I reached for something solid and somehow I knew that if I squeezed long enough, my energy would be restored. I only needed to apply a bit more of pressure and I could... Pain spread through the back of my head and the world went black.
Chapter 20
Now
Bright light tried to pierce through my eyelids and I slowly pried my eyes open. My head felt like someone had split it in two. I sat up and rubbed the wet spot at the back of my head. Blood coated my fingers. Great. I squinted around me and realized I was sitting in the middle of the parking lot, surrounded by cars. My head throbbed viciously when I tried to remember what had happened or how had I gotten here. I couldn't feel any elements nearby, which was weird. My knees buckled when I tried to get up, and someone placed a steadying hand on my shoulder. I jumped, hitting myself on one of the cars.
"Easy," Alan said, a silver bracelet shining on his wrist. "It's only me. I can't have you going for my element, can I?"
"How did we get here?" I frowned when I realized we were still near the lab.
"I had to drag you out in the commotion. Luckily, everyone was too busy with their elements that they had no clue who they were attacking. But we must go. They could find us any minute." He tugged on my arm and I followed him to the car, which was only a couple of rows away. The idiots in the lab were truly idiots if they couldn't figure it out they were attacking their own people. Surely someone must have realized by now that the earth that had attacked them wasn't the same as the one their friend had. But they couldn't differentiate elements like I could, and they certainly couldn't see in the hall full of dust and earth.
"Did you really had to hit me that hard?" I was still bleeding, no matter how hard I pressed my sleeve against the wound. Hell, I most likely had a concussion.
"Yes." Alan continued weaving through the maze of cars. I rolled my eyes. We had to get out of here as soon as possible. Just as we reached Alan's car, a loud crash sounded from behind us. Guards spilled out of the lab's main door and swarmed the parking lot. Thank God the parking lot was huge. It took Alan a couple of seconds to gun the engine and then we were practically flying through the narrow streets.
"Well, that was fun," Alan said, his eyes wide.
"As fun as going back to the university." I sighed. My first two months at the University of Magic had been a disaster. Since everyone knew I had the disease, they either avoided me, watched me with contempt, talked behind my back or tried to provoke me. The professors weren't any better, so it didn't take long until I started hating everyone and was plotting how to get back at them.
"You have a girlfriend now, but I can still pull some strings and persuade students to become more friendly with you." Alan slowed down as we came onto the highway, unconcerned about the chance that someone might be following us.
"Don't." If Alan hadn't done what he had, God knew where I'd be now, but I refused to feel grateful that he had forced Vanessa to be with me. "Although Ria might not forgive me for bringing you with me."
"I'll figure out your relationship one day. Actually, that will be my priority."
I rolled my eyes. "You should find yourself a girlfriend. Or buy one. I have the disease and I had more real girlfriends than you."
"Very funny." He glared at me, but he didn't seem too annoyed. I could only hope a hot teacher would occupy his mind.
Chapter 21
Now
"Are you out of your mind?" Ria yelled, her dark brown eyes narrowed at me. She stopped only a couple of inches away from me, squeezing her fists at her sides. I could tell that she wanted to hit me.
"Did I tell you that you're irresistible when you're angry?" I liked the way her lips curled into a pout, the way her chest rose and fell with each breath, the intensity of her stare. Fucking disease! Why couldn't I for once have what I wanted without any obstacles?
"Stop trying to distract me from the problem." She ran both of her hands through her hair and shook her head. "You went to Alan, visited a place from your nightmares, nearly got caught and killed, and made a fucking deal with Alan!"
"But I came back. Alive. That's what matters."
"And we'll have to deal with Alan at the university! He'll find out you lied to him about Paula. I can't believe you dragged her into it after all we've done to her!" She took a deep breath and briefly closed her eyes.
"Are you all right?" I didn't want her to fall apart and give in to the elements. Not because of me.
"Yeah, I'm just tired of everything." She sat down on the bed, chewing on her lip.
"Paula will be fine. No one can prove that she has the disease, and no one can prove she doesn't have it. Besides, now I can go with you. We'll have to be careful because of Alan, but we'll have to be careful anyway since no one at the university can know the truth about you." I sat next to her, but didn't touch her. "I found out something else."
"What?" She looked at me under her eyelashes.
"Are you perfectly calm?" I slightly leaned forward. "Are elements bothering you at all?"
"They aren't bothering me. Why?" Curiosity flashed in her eyes. "What did you find out?"
"Let me show you," I breathed, closing the space between us. Her eyebrows shot upward, but she didn't pull away nor flinch. I hesitated for a moment, our lips nearly touching. She seemed calm enough, so I pressed my lips against hers, parting them with my tongue. An instant later, her hand was in my hair, but she managed to avoid the spot with the bandage. I closed my eyes, letting her warmth seep into me, my hand ending up on her thigh. She was my fire. My Ice Queen. She was the only thing I needed, my girl full of contradictions. There was no one else like her. No one.
"I missed you so much," she whispered. "Does this mean we can touch?"
"Only when you're in complete control. If you sense you're losing it, we must break apart. I mustn't help you when you feel weak." I knew she was scared she'd become dependent on me, but I wasn't about to allow that to happen. I'd do anything to be with her, but not if that was going to hurt her.
"So there is hope for us." A smile spread her lips.
"There's always hope." Even for someone like the two of us. The world was never particularly kind to me, but maybe it wouldn't take Ria from me. Maybe.
###
Thank you for reading!
I really hope you have enjoyed this little glimpse into Adrian's world. You'll get to find out more about him and Ria in the next book!
If you want to be notified when I publish my next book, sign up for my newsletter (no spam): https://tinyletter.com/AlyciaLinwood For all other updates and info about book 4, visit my website and blog.
If you like to read young adult books about demons and angels with a bit of romance, you can check out my book, Human. It follows a 17-year-old girl who tries to figure out who she is, and who would do anything for her loved ones. The book doesn't have any mature content.
More info: alycialinwood.weebly.com
Table of Contents
Dedication
Chapter 01
Chapter 02
Chapter 03
Chapter 04
Chapter 05
Chapter 06
Chapter 07
Chapter 08
Chapter 09
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
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No One (Element Preservers, #3.5) Page 6