The Elementals Collection

by L. B. Gilbert

  All eyes turned to the fireplace. The once small flames leapt high, engulfing the entire space under the giant mantelpiece in an unnaturally bright flame. Alec was momentarily blinded. He covered his eyes with his hands. When they readjusted, he could see someone in the center of the ballroom. A young woman. One with dark red hair.

  “Do excuse me,” she said with a dazzling smile directed at his parents. “I didn’t mean to interrupt. Well, okay. Actually, I did.” She shifted her weight on one hip in a casual whole body shrug.

  Elva’s aristocratic face contorted into a mask of fury and outrage. Alden stalked toward the woman, his expression livid.

  “How dare you?” Alec’s father hissed. He didn’t have to yell to get everyone’s attention. All eyes were on him and their uninvited guest. “Who the hell are you? You can’t be here!”

  “Oh, I dare to go pretty much anywhere I want. But you’re right. I should have at least knocked.”

  She raised her hand in a parody of knocking a door. . .but with each fake knock there was a real and extremely loud booming sound. It was so loud the chandeliers rattled.

  What the hell? What witch could do something like that without an incantation? He hadn’t seen her move her lips at all.

  “I’m not impressed with your parlor tricks!” his father spit out.

  The woman leaned in closer. “Who says it’s a trick?” She spun slightly to take in the room around her. “Nice. A little too much velvet, though. Very nouveau bordello.” Her full lips puckered a little.

  She’s beautiful, Alec thought for a long moment before he got a grip on himself. An unfamiliar vamp close to him turned and gave him a ‘Are you completely crazy?’ look.

  Damn, must have said it out loud.

  “Get the hell out of here, witch!” his father yelled, but it sounded more like a b than a w.

  He grabbed the woman’s arm but snapped back his hand like he had been burned. He gave a little grunt, blinking repeatedly. Then he seemed to shake it off and tried again.

  Alec wanted to shout a warning, but he was frozen in place. His father’s hand was smoking now, and there was a distinct smell of burned flesh in the air. Alden took two steps back, but his mother came forward shaking with rage.

  “You can’t be here,” she shrilled as if her mate hadn’t just been burned. “We have wards everywhere!”

  “I’m aware of that,” the stranger said.

  The young woman was still calm and collected, her voice low and cool. It had a distinctly husky sound to it, one that was tweaking Alec’s nerves. “But since I’m not a witch, they aren’t really relevant right now.”

  “Of course you’re a witch!” his mother yelled, spittle flying, completely losing her composure.

  Okay, now that was really impressive. He couldn’t remember the last time Elva had raised her voice.

  The woman must have decided she was tired of getting spit on, and moved out of range. There was a sudden gasp, as if everyone in the room had exhaled collectively in surprise.

  As the stranger walked across the polished marble floor, she made a circle around Alec’s mother, leaving a set of small burning footprints in her wake.

  The fire from each footprint flared with each step, leaving Elva completely encircled by flames. Panicking, she ran toward Alden. But before she could clear the edge, the circle of fire flared high and hot, trapping her inside.

  A sudden crashing sound behind Alec made him turn around. Vamps and servants were scrambling out of the room, knocking over furniture and dropping trays of champagne as they went.

  “What do you want?” His father’s voice didn’t sound right.

  Alec turned back to the intruder, stunned to see her now ringed in a spiral of flame that moved with her, like it was a part of her. He inched toward her, trying to not make any noise. But she turned anyway, facing him directly across the length of the ballroom.

  Alec stared into her eyes and the bottom dropped away from his world.

  It really is one of them.

  The woman turned back to his parents, but the image of those flame-filled eyes stayed with him. It wasn’t a trick of the light or a reflection of the fire in the room. It was coming from inside of her. She was an Elemental.

  “I want to know about the child,” she said.

  “Shit.”

  The Elemental cocked her head in his direction. Crap. Bad time to think aloud.

  “What child?” His father sounded genuinely bewildered.

  The Elemental produced a picture from god knows where. The fact that it wasn’t burning up was proof that those flames weren’t normal.

  “This one. Her name is Katie. She should be safe at home sleeping right now, but she’s not. And one of your kind knows something about her disappearance.”

  The Elemental’s voice was cold and even.

  “We don’t know anything about that. We would never break the covenant and harm a child,” Alden said, still confused.

  That was true. . .mostly. They would never feed from or kill children. But allowing harm to come to them through some thoughtless action, well, that was a something Alec didn’t want to think about.

  “I didn’t say you had done anything to her personally,” the Elemental said as she reached out a small shapely hand and took hold of Alden’s shirtfront. “But one of you knows something. If I were you, I would get into a sharing mood.”

  The shirt smoldered where it made contact. She dragged him forward—despite the fact he towered above her by almost a foot and outweighed her by at least a hundred pounds.

  “We have nothing to do with whatever it is you are looking for!” Elva said from inside the circle, but her voice betrayed her. It was shaky and uncertain.

  The Elemental released Alden with a shove that sent him flying back and sliding across the floor like a doll. Alec froze in shock for the space of an entire heartbeat before rushing to help him. After helping his father to his feet, they both turned to watch helplessly as the Elemental moved toward his mother.

  “Then why do the winds whisper your name, Elvarosa? They wouldn’t be doing that if you weren’t involved somehow.”

  The Elemental’s voice was low and throaty. It sounded so wrong. It was too sexy for him to be afraid. And he should be. Even his mother was finally catching up, realization creeping over her face. Then her expression turned stubborn.

  Alec knew that look. His mother was exceptional when it came to ignoring unpleasant situations. But this was the wrong time for her to dig her Manolo’s in denial. He stepped closer, determined to do something.

  “What have you done, Mother?” he asked quietly.

  The Elemental cocked her head again, but she didn’t bother to turn around to look at him.

  “Tell me about the child,” she said.

  “Elva? What is she talking about?” his father asked. His mother jerked her head toward the sound of his voice. Alec was only a few feet away now. The Elemental didn’t even turn toward him.

  Clearly I’m not a threat, he thought, trying not to be insulted.

  “It wasn’t me! It was nothing!” his mother yelled as the flames flared slightly.

  “But you know something,” the Elemental said in a singsong voice that should have freaked him out.

  But he loved her voice. Jesus, what is wrong with you?

  “Mother, whatever you know, you have to tell us,” Alec said.

  Elva turned toward him and the Elemental. “No, it was nothing. Nothing.” She was shaking, her eyes clouded and unseeing.

  “What was nothing?” the Elemental asked in a cold even tone. She was like the angel that stood at the gates of heaven judging sins and deciding fates.

  “They wanted to use one the houses. That’s all!” His mother couldn’t seem to control the volume of her voice.

  “Who wanted a house? For what purpose? Did they keep Katie there?”

  Though her inflection hadn’t changed, he was certain the Elemental was furious.

  “No! I don’t kno
w! There wasn’t supposed to be a child there at all!” his mother cried.

  The Elemental didn’t say anything. She simply let the silence stretch and stretch like a police interrogator would have until Elva broke.

  “I didn’t know it was a black circle,” his mother whispered.

  From the corner, his father made an inarticulate choking sound, but Alec didn’t look his way.

  “We don’t traffic with black witches. We don’t!” his mother cried as she paced in a tiny circle inside the flames. “A friend asked me for a favor, to loan one of our rentals in Dover to some witches she knew. She said the house was in a favorable spot for them to conduct some rituals. I thought it was only basic spells. So did she. But they vacated suddenly and she didn’t know where they had gone,” Elva said with a wave of her hand that was a little too close to the fire for Alec’s peace of mind. “She was annoyed because she couldn’t reach them, and she hadn’t received the charms she’d been promised.”

  Inside the ring of fire, his mother crumpled to the floor when she was done explaining.

  “What kind of charms?” Alec asked with the sinking feeling that this was simply too much of a coincidence.

  A child missing wasn’t something out of the ordinary in the human world, but it was in theirs. He remembered the wards on the apartment building where Elias was taken. A skilled witch could have circumvented them.

  “Just some beauty related charms, and some listening spells. Nothing big. No black magic.”

  “But you were concerned enough to check out the house, right?” he asked, causing the Elemental to look over at him and frown.

  What? Was she the only one who was supposed to ask any questions?

  His mother shuffled inside the ring. “They left so quickly, and Fiona’s servants couldn’t track them. That in itself was odd. She used a scryer and there was still no sign.”

  Of course it was Fiona, Sylvan’s scheming mother. She was Elva’s oldest cohort. They frequently had their little cat fights, but they always forgave each other in drawn out public scenes of reconciliation. They fed off the drama. Alec found it exhausting. But Fiona sometimes displayed some sense. Like using a scryer. The fact the scryer hadn’t found anything was telling. Fiona must have really wanted those charms.

  “It was too strange that they would disappear like that. Fiona isn’t someone you cross. So I went to the house to check things out.” His mother seemed to be regaining her composure. Her eyes were focusing now, alternating between him and the Fire Elemental. She sounded relieved to be getting things off her chest. “I found evidence of a black rite. At least, I think it was one. I’m not sure what they look like. Never seen one, don’t know what kind of things are used. But the trash left behind, the things scattered around, they weren’t nice things.”

  “What about the child?” the Elemental’s voice was implacable. “Was there a body?”

  “No. But in the one of the bedrooms, there was a blanket and pillow.” His mother sucked in a breath. “And some toys. Children’s toys.”

  “Why didn’t you say something?” his father said from somewhere behind him.

  “Why would I? We did nothing wrong. All I did was lend one of our properties. And maybe the child is fine. It was probably one of their own children. Even a black witch wouldn’t harm their own child,” his mother burst out, but she didn’t sound convinced.

  Alec passed both hands roughly over his face. “Is that what you’ve been telling yourself since you went to the house?” he asked.

  His mother knew he was looking into Pedro’s son’s disappearance. How could she keep this kind of information from him?

  “Of course it is. Why would I tell myself anything else?” his mother asked so incredulously he almost laughed in disbelief.

  “Where is the house?” the Elemental demanded impatiently.

  “Sixteen Citrus in Dover. It’s by a stream, but I had it cleaned out the day before yesterday. There won’t be anything there.”

  His mother turned away from all of them, wrapping her arms around herself.

  The flames surrounding her died down, and the fire in the fireplace went out at the same time as the electric lights above. The room was thrown into darkness. Alec blinked as his night vision adjusted. His father was standing over his mother, gathering her in his arms.

  The Elemental was gone.

  6

  It could have gone worse, Diana thought bracingly, trying to ignore the tightness in her chest. At least she had some information now—a place to start. She had been hoping to get lucky and find the guilty party among the vampires, but she supposed that would have been too easy.

  She should have known this would lead to black magic.

  Diana expelled a frustrated breath. She was far from the coven house now. Blocks away. The streets were wet, and the rain was really starting to come down. She should drop by the Elemental’s safe house to pick up keys to the bike she kept in this city. They also kept a few cars, which would be better for the rain, but she preferred the bike. It was more maneuverable in tight spaces. And she was too keyed up to be boxed-in right now.

  What the hell was up with their son?

  In her experience, almost everyone ran like hell when she showed up. But not him. He came right up to her despite the fact she was threatening his parents, the leaders of his coven. Crazy or stupid?

  According to what she’d heard about the scion of House Broussard, he was neither. She closed her eyes, and his image snuck into her mind. He was really tall, at least six foot four and muscular. Neither was common for a vampire that age.

  Men from that era, especially those born into privilege, were never that well built. Muscles were for the lower classes. His black hair and dark blue eyes were especially striking with those sculpted cheekbones.

  If there were real angels, he could pass for one of the fallen. Her mind ground to a halt and she gave herself a small shake.

  Enough.

  All vampires were handsome. They used their looks to draw in prey, so it wasn’t surprising she’d noticed him. But he wasn’t involved and was of no further significance to her investigation. Unlike the other Elementals, she was pretty good at detecting deception. She’d had a lot of practice, most of it acquired early in life.

  By the time she arrived at the safe house, she was soaking wet. The nice apartment near the waterfront was used by all of them to some degree when they were in the area. They had many like it all over the world. Diana liked to sleep there. Not all of them did. Serin, who was sometimes accompanied by her partner on her missions, usually chose to stay in a hotel when he was with her.

  A hotel was an option open to all of them. They had unlimited funds in bank accounts all over the world, established long ago by their predecessors from the gifts of precious metal and jewels the Mother provided. She had wanted them to always be free to do her will. But Diana liked to be surrounded by the clothes and supplies left behind by the others. She felt closer to them that way.

  Even though she rarely saw them in person, the other Elementals were her only family. Not that she got to see them that often. In fact, it was forbidden for all of them to be in the same place at the same time, a safeguard the Mother had put in place in the early days when She feared rebellion. Sleeping among the possessions of the others was a poor substitute, but it did make Diana feel better.

  Sighing, she took off her jacket and tried to stop feeling sorry for herself. Despite her more recent dissatisfaction, she had a strong purpose in life. But sometimes she couldn’t help craving more. Like wishing she could see the others more often, to stay in their homes and eat with their families. Well, Serin and Logan’s families. Gia’s people were still around, but her immediate family was long gone.

  Diana scolded herself. The other girls were always on missions too, and they rarely went home to their families. Really, it was easier for her. And it wasn’t as if she couldn’t speak to the others. All she had to do was light a candle or small flame. But now was not th
e time for another group chat. She didn’t want to talk to Serin or Gia before she went out to the house in Dover to confirm what Elva had said. No one was going to like the news that a black circle was involved—one they hadn’t been aware of before now.

  She stripped off the rest of her wet clothes and took a quick shower. Then she fixed a quick meal from the well-stocked kitchen and peeked in the closet in the bedroom. There was a new wool coat hanging on a peg along with several flowing skirts. Serin must have been here last. Without Jordan? If he was with her, she would have stayed at a hotel. But the clothes were definitely Serin’s style. Logan and Gia dressed more like her, in jeans and leather.

  Also, if Logan had been here last, the bed would not have been made.

  Diana hurriedly ate her meal. Having a lead for Katie meant pulling double duty here in town, but both cases were important.

  Her primary target in Boston was the Denon Corporation. She’d cased her targets there this morning. Corporate jobs required a lot more legwork than her usual cases, but she didn’t mind them.

  Corporations leveraged ridiculous amounts of power these days and were capable of hurting a lot of people. Especially nameless, faceless, poor people in faraway countries.

  The Denon Corporation had exploited many small villages in Africa, coming in and plundering the most valuable resources and leaving the poisonous waste that resulted without any effort to clean it up. She and the others had already decided exposure would serve them best, although her kind of judgement would have been a lot more satisfying.

  She had planned on breaking into the Denon Corporation headquarters tonight to try and dig up some evidence on their toxic waste disposal procedures, but now searching the house in Dover was her priority.

  Elva said the house had been cleaned, but she should still be able to find some signs. Black magic always left its mark. It just wasn’t always visible.

  Later that night, Diana was in back of sixteen Citrus in Dover. The drive was less than an hour from the coven house, but the contrast between that place and this neighborhood couldn’t have been more pronounced.