“Levi, you don’t seem okay. You need to talk to me. I think you might have a concussion or something. Look at me Levi, please," she pleaded. "I need to know you’re okay!"
Something in her voice must have gotten through to him, because he slowly turned toward her. When he brought his eyes up to hers, her heart stuttered in her chest.
There was fire in his eyes, casting a soft orange glow over his face. This close, his eyes looked like a furnace door with flames moving behind the irises.
“Oh my God,” Brooke whispered, the blood rushing in her ears.
She scuttled away and stood up, backing towards her house. Her skin bloomed with an icy sweat and her vision swam.
His eyes were glowing, just like they had before. And this time there was no smoke inhalation or oxygen deprivation to blame.
The memory of him rescuing her from the fire returned full force, without the veil of self-doubt to cloud it.
“I didn’t imagine it,” she whispered, shaking her head and stumbling backwards as he stood slowly. She felt disconnected, her head lighter than air. “It wasn’t a hallucination, or gases, or anything. Was it, Levi.”
He just looked at her, but the answer was clear. It was staring her in the face.
She felt a rush of prickly heat shoot through her body ahead of a wave of nausea. Levi was something different, and she never thought that it could scare her so much to be right.
She saw him rush towards her, hand out, as her legs crumpled and her vision went black.
Chapter Six
Levi scooped Brooke into his arms before she could hit the pavement. He carried her gently, cursing with every step to his car. Yanking the door open with one hand, he laid her in the front seat. Gingerly he straightened her out when her head lolled to the side, clasping the seat belt around her.
Running back to her door, he locked it from the inside and pulled it shut. He hoped she still had the key in her pocket, because he didn’t know when she would be back.
He couldn’t protect her here.
A quick call to Ajax confirmed that the other Chaolt got away. He should have known by the lack of buzzing in his brain. He pinched the bridge of his nose. His options were even more limited now.
"And I'm fine by the way. Fuck you very much."
He might have smiled at Ajax’s comment if he hadn't had to follow that with the news about Brooke. “She’s an Erratic. I have to take her to the base so we can drain her.”
Surprisingly Ajax didn't take that opportunity to crack an insulting joke. He just let out a long low whistle.
"Yeah." He scrubbed a hand over his face. There wasn't much else to say. "See you at base," and he hung up the phone.
Starting the ignition, he slammed the car in gear and took off north. As the miles sped by, Levi couldn’t help but to glance at her pale face, periodically lit by the glow of streetlights. She was swallowing, eyelids twitching. It wouldn’t be long until she awoke. If he was lucky, he might have a minute to explain himself. If he was unlucky… The doors clicked as he locked them. Maybe he could buy himself some time. He’d have to talk fast.
He’d had a pretty good idea of how Brooke would react when he looked up at her, but her concern for him meant there was no time to suppress the glow in his eyes from the power coursing through him, trying to burst out.
And now he knew she was an Erratic, which meant secrecy didn't matter anymore.
In order for her to stay safe, she would need to know why she was in danger in the first place. And that was… heavy, for a human who didn't know about their world.
The Chaolt were after her, and the enormous losses of Erratics and humans in this war weighed heavily. He wouldn’t— couldn’t— let her be added to that list. The only way he could ensure her safety was take her to the compound, to see if they could drain her powers.
Things were complicated. She had to go with him, but he'd much prefer if it was her choice.
She stirred, and he met her gaze as her eyes opened, hazy and dark.
“Levi?” Brooke mumbled, her forehead wrinkling, “Are we driving?”
He took a deep breath. “Yeah, we are. You passed out, and I put you in the car.”
The exact second she remembered why showed on her face.
She pressed herself against the door and deep into the seat, putting as much room between them as she could. She grabbed the seat-belt with both hands, eyes wide and staring straight ahead.
“Are you kidnapping me?”
“Jesus, Brooke, no—”
“Then stop the car, Levi.”
He hated the fear in her voice. It stung him like the tip of a whip. It stung more that it was him that put it there.
“I need to get you to—”
“Now. Please.”
He downshifted and checked his mirrors, jaw tight. Decelerating slowly, he pulled off to the side of the darkened road. Before the car was even to a full stop, she was yanking the handle, not realizing right away that it was locked.
“Brooke… wait, please.”
She made a little sound of frustration and stopped pulling, but left her hands on the handle. “Unlock the door, dammit,” she demanded, anger putting the strength back in her voice that fear had leeched. Her back was rigid and straight, and she wouldn’t look at him.
“No, Brooke. Not—”
“So you are kidnapping me,” she raged, glancing his way only long enough for him to see her hot eyes.
“—until you give me a minute to explain.”
For a second it seemed like she wouldn’t, but then she slowly withdrew her hands from the door handle and laid them in her lap. She remained turned away from him, eyes on the dark beyond the window.
“I didn’t mean to scare you. I wouldn’t hurt you.” It was a full minute before she replied, the time measured by the heartbeats pounding in his ears.
“I know.”
“You know I couldn’t tell you the truth, right? About me?” he asked, looking at the back of her head.
She nodded slowly. “You’re… different.”
Levi smiled with a bitter twist to his lips, eyes back on the steering wheel as he wrung it with his hands. It sounded like an accusation to his ears.
“Yeah, I am. And if people knew, it would cause a whole lot of trouble for me.”
Her head turned slightly toward him, and the dash lights outlined her already pale profile with a hint of green.
“I understand why you… hid the truth, Levi. I really do. But I have a question.”
“Sure, ask,” he replied, releasing the breath he’d been holding in.
“What are you?”
The leather steering wheel creaked under his hands as he absorbed the blow of her question. It was a natural question, but dammit, how did he answer?
This didn’t seem to be a good time for a tell-all, about his race and his world, and the war, and… She had to believe him to agree with what was ahead.
With a sigh, he let his body do the talking.
Carefully he released control, allowing the fire to fill him until the interior of the car was slowly illuminated by a dim orange glow. Her accusatory stare turned into a surprised gasp.
“I am this,” he said, meeting her wide gaze. Both arms from shoulder to fingertips were encased in slow, gentle flames. He kept his hands on the wheel because he wanted her to feel safer, if possible.
The look on her face said feeling safe might be hard.
“I am fire, Brooke,” he murmured. “I can generate it, and I can control it.” Most of the time. But right now seemed like a bad time to reveal his occasional control issues.
She was still just staring at him, hand over her mouth. When she finally lowered it, she brought her deep blue eyes up to his, and he saw the question there before she asked it. “So you did start the fire?”
“No, I didn’t.” He swallowed, extinguishing the flames as carefully and slowly as he had summoned them. “I told you the truth about that. But there’s a good chance that
my presence made it worse than it would have been.” The truth tasted acrid on his tongue.
Then again, who knows? That’s one thing chaos was good for: making the outcome unpredictable. Still, he couldn’t ignore the possibility.
“Oh,” Brooke said, wrapping her arms around herself.
The silence that followed was palpable. All he could do was wait while she grappled with everything he was telling her.
“What made you save me, Levi? We’d just met. Why didn’t you save the other guy?”
He laughed without humor, checking the dark road in his side mirror to avoid her gaze. He crossed his wrists on top of the steering wheel, and sighed. This wouldn’t do much for her survivor’s guilt, but it was the truth. Some of it, anyway.
“I liked your smile,” he said simply, leaving off the part where the other guy was already dead, the explosion the sign of a Fire Erratic’s demise. She would realize that soon enough. His lips tilted up in one corner as he looked at her with mild amusement.
“… What?… ”
Brooke’s blushing confusion tugged a full smile from him.
“When we met. I liked your smile. Then the building you went into exploded, and I just… went looking for you,” he said, sobering. “I knew there was a chance that I’d make it worse, but I also knew there was a chance I could use my powers to get you out.”
He didn’t know what else to say, so he just stayed silent, waiting.
“I keep having these nightmares, about the fire. About the guy that died. How horrible it must have been.” Her voice cracked, and as she cleared her throat, a creeping sense of unease began to fill him. “I don’t know what to think about all this,” she said gesturing to his arms, “but I’m glad you saved me. I won’t tell anyone what you are. I doubt anyone would believe me anyway,” she said with a wry smile, pushing her hair away from her face with both hands. “I’m not even sure I believe it,” she said, looking into his eyes, and then back down at her hands. “So you don’t have to worry about anyone finding out. You can take me back.”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t,” Levi said softly, his gut churning with regret. “I can’t take you back home yet.”
This was the point where everything could unravel. What would he do if she refused?
She stiffened. “Why the hell not?” Her eyes narrowed into a suspicious glare. “I thought you said you weren’t kidnapping me,” she snapped.
Levi gave her a regretful smile. “I’m not, I promise, but there’s more you need to know, Brooke. I think after I tell you, you’ll agree to go with me.”
Her face fell. “More?”
He felt bad about the shake-up her world was about to go through. She was an Erratic, he was sure of it. The only thing he was sure of was her element wasn't Fire, or Air. Ajax would’ve mentioned it.
And considering their abysmal track record with Erratics so far, if he let her return to her rental house and her normal life without draining her powers, the Chaolt would kill her. Along with as many other humans as they could manage, too.
Just the thought of that took him to a place of darkness that he hadn’t felt many times before. “You’re in danger. I’m taking you somewhere safe.”
"More… danger?"
“That man outside your house? The one I was fighting?”
“Charlie,” she whispered, eyes going dull.
He nodded. “He got away. Ajax was unable to stop him.” He held her alarmed gaze without blinking.
"Why was he there? What was Charlie trying to do?"
The answer was longer, and more complicated than this but… "He's dangerous. He was going to kill you."
She slowly shook her head back and forth. "No… He was just my neighbor…"
"He was hunting you,” he stressed. She had to understand, so that she would agree to go with him.
“… Why?”
She looked so shaken, so shocked. So adrift. “Because you’re an Erratic, and he’s Chaolt. And I promise I’ll explain everything that I can, but my first priority is to make sure you’re safe.” He held his hand out to her, palm up. It was an offer, and a plea. “Do you trust me, Brooke?” His heart thumped painfully while she considered him, gnawing on her lip.
Slowly, she put her hand in his.
“I do trust you Levi. I don’t know what the hell is going on, but I do trust you.”
“Good,” he said, kissing the back of her hand in fervent relief, and then giving it a little squeeze before he let go. “Let me call my… boss, and let him know we’re coming. I promise I will take you back to your house after you hear everything we have to say,” he paused, doubting his ability to keep his vow, “If you really want.”
“Okay,” she murmured, obviously still a little hesitant.
He gave her no time to reconsider, pressing speed dial for the compound as he put the car in gear and steered the car onto the road with the other hand.
“Levi here. I need to speak with Walker. It’s urgent.” While he waited to be connected, he felt the first jangle of nerves that this might not go the way he planned. What if Walker said no?
His leader answered with a curt greeting.
“Walker, we have a situation. I’m on my way to the compound right now, and I'm bringing a… guest with me.”
“The fuck you ar—”
He cut through the angry words with some of his own. “This isn’t a social call.” He looked at Brooke, wide-eyed and apprehensive beside him. “She’s an Erratic, and she needs protection. ETA one hour.”
He hung up and floored it, speeding towards the point of no return.
All Brooke’s fears and worries and questions revolved through her mind like some insane Ferris wheel. Had she really decided to go with Levi to find out some mysterious truths? After all, what did she really know about him? Yes, he’d saved her life, apparently twice now, but he was also a… a what? A telekinetic? A mutant? She didn’t even know, but he could make fire from within himself.
He had been nice to her, friendly, even a little sweet. The memory of their almost-kiss flashed by. She was also insanely attracted to him. But she’d also seen him as a weapon. When he’d been fighting, his purpose had been as clear as that of a gun. Guns were great fun when doing target practice, but they really only had one true purpose.
To kill.
And she had agreed to go with him with no one the wiser, on his word that it was for her safety. She needed to know more, now. "So… You said I’m an Erratic. What's an Erratic? And what’s a Chaolt?”
His eyes flashed to hers as he drove, his jaw muscles working like he was chewing on words before he finally spoke. "An Erratic is a human with a certain gene. A gene that holds latent Elemental powers."
She scoffed, but his face was completely serious. "Elemental powers, really? You mean like Earth, Wind, Water? And Fire, like yours?"
"Kind of. As a human, you can't access those powers yourself. But they can be accessed by Chaolt, by the man that attacked you. Unfortunately, that usually results in disaster. I’m here to stop that from happening."
Something about the way he answered gave her pause, but she couldn't pinpoint it. As a human… ? "What kind of disasters?"
Levi's eyes were serious and intense as they met hers. “The kind that make the news. But they're usually blamed on weather patterns, or global warming, or freak acts of nature.”
“You're talking about natural disasters.”
“In the case of extremely powerful Erratics… yes.” He downshifted, the muscles in his forearms flexing, no hint of a smile on his face.
He was totally serious. It did seem like there were a lot more of those in recent years. Earthquakes, tsunamis, tornadoes. Every week it seemed like there was another catastrophe somewhere in the world. All these natural disasters in the last few years, and here he was telling her they were actually supernatural disasters.
“Thankfully,” he continued, “there are very few of those. The weaker ones only cause localized, small-scale damage.”
/>
"Like my apartment building?"
"Yes," he said, nodding slowly, "like your apartment building."
Brooke took a shaky breath. "The man who died in the fire… he was the Erratic?"
"Yeah. He was."
Her apartment fire had been caused by someone like her, someone with powers in their genes. Someone the Chaolt had been after, and found.
She remembered Charlie, pushing past her as she got on the elevator, the events at her rental house, and felt a little light-headed. “I think Charlie killed him. I remember seeing him in the lobby. Before the fire. He was in a hurry to leave.” She stared at him in dismay, and then blindly at her hands.
He gave her a brief but intense look. “Yes, he did. And you’re lucky he didn’t get to you, too.”
Brooke didn’t know what to say to that, so she just stayed silent, looking out the window to see if she could identify any landmarks for bearing. All she saw after several miles was road and woods. The scenery only changed when they entered a dense bank of fog. The fog was so heavy in fact, that the road disappeared right past the front bumper, the headlights shining blindly into the dizzying mist. The car slowed to a crawl, and being hemmed in on all sides by dark mist made her feel claustrophobic. There was no sense of direction, no up and down. The swirling moisture in the lights gave her the sensation of falling, almost like the car was slowly sliding over a cliff they couldn't see.
Her anxiety cranked up so much that she was about to tell Levi she changed her mind, when he gently put his warm hand over her cold one.
She stared at him a moment, then turned her hand over and hung on for dear life. She would just have to trust that this would all be okay, because there really was no other choice. Looking at the strength in his body and his face, contrasted with the way his eyes softened when he looked her way, made that a lot easier. She did trust him. Her gut said she was safe with him. Other than the whole fire control thing, he’d never given her a reason to believe otherwise.
Even though he probably could have used his hand for driving, he didn’t pull it away.
Burn (Elemental Hearts Book 1) Page 6
