Dangerous (Element Preservers Series, Book 1)

by Alycia Linwood

  “Why don’t people with the magic disease stick together then?”

  “Because no one is willing to put an advert in the papers asking for a partner with the magic disease,” he said. “Try telling someone you have the magic disease and watch how people will start to treat you. Some would find you interesting, but they would still be watching carefully for any sign of danger. But, then again, you must already know that because you decided not to tell your boyfriend.”

  “You’re right,” I said. I didn’t have to ask people what they thought about the magic disease carriers, because I knew all too well what I had thought… or maybe I was still thinking it.

  “Hey, you didn’t answer my second question,” I said suspiciously. “How did you manage not to kill someone all this time?”

  I was gripping the beer bottle so tightly in my hands that I thought it would burst. What if he had been lying to me? No, I refused to feel intimidated by Adrian again. Not now. And yeah, I must have thought that countless times by now.

  “The disease showed first,” he said, “when I was fourteen. My element, or whatever it is, came when I was sixteen.”

  “Ok, it isn’t that many years, but,” I said, and he lifted his finger in front of his mouth. I stopped talking and stared at him.

  “Give me a chance to tell you,” he said. I just nodded to let him know I wanted him to continue, and he did exactly that.

  “At fourteen, I could only do what you can now and that’s just feel the elements when they are especially strong or when they are close,” he said. “But I didn’t try to kill anyone, so you’re just more advanced.”

  I knew he was teasing me with the last part because the corners of his lips were going up a bit.

  “I was seventeen when the disease got stronger and since then I’ve been learning how to keep it down,” he said. “It wasn’t easy at first, and that was why Alan took me someplace for some time until he was sure I could control it. I learned a lot of things about the elements, the disease and everything else there.”

  “Wait, so Alan could help me learn all that stuff like you did?” I asked hopefully.

  “No, you wouldn’t want to go there, trust me,” he said, his face deadly serious. “It’s the worst thing that can happen to you actually. I think you and I can keep you in control just fine. I can tell you things I know, and if you avoid dangerous situations, everything will be fine.”

  “If you say so,” I said and let the doubt show in my voice. I wanted him to know that I didn’t trust him.

  “Think whatever you want,” he said. “I’m telling you the truth.”

  “Alright,” I said.

  “Any more questions?” He looked at me expectantly. Actually, I was full of questions, just didn’t want or couldn’t discuss them with him at the moment.

  “Why did you make a fuss in Alan’s office when I was there?” I asked. He was surprised for a second, not expecting that kind of a question.

  “I wanted Alan to know I have good intentions with Paula,” he said. “Maybe make him believe I loved her.”

  “Why?” I said. “You don’t love her.”

  “True,” he said. “But I want him to believe it. It’s a guy thing.”

  No, it wasn’t. And it didn’t make any sense. Oh well, all magic disease carriers were a bit crazy… ehm, wait a second. That would mean I was crazy too. Stupid logic.

  “Why are you frowning?” He came really close to me, studying my face.

  “Just don’t tell me I’m less pretty when I’m frowning because I heard it from, like, twenty drunk guys at parties,” I said.

  “Nonsense,” he said. “You’re always pretty.”

  “Oh, please.” I snorted. “You just want to get into my pants.”

  “Yeah, I do.” He smiled. “And what’s wrong with that?”

  I got up from the bed, walking a bit closer to the window. Adrian followed me like a shadow at my back. I placed the empty beer bottle on the desk on my right and took a deep, shaky breath. I knew he was going to touch me. And of course he did. He placed his hand on my shoulder, letting it slowly slide down my arm.

  His touch sent shivers of delight down my spine, and that was making me angry. He wasn’t supposed to cause that kind of a reaction in me because that was reserved only for the person I loved, not for some random good-looking, manipulative bastard. I turned around suddenly, stunning him for a moment, and punched him in the face.

  “Don’t you ever touch me like that again,” I said as he stared at me in surprise, his hand touching his lip and coming away with blood. The expression on his face turned into an angry sneer.

  “You bitch,” he said.

  “I’m not a fucking toy! You can’t play with me like you do with Paula and other girls,” I said. “So if that makes me a bitch, fine. I’ll be a bitch then.”

  I pushed past him and went for the door. Maybe I needed him to get through this, but I wasn’t going to let him play with me. Not him and not anyone.

  Chapter 15

  I was feeling just fine in the morning, so I decided to call Michael. He agreed to meet me in the park even though he sounded surprised. I didn’t have anything romantic planned, but an early walk in the park seemed like a perfect thing to do with the man I loved.

  I couldn’t help but smile when I saw him coming towards me. His wavy brown hair was shining in the sun, and he looked devastating in faded blue jeans and a yellow T-shirt. Whatever I had to do to keep this man… I’d do, I was sure of it.

  “Hey, my love.” Michael smiled and gave me one of the hottest and sweetest kisses ever. There was a glint of amusement in his eyes.

  “Why are you looking so… happy?” I asked, trying to ignore the image of a running water I had somewhere in the back of my mind.

  “Can’t I just be happy to see you?” He laughed.

  “Yeah, but that’s not it,” I said.

  “You’re right,” he said. “I just saw Adrian Liandre. He has a nice bruise on his jaw. Finally someone got the better of him. Too bad I couldn’t see it.”

  I froze. Uh oh. That wasn’t good. If only Michael knew it was me who’d done that… maybe he’d be proud of me. Yeah, right.

  “Really?” I said because I didn’t know what else to say.

  “Yeah, and now he’s in trouble.” He smiled. “Looks like we won’t be seeing him at the party tonight.”

  “What party?” I frowned.

  “Where do you live, my love?” Michael laughed. “The ads for it are all over the university!”

  Yeah, they probably were. But I hadn't had time to notice them while I kept getting images of different elements in my head!

  “Are we going?” I asked, smiling up at him and putting my arms around his neck.

  “Sure we are,” he said. “I’ll come for you at nine.”

  “Great!” I said. “Where are we going exactly?”

  “To that awesome club in the town,” he said. “They’re finally opening it, and it’s students only.”

  That club really was a big thing. We had all been so excited when we had heard about it being built. I wasn’t sure of the name exactly, but I thought it was Scarlet Kiss. It was supposed to be a five floor club with many dance floors, rooms, a restaurant and all kinds of music. It surely sounded like a lot of fun.

  “They are finally opening it? That’s amazing!” I said, realizing that I’d need to plan my outfit carefully for such an event. “I need to talk to Paula. We need to pick outfits!”

  “Are you sure Paula is going?” Michael said, and I looked at him in surprise.

  “Why wouldn’t she?” I said. “She’s been waiting for this as much as everyone.”

  “Well, I’m not sure she’ll go without Adrian.”

  “Without Adrian?” I was confused.

  “Yeah, I told you he was in trouble,” he said. “They won’t let him go.”

  “What? Why?”

  “I told you about the bruise. He got in a fight again, and Alan decided that un
less that person came alive to his office and signed a report, he couldn’t go anywhere,” he said.

  “What?” I nearly yelled. This could not be happening.

  “He has the magic disease, Ria,” Michael said. “And he really needs to stop getting into fights, especially those without witnesses. Alan’s finally had enough of him, and I’m glad. We don’t want him to kill anyone.”

  “But that’s insane! So someone hits him in the face where no one can see it or doesn’t want to admit it and he’s accused of a murder?”

  “He’s dangerous,” he said. “And don’t worry about him. No one would dare to go against him alone, and he wouldn’t let anyone do anything to him. You’re underestimating him. Maybe he did kill someone.”

  Ah, fuck.

  “Maybe he just fell,” I said. “Surely they can’t blame him for that.”

  “Well, that’s probably what he claims. But then he’ll still miss the party and who knows how many others until the police checks all other options,” he said. “But why aren’t you happy? I was sure you’d enjoy the news. You hate him, honey, and you told me you wanted him dead or locked up. This is the best you can get.”

  “Umm, it’s because of Paula,” I lied. “I really want her to go and be happy.”

  “Aww, you’re such a great friend,” Michael said and kissed me. I looked away, thinking what I could do that didn’t include me going to Alan’s office. I couldn’t come up with anything. Great.

  “I’m going to find Paula,” I said, a fake smile on my face.

  “Ok,” Michael said. “See you later.”

  I nodded and headed for the university building.

  Adrian was right. I couldn’t tell anyone that I had symptoms of the disease. They would treat me like a criminal. And part of me could actually understand it, because I was dangerous. But I didn’t want to live my life like that.

  I went straight to Alan’s office before I changed my mind. Maybe I should leave Adrian to deal with this on his own. Maybe being away from others would help him become a better person… yeah, and if that happened, I’d have to go look for flying pigs. He’d probably just be pissed off at everyone and everything.

  And I needed him, especially now that I was supposed to go to a party with lots of people around me. Besides, he was in all this mess because of me… ok, he had provoked me. It was his fault, but still… I sighed; all of this was making me tired.

  As soon as I entered the office, I saw Adrian, who was leaning on the wall as far away from Alan as he could get. And that wasn’t far considering how small the damn office was. I often wondered how Alan didn’t get claustrophobia from being there all the time. Adrian’s eyes flashed with fury as he saw me, but he just stood there with his arms crossed. The dark bruise on his jaw in combination with his attitude made him look pretty scary.

  “You have nothing to do here,” he said, glaring at me.

  “Adrian!” Alan said disapprovingly, and then smiled at me. “Ria, what can I do for you?”

  “I need to talk to you,” I said, “in private.”

  “Adrian, wait outside,” Alan said.

  “Aren’t you afraid I’m going to kill someone?” Adrian said sarcastically.

  “Will you go out or do I have to call the guards?” Alan said, the expression on his face perfectly calm. Adrian rolled his eyes and slowly started going for the door, his arm brushing against mine as he passed by. I let out a breath of relief and looked at Alan, who offered me a seat.

  “So, what can I do for you?” Alan smiled politely after I had gotten comfortable in the chair. I took a deep breath, let it out and smiled.

  “I was the one who punched Adrian in the face.”

  Alan’s smile faltered for a moment and then he looked at me carefully, almost like he was trying to see through me and find out if I was lying.

  “Are you sure of what you’re saying?” he finally said.

  “Yeah,” I said. “Totally.”

  “Do you know that you have to sign an official statement?” he said. “You could be convicted as his accomplice.”

  “Wait, you really think he killed someone?” I scoffed.

  “I had to tell you,” he said. “Will you sign it?”

  “Sure.”

  “Why did you punch him?” he asked as he gave me some kind of a document and a pen. I studied it for a moment and realized it really was a true statement. Unbelievable.

  “He tried to seduce me despite the fact that he’s dating my best friend,” I said calmly, signing the statement.

  “Oh,” Alan said. “Then I’m not surprised you did it, but the next time better ignore him. Don’t put your life in danger. I might be reconsidering my decision to let him have a girlfriend too. What do you think? Is Paula in danger?”

  “No, she’s not. She loves him,” I said. “And he wouldn’t hurt her.”

  “I hope you’re right.” He sighed. “But if you notice anything strange in his behavior, tell me immediately. I explained to Paula already how she has to act around him and gave her my number in case she needs anything.”

  “Great,” I said, even though I was considering punching him in the face too. “Can I go now?”

  “Yeah, sure.” He smiled. “Oh, and don’t punch anyone else in the face. It could get you suspended.”

  I just nodded, getting up from the chair. Yeah, I’d get suspended for punching a normal person, but not for punching a magic disease carrier. Awesome. Once I would have approved of that, now that I had the magic disease it didn’t seem funny anymore.

  Just as I came out of the office and closed the door, Adrian grabbed my shoulders and pushed me hard against the wall. I glared at him.

  “Get your hands off of me,” I said. “I don’t feel like signing another statement.”

  That made him hesitate and then he slowly moved away from me.

  “What have you done?” he asked, rage still shining in his eyes, which now seemed almost silver to me.

  “What I had to,” I said, trying to walk away, but he caught my arm. This time his hold on my arm was gentle.

  “You better take Paula to that party tonight,” I said. “I might need you there.”

  “You’re such a selfish bitch,” he said, letting go of me.

  “Yeah, I guess I am,” I smiled. “And that’s actually fortunate for you today. So, are you going to the party?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Good,” I said. “And I really hope you didn’t kill anyone in the meantime.”

  “Maybe I should have,” he said as I was leaving.

  “Yeah, you should have,” I said and left before things could get ugly.

  I found Paula in her room and, of course, she was sitting on the floor surrounded by books. She immediately cheered up when I told her the good news, but I left out the part that involved me in the whole thing. I suggested we skipped class and went shopping, and she almost threw a book at me, accusing me of being irresponsible.

  She also told me she already had a dress for the party, so I decided to leave her to her books and find someone willing to go shopping with me. I didn’t really have any good friends like Paula. There were those girls who talked to me during lunch or went to classes with me, but I didn’t feel like taking them with me. Then I got a crazy idea; I grabbed my mobile phone and dialed Michael’s number.

  It took me a while to persuade him to come with me and skip his favorite History class, but he couldn’t say no to me in the end. We ended up in one big mall, which had tons of different shops, and I had no idea what I wanted. Michael nearly lost his mind with me, but he followed me everywhere. He almost begged me to choose something after two hours of walking from one shop to another.

  I settled for a denim miniskirt, orange top and black high heels. Michael approved of my choice, and that was the only thing that mattered. I also realized I was starting to feel thirsty. Not really thirsty, but thirsty for Michael’s element, so I had to let go of his hand. I probably shouldn’t have spent so much time ar
ound so many people with elements. I could feel the element of almost any person near us, and yeah, it was starting to bother me.

  When I returned to my room, I realized my hands were shaking. Adrian touching me earlier today obviously wasn’t enough, or maybe I’d be in even worse condition now if he hadn’t touched me at all. Why did it have to be him? I took a shower, ate a bit of chocolate and went through some books, but nothing helped to get rid of that anxiety inside of me. I wanted someone’s element. It didn’t even matter whose.

  I decided to look for Adrian because it was the only thing I could do not to freak out and kill someone. Ok, maybe I wouldn’t kill anyone, or at least I liked to think that. Adrian was in his room when I came and he let me in without a word.

  “I need your help,” I said, almost breathlessly.

  “I know,” he said and came closer to me, but didn’t touch me. He just stared at me with his cold gray-blue eyes, his face serious. I licked my dry lips and looked at him.

  “I’m sorry for hitting you,” I said, even though I wasn’t.

  “You’re not,” he said. Oh well.

  “It would be easier if we could just cooperate,” I said. There was something in his face that told me he knew just how much I needed him right now.

  “Yeah, it would.” He took a step closer to me, so we ended up standing only inches apart. “Can I touch you now or you’re going to hit me when you don’t need me anymore?”

  Ouch. It did sound mean when you put it that way.

  “Please,” I whispered, closing my eyes. I felt him pull me into a hug, and I pressed my head against his hard chest. The world immediately started to feel like a better place. I couldn’t feel any of the elements anymore. Damn, that felt good. We stood there like that for a long while. I half-expected him to try something with me, but he didn’t.

  “Feeling better?” he asked.

  “Umm, yeah,” I said, moving away from him. “Let’s make a deal.”

  “A deal?” He raised an eyebrow at me. “What kind of a deal?”