Steven was already up and working at the screen on the window that opened to the front yard when we emerged from the closet. Steven went through first to help both of us out on the other side since we were both much shorter than him. We had to time it just right so that no passing cars or nosey neighbors saw us climbing out. As each second ticked by, a knot in my stomach became tighter and heavier, terrified that she’d walk back in and catch us. Once all three of us were out and the window was back in place, we made a mad dash across the street for my car, slamming the doors shut behind us.
“Ugh!” Jodi yelled. “That was too freaking close!” she said, pounding a fist into the passenger door.
“But it’s done,” I said, turning the key in the ignition. “Matt’s not that thing’s puppet anymore and we didn’t get caught.”
“What do you think it is now that you saw all that, Terra?” Steven asked from the backseat. I felt a spark of power at the sound of my elemental name since our magic was still so close to the surface.
“Honestly, I think it was a water nymph; that’s my best guess.” I pulled away from the curb to put some distance between us and our almost captor.
“What makes you think it’s a water nymph?” Jodi asked.
“Because of how beautiful and alluring she was and because she didn’t hold the same form under water. Nymphs are shape shifters and they usually use their powers of seduction to lure people into traps,” I explained as we got closer to my house. “Although there are different theories on why they lure people to them, but it’s hard to know which stories are true since you’re not really supposed to be able to get free of them.”
“Don’t they drain their mates of their life-force?” Jodi asked.
“Yeah, but the stories never said they did it all at once,” I said.
“So how are we stopping them?” Steven asked as he climbed out of the car last and shut the door behind him when we got to my house. We all stood on the sidewalk in front of my house, not wanting to go inside until the conversation was over.
“I think we’ll have to kill them,” I said.
“Maybe we only have to get the one that’s been using Matt,” Steven said, sounding vaguely hopeful. “Not the whole school of them.”
“I hope so,” I said with a nod. “But we have to be prepared for the idea that we may have to kill all of them.”
They both agreed with me, and I couldn’t help but feel the anxiety build between the three of us, standing so casually on a suburban sidewalk, chatting easily about killing supernatural water elementals as if we were planning our night out like any normal teenagers. But we had never had a chance at being normal teenagers.
We finally went inside just as the early evening fog began rolling in off of the beaches and over the low mountains, bringing a chill to the otherwise warm air, making it feel all the more surprising. Jodi and Steven were eating at my house tonight like so many other nights, so when we hid in my room after the dishes were done and put away, my parents didn’t think anything of it.
We spent the rest of the night checking books and the internet, looking for anything that referenced water nymphs and their weaknesses. It was in Greek mythologies that we found the most details, but unfortunately, there wasn’t much in the way of learning how to destroy these things. What was even more frustrating was the fact that the Greeks likened these things to the descendants of gods and we weren’t so conceited as to believe we could take on demideities. So I said a silent prayer that the Greeks got that bit wrong before we realized how late it had gotten and I sent Jodi and Steven home.
I didn’t realize just how exhausted I was until I shut the door behind the retreating figures of my best friends, feeling like I had just cut off the physical link between us and, in effect, cutting off my source of energy. I all but slumped against the door before locking it against the night and pushing away from it to stumble into the kitchen. My parents had already gone to bed, so the house was in half light and quiet, too quiet for my taste, but it didn’t matter; I wasn’t planning on staying up. I poured myself some water from the dispenser in the freezer door before I headed back to my bedroom, practically dragging my feet as I went.
I set the glass on my bedside table before stripping out of my clothes that felt heavy and sodden with the day’s events and the emotions that seemed to cling to my body. I reached into my closet and found my robe, slipping it on and cinching the waist just as my phone vibrated against my desktop. I reached for it, flipping it open to read the text message from Steven, letting me know he’d dropped Jodi off and he was now safely inside his house.
Satisfied, I went to the bathroom and turned on the shower. I knew I’d never get to sleep feeling the way I did. Once the water was steaming and I had pulled my lavender and oatmeal soap out from its hiding place beneath the sink, I got into the shower, letting the water run down my neck, shoulders, and back, willing it to wash the day away. I reached for the bottle of soap and pulled the cork free, breathing in the heady scent and letting the perfume fill my lungs. This was a special bottle of homemade soap I had mixed, sitting in my back yard under the moonlight and star shine, pulverizing the oats and lavender in a mortar, whispering blessings and cleansing spells with each ingredient.
I carefully poured out some of the soap into my sponge, letting it foam thickly, and began to scrub ruthlessly at my skin. I scrubbed until my skin was nearly raw. Only then was I satisfied. I wound my hair in a towel and put my robe back on before going into my room, and whispered a protection spell as I traced a symbol on the wood of my door and repeated it on my window.
As I brushed out the tangles in my hair and pulled on an oversized t-shirt, I was painfully aware of just how drained I was and barely managed to muster the strength needed to crawl into bed and pull the covers up over me. I sank into my bed and realized I could feel the deep pulse of the Earth deep below my bed, the floor and the foundation of the house, pulling on me, begging me to answer its call. More than anything, I wanted to crawl out my window into the back yard and sink into the ground out there, letting my body melt into the ground and my hair tangle with the roots until my blood ran with water, sap, and dirt. But in my weakened state, I knew I couldn’t do it, not safely anyway. Right now I needed sleep more than anything, but I opened myself up just enough to answer the pull of the Earth and let the rhythmic thrum reverberate through my body until my breathing was in time with it and I was drifting to sleep.
***
I came to myself standing on the beach and, without looking around, I knew I was standing on the shore in front of the Rivermouth. Something primal in me could taste the difference between the fresh water behind me and the salty tang of the ocean in front of me, giving me my bearings instantly. It was dusk or dawn, which I wasn’t sure since I couldn’t seem to feel the sun, but by the weak light and cool temperatures, I knew there wouldn’t be anyone on the beach now.
Looking out to sea, I saw the head and shoulders of a figure drifting on the water. My heart leapt into my throat thinking it was that same damn creature until I realized with a shock whoever was out there was waving frantically for help. With a clarity that only a pair of binoculars should have given me, I knew it was Toby floating out there, swallowing water each time the build of a wave picked him up and dipped him low again. Without a thought, I was in the water, swimming as fast as my arms and the current would let me. Luckily the tide was on my side and the waves weren’t charging to the beach, keeping me from my quarry. But in spite of this, no matter how fast or far I swam, I never seemed to get closer to Toby.
Finally I stopped swimming, letting my feet kick lightly under me and keeping my arms out to my sides to tread water. I looked around and saw that I was a few hundred yards out to sea already. When I looked back out to the horizon, Toby was gone. But before I could give into any emotions, something grabbed my leg, piercing the calf muscle and wrenching me under the water, plummeting down until it was too dark to see.
I fought with myself not to st
ruggle and waste the one life-giving breath I was holding in my lungs until I stopped and was looking into the glassy black depths of the creature’s eyes. I almost forgot myself and gasped in fright.
Its mouth split open in a terrifying smile of razor teeth that glinted green in the water and reached out a black clawed hand for me. My scream was lost in a trail of bubbles that raced to the surface as I lifted my feet and kicked out at the creature, striking it hard in the chest and putting a little distance between us. I clawed my way through the water, desperate for the surface, feeling my lungs burning with the need to breathe, fighting the instinct to inhale and drown myself.
My fingers stung as they broke the surface of the water and I surged up like a cork bobbing to the surface. I was kicking and paddling so fast that when I burst into the air, gasping loud and desperately, I came up all the way to my hips. But as I took in that beautiful, painful breath, I felt the nails rake down my left calf, bony fingers circling my ankle and pulling. I was sinking back into the water, and I knew this time I wouldn’t get away; this time it was going to kill me, even if it meant not getting my soul in the process.
Every fiber of my being railed against that thought. A pain so great it stole my breath lanced through me and I felt the skin and muscles rip apart at my back. Blood rushed down my legs with the torrents of water. As the creature pulled again, I didn’t move, but when a gust of air came sweeping over the water, I was caught in it and pulled up, wrenching my ankle free of its grasp.
Shocked beyond all reason, I froze, not sure what was happening, and in that moment of uncertainty, I started to fall again. I squeezed my eyes closed and concentrated with all of my being until I felt a new and strange muscle in my back flex and release in response and I stopped falling immediately. Not wanting to lose the momentum, I hung on to that sensation and felt the muscles working desperately. I chanced a look, craning my head up and back to see the large, arching, black feathered wings soaring over me, glinting silver in the weak light.
A surprised laugh burst out of me as another current of air caught me, pushing me closer to shore. But uncertain how to do this and exhausted from the struggle under water, I eventually couldn’t keep my wings working and tumbled clumsily to the water, splashing in a tangle of limbs, rolling under the water, letting a section of waves wash me to shore.
I woke up coughing violently, salt water pouring from my mouth and soaking my bed. I sat up quickly, whipping wet strands of hair away from my face and pushing my covers off of me frantically. My feet were covered in sand, getting it all over my bed, my throat was raw with salt and sea and there was even a tendril of seaweed caught in my hair. I fell to my floor on my hands and knees, keenly aware of a great pain still pulsing on my back. I crawled my way to my closet mirrors and looked at myself.
My eyes were wide with shock, showing entirely too much white, and my hair was a mass of sodden tangles. I had no color in my face, but what scared me the most was the blood running down my arms in tiny rivers. I clawed at my soaked t-shirt and pulled it over my head and contorted my body so that I could get a look at my back in the mirror and, with little surprise, I saw the long angry gashes on either side of my spine slowly closing as if the skin and muscles where knitting themselves right before my eyes. As the last inch closed and all that was left was a dull ache and the deep red welts, the blood finally stopped. I gasped in relief and crumpled on the floor in the fetal position and allowed myself to cry, a luxury I never gave into.
I don’t know how long I laid there crying and I don’t know when I passed out from exhaustion and pain, but when I woke with the dimpled marks on my cheek from the carpet, I was grateful to see that it was still the middle of the night. I crawled across my floor, climbed back into my bed, and curled up into the pillows and covers, so exhausted I didn’t even care about the sand that bit into my bare skin.
I heard my cell vibrating on my night stand. When I looked at it, I saw I had missed a call and a text from Jensen. He’d had a bad feeling something was wrong with me and wanted to know what was going on. Unable to think about talking, I just sent him a quick text telling him I was fine before tossing my phone back on the night stand. I fell back asleep realizing I had suffered through all of that and still wasn’t one step closer to destroying that creature.
Chapter Nine
I woke up feeling stiff and sore like my whole body was one big cramp. It took much longer than it should have to extract myself from the sheets and sit up. Wincing, I lifted my face to the ceiling, starting a long, arching stretch down my back, forcing my muscles to lengthen. Only after the raw skin between my shoulder blades started to burn did I release the stretch and stand up. My legs were heavy and the first couple of steps were difficult, but I managed to make it to the bathroom where I got into the shower to rinse off the dried sand that was pressed into the skin all over my legs.
I let the hot water run over my shoulders and back again until my skin was red with the heat of it and then conditioned my hair so that I would have at least a hope of untangling it. Feeling a little looser, I made it back into my room and began stripping my bed. I balled up the sheets and blankets and crept down the still silent house to the laundry room and started up the washer, shaking out the sheets one at a time before adding them to the machine.
When I came back into the kitchen, I was surprised to see that dawn was barely coloring the sky outside and both of my parents were still asleep; not even the automatic coffee pot had woken up yet. My eyes felt rough as I looked around the quiet house. I realized they felt dry like I was dehydrated and grabbed a glass of water before walking back to my room. I combed out my hair, letting the damp locks hang down my back and soak my shirt, not really caring as I drank half of the water in one breath. I stood in the middle of my room, letting the water course through my body, waiting to see if it made a difference. Nothing seemed to be changing, even after I lifted the glass to my lips again and finished it off.
Faintly, I was aware of the thrum of the Earth below me and I worried about just how faint that felt to me; in the silence of the house with all of the electronics off, I should have felt it as easily as I felt my lungs filling with air, but I couldn’t. I could barely feel the natural magic that swirled inside of me, so much a part of what kept me going as any organ inside me. It was then that I knew I was completely drained.
I grabbed a note pad off of my desk and scribbled a note to my parents telling them that I left to go to breakfast with Jodi and Steven before pulling on a pair of cotton sweats and tank top and hooded sweatshirt – once the sun was up it would be warm, but there was fog up and down the streets at this hour and the last thing I needed was to catch a cold. I slipped my feet into a pair of flip-flops and grabbed my bag, slinging it over my shoulder, and walked out of my room. I left the note in front of the coffee pot where I was sure one of them would see it immediately and, with keys in hand, I walked out of the house and got into my car.
I drove downtown without any real direction and found myself turning up a slanting street leading to the government building. Snaking past and around the building, I continued driving higher and higher up “The Hill” until I left the last affluent house behind and was surrounded by long grass and sporadic trees. Finally, the road leveled out as I pulled into the popular parking lot for day hikers and midnight make-out sessions. I parked facing the sweeping view of the city with the mountains behind me and the glow of the rising sun pushing against the fog that rolled over the city and out to sea. I wasn’t high enough to break through the fog, but it was better that way; I would be less conspicuous to anyone driving on the roads.
I walked to the steps that led down a few feet to the metal and concrete cross that was lit up at night, illuminating the hillside, and could be seen from the freeway far below. I passed it and the picnic tables until I found the narrow dirt path that led the way the Spanish monks used to take down the hillside. Watching for both squirrels and snakes, I stepped off of the path into the shadow of the trees t
hat grew out of the side of the hill, angling for the densest amount of trees to hide myself amongst.
I stopped and looked back up the hill, satisfied that I couldn’t see any picnic tables or even the edge of the parking lot. I set my purse down in the grass and kicked off my shoes, letting the grass cool my feet. I wriggled my toes in it until I could feel the blades and dirt reach in between my toes, and I took in a deep breath of the morning air. I slipped off the hooded sweatshirt, the crisp air biting at my shoulders, but it felt good, cleansing almost. Sitting down, I stretched my legs out in front of me and laid back, lifting my hair up and flinging it out behind my head.
With one more breath, I exhaled and felt my body sink into the Earth, becoming part of it; my limbs seemed to stretch for miles and I could feel the awesome power of the mountain around me. My hair sought out and tangled with the root systems of the trees, and I felt the water of the Earth run cold and wild through my veins.
I could taste the iron of the dirt on my tongue as I breathed in the power of the Earth, letting it recharge me, fill me with stores of magic, feeling more alive than I had all week almost immediately. The surge of power was faster than any wave I’ve raced down and deeper than any ocean I’ve swam. It could have been so overwhelming, having me lost and drowning in it, but instead the Earth welcomed me, cradled me, and healed the ache in my body. It knitted together torn muscles, soothed the welts that ran down my back, and drank in my tears of pain and fear from last night, letting them nourish the dirt that was healing me now. I whispered my thanks without opening my mouth and sank again, knowing without looking that the rest of my body was submerged in the Earth, wrapped in a cocoon of dirt and roots.
When I opened my eyes again, I was lying on top of the ground, only the tips of my fingers still hidden in the Earth and my hair still tangled with the grass. The sun was hanging full in the sky now and the fog was dissipating fast. I knew it had been hours when I realized the sun was well past the crest of the mountains, and I pulled my fingers free of the dirt and carefully pulled my hair out of the grass as I sat up. Every nerve in my body felt electrified and alive with energy. I was smiling for no reason when I finally stood up and looked down over the city spread out before me.
Elemental Series Omnibus Edition Books 1-4 Page 67
