The Elementals Collection

by L. B. Gilbert

  34

  The firebird could smell the witch’s blood. The corner of its memory that was still the woman could feel confusion and anger but no fear. Those feelings would be dealt with when it was a woman once more. For now, the bird had a task the woman couldn’t complete because the witch had injured her with something alien. . .something wrong.

  Once their fight had become physical, her human form had grabbed a hunk of the witch’s hair, hard enough to tear it from the roots. Now the phoenix or the woman could find the black witch anywhere. There was no hole deep or dark enough to hide. However, a hunt wasn’t necessary.

  The witch hadn’t gotten far.

  High in the sky, the bird scanned the wet street below. Rue de Metz, the woman’s memory provided. The street ran all the way to the river. The witch was headed there, probably reasoning that water would protect her. If the bird could laugh, it would have.

  The witch had run fast and far in such a short time. She reached the river and climbed onto a cruising tug, the fastest boat the slow river would afford. Speedboats were not the norm here.

  The witch had reached for the boat’s controls when the bird plummeted through the wooden roof. Talons of fire grabbed the enemy’s shoulders. Sage screamed and struggled to reach for her pockets. She knocked at the bird’s slighter body despite her burning skin. The bird shifted forms, slipping away to let the woman emerge.

  “Sage, you have committed murder for magical gain,” Diana hissed. “You’ve broken the covenant and forfeited your life. In the name of the Mother, I’m here to claim it.”

  “I didn’t know!” The witch gasped.

  “You knew enough. You knew it was wrong. And a little boy is dead. . .not to mention the other murders I can see in your aura,” she said.

  Diana’s hand clenched into a fiery fist. With a sickening crunch of bone, she punched through the witch’s ribcage and reached in to pull out her heart. For a moment, she stared at it, almost surprised to see it there, cradled in her hand. She blinked and then ignited it, silently watching it burn to ash.

  The rest of the body stood in front of her on its own power for a ridiculously long moment before it, too, was consumed in flame. Unnerved, Diana pushed the witch’s body away. It fell against the helm of the boat, spreading the fire.

  The conflagration would take the entire boat with it, a fitting funeral pyre for a Burgess witch. Black or white.

  Diana jumped out of the boat, belatedly checking for an audience. Satisfied to find herself alone, she watched the fire consume the boat until it began to sink. Once it was gone she started to walk back to the museum.

  Or maybe the Phoenix wasn’t a one-time thing? Can I fly now?

  Taking another furtive look around, she reached for the phoenix. With buzz of pleasure, it came when called.

  When the bird returned, Alec was pacing a furrow in the muddy courtyard. It landed with a fiery thump that startled the waiting audience. As the flames receded, the bird shifted into the woman once more.

  Diana stood there, swaying slightly, her hand fisted tightly. Logan ran up to her, her hands reaching immediately for Diana’s torn shirt.

  “The stab wound is completely gone. How cool is that!” she exclaimed before noticing Diana’s tightly clenched fist. “What’s that?”

  Diana stared at her fist. She couldn’t remember why she was holding it so tightly. Opening it, a fine ash fell to the ground.

  “Is that what’s left of the witch?” Dmitri asked as Alec walked closer to Diana.

  Her vampire didn’t look too steady, either. Whiter than any of his kind should be, he reached for her torn shirt as well. Crowding Logan away, he went down on his knees in front of her, his hands on her stomach.

  “Um, yeah,” Diana said, uncomfortable with Alec’s long-fingered hands on her bare skin in front of everyone.

  Even if everyone was just Dmitri and Logan.

  “It’s gone,” he whispered.

  “Yeah, I’m fine now. See. . .” Diana said, holding up her shirt higher to show off rock-hard abs that were completely unmarked.

  She wiped away the ash on her pants as she pulled her torn tank down and tried to dislodge Alec’s hands from her hips, but they wouldn’t budge.

  “Snap out of it. I’m okay,” she hissed with a blush.

  He hadn’t put his hands on her before, not on her bare skin. It felt intensely private, and they had an audience.

  Alec blinked and got up. “Apparently, rebirth as the Phoenix means extreme healing. This is good. Good news,” he mumbled, relief making him sound drunk and confused.

  “Are you sure ‘bout that, mate? They’re already nearly bloody invincible,” Dmitri said flatly.

  Both Elementals turned to frown at him.

  “Just saying, hope you always get the right guy is all,” he mumbled and turned away rather than meet their eyes.

  “Trust me, we don’t mistake innocents for the guilty. The stain on their soul is glaring even when their actions aren’t dead giveaways,” Diana said, gathering herself together after the disorientation that came with changing forms for the first time.

  “And we don’t always kill them,” Logan finished cheerfully.

  “Hmm,” Dmitri said and then cocked his head as if he heard something. “The little one’s waking.”

  Prying Alec’s hands off her, Diana tugged him to his feet before rushing off. She ran toward the small heat source inside the building. A soldier was holding the sleepy little girl on his lap. The other guards drifted back when she, Logan, and Alec entered.

  “Hi sweetie,” Diana said, kneeling in front of the little brown haired girl. Katie’s delicate features wrinkled and then smoothed in recognition.

  “Yeah, you remember me,” Diana said as she ran her hands over Katie’s hair. “Are you okay? Does your tummy or head hurt?”

  Katie glanced shyly at Logan and Alec behind her. She shook her head.

  “It’s all right,” Diana continued, stroking her hair. “These are my friends.”

  Katie blinked at them and then looked at Diana directly. “Did you find my mommy?”

  Diana looked at the two behind her and caught clear signs of conflict on their face.

  “Not yet, honey,” Logan said, bending slightly and placing her hands on her knees. “We’re still looking for her.”

  Logan shot a look at Alec as he moved behind Katie’s field of view. Diana could tell from Alec’s expression that there was trouble.

  She turned back to the little girl. “We’ll be back soon. We’re going to go look for her,” she said before letting Alec usher them out.

  He led them to the room across the courtyard, his expression grim.

  The sight that met her eyes was more of a shock than it should have been. On the floor, in a similar pose to her sister, was Brenda. Spelled stones surrounded her and the same symbols and writing were beneath her, under the spilled blood. It was in chalk this time. The circle hadn’t taken the time to carve the symbols into her flesh.

  Swearing under her breath, Diana kneeled down. One of the stones around Brenda had been kicked away from the circle, breaking the preservation spell that would’ve kept her body fresh after the moment of her death. A gash across her neck and chest was the source of all the blood, now barely a trickle.

  “You stopped the bleeding.” Diana turned to Alec in surprise.

  He had called the blood. It was the only reason Brenda was still alive. But postponing the moment of her death was cruel. She couldn’t understand why Alec had done it.

  “I want to try and turn her,” he explained from somewhere behind her, “but your friend here won’t let me try.”

  Her eyes widened in shock. “What? You can’t turn her!”

  “Why not?” he asked, brow creased. “That little girl needs her mother.”

  Diana looked down at Brenda and shook her head. “I can see it in her aura. She’s responsible.”

  “What if they tricked her?” he protested. “She could be entirely inno
cent.”

  Diana met the desperate woman’s eyes. There was no way that could be true, but she knelt anyway. “I think you’re too far gone to save, no matter what he wants. But you’ll tell me the truth anyway, won’t you?”

  “She can’t answer for Christ’s sake. Her throat is cut,” Alec said exasperatedly.

  Diana ignored him. “Did you know what they were planning with your little girl? Did you know she would die?”

  The terrified woman moved her head fractionally to the side, but the change in her body temperature contradicted her despite the blood loss. Diana stood and drew Alec away from the body.

  “She’s lying.”

  “How can you be certain? She’s lost so much blood. You can’t know for sure.” He sounded angry with her.

  Diana sighed. She had hoped he would handle this kind of thing better. If he didn’t, there was no way he could find a place in her world.

  “I am sure. And if you tried to turn her, you would fail. She isn’t a candidate,” she said, acknowledging what few vampires would realize.

  Only those who could bend magic to some degree could be turned. It helped if the person doing the turning was powerful. Alec was. . .but there had to be some magical aptitude in the recipient to begin with. And seeing Brenda again only confirmed what she already knew.

  Neither Brenda nor her sister Catherine had any talent. How they were drawn into the circle’s sphere was still a mystery, but in her world, things rarely got tied up in a neat bow.

  Guilt radiated from the dying woman, but Alec was determined. “You can’t possibly be certain. I’m stronger than those who made me. I can do it. That little girl—”

  Diana cut him off. “Deserves a better mother. This one intentionally put her in harm’s way, probably more than once.”

  “But she wanted her back. When you brought her home the first time—you yourself said she wanted her back.”

  “She did. But only so she could use her again. I don’t know what the circle promised her, but it was enough to trade her little girl’s life for it.”

  “I can’t believe that,” he said finally. “A mother wouldn’t.”

  “You are not nearly cynical enough for a vampire.” Diana said in a low voice, glancing to the doorway where the Were was waiting with a resigned expression.

  “You can smell her guilt, can’t you?” she asked softly.

  “Yeah,” Dmitri said as Alec turned to him. “It’s a nasty business.”

  Diana couldn’t keep arguing. Brenda’s time was running out. “Go ahead and try. I’m sorry it won’t work. But if it makes you feel better, go ahead. Try.”

  Logan gave her a commiserating look as she moved past Dmitri back into the courtyard. Diana followed her.

  “He could succeed,” Logan suggested as they walked to the center of the courtyard.

  “No. She’s flat. There’s no anchor for the magic,” Diana said.

  “Well, that’s probably for the best. I would offer you a ride, but I’m guessing you’re going to take Katie home. Is there any other family? The father?”

  “Not that I know of. I have another idea.”

  “Care to let me in on it?” Logan asked.

  Diana hesitated. “I…uh…I thought the little boy’s father might be able to look after her,” she said, running a hand through her hair.

  Logan frowned. “Are you sure? You know they’re not exactly interchangeable.”

  Diana’s lips firmed, and Logan shrugged. She unzipped her pack and handed her the jacket she kept in there.

  “You should put that on if you’re going to take Katie. You’re still a little bloody. It doesn’t show up that much against the black, but she’ll eventually notice if you take her home with you.”

  “Oh, thanks,” Diana said, slipping on the jacket. “And I know my plan isn’t perfect. But I have a feeling about this. I think she’ll be better off.”

  “I trust your gut. And I think it’s safe to assume all of us will be looking in on Katie whenever we can,” Logan said. “By the way, I had to give your boyfriend a little shit for getting all vampy on me.”

  Diana laughed. “I’m sure he didn’t mean anything by it.”

  “I know. He was just a little stressed out for a minute there. Can’t really blame the guy, but you know what they say. Start as you mean to go on…and I can’t be the pushover Elemental,” Logan said, drawing herself up to her full height, all five feet two inches of it.

  “Yeah, I get that. Where are you headed?” Diana asked as they walked to the center of the courtyard, recognizing the way Logan was scanning the sky.

  “Budapest. Gotta give some fairies a little fear of the devil.”

  “All right. Go nuts. Do you think you can drop the blade with Gia or Serin?”

  Though Gia was their elder, Serin’s people were the ones that kept detailed records on anything supernatural. If an Elemental had encountered anything like the knife or the Olmec artifact, they would know.

  “Already packed it,” Logan said, gesturing to the bundle tied to her back.

  “Safe journey. And thanks for coming,” Diana said with gratitude.

  “Like I would let you have all the fun.” Logan gave her a hug before she pulled away and let the wind take her.

  From somewhere behind her, Dmitri gave a low whistle. “Is she single?”

  Diana turned around. “Yeah. But she doesn’t like Weres,” she said, taking in Dmitri’s lustful expression.

  “Does she not like Weres like you don’t like vampires?”

  Diana decided to ignore him in favor of rejoining Katie and making travel plans.

  35

  It was late, and Alec hadn’t come back to the house he’d rented for them. Katie was asleep. Telling her that they’d found her mother and that she was gone had been difficult.

  But Katie’s reaction had been telling. She had not expressed surprise or the hysterical grief that Diana had felt when her own mother had died. She had simply nodded, no tears. All she’d wanted to know was what would happen to her now.

  “Do you want me to find your dad?” Diana had asked.

  “No. He doesn’t want to be a daddy,” Katie had said, breaking Diana’s heart.

  “Then I have an idea. I know of an excellent daddy who is missing his boy a lot right now. Your friend, the one who stayed with you at the farmhouse? He can’t go home. You know about that, don’t you?”

  Katie nodded.

  “I think it would be a good thing for you to stay with his daddy, Pedro. It might be hard at first. You would have to start at a new school.”

  “Do you think he’ll want me?” Katie whispered.

  “I think he will, but if he doesn’t, I will find you another home. A good home,” Diana promised.

  “I can’t stay with you?” Katie whispered, her eyes closed.

  “I’m sorry, sweetie. What I do is very dangerous. Not as much for me but a lot for the people around me.”

  “Even Mister Alec?” Katie asked.

  “Er. Well, yes, but only a little. Alec is more like me than he is like you. He can take care of himself. He’ll be fine.”

  “Good. I like him,” the little girl said sleepily.

  “Yeah. He’s very likable,” Diana muttered. “Don’t worry about anything else tonight. Tomorrow we start looking for a new home for you. But no matter where that turns out to be, I’m going to come visit you when I can. So are my friends. You’ll like them.”

  “Are they like you, too? Do they find bad people?” Katie whispered.

  “Yes,” Diana said.

  “That’s good then. I want you to find the bad people.” Katie sighed and lay down again.

  One of Alec’s men had had the foresight to buy a few stuffed animals in case they succeeded.

  Diana had tucked them in around Katie. The little girl had chosen a stuffed lion to hug tight and sleep with. Thinking back to the lion she’d chosen to scare J straight, Diana approved of her choice.

  Hours later, Alec
still hadn’t returned. Diana knew there was next to no chance that he could have successfully turned Brenda, but he had been gone a long while. A niggling doubt entered her mind.

  Vampires as strong as Alec were rare. Though the belief that vampires grew in strength as they aged was largely true, there were some that were simply born stronger than others. He was one of those rare breed. He was also more adept at manipulating magic than any other living vampire. If he hadn’t been, then he wouldn’t have been able to make the Daywalker ritual work.

  A door closed somewhere downstairs, and Diana felt Alec’s presence moving below. She debated going to find him, uncertain if he would come to her or not. Deciding it didn’t matter, she went downstairs.

  He was in the formal parlor, pouring himself a drink from a bar service cart. Reading the failure in his posture, she was sorry for him.

  “You know you would have been responsible for her for the rest of her afterlife. It’s better this way.”

  He looked at her beyond his glass and swallowed the entire drink down in a gulp.

  “That’s no way to savor a thirty-year-old Armagnac,” Diana chided gently.

  “It’s fifty years old,” he informed her, pouring another for himself and one for her.

  “I’m not a fan,” she said but took the glass anyway.

  The drink burned on the way down, and she screwed up her face in a scowl.

  He smiled at her, and the atmosphere in the room lightened considerably. “You should hold the glass in your hands and warm it. It enhances the flavor. Just try not to heat it so much that you boil the alcohol off.”

  “You didn’t do that,” she pointed out, directing a mild heat wave to the glass.

  “It’s a little hard for me to warm it above room temperature,” he noted wryly.

  Diana gave him a tiny smile. “It was for the best, you know.”

  “Yeah. I know.”

  “If you didn’t succeed in turning her, why were you gone so long?”

  Alec sat heavily in the padded leather armchair and stared at his glass. “I was making arrangements for the body. And for the repair of the museum. It should be set to rights before the end of the week. I wanted to fix it before the employees came back to work on Monday, but things happen slowly in France. After that, I started trying to track down the little girl’s father. He’s in jail, however, and there were no other close living relatives, so I contacted child services in Boston instead.”