“Do you think that they would calm down after a while of knowing about us?” Karena asked.
“I don’t give it much hope. The backlash and anger could last for a long time. How would your parents and friends react?”
“Hadrian and Rose would be fine with our relationship, but everyone else I know wouldn’t be. My parents would go crazy. My uncle was murdered by a Fire……. supposedly.”
He kissed her head, and a deep breath shook his solid chest. “My mom’s best friend, Ignita, was found face down in a pool of water no more than five inches deep. They found water in her lungs. She was loved by everyone. That was three decades ago, when my mom and Ignita were teenagers.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” she said. She couldn’t imagine losing a best friend like that. If she ever lost Hadrian, it would be devastating and she knew that she would be bitter for a long time.
She continued, “The deaths don’t seem to stop. I don’t understand why they happen. It’s so extreme, and it shouldn’t come down to killing someone in order to make a point.”
“I agree. They seem to come from out of the blue, with almost no escalation to build up to them.”
“And when there is escalation, there aren’t any deaths. There might be violence, but everyone knows when to stop and call it quits. Most of the time, everyone fights through trade wars and denying each other resources.”
“I remember how there wasn’t any food in the pantry when I was a kid.”
Her head hung down. Her eyes fixated on the dash of the truck. She stated, “The Earths and their growing abilities would be the cause of that.”
“Yeah. Those that possess an affinity with plants, combined with those with an affinity for water, are able to survive a famine. But those that don’t, are left with dead vegetation in their gardens.”
“I’ve never known what it’s like to go without food as you did. All I’ve known is walking in the rain and snow because my parents couldn’t get their cars fixed because the Fires wouldn’t sell car parts to Waters and Earths, and would sabotage our efforts to import them from other cities. And then there was the clothing shortage. People had to learn how to make their own clothing. The Airs and Fires would laugh at us at school because of what we wore, which at first resembled potato sacks.”
Asher rubbed her arm. “We shouldn’t do this to each other,” he said.
“What if our relationship could show everyone that opposing elementals can love each other and that we’re not meant to be enemies?”
“It’s possible, but it would take time for them to understand that.”
“We could be an example to them.”
“I would hope that we could, but we would have to endure a lot of ridicule and contempt in order to achieve that.”
“If it means that the fighting and murders would end, then it would be worth it. What do you think it would be like to have a city where there aren’t any more districts?”
He was silent for a moment as he thought about this. “It would be wonderful. I don’t know what it would be like, except that we would have more interesting conversations and friends. I would be able to hang out with your friends, and you would be able to do the same with mine. We could all live on the same block if we wanted to,” he said.
“It would be nice to be friends with Jinx and Blade. I’m not sure about Charissa though.”
“Charissa is headstrong, and a bit of a diva. I’m not really friends with her, even though she wants to be and more.”
“You would like Hadrian.”
They continued to talk about the what-if’s of an uncertain future until the lightening of the sky forced Asher to return to the road in order to resume driving to Archelm City. Work would start in an hour or so, and they couldn’t delay any longer.
When Asher pulled up in front of her house, Karena leaned over and kissed him. With a depressed sigh, she opened her door to get out. Just before she slipped out of his truck, Asher caught her arm.
“We should do dinner on Wednesday,” Asher said and let go of her arm. His dark eyes anxiously searched her face.
She lit up. “I would like that,” she said and she kissed him again. “I guess you can’t get enough of me.”
“That’s true. I hope you don’t mind.”
“I would if you stayed away. Wednesday it is. How about we meet at the mermaid statue on Abalone Street?”
“I’ll be there at five o’clock. I want you to get a taste of what the food is like in the Fire district. There’s private booths at this one restaurant that I know of. We won’t be disturbed there.”
“Good. I look forward to it,” she said, and hopped out of his truck with her duffel bag in one hand.
Karena cut across the front yard and went inside. The house still slept, but not for long. Hadrian and Rose would be up soon.
After walking up the stairs, she stood in her room’s doorway. Her room felt like an empty husk, which belonged to a life that she didn’t fit into any longer. She was outgrowing it and expanding her mind into new territories. Rather than dwell on that and the things that she couldn’t change in her life, she took a quick shower and left for work with Hadrian.
After she changed into her work uniform in the locker room, Karena sat down in the seating area on the western side of the Warren Room. She yanked on the chain of one of the stained glass lamps next to her. It flickered on and held its glow. Like a cold soak, she relaxed in the silence of the room. She was early to work, but it was because Hadrian had wanted to grab breakfast from a bakery across the street.
She couldn’t believe that it was already Monday. The weekend had passed by too quickly, and now she was back to her old routine. No longer would she have Asher’s warm body in bed. Though he radiated heat, especially when he dreamed, she hadn’t minded it oddly enough. Her body counteracted his heat perfectly.
Like a lightning’s strike, she was hit with the realization that it would’ve been problematic to be with anyone else other than Asher. She was dangerous as a Chaos elemental. If she became careless by letting her emotions run amok, she could turn someone into a frostbitten mummy within seconds. But with Asher, she could let her passion run untethered and never be concerned for his safety. Only a Fire could neutralize her ice, that is, unless she found another Ice elemental. She mulled over this and how stupid the feud was.
Coworkers began to drift in half-asleep. They crossed the room and disappeared into the locker rooms.
“There you are,” Amarine’s voice rang out.
Karena startled and turned her head. Instead of issuing a friendly greeting on her way to the women’s locker room, Amarine came to stand in front of her. She was standing so close that Karena couldn’t get up and was forced to look up at her.
“How was your getaway this weekend?” Amarine asked, putting her hands on her hips.
Amarine’s hostility caused her heart to beat a little faster. Karena said, “It was nice.”
“Nice? That’s it?”
“Yes.”
“You didn’t tell me or anyone about your plans.”
“I told Hadrian.”
“Oh, I’m sure. He seemed equally as clueless as to where you went.”
“Why does everyone want to know where I am or what my plans are?”
“Because you’re Ms. Popular,” Amarine sneered. Her eyes narrowed into sapphire slivers.
“No, I’m not. Tristan was asking about where I was, wasn’t he?”
“He says that you’re not right in the head.”
“He’s the one who isn’t right in the head,” Karena fired back.
“Says the one who flies off to the mountains alone. Or did you go with someone?”
“And why is this any of your business?”
“I’m your friend, that’s why. You’re acting very defensive for someone who has nothing to hide.”
Karena stared at her and retorted, “I take it that Tristan was fretting the entire weekend. Maybe you should’ve talked to my parents t
oo and gotten them involved. Then you could’ve all sat down together to worry. At least you would’ve all have been in good company, and been able to ambush me at the same time to ask me about where I went and what I did and what I had for breakfast this morning.”
Amarine boiled. Her short hair curled into ringlets. Moisture collected around her and beaded up on her clothes. It would’ve been too easy to freeze her into immobility right there, but Karena didn’t want Captain Valmar to give her basement duty. She considered walking out and not working that day. She had enough problems with Tristan as it was. Animosity from Amarine would be the tipping point for her.
“You’ve become such a bitch, Karena,” Amarine said and stalked off to the locker room to change.
Karena sat there in disbelief. Amarine’s words stung and left a foul taste in her mouth. Amarine was suspicious, but only because Tristan was. Due to Tristan’s bizarre obsession to know where she was at all times, he had most likely found out that she had left for the weekend, and had dumped all of his worry onto Amarine because Amarine was his best friend. And now Amarine was expressing this toxicity to her because Amarine thought that she was to blame for Tristan’s plight.
She glanced over at Asher sitting at his table. He caught her looking at him, and winked. She smiled. The strong, chiseled features of his face begged to be caressed. His lips were like a luscious strawberry that she wanted to taste again.
Ravenna, an Air, passed by her. “What’s your problem?” Ravenna spat.
Karena startled, and broke her gaze with Asher. She had been staring at Asher in far too noticeable of a way. She got up to go sit at her table. The comradery with Amarine and Tristan was gone, as evident by the icy silence amongst all of them. Tristan kept fidgeting and imploring her with his eyes to notice him. Amarine sat sideways in her chair, ignoring everyone as she waited for Captain Valmar to start the work day.
When work did start, Karena couldn’t wait for it to be over with. She went through the motions of the day, barely able to tolerate the drama Amarine created, and the awkward sexual tension that Tristan threw into the mix with his odd comments and nervous body language.
Chapter 7
When Wednesday evening came, Karena eased outside, first one foot and then the other. From the front door, she looked up and down the street. Her view was partially blocked by an old beech tree on the left side of the front yard. From what she could see and hear, no one was outside that evening. Besides, the night cloaked her into nothing more than a moving shadow. It made her feel safe. Rain pattered as soft as a cat’s paw.
After closing the front door and sweeping back a vine that had crossed the railing in yet another attempt at a hostile takeover of the porch, she walked through the unruly front yard. Just as she passed through the small gate, a noise alerted her to someone’s presence. Whomever it was, was close, too close. She looked around the gnarled, barreled trunk of the beech tree, and saw Tristan on the sidewalk. Upon seeing her, he startled. His face brightened, but it was marred by an uneasy smile.
“Hey, what a coincidence. I just pulled up,” Tristan said and rubbed his hands on his vest. His midnight-blue vest hugged his thin, stick-like frame. The loose, puffy sleeves of his shirt clashed with the tightness of his vest.
Karena frowned, and her eyes went from him to his old car, which was parked far behind hers in front of the next-door neighbor’s house. She hadn’t heard him pull up, or shut the door to get out, and nor had she heard his footsteps on the sidewalk. It didn’t fit, just like his clothes.
“Hadrian is inside,” Karena said. She walked around the hood of her car to get to the driver’s side. She wanted to ask him what he was doing there and why he seemed to be loitering around, but she didn’t want to start a conversation with him.
“I was actually here to see you.”
“I have errands to run. Maybe later.”
“I was hoping that we could have dinner together. We could invite Hadrian, and even Rose to come too. I understand how close you are to Hadrian, and how you like having him with you at all times.”
Just when she was about to tug on her car door’s handle, she paused. She asked, “At all times? Excuse me?”
Tristan bounced from foot to foot.
“Are you even remotely aware of what comes out of your mouth? It sounds creepy,” Karena added.
“Why would it be creepy? I was simply making an observation.”
“It wasn’t an observation. It sounded like an accusation. And what have you been saying to Amarine?”
“Nothing.”
Karena’s jaw tensed. Her next breath exhaled into an angry sigh. Tristan was a liar. And she didn’t have time for this. She was getting wet in the rain.
Karena went to pull on the door handle of her car to let herself in, but she stopped. She looked at Tristan, his car parked in front of the next-door neighbor’s house, then to her car, and where he stood concealed from view from the porch, which was where she had come from. Nothing added up. Why would he park so far away and why hadn’t she heard him when leaving the porch? He was up to something.
“What’s wrong?” Tristan asked. He tried to lean into her line of sight.
She eyed him through the slits that her eyelids had become. She pressed a palm to the metal of her car. Frost raced over the side and the roof of her car, and spread over the windows and hood. Runes gleamed under the frost. She shuddered inside due to anger. Her suspicions had been correct. He had created runes on her car, and not just any runes, invisible ones. Dust, dense smoke, or in her case, a thin layer of ice could be used to reveal the presence of such runes. It was an old trick. All that was needed was something semi-transparent to cast over the suspected area. The runes were too complex for her to decipher. Their primeval designs hardly looked sinister on her modern, metal beast of transportation, but she knew otherwise.
“What are these runes? What did you do?” Karena seethed.
Snow spun around her in a vortex. Ice popped and cracked under her feet as it grew in layers. Even though his face sagged and stressed with fear, Tristan’s eyes never faltered from their expressionless, blue void. It disturbed her to see how empty he was of shame.
Through chattering teeth, he said, “I don’t know.”
“You do too!” Karena shouted. “You’re trying to follow me. Are these tracking runes?”
He didn’t answer her.
Though she couldn’t create spells like Tristan could, she knew how to cancel them out. Anyone was capable of doing basic spell cancellations, even nonmagical folks. It was a gift from the time of the gods.
With her finger, she drew a line through them and said, “Cancellare.”
There were five of them drawn across her car. They all snuffed out.
When she was done, she whirled on Tristan. “Don’t ever come here again,” she said.
“Hadrian already told me that. I realize that I’m not welcome here,” he said. His hands were turning a pale purple color, but he wasn’t retreating.
“Then why offer to take Hadrian, Rose, and I out to dinner?”
“I figured that it wouldn’t hurt to extend an offer.”
“After you marked up my car with runes? You’re unbelievable, Tristan. What is wrong with you? Why are you acting like this?”
“I don’t think that you should be around someone like Hadrian. I disapprove of it.”
“Good for you. Do you think that I care? Is there anything else that you disapprove of?”
“Yes.”
“Like what?”
Tristan shrugged. “You’ll see in a short amount of time how much I care about you, and how the people you surround yourself with are toxic. You’re so beautiful, and yet you let others tell you how to live your life,” he said with a sad face.
“Where are all these ideas coming from?”
“My love for you.”
“Get out of my face. I don’t want to ever see you again!” she shouted, and threw him back with a blast of ice.
&n
bsp; He landed hard on the sidewalk several yards away. Several of his bones cracked upon the impact. No doubt, the fall had broken some. Snow pelted her surroundings and ice continued to layer everything. Tristan slid and stumbled backwards to his car while clutching his arm. He threw himself into his car, started it up, and made a hard U-turn to get away from her wrath. His tires screeched as they strained for traction. She stood there watching him leave, breathing hard. Her emotions rushed as fast as her blood.
Doors opened up and down the street and people exclaimed at what they saw. The evidence on the street spoke for itself. Several inches of ice stretched to their front steps. It radiated out like a corona from her. Karena heard creaking on the porch, and turned to see Hadrian step out. He had heard the commotion too. Her attempt to sneak away unnoticed had been ruined.
Like a switch, she shut off her fury. The snow and ice stopped, but what had been done couldn’t be undone. It would take time for everything to thaw. And now her neighbors would inquire at some point about what had caused her to become so upset.
Feeling self-conscious and angry still, Karena walked back through the front yard to Hadrian.
“What happened?” Hadrian asked, and opened his arms to her.
She embraced him and took comfort in his arms. Before he became hypothermic, she withdrew. She told him about what had happened. Her emotions continued to leak from her, causing a prickly, icy mist to envelope the porch. When she was done, Hadrian cursed.
“I told him that he wasn’t welcome in my house. He should have gotten the hint that it meant outside of it too,” Hadrian said. His face contorted into a snarl.
“I can’t deal with this anymore. I can’t go to work with him there. This is getting out of hand. What will happen next, Hadrian? I don’t know what those runes were, but he’s been obsessed with me and my whereabouts. You’ve even heard for yourself how demented he is.”
“Don’t go to work. Don’t talk to him or let yourself be seen by him. If you’re out of sight, then hopefully you’ll be out of mind too. If he comes around again, then I want you to stay with Rose’s parents in the Earth district. If he shows up there, we’ll go to the police and they’ll take care of it. There are witnesses to this. They will be able to determine how severe this is.”
Gaze of Fire: Sequel to Veins of Ice Page 5
