“I accept,” she whispered. “I accept you as my Guardian.”
Raine felt a burning sensation on the inside of her right wrist. It felt as if a hot iron was drawing a circular path around the tender flesh, but she ignored the sensation, unable to pull her gaze away from Kaden.
Slowly, he dipped his head and placed a tender kiss on her forehead, then her nose, and finally her lips. He wrapped his arms around her waist and crushed her to him. His touch turned urgent as he deepened his kiss. Raine matched his urgency as she snaked her hands around his neck and thrust them into his silky black waves. She closed her eyes and felt weightlessness as Kaden lifted her up and placed her on the bathroom counter in front of him. He didn’t break his kiss or his hold on her, but Raine didn’t mind.
When Kaden finally pulled away, they were both breathing hard. Her thoughts centered on Kaden and the magical moment passing between them.
“Your eyes are so beautiful,” he said. She shook her head in embarrassment, but he motioned to the mirror and said,“Look.”
Raine slowly turned to the mirror and it startled her. Her eyes burned a brilliant shade of blue, so bright they appeared to be glowing. Raine noticed for the first time the subtle hue of blue cast about the room and realized it was from her eyes.
“They’ve done this one time before. Did you know that?”
Raine shook her head and looked back at Kaden with questions in her glowing eyes.
“It happened when we ran into each other the day of your birthday in the pool, then again at the stream earlier today.”
Raine was astonished at his admission, but couldn’t find the words to express her feelings. Instead, she turned back to the mirror and leaned in close enough to see the pupil of her eye was the shape of a raindrop.
Subconciously, she started to rub the tender flesh at her wrist when Kaden grabbed her hand, making her turn back to face him.
He took her right hand in his, turned it palm up, and kissed the burning flesh on the inside of her wrist. Raine’s heart skipped a beat when his lips touched her tender skin, and when he pulled back, Raine saw two different images burned on her skin. The first was an intricate set of swirls beginning just below the inside of her hand. It was comprised of large sweeping loops on either side of her wrist that formed a figure eight before curving into smaller loops to form a heart-shaped raindrop in the center. Below the heart-shaped raindrop was what looked like a calligraphy letter ‘K’ with a small backwards seven to the left. It was beautiful and it burned with the same blue intensity as her eyes.
“What is this?” Raine asked as she gingerly fingered the markings on her wrist.
“It is the marking of the chosen. This,” Kaden pointed to the teardrop, “is a symbol that shows you are under my protection. I have one to match.”
Kaden held up his right hand and showed her a spot between his first finger and thumb. He’d been marked with a small raindrop encased by a circle that crossed at the bottom into two sharp points. It burned just as brightly as hers.. Raine fingered it timidly.
“The other marking is your element. Water.”
“Why do you have one, and why am I glowing?”
“Your eyes shine with the power that courses through your body. These markings . . . these are given only to Elementals and their Guardians.”
“How do you know all of this?”
“I’ve only heard stories, stories from my grandmother, stories from her diary. She received one from my grandfather when he pledged his life to her. It connected them in a way that helped him protect her. So he said.”
“Kaden, I can feel your thoughts in my head. As you were talking, I could feel your words.”
“That is one part of the bonding. My grandfather told me it helped save her life. Only chosen Guardian’s recieve this special gift when they bond with their Elemental.”
“So. . . ” Raine pushed him away and slipped from the countertop to stand in front of him. She felt a stab of regret wash over her as she inched closer to the door. The sting of betrayal hit her hard. She couldn’t tell if the regret she felt was her own, or his. The blue hue in the room died and Raine knew her eyes dimmed, the moment they shared was over. Looking at her wrist, she found the angry red marks burnt into her flesh that now tethered her to Kaden. “You knew this all along. Did you . . .” Raine stopped the question mid-sentence, but the words filtered through her mind. Did you know this would happen? You planned this, to use me?
Kaden placed an arm on the door to keep her from opening it as he stepped in front of her. With his free hand, he gently placed two fingers under her chin and coaxed her head up.
“I didn’t do this to get in your head. Yes, I knew it would happen, but that is not why I did it. I told you, everything changed yesterday and I won’t hold back anymore.”
Raine nodded, but she said nothing. She was positive he could feel her uncertainty and she tried to hide her thoughts, but knew she failed.
Kaden sighed and let his hand drop.
“I still have much to prove to you, but . . .”
The sound of smoke detectors form the kitchen cut him off as the smell of burnt food wafted through the crack at the bottom of the door. With a sigh, Kaden opened the door and they both heard Eryk laughing over the Galic curses from Camille.
Raine hurried down the hall into the smoke filled kitchen while Kaden opened the front door to let the fresh air in. Blackened discs lay in the kitchen sink under running water and Camille stood at the stove pulling yet another burnt offering off the griddle.
“Eryk, so help me. If you don’t stop laughing I’ll beat you with one of these.”
“You could throw it and hope it slices my head clean off,” Eryk managed to say through his laughter.
Camille grabbed a hard, water-logged disc from the sink and chucked it in Eryks direction. Without missing a beat, he caught it mid-air and tossed it back into the sink. His laughter bounced off the walls.
Raine tried to swallow the giggle, but it errupted with a loud snort and she doubled over at the sight. Camille, who moments before had been ready to spill blood, tried not to smirk as she pouted at the sink. Her attempts failed as her laughter joined in the chorus.
Dinner was uneventful after the smoke cleared and the ruined tortillas tossed. Raine made a fresh batch of tortillas and they took their dinner outside. Everyone was deep in thought as they sat quietly on the porch. Raine tossed Tech scraps from her plate as thoughts of Kaden and their shared kiss filled her mind. She could feel Kaden probing her mind and knew he was thinking of the same thing. She tried to keep her blush under control, but his smile confirmed she was a red as the glowing sun descending in the sky. She was thankful for the breeze blowing in from the ocean to cool the heat in her cheeks.
Camille took her hand and laid it palm up in her lap as her fingers traced the pink flesh on the inside of her wrist. It had not taken long for Camille or Eryk to find the markings she now shared with Kaden, but both refrained from making any comments until after dinner was finished. However, it didn’t stop Camille from shooting daggers at Kaden with her eyes.
Raine’s marking appeared to be healing at a rapid pace, leaving the angry red lines dull and pink, reminding her of a branding scar. There wasn’t any ink to outline or define the images like a tattoo. Rather, her flesh was raised and tender to the touch, slightly red around the edges as if it had been burnt into her skin. Kaden’s marking looked much worse: swollen, red, angry, and blistered.
“This looks painful,” Camille said as she traced the image with her fingertip. “I wonder what would happen if we tried this.”
Camille took an ice cube from her empty water glass and placed in on Raine’s wrist, covering it with her hand. Instantly the soothing comfort pulled the sting away as the ice cube melted.
“How’s that?” Camille asked after a few moments. She removed her hand and gasped.
“So much better,” Raine replied as she pulled her wrist to her chest and rubbed the skin with her
other hand. Where pink skin once was, white scar-like flesh appeared, making the marking barely visible.
“It’s healed,” Camille exclaimed. She grabbed Raine’s wrist again, turning it over in her hand, a look of shock on her face. “Did you know you could do this?”
Raine nodded her consent at the same time Eryk began to explain. “Water has healing powers.”
“I know, it’s healed me once before,” she explained. “Earlier today, when we took our hike to the spring to get the water, I had scratches on my hands and arms. When I dipped my hand in the water, it healed me.”
“You didn’t will it to heal you?” Camille’s voice hitched a notch higher as she spoke.
“No, it just happened.”
“You’re very powerful,” Eryk said with a reverent tone.
“Can you heal other people? Maybe try to heal Kaden’s hand?” Camille said as she stood and took Kaden’s hand in hers. The angry looking teardrop was small, but the skin was very red and blistered.
Kaden cleared his throat, pulled his hand away from Camille, and stood.
“We met Donovan today,” he said suddenly. Camille and Eryk changed their focus, their eyes wide as they stared at Kaden.
“What?” Eryk asked.
“Donovan. I’m not sure if it’s the same Donovan because I couldn’t feel anything, but I don’t want to take any chances. We need to get away from this area, fast. Raine will have to learn how to command her element another way. It isn’t safe here.”
“Did he know who Raine was?” Camille asked as she took hold of Raine’s free hand in a subconscious movement Raine knew was a way to assure herself that everyone was safe.
“I don’t know.”
“Would someone like to enlighten me?” Raine asked as she searched the faces of everyone on the porch. Kaden had never taken his eyes off her during the whole conversation.
“A war is coming,” Eryk said, as if that should be explanation enough. Raine cocked an eyebrow at him.
“Sweetie, you know there are more Elementals in the world than just you. Some are not very nice and they would rather hurt others than they would help them. One named Donovan is an Earth Elemental and he is a dirt-bag.”
“What does that have to do with me?”
Eryk’s deep voice boomed through the pink evening light. “My guess is he’s been sent to kill you.”
CHAPTER 19
RAINE
Raine lay in bed staring at the ceiling. Sleep eluded her as thoughts about what Eryk said made her brain hurt. She knew that Kaden came to find her, but she never realized he was there to kill her. The thought that there were Elementals in the world fighting to destroy all humans, that she was the Chosen One and people were out to kill her, sent shivers up her spine. She needed to learn how to control her element, how to fight to keep safe. The question in her mind was how.
Raine threw back the covers, swung her legs to the side of the bed, and shoved her feet into an oversized pair of slippers she pilfered from the closet.
With sloppy steps, she made her way to the door, cracking it a tad to see if anyone was awake. Darkness greeted, confirming no one seemed to be awake at this hour.
She pushed the door open and stepped as quietly into the hallway as she could manage.
With short strides, Raine made her way to the kitchen when she noticed the front door was open, allowing the evening air to drift through the screen door. Soft white light from the moon lit the darkened night and filtered through the house.
As Raine moved closer, she saw a very familiar form sitting on the porch swing with his furry friend at his feet. She paused at the door to watch them unnoticed, but Tech raised his head and cocked his ears at her.
“Come out and join me,” Kaden said from his spot on the swing. “I couldn’t sleep either.”
Raine pushed the screen open and shuffled her way onto the porch. The slippers she wore fell from her feet when she sat next to him on the swing. She pulled her knees up and tucked her feet under her, leaning slightly into Kaden on the swing.
Kaden placed an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to his side. It felt natural to lean close and rest her head on his shoulder.
“How did you know I couldn’t sleep?” Raine asked.
“I’ve had your thoughts in my head all night.”
“How can you do that? I can feel tiny hints of you in my head, but I can’t read your thoughts like you can, apparently, read mine. How can you do that so easily?” Raine lifted her face when Kaden turned his head to look into her eyes.
“I guess I’ve accepted it so it comes more naturally for me.”
“When we first met, you already knew who I was.”
Kaden exhaled and looked out over the yard again. He was silent for so long, Raine wasn’t sure he’d respond. He kicked his feet on the ground and sent the porch swing into motion.
“I did. You know I was sent to hunt you down.”
Raine started at his words and pushed away from him. She did know that, but to hear him voice it aloud sent a chill up her spine. Kaden refused to look at her and she waited for him to say more.
“I . . . work for someone who tracks down Elementals. I don’t know, exactly, what they do with them, but at the time, I really didn’t care. Truth is . . .” Kaden faced Raine and took her hand in his. His hand shook and his voice was unsteady. “I’ve always blamed Elementals for my father’s death.”
“Why?”
“You know my father died the night you were born, protecting you.” Kaden’s eyes held a sadness Raine recognized. “I don’t know what happened to him. My mother always told me the Elementals were responsible, she practically beat it into me. Now, I’m not so sure.”
“Kaden, I’m so sorry. If I could change what happened to your family, I would.”
“It was a long time ago.” Kaden dropped her hand, turned forward, and placed his feet on the ground. “And this is in no way your fault.” The swing came to a sudden stop before he stood and walked to the railing. He leaned forward to rest his elbows on the rail before he dropped his head into his hands.
“I always believed that you didn’t exist. My mother told me countless times that my charge had died many years ago and I was no longer responsible for any Elementals. I realize now that she was misinformed because,” Kaden straightened and turned to Raine, “here you are.”
Raine stood and walked to the railing beside Kaden. She looked out over the grass in the front yard as it extended to the surrounding trees.
“If you’ve always believed Elementals killed your father, why the sudden change now?”
“I can feel the difference with you. I feel the truth in my heart.” He hit his chest with his fist.
“And what does the truth in your heart tell you?” she whispered into the cool evening air.
“It tells me that I would rather die than let anything happen to you.” Kaden took hold of Raine’s arm and turned her to face him. “I’ve never felt this way about anyone or anything in my life before and it scares me.”
“It’s just the guardianship you feel for me, nothing more.”
Kaden placed one hand on the side of her face and without thought, Raine turned into his hand and nuzzled his palm.
“No, it isn’t. I felt it the moment we met. I was so drawn to you that I hated myself for it. I saw you every day at school and it was torture. I was surrounded by all those girls fighting for my attention and all I really wanted was to be close to you.”
Kaden lowered his face to rest his forehead on hers. He looked into her eyes and she noticed the blue hue surrounding his face. She felt the sting in her eyes and wrist and knew they were responsible for the sudden illumination. Kaden ran his thumb over her bottom lip and she saw the marking on his own hand burned bright as well, the same blue intensity that matched her marking and eyes.
“I have something for you,” Kaden said as he stepped back, putting distance between them. Kaden reached into his pocket and revealed a small trinket
in the palm of his hand. As he opened his fingers, the moonlight above was like a spotlight that illuminated stones on a familiar bracelet she had not seen since this whole event began.
“My bracelet,” Raine whispered and reached out to take it from him, dropping her hand to her side before she even touched it. “It’s different. Where did you find it?”
“I took it.” Kaden held it up in the moonlight and turned it over in his hands. Raine watched in shocked silence and waited for him to explain, but he remained silent.
“Why?” she finally asked.
“It was muting your powers. I knew it from the moment I met you. That’s when I knew you were the one I was looking for. I thought you wore it to hide yourself from others who might sense who you are, so I took it.”
“You’ve had it all this time?” Raine extended her hand for him to give it to her. Kaden continued to stare at the bracelet, deep in thought and seemingly unaware of her. He ignored her question and continued explaining, as if he was talking himself into something.
“You don’t understand how hard this has been, how confusing it is for me.”
“For you?” Raine’s voice hitched a notch at his statement but he still didn’t acknowledge her. She shook her head and returned to the porch swing while he finished talking.
“All my life I’ve been taught two different things. My grandparents were amazing, always telling me one day I’d be one of the fiercest Guardian’s alive, even though I always believed you were dead. And my mom, well, you know what she taught me.
“Then I met you and my life changed.” Kaden took a seat next to Raine on the porch swing and kicked his foot against the floor again to set the swing in motion.
“I took your bracelet because you were my job. I was going to destroy this thing.” Kaden flipped the bracelet over in his hand. The stones glowed in the light of the moon that filtered through the trees, illuminating them. “But I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t destroy it once I had it. I tried, but each time I remembered the look in your eyes when you realized it was missing.”
Raine (Elemental Series Book 2) Page 14
