and pressed a kiss to her nose. He sighed. “As much as I would love to keep you exactly where you are, Professor Frost will have my ass if we aren’t in the corridor by her office on time for our next assignment.”

  Gabby gingerly climbed off his lap and grabbed her phone from the bedside table. She swiped the screen and checked the time. It was five in the morning. She glanced out her window and saw the dawn was indeed rising, and the sky was turning a pale shade of light purple, blue, and pink as the sun began to come up. How much time had passed since she’d awoken with Liam in her bed? It felt like hours. Yet, it also felt as if it had only been minutes.

  “I’ve got to get dressed,” she said, looking anywhere but at him. She heard the bed shift and then his hand was under her chin, lifting her face to his. He leaned down and rubbed his lips across her before giving her a firm kiss.

  “I’ll be back in ten minutes. We’ll go down together,” he said.

  She shook her head before he finished. “We can just meet there.”

  “No,” Liam said firmly. “Together, babe. Always together.”

  He stared at her as if he were waiting for something. She finally nodded, which seemed to be what he’d wanted. His grin was immediate, turning his face from handsome to downright mesmerizing. “See you in ten.”

  He was out the door before she could even say bye. Gabby lifted her hands and rubbed her face before running them down her long hair. What the hell had happened last night? Had she really accepted this thing between them? “Yep,” she said, answering herself. How could she not? Liam had been so gentle with her and so incredibly honest. She hoped with everything in her that he didn’t wind up breaking her heart. She wouldn’t survive it.

  Letting out a tired sigh, she forced herself to breathe slowly and not freak out while she got dressed. She had a job to do, and she couldn’t let her personal life get in the way of that.

  Once everything was in place—clothes put on, weapons donned, and hair braided—she grabbed her phone. Just then, there was a knock at her door. She opened it, struck again by Liam’s sheer good looks. The look in his eyes froze her in place.

  “Hey, beautiful,” he said. “I missed you.”

  She couldn’t help but grin as she shook her head. “You were gone ten minutes.”

  “Longest ten minutes of my life,” he said as he took her hand and pulled her from the room. “Let’s go save the world. I want to show off for you.”

  “You’re crazy,” Gabby muttered as she walked beside him, their shoulders brushing occasionally.

  “Crazy about you.”

  “Cheesy.” She laughed.

  “Maybe, but it made you laugh, so it was worth it.” Liam winked at her and tightened his grip on her hand.

  Gabby had a feeling she’d be laughing a lot more with him in her life, and she looked forward to it.

  Chapter 13

  Osiris stared at the wall where the ward was still firmly in place. He glared at it so hard he was surprised it didn’t simply melt away under his anger.

  “Master?” Crescious said, his voice trembling slightly.

  “What?” Osiris snapped, not in the mood to be bothered. He had been working on the damn ward for days. Nothing he’d tried had even weakened it.

  How could he be the ruler of the underworld if he couldn’t even control its magic?

  “Have you considered what type of magic it might be?” Crescious asked.

  Osiris turned slowly to look at the little minion. “How could it
be any other than magic from hell?” No other magic worked in his domain. If other magic was used, the underworld manipulated it until it was under his control.

  “The one who orchestrated this has found a way around that rule. So, maybe we need to think about how that could have happened?”

  The little demon had a point. That was irksome. Osiris turned back to the wall and considered what he knew of Dolion and what the demi-lord had been up to. Viscious, the dark fire king, had shared some information with him, but he didn’t know how reliable the dark elemental was. After all, it was the nature of those who wielded dark magic to be completely selfish and power-hungry. Osiris, after all, was the epitome of darkness and selfishness.

  “Dolion has been consorting with witches,” Osiris said. “Do you know of any witch magic that could overrule the underworld’s power?” He asked because Crescious was a remarkably resourceful little weasel. The little demon had all sorts of useful knowledge because he liked to eavesdrop, and he hid himself well. Osiris also knew Crescious used his status as the underworld's servant as a way to protect himself from demons who did catch him nosing into their business. And though Osiris had always believed he knew everything that happened in his domain, Dolion’s deception made him question that. It pissed him off.

  Crescious wrung his hands together in his nervous way as his eyes darted around the room. “I have heard of a spell that is supposedly able to hide itself from magic users. It might be that it’s able to hide itself from the underworld's magic and your own as well.”

  “How do you know of this spell?” Osiris asked, his eyes narrowing on the demon.

  “I found a book,” he admitted. “I was exploring,”

  Osiris snorted. “You mean snooping?”

  Crescious raised his chin slightly. “The chamber was open. It was practically an invitation.”

  “Of course,” Osiris said dryly.

  “My curiosity got the best of me, and you had gone topside, so, I took a tiny peek.”

  “Where is the book now?”

  “I put it back.”

  “And where did you find it?” Osiris knew the answer before Crescious responded.

  “The chamber Dolion uses as his resting place when he is here.”

  Osiris disappeared and then reappeared in front of the door that led to Dolion’s personal quarters. The demon appeared next to him an instant later.

  Osiris placed his hand on the door, commanding it to open with a thought. Nothing happened. “DAMMIT,” he roared, causing the little demon to flinch. “I want you to find out how to break the spell, Crescious, and do it quickly. If you fail me, I will cause you so much pain you will wish you’d never been created.”

  “Y-ye-yes, my lord,” the demon stuttered and then disappeared.

  Osiris had no idea how the little demon would find the information he wanted. He mentally commanded the underworld to grant Crescious access topside. The demon would not be allowed to stay for long since he’d not been summoned, but maybe he’d get lucky.

  With a thought, Osiris took himself back to his throne room and began to pace. He had to get the royal elementals free if he didn’t want a war with all of the light elementals. No doubt they would battle him if he didn’t deliver on his promise.

  He knew he could not fight two battles and expect to come out victorious. If Dolion attacked, Osiris could not be also engaged with the light elementals.

  “I’m going to destroy him,” he muttered as he thought about the demi-lord who’d betray his lord and master. Dolion had to know that if he were caught, he would face the ultimate punishment: banished to the lake of fire and tortured for all eternity. Osiris would relish in his screams. He would probably set up a chair, grab some snacks, and sit and taunt the demon just for kicks.

  “Patience,” he told himself. Acting rashly was not going to produce results. He’d learned in his long existence that good things came to those who waited. But with enemies pressing in on two sides, the luxury of waiting was not something Osiris possessed.

  Nasima and Aviur stood in the office to the archdiocese. The older man stared at them with a scrutiny Nasima did not care for.

  “Demons?” he asked, for the tenth time.

  Nasima clenched her teeth together, keeping her mouth closed so she didn’t say something insulting.

  “Yes,” Aviur said, his voice just as calm as the first nine times that he’d answered.

  “Surely, if you believe who we are, then you believe in demons as well,” Nasima said. The Catholic church leaders, at least at the Vatican, were very well aware of the royal elementals and their place in the world. Just as they were aware of the dark elementals. Despite the awareness, Catholics and elementals rarely worked together. But there had been a few times, long ago, when they’d battled evil side by side. It appeared the latest leadership at the Vatican didn’t take battling demons as seriously as previous regimes.

  “Perhaps you should get the pope,” Aviur suggested. “I realize he is a busy man, but as you have surely noticed the unnatural temperatures, you should know there is something afoot in the world, and we need to deal with it as soon as possible. Having the church’s cooperation would greatly aid us in this task.”

  “I don’t think that will be necessary,” the archdiocese said. “I can show you to the library, and you can do your research. But I do not think we will be able to provide any assistance other than knowledge.”

  Nasima wanted to roll her eyes. Of course, the church wasn’t going to associate themselves with any sort of demon talk. They’d gotten bad press in the past for doing exorcisms because people refused to believe in the existence of something so abhorrent, and yet they would believe in angels. Sometimes, Nasima didn’t understand humans and their reasoning. They seemed so much more content to stick their heads in the sand than deal with anything slightly unpleasant.

  “That will be fine,” Aviur said. “We greatly appreciate any help you can offer, even if it is just access to your archives.”

  She was glad Aviur was there because she couldn’t have been as diplomatic if she’d been on her own. Nasima had little patience for the “ignorance is bliss” attitude when her mate was in danger and the world was being threatened by ambitious demons and dark elementals.

  Ten minutes later they were surrounded by dusty books that smelled of musk and stale air.

  Nasima looked around and then up. There were shelves on every wall, and they climbed up to the ceiling, which had to be at least fifteen feet tall. “This shouldn’t take long at all,” she grumbled.

  “Your optimism is catching,” Aviur said dryly. “Do try and tone it down.”

  Nasima smirked. “I will do my best to contain my enthusiasm, but you know me—put me in a room stuffed with old books, and suddenly I want to break out in a jig.”

  “Yes, because you’re such a jig kind of queen.”

  “I’ve been known to dance on occasion,” Nasima said as she pulled a book from one of the shelves. Like all the others, it was large, at least eighteen inches high and eight inches thick. It weighed at least ten pounds. “Good grief,” she huffed. “What did they make these pages out of? Stone?”

  Aviur pulled out a book and flipped it open. “Hmm,” he said, turning the pages. “Actually, they’re enchanted. Open yours.”

  Nasima frowned but obeyed. She felt magic pulse through her hands as the book got even heavier. She placed the book on one of the three tables in the center of the room.

  Staring at the pages, she realized there were letters on the page, but they didn’t make any sense. “What in Mother Gaia is going on?” she muttered. “The last time we were here”—though she couldn’t remember when that was—“these were legible.”

  “The last time we were here, demons and witches and dark royals were not working together.”

  “You think the witches put spells on these books?” she asked him.

  Aviur placed his hand on the open page of his book and closed his eyes. Nasima watched as his hand
glowed red. After a minute, he pulled his hand back. “It’s not elemental magic, nor does it feel like the magic of the underworld. That leaves witches.”

  “How in the world would they have gotten access to this library?” Nasima wondered out loud.

  “As curious as that is, I think we should focus on breaking the spells and worry about the ‘how’ once the world isn’t headed for the next ice age and first demon invasion.”

  Nasima nodded. “Good point.”

  “Cover yourself in air purification,” Aviur said. “I’m going to use cleansing fire. It shouldn’t burn you, but I don’t know what effect it will have when it hits the witches’ magic.”

  Nasima whispered words in the elemental language and felt the air around her stir. It whipped around her until she was completely engulfed in a tornado that only touched her and nothing else.

  She watched as the fire king raised his hands and began his own chant. She couldn’t hear his voice through the roaring wind around her, but she could see the fire shoot from his hands. The shelves and books were engulfed in a matter of seconds. Though it looked as if they would all burn until there was only ash left, they didn’t. The fire licked over them, and she could see the black magic being pulled out. The flames seemed to devour the witch magic and, as soon as a book was cleansed, the fire on it eased. The books that had been cleaned so far also appeared cleaner on the outside, as if they were brand new and not centuries old.

  Nasima stayed covered in her power with the turbulent air flowing around her. As she watched, each shelf was covered by the fire until, finally, the flames subsided.

  She released the wind and then jumped when the book in her hands suddenly went up in flames only to return to its non-burning state, but in better condition.

  “I thought you were concerned about how the witch magic would respond to your magic,” she said, giving Aviur a withering glare.

  “The library didn’t burn to the ground,” he pointed out, “I knew you were relatively safe.”