Destroy

by Cali Mann

  “The team has searched most of the east side and are working their way through the west side,” she said. “Your father’s flying over, looking for anything suspicious.”

  I nodded, and she raised an eyebrow, so I said, “Good.”

  “What aspect is she presenting now?” Mom asked.

  “Huh?” I blurted.

  “She’s fire,” Lucan said from the back seat. “And she didn’t kill the headmaster,” he added, anticipating Mom’s next question. “Larkin lives.”

  “Good,” Mom said. “I’d hate to think we were off saving a murderer.” Her communicator went off, and Mom held it up to her face, clicking the button.

  The guard and the enforcers used the smaller-sized communicators instead of cell phones when on a mission. They took up less room, weighed less, and were harder to trace. They didn’t have all the bells and whistles of a smartphone, but they did the job.

  My dad’s voice crackled over the intercom. “Target sighted.”

  We listened as he rattled off directions: southeast of Thornbriar, but still in the mountains.

  “Affirmative,” she said. “We’re five minutes out. Wait for backup.”

  “What’s happening?” Drew asked.

  “Fire’s been sighted in the vicinity of an old barn. Sound like your girl?” She spun the wheel and took us down a narrow side road.

  27

  Sasha

  I stared down the stairs, but the fire was already roaring through the ground level. We’d never make it through. Shifters might heal faster, but that didn’t mean they didn’t die. And we were going to die. Here, trapped in an old barn and on fire. “You fucking bastard,” I shouted.

  Chuck’s laugh carried up to me. “What, you thought there was a way you got out of this alive, spirit shifter?”

  No, but I had hoped that Alex would. I stared at my brother, trying to make out his form through the gloom. I needed to find a way to cut his bonds. I glanced toward the cracked window. Could we push it open and get out? Smoke rolled through the opening and I coughed.

  I searched for something sharp and stumbled across a nail. Could I use it to cut his ropes? I grabbed Alex’s arms, pulling them up so I could feel the knot, then shoved the nail against it.

  He coughed, trying to pull away. “Go, save yourself.”

  “Shithead. I’m not going to let you die.” I sawed on the rope with the sharp end of the nail, but it wasn’t doing anything. I tried to call up a trickle of fire, but I couldn’t even feel my powers. Had destroying the headmaster’s office done all that to me? I sighed and coughed. My throat was dry and starting to hurt. Smoke inhalation could kill you faster than fire—wasn’t that what they said?

  I marched over to the window, meaning to pry the boards off so I might see what was happening outside, but I stumbled on some loose planks. My foot fell through, and I scrambled to keep myself from dropping into the flames. I looked down at the barn below and all I could see was fire—red, gold, and blue flames dancing along the walls.

  “You okay?” Alex croaked. He wasn’t even complaining about being hungry anymore. That seemed bad.

  Inching around the broken boards, I peered out the window crack. I could see Chuck standing in the yard, his arms crossed over his chest and his stance loose. He was enjoying his handiwork like the sadist he was. He lifted an arm and waved at me as if he knew I was there. Fucking bastard.

  I pulled on the boards, trying to open the window. They rattled but didn’t move. You’d think in an old barn like this they’d be worn and ready to break. Just my luck that they held. I stumbled against the wall. My breathing was uneven. I needed to get us out of here soon.

  “Alex,” I called.

  “Mmmm,” he muttered.

  “Don’t fall asleep.” It seemed really important that he didn’t fall asleep. I couldn’t remember why.

  If we were going to get out of here, I needed help. I leaned back against the wall. I could feel the tremor of the blaze through it. What could I do? Alex was passing out. Soon his lungs would swell from the burns and the toxins in the air. Even as a vampire, he wasn’t immune. Tears splashed down my cheeks and I wiped them with the back of my hand.

  “Help,” I whispered hoarsely. The fire was burning me from the inside out. The smoke seared my lungs. I closed my eyes. Help wasn’t going to make it in time. I’d done everything I could.

  “Meow.”

  A soft bit of fur slipped under my hand and my eyes snapped open. I gazed at Nox in bewilderment. I’d left him back at the school. He hadn’t been in the van with me. How could he be here? I scratched his ears. He had the same blue glow around him that he’d had at the headmaster’s office. Was I hallucinating? My eyes burned and my vision blurred as the smoke drifted over me.

  Sasha, a female voice whispered in my mind.

  “Who’s there?” I looked around, but the barn was empty except for us. Nox’s eyes glowed in the darkness, and I frowned at him.

  Reach out to your mates. Use their power.

  “How?” I asked, my lips parched and dry. Was Nox talking to me? He was a boy cat, not a girl. I didn’t understand why he was here anyway.

  Wake up, Sasha, the voice commanded.

  I lifted my head, trying to see through my smarting eyes. Nox pawed me, insisting that I keep petting him.

  Reach for them.

  Something about her tone made me obey. I let my senses reach out for Drew and Lucan. They were close. Almost here and I was going to be dead before they arrived.

  No. Take what you need from them.

  I didn’t understand it, but I tried. I could feel Lucan’s fierce strength as if it was tied to me like a lifeline. I yanked on it, feeding my weakened body, and I thought I heard him yelp. But with the power, I was able to stand and yank off the boards on the window.

  Chuck still stood watching us burn, but I glimpsed a jeep pulling over the rise. That’s where my guys were. I was sure of it.

  Closing my eyes, I pulled on Drew’s energy. Wrapping myself in his coolness and air, I crossed back over to Alex. He was still breathing. I pushed some of Drew’s clean oxygen through him, and he coughed weakly. I lifted him in my arms, bolstered by Lucan’s sheer determination. Now, did we take the window and we’d be injured by the fall or the ladder and be hurt by the fire?

  You have another, the voice said.

  I searched for the link. It was fainter than the others, but I tugged and cool water cascaded over me. I laughed, shaking myself. Pushing the water ahead of us, I held Alex against me with one arm and climbed down the ladder. I stumbled at the bottom and fell on my ass. Alex hit my stomach, knocking the air out of me. The fire crept closer, as if it was a malevolent force with all of Chuck’s anger tied up in it. He’d fed it all of his hatred for me and my kind.

  Drawing from my guys, I pushed it back. I forced myself to stand and picked up Alex. Still breathing. I blinked. Shit. I’d forgotten Nox. “Here kitty,” I called. “Nox!”

  I looked at the ladder, then at my brother. I had to get him out. Then I’d come back for the cat. I didn’t want to. They were both my responsibility, but I needed to get Alex into the fresh air. Humans died in minutes from smoke inhalation. I didn’t know how much longer he’d last, despite being a shifter. Of course, Nox was smaller. I hesitated.

  I’ll take care of Nox, the voice said. I could hear the gentle laugh in it.

  Nodding, I used the water to plow through the fire and out the front door. As soon as we were beyond the front door, I fell and dropped Alex on the grass. We were surrounded by people. I blinked at them, not sure where they’d come from. They were using hoses to spray down the barn behind us, and lights flashed from an ambulance.

  28

  Lucan

  The barn was burning when we crested the ridge and rode down the hill. Sasha had pulled something from me, and I felt weaker. I didn’t know she could do that.

  I looked at Drew, and he nodded, swallowing hard. She’d done the same to him.

 
“Whatever she needs,” he mouthed.

  I nodded in agreement.

  The water shifter had shouted too and now he leaned on the dash, looking as woozy as I felt. I frowned. Could she have drawn power from him if he wasn’t her mate?

  Then I spotted a male figure spinning around and taking off towards a van. “Chuck!” I shouted, pointing.

  “Got him,” Cal’s mom said, spinning the jeep around and plowing through the grass toward him.

  Another large vehicle full of people pulled down the same path we’d used, followed by a military ambulance. The Bass’s had pulled out all the stops. They had some major clout—apparently more than my uncle.

  Chuck reached his van just as we pulled up, and Cal’s mom fired at his foot. Chuck yelped as the bullet made contact. Hopping on one leg, Chuck stared up at her, furiously. “Why’d you have to go and do that, Mariellen?”

  She stood, aiming her gun at his heart. “Because you’ve always been an asshat, Chuck.”

  Enforcers poured out of the other vehicles and the trees.

  Drew, Cal, and I piled out of the jeep, running for the barn. The doors swung open and Sasha stumbled out, carrying Alex. We stopped next to them, blinking in the smoky haze. Drew dropped down and wrapped his arms around her. She was pale and covered with soot and hay, but she was breathing.

  Anger roared up in me, and I turned and charged at Chuck. I slammed into his stomach, tackling him against the jeep, and pounded my fists into his face. Someone shouted for me to stop, but I couldn’t see anything through my blind rage. He’d harmed my mate. He needed to die.

  His flesh gave under my punches, and he groaned.

  I wrapped my hands around his throat, squeezing as hard as I could. I was weaker than I thought because Chuck easily overpowered me. He spun me and wrapped his arm around my neck. I ended up fighting for my own breath. Chuck had gotten the best of me, and now I was his captive. I struggled against him, but he held me tight.

  “Back off,” Chuck announced to the guards with their guns trained on him. “Councilman Masters will not be happy if you all murder his nephew.”

  “Let him go,” Cal’s mom said, “and we’ll end this without bloodshed.”

  “Now, why would I want to do that?” Chuck sneered, opening the van door behind us. He climbed in, pulling me in after him. “You might have saved the spirit shifter this time, but I’ll be back to fight again.”

  No. I couldn’t let him hurt my mate. I struggled to shove away from him. He grabbed his gun off the seat, cocking it against my head, and I froze.

  “Your uncle might have done me a solid, but I won’t hesitate to pull the trigger,” Chuck whispered.

  My gaze darted over to him. “Uncle Derrick?”

  A grin spread across his face. “You do know there’s more hatred for spirit shifters out there than just me, kid?”

  Bile rose in my throat and my stomach swirled. My uncle had helped this monster? And I’d gone to him, asking for help, Uncle Derrick must have laughed his ass off. Sasha had warned me. She’d said I couldn’t trust him, that he hated spirit shifters. My stomach swirled. I’d told him about the fake headmaster killing. Was that why Chuck had done this?

  “Put your hands on the wheel and start the engine,” Chuck ordered.

  I needed to fight back. Get out of here and go to my mate. I glared back at Chuck, matching his violence with my own and his lip curled.

  “Don’t even think about it, baby wolf.”

  Forcing my hatred back, I put the van in gear and stepped on the gas. We started up the hill. I could feel the guards’ eyes on me, but with the gun on my forehead, I didn’t know what else to do. My mind ran through every action flick I’d ever seen. I stared at the hill ahead, wondering if I could get enough traction to speed up and stop suddenly, sending seatbelt-less Chuck through the window.

  Then a crashing sound roared through the cab, and I slammed on the breaks. Wetness coated my face. I felt my head for the wound, but I couldn’t find any. The gun wasn’t pressed to my temple anymore. I spun towards Chuck and stared at what was left of his face. A bullet had shattered the glass and plowed into his eye. Blood was everywhere.

  The door opened, and I stumbled out gazing back at the guards. They’d ducked behind their vehicles and were looking to the treetops. I rubbed my temple. They hadn’t done it? Who had shot him? No other shots went off.

  It didn’t matter. Chuck was dead.

  I ran back down the hill to where they were loading Sasha onto an ambulance. Her face was covered in soot and her eyes were closed. She’d been hurt because of me. I swayed. I’d tried to control everything, and I’d ignored her warning. I fell to my knees in the dirt. Shifters milled around me: fighting the fire, helping Sasha and her brother, and searching the trees for the shooter.

  I couldn’t speak. I was numb. I’d caused this. I told my uncle and he passed the info onto her captor. I could feel the heat of the blaze burning behind me, and I wanted it to swallow me whole.

  29

  Sasha

  I woke up in the infirmary again. That’s it. Next semester, no more fucking infirmary. I yanked the tubes out of my arm and sat up in the bed. I checked myself over, but I felt fine. I stood up and walked across the room, my bare feet padding on the flooring. A woman sat facing away from me, toward the window. I frowned. Who was she? I stepped toward her.

  She turned. Nox sat curled up in her lap, letting her stroke him.

  Traitor.

  Her dark hair was long and ran down her back. She wore a pale robe and a light blue shawl. “Sasha.”

  “Oracle?” I stopped and looked around. Was I supposed to bow or something?

  She laughed. “Yes, that’s what they call me.”

  I looked closer, seeing the power that flowed around her. I couldn’t believe that it showed like that, like rainbows running along her skin. I blinked. “Nox is yours.”

  She shook her head, letting Nox jump down and come twist himself around my ankles. “He’s definitely your cat. He just lets me borrow his body sometimes.”

  “That’s how he got to the headmaster’s office,” I said. “And to the barn.”

  “Yes.”

  “Is he a real cat?” I asked, stroking his back.

  “He’s real,” The Oracle said. “The elements run through every being and thing. We are all made up of air, water, earth, fire, and spirit. My magic can sometimes tag along with another being, if they’re willing to allow it.” A tendril of her magic flowed over Nox and he meowed.

  I was impressed despite myself. “Can all spirit shifters do that?”

  “No, I’m afraid not. One of the benefits of being the Oracle.”

  “But I was able to call on my mate’s power.”

  She nodded. “That you can do. Although it drains them, so it shouldn’t be done too often.”

  “I have a water mate?” I asked, scratching my head and remembering the barn. “I haven’t had sex with any water shifters.”

  “Your power recognizes your mates before you do.”

  “Does this mean you can tell me who they are?”

  “No.”

  I laughed. “That would be too easy, right?”

  “You’ll find them in your own time.”

  I had images of trying to tap into powers whenever I was in a crowd, using my talent like a dowsing rod. “Can any shifter find their mate this way? I’ve never heard of it before.”

  She shook her head. “Spirit gives us an integral link to all the elements. Other shifters don’t have the same kind of bond.”

  “Do they have to be nearby?” I asked. “Sorry for all the questions, but I don’t have anyone to ask.”

  She nodded. “I know. Yes, your mates must be nearby, but remember what I said: it drains them.”

  “Okay.” I tried to digest all that she’d told me. Then I looked up and said, “Thank you for helping me.”

  “You left a plea for help on my desk. How could I not?” She said, her green eyes twinkling.


  “Chuck was shot,” I said. I didn’t know how I knew that. I’d come out of the barn, and they’d put Alex and me in a vehicle and brought us back here. Someone must have said something along the way.

  “Yes, the executioner is dead.”

  “Who killed him?”

  She pressed her lips together. “We don’t know.”

  I was surprised. With her magic, I figured she’d know everything. “Does this mean I’m safe?”

  “From Denison, most certainly.”

  I savored that a little. A chance to go to school and not have to worry about threats to my little brother. I might even be able to pay attention in my classes.

  “But, Sasha,” she said, sadness in her voice. “There are many more enemies out there.”

  “For me?” I felt foolish even saying it. I was a spirit shifter. Of course I’d have enemies. No one wanted me to even be alive.

  “For every spirit shifter, and yes, for you. Likely here at Thornbriar.”

  I sighed. I’d had hope for a minute there that I could set down my sword and live normally for a little while.

  The Oracle stood. “Keep those you trust close, Sasha, and hold on to your mates. Even bigger battles are coming.”

  I nodded. “Can’t you just take them all out? Make them do what you want?”

  “I wish it was as easy as that. Shifter society has been around a long time, and the prejudice against us is deep-rooted.” The Oracle stepped forward, and her hands reached out to clasp my upper arms. She met my eyes. “You’re my warrior, Sasha.”

  I blinked. Was I being knighted or something? “Warrior?”

  She nodded. “The real fight is yet to come.”

  Her words were still ringing in my mind, when in a whoosh of air, she was gone, and I was left alone in the silent room.

  “Meow,” Nox said.