Restless (Element Preservers, #4)

by Linwood, Alycia

  "Like I did." I still wasn't entirely sure I hadn't ended someone's life, but I preferred to believe those people had died from their wounds. "So how did April get her two elements?"

  "April was born with a water element. She got fire and air when a serial killer started randomly shooting people. She managed to survive because she hid under the bodies, but the elements of the people seeped into her."

  "So how is she?" I couldn't imagine how difficult it had to be to get adjusted not to one new element, but two at the same time.

  "We keep her isolated from people with elements."

  "She can't control herself at all and I'm the one who's the priority for the element?" My control may not be the best and Lily suspected it would only get worse, but I could still be around people with elements for a long time.

  "As I said, you're the president. If we lose you, our whole plan will crumble."

  "Yeah, because I'm so damn important that without me there wouldn't be carriers to start an uprising or infiltrate the government," I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

  Paula shot me an annoyed glare. "Carriers could definitely start an uprising, but that could end up in a slaughter and even more intolerance. That's what your brother wants. Infiltrating the government would take months or years, and who knows what would happen if people discovered that the president of the Element Preservers is a carrier."

  "Maybe someone else decides to donate their earth element too."

  "I pray for it every day." A smile returned to Paula's lips, but her eyes remained wary.

  "Do you have the results of the survey?" A couple of weeks ago Lily had decided to conduct a survey among young people to see what they thought about elements and the disease.

  "Yeah," Paula drawled. "They're not really encouraging. More than 75 percent responded that they didn't care about their element and that there was nothing interesting to learn about it."

  "Fuck." So far the only people who desperately wanted to choose their child's element were the rich who still thought having a pure element gave them prestige. And that was the problem since only pure elements could be collected and converted into energy or potable water. "We need to make elements popular again, but I'm not sure how."

  "Yeah, what we study at the university is nowhere near interesting, so even if you change the education system and we start teaching kids about elements in high school, we still won't give them a reason good enough to push them to use elements." Paula's phone rang from her purse, and she quickly silenced it. "There's something I need to do."

  "Alright." I got up at the same time as she did. "I'll think about something, and you do whatever you have to."

  "If someone had told me we'd be so busy, I wouldn't have believed him. Even I almost wish I had never gone back to the university." Paula sighed, stuffing the phone into her light blue purse.

  "Well, you're not bound by a set of rules to stay at the uni." I smiled. "You can always leave."

  Amusement flickered in her blue-green eyes and she shook her head. "I know, but what if we find a cure for the disease and convince people to plan their kids' elements? I wouldn't have a job, I wouldn't get money from the organizations that help us and I'd have no degree. How would I ever find a job?"

  "You're right." I didn't really think that far in the future. Surely finding a cure wasn't that easy. Hell, I couldn't even be sure I'd live long enough to finish university. But I could understand why Paula would want a degree.

  "Ok, I have to run. See you at uni." She waved at me and hurried through the door, which slammed closed behind her. I sat back in my chair, completely at peace without any elements around. Now I only had to come up with something to convince everyone that they needed pure elements.

  Chapter 03

  "A competition? Really?" Paula's eyebrows shot upward when I told her my craziest idea. Maybe we couldn't talk about the secret stuff, but we could certainly discuss my plan to get young people to take an interest in elements. Even the government would approve of that.

  "Yeah, we could have games in which people would use their elements. If celebrities and the media help us, we can have a popular talent show or something." Since Paula and I were sitting in the university's cafeteria, the ears of people closest to us seemed to pop up at my words. Maybe the government had sent students to spy on me. I wouldn't be surprised.

  Paula choked on her soda and coughed. "A talent show?"

  "Can you sound any more incredulous?" I pouted. "It took me ages to come up with the idea! At least you could appreciate that."

  "Sorry, but I always thought those types of shows were pointless and stupid. Some even used and abused people for the audience's entertainment," she said thoughtfully.

  "Yeah, ok, so what? The media is evil and blah, blah, but this time we could use it to our advantage." A fire element a couple of tables from us intensified, and I unintentionally looked in its direction. A dark-haired guy was weaving through the tables, his hands hidden in the pockets of his black jacket, his dark eyes meeting mine. I fought the urge to get up and run. What if he had a gun or a knife in that pocket? Surely an assassin wouldn't come to kill me in the middle of the university... Unless he was one of those brainwashed, suicidal guys.

  Paula frowned at me and followed my gaze. I quickly glanced at the far corner of the room on my left and saw Adrian watching me, his shoulders tense. It was comforting to know I wasn't the only one who was being paranoid, but my fear spiked as the guy came closer and closer. What if my brother had sent him? Oliver had been unusually quiet lately. What if this was his plan?

  "Hi," the guy said, stopping right in front of me. My eyes widened when he took his empty hands out of his pockets. Ok, false alarm.

  "Hi." I licked my dry lips, knowing full well that my smile looked forced.

  "I've seen you in class and I just had to come to meet you. My name is Ethan." He offered his hand to me, and I shook it. His grip was strong and steady, even though his element flickered with more force than usual.

  "I'm Ria," I said, even though I was sure he knew exactly who I was. "This is my friend, Paula."

  Ethan nodded at Paula and she gave him a wide grin.

  "I was wondering if you'd like to go for a coffee sometime," he said, turning his attention back to me. I gaped at him. I'd thought he was coming to kill me, not coming to ask me on a date. Actually, I'd rather he tried to kill me.

  "I..." I was speechless. Since Michael didn't want to have anything to do with me, the press had concluded I was single again. Adrian's and mine relationship had to remain a secret, so I couldn't exactly pretend I already had a boyfriend.

  "I understand if you are busy. It's very admirable you can juggle both university and such an important position." Ethan leaned forward, now fully in control of his element. "I'd love to take your mind off your responsibilities for a while."

  Adrian chose that very moment to walk by and bumped his shoulder into Ethan's. I hadn't even noticed Adrian had gotten up from his seat. The smile faded from Ethan's face, but he didn't react in any other way.

  "She'd love to come with you," Paula chimed in. "She's just trying to find a hole in her schedule to fit you in."

  I shot Paula a quick glare. What was she doing? I wasn't about to go on a date with a guy who might be waiting to get me alone so he can kill me or try to persuade me to spill my secrets to him. Ethan looked at me expectantly.

  "Ok, fine." I relented, wondering how pissed off Adrian would be about this. "Just a coffee. Tomorrow after class." At least I could play it safe and stay at the university.

  "It's a deal." Ethan's lips spread into a smile. "See you tomorrow then." He strolled off, followed by whispers from nearby tables. Would I become some sort of a trophy date? A girl who guys had to take out because she was famous? I'd always assumed Adrian had enjoyed the attention he got at the University of Magic, but now I had my doubts. If I was truly looking for a boyfriend, I'd never be able to tell whose intentions were honest and whose not.

&nb
sp; "I hate you," I said to Paula, but the corners of my lips quirked up. "Why did you do that? I could have told him I was busy."

  "You need to have a little fun. Maybe you find your true love." She winked at me. "He's hot."

  "Yeah, because his..." I clamped my mouth shut. Normal people couldn't tell what element others had. "...his hair is a hot mess," I finished lamely, not wanting any listeners to get ideas. Who would have said I'd be going on a date? Ok, drinking coffee after class in the university's cafeteria wasn't exactly a date, but it was something. Of course, there was always a chance Adrian would freeze the guy to death so I couldn't go out with him. Maybe I didn't have anything to worry about, except I didn't know how good Ethan was at controlling his element. It would be interesting to see Ethan and Adrian fight it out.

  "Hey." Paula snapped her fingers in front of my nose. "I said we should go."

  "Right." I got up, pushing away the thoughts that invaded my sick mind. I'd have to find out what Ethan wanted from me and get rid of him.

  I entered Alan's office without knocking because I was sure he was alone. Even though he had a bigger office here, I still felt trapped when I closed the door behind me. Maybe that had something to do with Alan's unnerving presence. His dark brown eyes met mine with annoyance and he ran a hand through his graying brown hair.

  "Surprise, surprise," he said. "I would have mistaken you for Adrian. You certainly acquired his style of entering."

  "I wouldn't even be here if I didn't suspect you're the one who sent a boy to ask me out." My brother would have a different approach, so that left Alan as another option. Alan had a history of trying to play the perfect matchmaker to see what would happen.

  A smile hovered on his lips. "Is it so hard to believe that a boy would like you, especially now that everyone believes you're single?"

  "No, it's not." I settled myself in one of the chairs opposite from Alan, crossing my arms. "But Adrian told me the guy's element is fire. Since you don't think finding Adrian a girlfriend would help, you decided to find me a boyfriend, didn't you?"

  "You may be right." He clasped his hands, his face expressionless. "But you do need to start looking for an acceptable boyfriend. You're the president of the EP. You need to set an example for the others. I don't know what you see in Adrian except forbidden fruit, but if you're hoping your friends will find a cure for the disease... You're living in a dream."

  "My relationship with Adrian is none of your business." Alan was a constant threat to us since he could always tattle on us, but he couldn't do it without proof and he certainly wouldn't get anything out of it. No one was inclined to give him any important position in the government.

  "Perhaps not, but you're ruining his life. The poor boy cares so much about you that he was willing to risk his life to help your friend. How is Paula doing, anyway? Must be hard to be a new carrier and pretend everything is normal." Curiosity filled Alan's eyes. Right. I'd almost forgotten Adrian had lied to Alan about Paula being a new carrier so Alan wouldn't discover I was the one with the disease.

  "She's fine," I said coldly. "She now knows better than to come talk to you."

  "That's a shame. I'd love to chat with her." Alan chuckled. "Why don't you let Adrian go? If you're counting on him to die, then you shouldn't hold your breath because he's more resistant than anyone could imagine. The end of your temporary fling with him might be what sends him off the edge. You'll have to put him down like a rabid dog before he kills you and everyone you love."

  "Oh, I'll put you down," I said through my teeth. "Did you or did you not send a guy called Ethan to take me out?"

  "You'll have to figure that out by yourself." His wide grin was infuriating. I slammed my fist on the desk, but he didn't even flinch. Fucking shit. I got up and stormed out of the office, not willing to let Alan provoke me. Elements were buzzing like crazy in my head and I stumbled down the hall, fighting to stay in control. I shouldn't have allowed Alan's words to get to me, especially after a whole night and morning at the university.

  Lily's "fake" students were by my side in a second, and Sinclair placed his hand on my back while we all pretended to chat about something random.

  "Thanks." I breathed out a sigh of relief when we were out of the university. "I'm fine. You can go back inside." They nodded and left me in front of my car. I had to get to the office and isolate myself from all the elements for a couple of hours. It was going to be a long day.

  Chapter 04

  I was sitting in my office and typing the last of the reports when my phone vibrated and nearly fell off the desk. Cradling it in my lap, I realized I had a message from Adrian. "Meet me at these coordinates. We need to talk." I read the message out loud, a frown line appearing on my forehead.

  Adrian was probably mad at me for accepting Ethan's invitation and he wanted to talk in private. He wanted to tell me something he couldn't tell me in my room, which meant whatever he had to say probably included yelling and other things that mustn't be overheard. I had to come up with a good way to calm him down because I didn't want to fight with him over idiocies. Yeah, going on a date with another guy when you were in a relationship was a serious no-no, but it wasn't like I wanted to do it or didn't intend to tell Adrian about it.

  I searched for the coordinates Adrian had given me and realized they were for an abandoned building site in the middle of nowhere. What if someone had hacked my phone and was trying to lure me into a trap? But not even Oliver knew Adrian's new number, so a fake message would have come from Adrian's old number. It made sense that Adrian would want to talk to me in private without any elements around, so I saved my work and shut down my computer.

  I'd spent enough time in the office, so the elements in the building didn't really bother me. My bodyguards were by my side immediately as I walked out, and I was glad the sun hadn't set down yet. I still had enough time to go shopping before I met with Adrian.

  "I'm going shopping. Stay close, but not too close," I said to the guards and they nodded. Poor guys. They had no clue what I was planning to do. I couldn't exactly let them listen in on my conversation with Adrian, so I had to find a way to lose them in the shopping center. Thank God I had my own car and they had theirs. It would be tricky if they insisted on driving me everywhere.

  As I parked my car behind one of the stone blocks on the construction site, I wasn't sure whether to be glad that I could slip away from my bodyguards without breaking a sweat or see it as a security problem. Someone could have kidnapped me and they'd have no clue. Granted, I'd gone into the changing room and emerged looking like another person, so I slipped past them unnoticed. The huge black hat I'd bought helped immensely.

  I couldn't feel any elements around, so I hopped over a couple of discarded planks and found myself in an unfinished room with a brick wall. Judging by the amount of dust and debris, no one had been here for a while. I wondered how Adrian had found this place. My black and silver high heels resonated in the open space, and I was worried my new outfit would get dirty before I found my boyfriend.

  I emerged on the other side of the building and saw Adrian leaning on one of the unfinished columns. The sun was already disappearing behind the trees, painting half of Adrian's handsome face with reddish light. A strange kind of thrill went through me when his piercing gray-blue eyes met mine, and I bit my lip, fighting the urge to smile at him. He lifted his head up, trying to get a few unruly strands of his black hair out of his face.

  "I love that jacket," I said, nodding at his black leather jacket, which tightly fitted to his strong shoulders. To anyone who didn't know him, he looked like a wild animal ready to spring at you. But no matter how angry he was, I wasn't afraid of him.

  "Doesn't that jackass have a jacket too?" he said, unmoving, but I could see his eyes checking me out up and down. I stopped a couple of steps away from him, tossing my hair over my shoulder. Adrian's look lingered on my tight black top which revealed more than it hid.

  "What do I care if he has one?" I shrugged. "I
only need to find out what he wants from me."

  "You know what he wants!" Adrian sneered. "He wants what any man wants..."

  "And he's not going to get it." I placed my hand on my hip, letting annoyance show in my voice. "If he tries something, I'll burn his dick to a crisp."

  A smile hovered on Adrian's lips, but then his eyes darkened. "Did you buy this outfit for me or for him?"

  "Actually, I bought it for myself, but if you like it so much, I can lend it to you." I grinned. "Although I'm not sure this miniskirt would look good on you. It would be a little tight in the front."

  He pushed himself off the stone column and came to stand only inches away from me. I leaned forward, expecting him to kiss me, but he stood his ground. Why did he have to torture me like this? It wasn't like I’d agreed to make out or sleep with Ethan. I sighed, frustrated. "What do you want me to do?"

  "Don't go anywhere with Ethan. Actually, don't go anywhere with any guy. Who cares if everyone thinks you're single? A busy girl like you doesn't need a man in her life, especially when you have a man in your life already: me." His eyes were warm again, almost pleading.

  "Adrian... " I rolled my eyes. "The media will like it more if I date someone. Then they won't get suspicious about you. Besides, if I pretend to date guys with pure elements, it could help us to promote genetic manipulation and preservation of the purity of elements."

  Adrian pressed his lips together into an angry line and started to turn away from me, but I grabbed his arm and pulled him toward me. "You're really hot when you're jealous, but please stop talking and just kiss me."

  "Don't think you can manipulate me with sex." He brushed his finger across my lips, a smile breaking out on his face. "I won't drop this matter because you batted your eyelashes at me."

  I pouted, then innocently batted my eyelashes. "I'm not wearing any underwear."