by Kat Adams
WRATH OF WIND
THE ACADEMY OF ELEMENTS 2
KAT ADAMS
CONTENTS
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Rage of Storms
More Adams Family
About the Author
PROLOGUE
CLAY WILLIAMS - AIR
I’d never admit defeat. Could she beat me with both hands tied behind her back? Yes. Would she take full advantage of her powers to take me down? Absolutely. Would I go down without a fight?
Hell to the no. But man, what a way to go.
Growing up an only child, only to have my parents decide it’d be a great idea to have a set of twins fifteen years later… I never had to share as a kid, so sharing something so fundamentally vital to our survival as an adult was a new concept for me.
As I walked the length of the sparring room in one of the warded gyms the Council set up around the island, I studied my opponent in arousing wonder. Her rounded hips. Her shapely legs. The way she chewed on her bottom lip whenever she contemplated one of life’s great mysteries. I preferred her gorgeous auburn hair down, but damn if having it piled in a mess on top of her pretty head didn’t look incredible on her.
Katy Reed was many things: A quint, having the ability to control five elements. The prophecy, having fulfilled her destiny of saving our world. And, currently, the object of my obsession, having kept me watching her, wanting her, for going on seven months. I had a thing for gingers with striking hazel eyes, pale skin, and the propensity to flip off the norm by accepting not one, not two, not even three, but four boyfriends into her life.
It made sense for her to bond with Rob first. The fire elemental ran hot, untamed, and threw a tantrum until he got what he wanted. Since I had the power to call the same element—although not my primary—I could relate to the tantrums until I got what I wanted.
At the moment, what I wanted stood right in front of me, gnawing on her full bottom lip as she waited for me to make a move. I’d wanted her since first laying eyes on her during her extraction from her Nelem world. We all wanted her, every last member of the quad squad. And, miraculously, she wanted us too.
Now it was my turn to step into the ring.
Speaking of the quad squad… I glanced around the room at my friends—brothers, really—each of us bonding over something so unique, so perfect for us, it transformed our college years at the Academy of Elements. Clearwater had changed us all, and for the better. Rob, Bryan, Leo, and I had grown close, stronger in our connection with one woman, one incredible woman, which had been put to the test over and over as we forged a bond to protect our girl from the darkness pursuing her. We were more than friends at this point in our lives.
We were family.
And sometimes, it takes entire families coming together to overcome all odds.
This time, even that might not be enough.
If I died protecting the ones I loved, it’d totally be worth it.
I’d still come back and haunt them.
That’s just the kind of friend I am.
1
I had four boyfriends. Four incredibly hot guys hot for me. Four elementals, each with a different primary element they controlled, that bonded us together. Four. Go me.
Clay Williams, with his brown hair buzzed short on the sides and wild on the top and assaulting green eyes, the Bieber flip that didn’t work for anyone but the namesake and my bearded air elemental, rarely took anything seriously. He was playful, flighty, just like his primary element, and went out of his way to break the rules. His relaxed lips were always on the verge of a grin, his gaze always dancing in brilliant mischief, as he found new and improved ways to pull pranks on the group.
He paced back and forth, working his fit shoulders and keeping me distracted as I stared at his golden torso glistening with sweat. His shorts hung low on his narrow hips, and since he lost his shirt, his tight abs were on display, which only distracted me more. As he blasted me with air inside the workout room, knocking me back with a wide grin on his chiseled face, I laughed and blasted him right back, sending him flying. He landed on his very fine ass and rolled across the mat, groaning as he came up.
“Ouch.” He pressed his fist to the small of his back. “The wrath of the prophecy is painful.”
“There’s no wrath,” I countered and blasted him again, sending him ass over teakettle. He grunted as he hit the mat and stayed there, staring at the ceiling. I stood above him and glanced down, offering my hand.
He took it and was slow to get to his feet, pressing his fist to his back again. “Tell that to my spleen.”
“That’s your kidney, Einstein. You’re the most ignorant genius I know.” Bryan Gunderson stepped in and pushed Clay aside with a wall of air. An earth elemental and the opposite of Clay in just about every way possible, from his broad shoulders and barrel chest, to his tightly groomed light brown hair that accented his mesmerizing hazel eyes and smooth face. The two rarely saw eye to eye and butted heads more often than not. He was taller than Clay by only a few inches, but seemed so much bigger thanks to his enormous…personality.
Bryan faced me and zeroed in his focus, his arms at his sides. The tight shirt didn’t do him justice, and it disappointed me that he kept his muscled midriff covered. “Be ready to draw,” he said it a terrible drawl. “On the count of three.”
I mirrored his stance and blew my hair off my face. Although I had my ginger waves piled on top of my head, a few strands always broke free just to annoy me. Like now. “One.”
“Two.” He narrowed his gaze and squared his shoulders. When he licked his lips, it pulled my attention. I stared at his delicious mouth, licking my lips in response. We lost ourselves in the heated moment. His expression fell as he closed the gap between us, his mouth seeking mine.
“Three.” Leo Jackson, my crystal-blue-eyed water elemental, hit us both with air, sending us tumbling before we connected. I rolled to my feet and hit him with his primary. I had the stronger call and stole his when he countered, drenching him and plastering his shirt and shorts to his fit frame. His wispy blond curls always in need of a comb bounced around his baby face as he shook his head, sending droplets flying. “Nice.”
“Thank you.” I bowed. My hair fell forward into my face, forcing me to blow it out of my eyes. Again. Stupid hair. I’d contemplated shaving my head Britney style, but my guys liked it long. And, honestly, so did I.
“Dude, what’d I say about calling water inside? The professor is going to lose her shit if she sees this.” Rob Emmett used fire to dry up the mess we’d made. As the leader of the quad squad, he took every opportunity to reprimand us. With his short dark hair and perpetual five-o’clock shadow dusting his square jaw, even darker eyes shadowed by a brooding brow, he definitely gave off the I’m-in-charge vibe despite the fact he rarely dressed the part. He’d ditched the tank top he normally wore, showing off his solid mass of muscles and well-carved, well, everything. My fire elemental ran hot, passionate, and kept me in a continual state of heated need. In fact, all my guys kept me there and made my skin hum in eager anticipation of their touch.
Focus, Reed.
I re-ce
ntered and hit Rob with a fireball, snorting when it singed his eyebrows. I did enjoy challenging authority. He gave me a look, daring me to do that again.
So I did.
He caught the fireball and hovered it over his palm, a wicked glimmer darkening his gaze. When he hurled the ball at me, Clay jumped into the line of fire—literally—and intercepted it. Rob called again, conjuring up two more, and sent them flying. Clay caught those as well and juggled the three balls. I kept trying to take one, but he sent the balls dancing high above my head. It sucked that I was so much shorter than any of them.
Well, fine. I lured the fireballs with my own fire call. They obeyed and came to me, dancing eagerly. I snuffed them out and blew on my knuckles. “I win.”
“That’s cheating.” Clay pouted, though not convincingly. Frankly, I was surprised he’d made an appearance at this week’s sparring session. He tended to disappear when we had work to do, like train. But when he did show up, he was all in and kept me laughing as he stole my heart every time he captured me in that emerald gaze.
“I thought we all agreed to use air during our sparring.” Bryan grabbed a towel off the rack and wiped his face before draping it over his magnificent shoulders. Of course, he’d point out a rule we broke. As one of only a handful of Gundersons that hadn’t gone dark, he followed every rule to the letter so as not to be marked. He carried that philosophy over to his element. The nature lover of the group—naturally, considering his primary—he was the first to lecture us on keeping the universe in balance. He definitely kept me balanced, grounded, when I lost my way. Bryan was my rock. “It’s the one element we all share.”
“You know I don’t like being around fire,” Leo added, keeping his distance. Ever since nearly dying last year when the darkest of dark elementals set him on fire, he went out of his way to avoid the element. Getting hit by a rogue fireball would not be good for a water elemental.
I walked over and kissed his cheek. “Sorry.”
“That’s okay, babe.” He held me in his endless blue gaze, calming me. He had that effect on everyone.
“Element up, you big baby.”
Everyone, that was, but Rob.
His insult earned him a glare. As opposites, Leo and Rob butted heads as much as Clay and Bryan. It was understandable. Fire and water went together about as well as earth and air. Rob ran hot—in every sense of the word—and had a short fuse. He loved to egg on the others in the hopes they’d challenge him right back. I always took the bait. Our battles started innocent enough, but when we really got going, we usually ended up losing all control and wrapped in each other’s arms, which was why I always challenged him. He, in turn, always let me win.
Multiple wins, if you catch my drift.
Leo shook his head and turned away, taking the path of least resistance, just like his element. “I thought we were working on air today.”
Did I mention he always stated the obvious and seemed genuinely surprised when we laughed?
Rob’s phone buzzed. He checked the screen and groaned. “Fun’s over, boys. We got an extraction in Portland.” He pulled me into his arms and kissed me, poking me with his whiskers and curling my toes. He was slippery with sweat, and I drew in a deep breath, loving his heady scent. “Sorry, Reed. Duty calls.”
“You’d think we’d at least get the summer off.” Clay wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his arm before doing the head flip to send his hair off his face. “We did save the world.”
“We didn’t,” Bryan fired back and dabbed at the sweat that’d collected on his strong brow. “Katy did when she fulfilled the prophecy. The elemental world as we knew it definitely ceased to exist.”
“I say good riddance.” Clay grabbed waters and tossed one to each of us.
News of the death of Alec von Leer sent dark elementals into hiding. Instead of the guys and me being labeled heroes for stopping the batshit crazy dark elemental from taking over our world, the Council swept how it happened under the rug. The fact we’d all nearly died because of that asshole didn’t matter. The fact no one could call their elements for weeks after the battle didn’t matter either. He’d gotten through the academy’s protective wards. Something like that got out, and parents would yank their kids from the academy so fast, the school would implode. That was all that mattered.
So instead of telling the truth about how he’d died, the Council had everyone convinced Alec and I battled it out in some secret location, and I fulfilled the prophecy by beating him. And by beating him, that meant killing him.
Apparently, killing a man to save the world didn’t make me a murderer. Another go me.
The fact they never found his body was another pesky little detail the Council swept under the rug. Still, I no longer felt him watching me, no longer felt his cold darkness closing in, consuming all my warmth. He’d died that night. I had to believe that.
“Who wants their class schedules?” Professor Layden walked into the gym holding up several envelopes. She’d convinced the Council to open warded training facilities all over the island, giving elementals a safe place to train outside the academy, each one run by a professor from Clearwater. A tiny yet powerful quad, Professor Layden ran this gym like she ran her classes—with quiet, yet fierce and a little frightening authority. I could use one of the other gyms, but I liked this one the best. I also liked the professor, so it was a win/win. Besides, I worked here in exchange for renting the room upstairs since they’d closed campus for the summer.
“Gimme, gimme, gimme.” I ran over and grabbed them. The guys all took theirs and ripped at the envelopes. I did the same and froze, my heart sinking as I read the same two-hour class I had last year. Swinging a confused look at the professor, my mouth fell open. “I’m in 3C again?”
Rob threw on his tank top. “Three years, Reed. It took me three years to get through her class.”
I kept my attention on the petite brunette who held me back. “Why am I still in 3C? Was me beating Alec von Leer last year not enough proof that I have total control over my calls?”
She took a breath, but Clay’s comment cut her off. “Montana, you’re not on my list of charges.”
“What?” I looked at him, then the others. They all shook their heads, and my heart sank lower. “I’m not on any of your lists?” They shook their heads again. I spun to face Professor Layden. “Every student in 3C is required to have a handler. Since you’re holding me back—”
“I’m not holding you back,” she corrected softly. “I need your help.”
“My…huh?” That shut me up.
“There are several new fire elementals this year, and since fire is my weakest element, I could use your help with them. In fact, I could use your help with the earth elementals, as well.” When I didn’t immediately jump at the request, she went on. “Your internship this year is to be my TA.”
“I never signed up for that.” Every student at Clearwater Academy had to sign up for an internship each year and usually got one of their top choices. I wanted to be on an extraction team with the guys and put that as my top choice. They were assigned to extractions again this year. But, apparently, I didn’t make the cut. Awesome. I also didn’t get an internship with Syd Franklin, the academy’s healer. Or the opportunity to work with Mr. Sandstrom on the grounds. Instead of getting any of the internships I requested, I got to hang out with a professor.
Go fucking me.
“I requested you. I’ll also be taking over as your faculty advisor while Professor Fowler trains new light elementals.” Her slight lisp really came through with that statement. “There are a fair number of them this year, more than he can train and also be your faculty advisor, so I offered to take over.”
“I didn’t know you were a faculty advisor.”
“I’m not.” She smoothed her hand over her hair, tucking in the strands that’d come loose from the tight bun she always wore. “Until now. We’ll be making a few changes to your training schedule.”
“Such
as?”
“Not training with the quad squad, for starters. I had to pry you apart more than once last year.”
Rob and I exchanged glances. Whoopsie.
“School is for learning, not making a scene worthy of an R rating in the middle of the training field.” Professor Layden then turned and walked out of the room, leaving me staring at the doorway. Times like this, I debated switching gyms.
“That must be why you aren’t on any of our lists.” Leo took a long drink of water, draining half the bottle. “You aren’t still in the class. You’re helping teach the class.”
Clay took my schedule and read through it, grinning wide. “Hey look, Montana. We’re in the same primary this year. Sweet.”
“Makes sense,” Rob said. “We spent last year focused on your fire call. Time to switch things up. Now, we really need to go. They’re waiting for us. See you later, Reed.” He kissed me before disappearing with an audible pop as he teleported out of the room.
“I’ll call you later, Katy.” Bryan kissed my cheek before popping out.
Clay casually strolled next to Leo as he pulled on his shirt. The water elemental hated to teleport and would rather call for an Uber. From the sound of it, they didn’t have time to wait for him to catch a ride. “We’ll let you know when we’re back.” As the strongest air caller, Clay always stayed close to Leo to make sure he teleported out correctly. Now he grabbed him by the arm. “Ready, buddy?”
Leo rounded his eyes and tried to break free from Clay’s grasp. “No, I’ll just call for—”
In a pop, they disappeared. I was only alone for a few ticks before Professor Layden walked back into the room. “Katy, do you have a few minutes? I’d like to have a little chat.”
Yikes. The last time she wanted to have a little chat, she gave me a genealogy lesson and lectured me on skipping her class. I debated teleporting out, but I wouldn’t be able to avoid her forever, especially now that she was my faculty advisor. Reluctantly, I nodded.
