Genesis (Elemental Enmity Book III)
Christie Rich
Copyright 2012 Christie Rich
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
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Copyright 2012 by Christie Rich
All rights reserved.
DEDICATIONS
As always for my husband, Max: for endless hours of listening to me ramble about a book that doesn’t even interest you, and for being my greatest supporter. I love you with all my heart.
For my children who are the light of my life. I am so grateful to be your mother.
To my support base beta readers: Karla, David, Krystle, Nicole, Terri, Nancy, Boyce, and Lacey. Thanks for finding my holes, and for being the best ever.
To Amber McNemar for bringing my world to life. Your covers are spectacular.
Prologue
Ainessa, princess of the house of void, paced the confining space of the tiny room. Anger consumed her, lighting her veins with a fire more intense than any she had endured.
Rayla had gotten away. Not only that, the retched girl had been able to defy her compulsion. None had managed such a feat—even Heath had fallen under her spell for a time. How had a mere Elemental, even the supposed Nexus, managed to use her will?
She released a sigh. No matter. The girl’s power would be hers soon enough. All was in place, and, now, the only thing remaining to do was wait.
The soft sound of the door creaking open invaded her thoughts, but she did not turn around. She had almost used up her patience where Nigel Lambert was concerned. The insufferable man wouldn’t let her out of his sight for more than a few minutes at a time. She’d searched for a place that would shield her from his prattling; unfortunately, she hadn’t searched hard enough. The man wouldn’t shut up, no matter how many times she told him to.
“Nessa?” he said, using the pet name she abhorred. “Are you all right, my dear? You seem pensive.”
She turned slowly, reminding herself she wouldn’t have to deal with Lambert for much longer. Putting that aside, she gave him what she hoped was a genuine smile. “You are so perceptive, Nigel. Nothing I do escapes your attention.”
He settled an arm around her shoulders as if she were a fragile mortal that needed his reassurance. If he only knew who he was dealing with, he would not take such liberties with her. He was a coward to the core, but his connections were necessary at the moment.
As always, he returned her smile. “I have good news. Keller broke this morning. We now have the locations of three rebel strongholds.”
Ainessa raised a delicate brow. “Have you seen the strongholds yourself, or have you merely fallen for another delay tactic?”
“I—” he stumbled momentarily, making her wonder what he was hiding. “I haven’t had time to personally investigate, but I have dispatched teams to the areas.”
Of course he hadn’t checked. He thought himself above such trivialities. She gave a sweet twist to her smile. “Where are they?”
“Mexico, Canada, and India.”
She frowned. All ideal locations, considering where Grace Keller had kept herself for so long.
She would send a team of her own. The rebels could be more useful to her than the Order. She had to get them on her side. Once accomplished, this world would officially be hers.
“Very well, Nigel. Alert me when you have a report.” She brushed his shoulder with delicate fingers. “What would I do without you?”
Chapter One
Never in my life had I anticipated a scenario like this. At a very young age I had imagined how my life would unfold: from what college I would attend, to how many children I would have, to where I would live when I was old enough to choose for myself. Although none of those things had solidified, somehow, standing in front of five fae lords waiting for one to step forward to bond with me hadn’t been in my realm of possibilities.
Each wore an inscrutable expression. Not one of them had moved an inch even though I had asked which one wanted to go first.
That’s right—I was getting ready to bond with five men. Sounds pretty smutty, but thankfully it wasn’t as bad as it sounds. There has to be physical contact for the bond to work, but not sexual. Thank heaven.
You might wonder why I would even consider such a thing, and I wouldn’t blame you one bit—sometimes all I could do was wonder. When I left home to go to college, I thought I had everything under control. I thought all I had to do to claim my dreams was work hard, and with a bit of luck, I would find myself a world famous painter. Little did I know that my life was about to become more complicated than I could ever imagine. Only a few hours outside my hometown the first lord found me. Since then I’ve been fighting to keep my freedom and to figure out who I actually love if any of them. My mind is so jumbled with feelings that shouldn’t be there. Normally you meet a guy, date, grow to like or eventually love them, or you decide they aren’t your Romeo. Not so with fae lords. They use compulsion to get what they want. I still didn’t understand compulsion all that much, but I knew enough to realize I would be stupid to trust my feelings where they were concerned.
Some of these men do care about me. Zach and Luke risked everything when they went to the island to see what the Order was up to. Unfortunately, Ainessa captured them and used their power to lure me to the island, as well. She’s bent on getting my power, and I’m bent on keeping her from having it.
Before he left, Zach sent me to Ignis, the fire realm, to wait until he and Luke came back. That’s where I met Heath.
When I first saw him, he was an underlord who liked to mess with my mind. He would test me every time he was near me, seeing if I could withstand his compulsion. I thought he was just playing around, having a bit of fun until he fought Finn for the right to claim me. Finn was the lord of fire until he decided his feelings for my best friend, Cassie, were more important than power.
Even though I hadn’t known what would happen to me, I was thankful Heath won that battle. And amazingly, somewhere along the way, I grew to care about him. I still can’t grasp why it happened. One minute I couldn’t stand to be around him and the next, I was on the island trying to bond with him. I told myself there was no other way to escape the Order and Ainessa, but sometimes I think I might have real feelings for him. It’s impossible for me to know, but there is one thing I can’t deny…he was the only one that came after me when all of them knew I was in trouble. Sure, Jett showed up with the fae army at the last minute, but Heath was the one that got me out of danger. It wasn’t his fault that I stepped right back into it.
The Order used me just as much as the fae ever hoped to. They experimented on me, took my eggs, and tried to inseminate me. When that didn’t work, they sent Roger Wayne in to seal the deal. I’d run to escape Roger and found Heath coming to rescue me. Turned out Roger wanted out of the Order, but he sure was one sick puppy. He even mar
ried me to get me out of the compound long enough for Heath to come get me.
I almost laughed out loud thinking of the absurdity of the situation. I could no longer pretend my life would go back to normal. Not that it had ever really been that way. Growing up, I had always felt different than the kids at school, and it wasn’t because I was the only one who had lost her mother.
Something inside me recognized that I didn’t belong with humans.
You see, I have power these men want. I am what’s called an Elemental. I can manipulate all five elements, which is pretty rare. Most Elementals only have power over one element.
Each of the lords standing in front of me wanted my power for his own reasons. I have glimpsed a fraction of their motivations, but some like Heath were as cryptic as a dead language. I shivered thinking about what I would be doing in mere moments. Like it or not, I was about to mentally tie myself with people I really knew nothing about. Tabitha had claimed this was for my protection, so Ainessa couldn’t hijack my mind to claim me herself.
This was just temporary, and I knew it. When we finally rescue my family, I will have to pick a lord to be my bondmate for a very long time.
Whatever happened to good old-fashioned dating?
Tabitha craned her neck in my direction, her pale grey eyes studying me. At certain angles, they looked completely white. Freaky effect, but I’d gotten used to it. She’s a kooky old bird with her strange eyes and cryptic communication skills. She’s the spiritual leader for the fae, sort of like a shaman or something. The worst part about her is she can read my mind. I tried not to let my thoughts wander any farther, even though I’d bet it’s harder than holding onto a bolt of lightning.
I glanced at Luke to distract myself. The glamour he’d used today misted over his real appearance. I didn’t let on I could see underneath it to his disfigured face. The deep gash near his right eye still puckered around the tight scab. Dark purple bruises freckled both of his cheeks, spraying out to parts of his forehead. One, maybe even the worst of the bunch, circled his neck as if someone lassoed him and hung him from a tree for days.
The jury was still out where his nose was concerned. It sat askew on his face, as if broken ten times too many. Weren’t fae supposed to heal fast? Whatever I did, I needed to keep my concern for him from migrating to my face. He was too proud a man to want my pity. The sadness lurking in his eyes made me want to pull him into my arms to sing lullabies until he found the peace of sleep, but I didn’t want to embarrass him in front of his peers. Ainessa maimed more than his body on that island. As I fought the tears that threatened to betray my thoughts, my throat thickened uncomfortably.
He looked away after offering me a small smile. A part of my heart squeezed in response. Did he think I was that shallow? That I wouldn’t care about him if he was disfigured for good? Such a thing would be laughable. Even in this state he was more beautiful than most men could ever hope for. I wanted to console him but had no desire to torment him further by making him talk about what had to have been unspeakable. He would tell me when he was ready, or never. It was up to him.
I sought a different place to rest my gaze and found Jett’s emotionless eyes watching me. “Come on,” I said, meeting his stare with a challenge of my own. “Are you guys afraid to be first or something?” With uncertainty clinging to my mind, I studied his hard expression. I thought he would be pouncing on me by now.
Tabitha stepped forward, giving me a tiny laugh. “That is not how this type of bonding works, Rayla.”
Would have been nice to know that before I spent over an hour worrying about exactly how I was going to bond with these men. Oh well, chalk another one up to fae keeping secrets from me.
My shoulders relaxed a bit without me having to think much about it. The only bonding I had seen or experienced involved kissing. There’s that physical contact I mentioned before. I found myself feeling almost disgusted at the thought of having to seal my lips with each one of these guys while the others watched. I now held a hope I wouldn’t have to sink that low after all. I looked into Tabitha’s nearly white eyes even though I knew she really couldn’t see me. “Mind giving me a better idea what to expect then?” I hadn’t meant for frustration to set my question on edge, but it was unmistakably there.
When Tabitha stepped closer, she placed a gentle hand on my arm. Her earthy scent lingered around me. It was lavender or lilac mixed with the deep scent of moistened leaves. “I need to test your connection to each lord, first.”
I yanked out of her grasp, backing away instinctively. The first time she tested my connection with Jett nearly knocked me out. It just got worse from there. Having no desire to do such a thing again, I gave her a firm shake of the head. “Uh-uh, I don’t think so.”
She sent me a shrug but inched nearer. “I have to make sure you will not gravitate too strongly to one of them.”
I clenched my jaw while still managing to retreat a step. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Her cheeks pinked up, but I doubted it was from embarrassment. More likely, she was getting frustrated with me. It was in the set of her hands. Her fingers were balled into fists. Her breath whooshed out before she spoke. “The purpose of using a lesser connection,” she said “is for you to have a chance to choose who you will ultimately bond with.” As if I didn’t already know that—she and Valen, the head of the fae council, had made sure I understood this was not a permanent solution. She smirked and it looked all wrong on her. “If you start the process now without testing for anomalies, you could be bound to whomever the elements choose for you.”
Oh.
Unpleasant as it sounded to be zapped by that horrible electricity, it would be worse, if, after all my fighting to keep my freedom, it was taken from me anyway. I stretched my arm toward her knowing full well once she clamped her fingers around my wrist, they would stay there until she was done with me—no matter how loudly I complained.
Her cool skin might as well have been a reflection of her unreadable expression. Without another word spoken, she lifted her chin toward the sky. Her eyes moved rapidly under the cover of shaded lids. My fingers curled, itching for a brush and some paint. This was the first time in a long time I’d thought about painting. I had been a bit distracted, but seeing her like this brought back inclinations that lay near the surface. She was a fascinating creature. I wouldn’t dare name her a mere woman. She was so much more than that. It was as if I could see the span of all time in her unnerving gaze.
After what was definitely an agonizing few minutes, she opened her eyes and faced Heath. He stepped forward without having to be asked then took her other hand. I tensed, expecting the worst pain of my life to wrack my body, yet nothing happened at all—not even a twinge.
When I opened my mouth to speak, Tabitha beat me to it. “Your connection is strong but not complete. This is still possible.”
That was it? Why wasn’t I writhing in agony right now? Every other time she had tested my connection with a lord had been excruciating. Heath nodded at her then stepped back in line with the others. He hadn’t bothered to glance at me even though I had stared at him hoping he would. I found myself lingering on his angular features. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t tell what he was feeling.
Was he as dejected as I was about this whole thing? Did he wonder, like I did, what would have happened if he had bonded with me in the jungle before we went to find the others? I had to stop myself from going further. I was projecting my feelings onto him, and I should know better.
He was probably relieved that Luke interrupted us. Now he wouldn’t be stuck with me. Hadn’t Zach said that Heath had never given himself fully to a bonding? One thing was certain: he could hurt me if I wasn’t careful. I didn’t want to be as into him as I felt, but despite my efforts to convince myself otherwise, he could make my pulse explode with just a glance. I took another glimpse, telling myself it would be my last until this was over.
He was studying me.
My stomach
fell to my toes. I flicked my eyes to Jett instead. His face was twisted into a deep scowl.
Good. He deserved to be upset. I couldn’t believe he wasn’t yelling his head off, letting everyone know how I had been promised to him. I thought for sure the next time he had me within Lombarda he would insist I fulfill my mother’s contract.
I smiled smartly, preparing to move onto someone else, but the change in his expression stopped me. His scowl softened to a look of pure determination. He gave me a final once over before he turned to Tabitha.
Uh-oh.
“Your imminence, do you think it wise to have Heath within the circle? You have said yourself Rayla has a strong connection to him.” He lifted his brows. “What if the ritual binds them further?”
Everyone except Heath frowned. Taylor stepped forward, “For once, I agree with Jafan. What would be the point in us participating if she will become his anyway?”
To my surprise, Zach and Luke remained quiet. What was up with those two? I tried to catch Zach’s attention, but he was staring quite blatantly at his scuffed shoes. Funny that he was the only lord here who hadn’t changed clothing, which immediately made me wonder why.
“I don’t mind staying out of the circle,” said Heath.
What? I whipped my head toward him. Really? He looked serious enough. Suppressed frustration burned my eyes. He flinched when he glanced at me. “I thought we needed all of you for this to work.” Leave it to him to try and ditch me now. This just proved it. He didn’t really care about me. The fun was officially over and so were we, it seemed.
“Haven’t you been listening?” asked Taylor.
I turned toward him, slowly, trying to bite back my not so nice retort while racking my brain for an acceptable one. Man, I would have preferred a stranger to him. He was just so arrogant. It dripped off him like rain from a gutter. I shoved my hands to my hips for emphasis. “Yeah, but you guys might as well be speaking Swahili right now. In case that didn’t translate—” I made sure to enunciate each word. “I. Don’t. Get. It.”
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