Air: Elementalist Book 1

by Rebecca Wolf

  “It is a pleasure to see you again, sir,” the maître de said as he sat us at a little table by the bay windows. Aiden ordered pinot grigio, I ordered iced tea, and we snacked on breadsticks and dip while they waited for our meal to arrive.

  “What does your mom do for a living?” I asked.

   “Oh, she’s a proud business owner,” he responded. “It’s her dream that I will take it over eventually, but I’m kind of dragging my feet.”

  Just then our meal arrived, and we both dug into heaping plates of Panzanella and Fettuccine Alfredo. I caught him looking at me periodically throughout the meal. And he gave me a mischievously seductive smile every time. “Would you like to dance?” he asked when we finished eating the main course.

  “I thought you’d never ask,” I said, and went to join him on the dance floor. I was expecting him to do some sort of impromptu leg shuffle. It didn’t take long for me to realize how wrong I was. Aiden knew how to do actual dances, and he was definitely not a novice. In fact, he was good enough to make me look like I knew what I was doing, even though I didn’t have a clue.

  He laughed when I asked him about it. “Oh, my mother made me take lessons when I was twelve,” he explained. “She told me no woman can resist a man who can dance.”

  “I guess she was right,” I said, laughing, as a little old lady asked to cut in, in Italian. I went back to our table and watched them interact with each other. I was close enough to hear him flirt outrageously in Italian, making the old woman laugh and shake her finger at him.

  He was perfect. Maybe too perfect, I mean, he volunteered his time at a soup kitchen, he was attractive, and he kept coming up with these hidden talents like dancing and speaking Italian. A little voice inside me said, “What else could he be hiding?” I told that voice to shut up, I was much more interested in the deep feeling bubbling up inside, filling me all the way up like helium in a balloon. Like any second, it would lift me up off the floor. It felt remarkably like what I imagined love might feel like.

  He came back to our table grinning from ear to ear. “Miss me?” he asked as he kissed me lightly on the forehead.

  “You’re lucky you snatched me up first Zephyr, Mrs. Romano promised to ditch her husband and run away with me to the Cayman Islands. If I wasn’t so enamored with you already, I would have been very tempted to say yes.”

  I shook my head at him and smiled, “You never told me you speak FLUENT Italian,” I said. “Why didn’t you order from the menu in Italian?”

   “I didn’t want you to feel like I was showing off,” he said somewhat sheepishly.

   “Are you even real?” I asked, poking him with a finger.

  He took my finger and slid it in his mouth, sucking gently before growling, “Let’s find out. Shall we order dessert?” The way he said it made me think illicit thoughts of the two of us; sweaty, naked thoughts.

  “Uhhh,” was all I was able to get out. He gave me the most insane bedroom eyes and ordered Tiramisu to go.

  “The things I’m going to do to you.” he growled low, as we walked out of the restaurant. His hand gripped me firmly around the waist as he steered me towards the car. He drove like a madman as I slid my hand along his thigh, his hands gripping the steering wheel with white knuckles. I cupped him just to see his reaction, and he groaned with need. “We’ll go to my place, it’s closer,” he ground out. We were there in minutes, I barely had a chance to make it out before he maneuvered me inside, pushing me up against the wall.

  “This doesn’t seem like a farm,” I thought briefly, before he kissed at the apex of my shoulder, then behind my ear. Cupping me in his large hands, his thumbs brushed over my nipples. My thoughts flew out the window after that. “I need you,” he said breathlessly. Skimming one of his hands up my thigh, he pushed into my panties. He slid a finger over me rubbing in circles. I ground against his hand, arching back against the wall as I whimpered. “I’m going to make you cum so hard,” he growled into my ear, “you’re going to forget your own name by the time I’m done.” His expression was so intense he looked vicious. He slid a finger inside, pumping it slowly in and out while stimulating me with his palm until I was ready to scream from frustration and pleasure. He slid a second finger in and growled in appreciation, “your so wet for me,” he said, “so fucking wet.”

  I reached for his zipper, unable to wait longer and tried to undo his pants. He growled in frustration into my ear. “Let me just get us a condom sweetheart, patience.”

  “You don’t need a condom,” I said breathlessly, “I can only get pregnant with my own kind, remember?”

  There was a long pause after I said that, but I didn’t really mind since his fingers continued doing delicious things to me. I guess he had forgotten about that part. “Babe,” Aiden whispered hoarsely in my ear, “I AM your own kind.”

  My whole body suddenly went still. It felt like I had been plunged into a vat of ice water.

  “You’re what?” I said, my voice sounding strange to my own ears. I withdrew his hand from inside my panties and stumbled away from him without making eye contact, “don’t touch me.”

  “Babe, please-" he said, his hand outstretched to reclaim me.

  “I SAID, DON’T. TOUCH. ME.” I screamed. The window panes exploded out, and the wind howled and raged, tossing furniture about and slamming Aiden against the far wall. He groaned in pain.” You knew how I felt about elementals, you tricked and manipulated me!”

  “No, sweetheart. No-" he said shaking his head, eyes pleading with me to listen.

  “Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God.” I said brokenly, stricken. Before he could respond, I turned and flew out of the window, the glass shards cutting into me as I left. I didn’t really have a destination in mind, I just knew I needed to get out of there. The windstorm swirling wildly in my wake. I couldn’t go home, I was too out of control. I might accidentally destroy my neighborhood if I didn’t calm down first. I flew up as high as I could, too shocked by everything to actually cry.

  Nothing made sense, and yet, as I thought back, everything kind of did. It took a half an hour for the wind to calm down, and another half an hour before I felt safe enough to head back. I left a message for Penny saying I was sick and would need her to cover for me at the bar. I got into my pajamas, curled up in the fetal position, and screamed into my pillow in despair.

  Chapter 11

  I wanted to have a pity party. I wanted to bum around in my pjs, eating ice cream, and watching sappy romcoms. Unfortunately, the day before I had agreed to do another smuggler run for Jerry. Jerry represented some very wealthy clientele, and while in the face of Aiden’s betrayal I wanted to shun all elemental business I needed the cash. Anyway, it was more satisfying to charge them double. I also needed to pick up a new batch of meds and bandages for Sara Lee’s wound. The last time I had checked on her, she had smelled like sweet rot, and despite her best efforts, the bandages had been dirty.

  I left for the elementalist sector at two-thirty in the morning. Right after my shift ended I went to the bathroom and changed into a black hoody, and thick leggings. After taking the trash out the back door I took off.

  One of the most glorious things about being an air elemental is that I don't really need to breathe because I AM air. I could fly as high as I needed to without being spotted by those around me. It was one of the things that made me such a good smuggler. My ability to go places that people normally couldn’t go, and my speed getting places without the assistance of a vehicle. I smuggled small things that I could easily fit into a back pack.

  Some people thought smuggling was immoral. I personally thought it was immoral that the people in my neighborhood didn’t have access to basic amenities, like medication, or hygiene products, without paying exorbitant prices. The people who were doing the judging were mostly the elementalist elite, and frankly they had a double standard of their own. While they frowned upon my business, they often used me to transfer funds that they didn’t want electronically trace, or t
o do business with people who were officially their enemies without seeming to do dealings with them. When they had feuds with other families, they themselves didn’t suffer, just the people who lived in their jurisdiction did.

  It was a quick, uneventful run. I had left at two-thirty from the bar and it was now four. As I flew back over the countryside, I had a knee jerk reaction to fly a bit lower and look for the field I had seen on fire a few months prior. The sun had just started rising when I passed over it. Looking down, I realized there was a man in the field again. He was lying on his back, looking directly up at me, almost as if he’d been lying in wait. I felt the air surrounding me heat up and dissipate as the fire from the elementalist below ate away at my reserves. Just great. A replay of that night, except now I had apparently lost the element of surprise. As I got closer, I was able to make out his facial features, and I realized with a pang of betrayal who it was.

  “Aiden.” I said as I landed, keeping my voice cold and remote, “I should have guessed the elementalist I met that night was you.”

  “I want a chance to explain. You owe me that much,” he demanded, his voice heated.

  “No Aiden, actually I owe you NOTHING.”

  “Zephyr, you love me, I love you, the only thing that is keeping us apart is your ridiculous prejudice against your own kind.”

  “I’m not prejudiced. My opinion of elementalists is based on fact.”

  “Yeah, facts of select members in our society. The only reason your opposed to being with me is based on my status as an elementalist.”

  “No, the reason I want nothing to do with you is because you manipulated and deceived me, THE EXACT behavior I have come to know and expect from your kind.” I glared at him, fury growing inside of me. “And the ONLY reason you even want to be with me is BECAUSE of my status as an elementalist, Mr. Hypocrite. Don’t you dare try to invalidate my opinion as superficial nonsense.”

  “Our kind, sweetheart,” he corrected, “and it was your negligence, NOT my deceitfulness, that caused your ignorance. If you had taken the time to investigate my background, my status as an elementalist would have easily been revealed. You never asked, and I never felt the need to be judged based on my pedigree.”

  I let out a frustrated guffaw. “You made a conscious decision to hide your element from me. I know how hard it is to suppress elemental usage in public. You never ONCE let your elemental affinity show. On what planet would I ever assume that a self-proclaimed farmer was a fire elementalist?”

  “I never claimed to be a farmer. You inferred that simply because I grow produce.”

  Oh my God. He was trying to get off on technicalities.

  “How do I know I even know you? I should take your word for it?? How much of what you presented to me was a lie based on what you thought I would find attractive? Would you have EVER volunteered in a soup kitchen if I hadn’t been there?”

  “Regardless of my intentions, I STILL volunteered my time and donated my resources! Give me a little credit.” He said, an angry spark filling his eyes.

  “NO, Aiden, intentions DO matter, and you INTENDED to deceive me. Relationships are based on trust and you have broken mine! How is this not clear to you??? I don’t want to see you! I want nothing to do with you! Don’t show up at the soup kitchen, don’t show up at the bar. Goodbye Aiden.” I pushed off into the sky praying he would let me go. He did, and I cried while flying the rest of the way home.

  Chapter 12

  I was very drunk. I wiped the bar counter vigorously, then, whipping the rag over my shoulder, began muttering angrily to myself as I organized the bottles on the back shelves. Penny entered the room with Jerry in tow, and after watching me for a bit, said, “Jerry is here to see you….you ok Zeph, babe?” Penny walked closer and tentatively put a hand on my shoulder.

  “DON’T CALL ME BABE” I yelled angrily at Penny, brushing her hand off my shoulder. “DO I LOOK LIKE AN INFANT TO YOU?? I turned to Jerry, eyes snapping in anger “YOU THINK YOU CAN TREAT ME LIKE A BABE?? You think you can fool me with your disarming demeanor and aww shucks expression? JUST TRY CONTROLLING ME, Jerry, I’LL SHOVE THIS BOTTLE SO FAR UP YOUR ASS YOU’LL BE PEEING ALCOHOL!” I exclaimed, brandishing a bottle of Jack Daniels in his direction.

  “Zeph, what the hell is going on? Are you drunk?!” Penny asked in confused alarm.

  “He knows what’s going on!” I seethed pointing at Jerry in condemnation, “he set me up and ratted me out to that fire elementalist.” Penny looked over at Jerry. “You did what?!” she said her voice turning suddenly deeper as she morphed into her other form. Jerry backed up a little and lifted his chin stubbornly. “Hey, it’s just business Penny, you KNOW how it goes.”

  “Penny, did I ever tell you I find you to be a very attractive male?” I interjected distractedly.

  “Anyway, he wouldn’t hurt her, he just wanted to preposition her,” Jerry continued as they both pretended I hadn’t said anything.

  “That sounds ALOT like prostitution Jerry.”

  “Prostitution?? Nonono, not like that, he wanted to get to know her, that’s all I meant.”

  “That’s what they all say,” Penny growled stalking angrily towards Jerry. “You know how many vulnerable women have been hurt by middlemen like you?? Get out of my bar Jerry, you’re no longer welcome here.” Jerry lifted up his left hand, waving it like a white flag of surrender. Looking closer, we now realized he held a manilla folder.

  “Zephyr, this folder is from Mr. X. It contains incriminating evidence against you and your little smuggling business. Mr. X understands that you don’t want to see him, so he has sent me by proxy to inform you that if you don’t come and negotiate an alliance in the next two weeks he will turn in all the evidence he has acquired to the enforcers. In addition, he would like you to keep in mind that smuggling carries a sentence of up to fifteen years in jail.”

  “SON OF A BITCH! YOU double crossed me twice!” I yelled enraged, “don’t think I don’t know who provided him with all that evidence, you slimy sniveling fungus!Oh, and you can stop calling him Mr. X, Jerry,” I continued. “Because of your deceitfulness, I am now on a first name basis with Aiden,” I sneered.

  “Aiden?” Said Jerry puzzled. “Mr. X’s name isn’t Aiden, it’s Jonathan.”

  “Johnathan?” I said, swallowing back the bubbling nausea as it tried to climb up my throat. I was suddenly feeling stone cold sober. “Jonathan Cole?”

  “Yes. Jonathan Cole. Who the hell is Aiden?!”

  Oh my God.

  I felt the blood leave my face and my hands began to tremble. Jonathan Cole. My half-brother was trying to blackmail me into a mating. My only solace was that he probably had no idea we were related.

  “Zephyr, how about you go sit down for a bit while I handle this,” Penny interjected, helping me to a seat before turning to Jerry and saying vehemently, “If I EVER see you again, you will WISH for death when I’m through with you.”

  Jerry turned and left, giving us the one fingered salute above his head as he went.

  “I always hated that guy,” said Penny.

  “What am I going to do Penny?” I asked plaintively,

  “... Hey Penny, have I ever told you I think when you’re male you’re very attractive?” I slurred again, “how come we never dated?”

  “Let’s revisit this conversation when you’re sober,” she said in amusement. Picking me up she continued, “let’s get you tucked in on the couch in my office, I’m gonna have to call Allen to fill in as bouncer again so I can be the bartender tonight.” Penny gently put me on the couch and tucked me in with an old musty blanket she kept on hand. “I’ll be up to check on you in a bit, use the bedside bucket if you have to puke.” I nodded with a drunken head roll, which was all I could manage before completely passing out.

  Chapter 13

  I woke up the next morning with a groan from the grave. I willed my eyes to open, and then instantly regretted it. The sun’s normally cheerful rays skewered my eyeballs in a decided
ly malevolent manner.

  Then I remembered the details of the night before.

  Shit.

  I needed to come up with a plan, and quick. I grimaced, just trying to think made my head feel like it was going to explode.

  “PENNY!” I croaked hoarsely.

  “Hello, Sunshine!” Penny chirped.

  “Ugh. Shut up! I hate you.”

  “I brought you coffee and some pain meds,” she said.

  “You’re a goddess, I love you.” I said as I took the cup and tried to sit up enough to drink it without spilling. Penny handed me the pain reliever, and I swallowed it. Twenty minutes later I finished the last dregs of my coffee, and started to hydrate in ernest with a bottle of water. Feeling better, I began to think coherently again, something that I immediatly regretted.

  “Penny, things are way worse than I ever thought possible,” I groaned miserably.

  “Yes, I meant to ask you about that.” Penny said, a strange tone in her voice. “Is there a reason that a surveillance car is parked across the street?” I moved aside the curtain and peered out. Sure enough, there was a black sedan parked right across from our place. A guy leaned against the side of the car, staring up at our house. He wasn’t even trying to be discreet. I closed the curtain and looked back at Penny. Well, here goes nothing.

  “Jonathan Cole is Thomas Cole’s son.” I explained, “remember? Rapist Thomas, the guy who fathered me? I thought hiding here would protect me from that family. If they knew Thomas fathered me they would think that I owed them allegiance. They would coerce me to use my abilities, and marry me off to someone for their own political gain. Which is RIDICULOUS. I mean, its not enough that he raped my mother, but then to allow them to use me, the result of that rape, to gain more power. NO FUCKING WAY. I’m not interested in becoming one of their political pawns. There is NO WAY I can tell Jonathan the truth... but if I don’t tell him he’s going to think I’m fair game to blackmail into a mating.” my voice rose louder the longer I talked until I was in full screeching mode. “Ouch,” I said as I cradled my head “too soon for angsty yelling.”