Forbidden Alchemy (Elemental Book 7)

by Rain Oxford

  When I was a child, I unintentionally used magic, which sometimes resulted in accidents. There were also wizard kids that thought they were better than humans and could take advantage of them. Shifters kids could have the same problem, but the stakes were higher. Instead of telekinetically throwing a vase across the room, they could shift into a powerful predator and kill someone.

  Another goal of the school was to teach the students how to interact and get along with other paranormals. Fae believed all other paranormals were inferior and they were fiercely protective of their own kind and their tribes. Shifters had to fight their instincts daily. Many paranormals still held prejudices against vampires, but I wondered if it wasn’t jealousy and fear.

  Vampires were somewhat immortal, faster than shifters, and could thrall their victims. Born vampires could control themselves pretty well, but some didn’t care if they exposed their kind or killed people. Although the wizard council pressured Remington to allow vampires into the children’s school, she refused because we had too many throwbacks who couldn’t defend themselves.

  “You’re going to teach martial arts?” Darwin asked.

  “Yeah. What’s wrong with that?”

  “You’re not going to teach them to fire guns or jump over car hoods?”

  “I’ll save that for career week.”

  * * *

  The students already knew the moves for their martial arts, so I let each student get a chance to lead the practice of their routines, kicks, and punches. I also remembered enough of my martial arts training from Quintessence to help them with their form when they needed it.

  A ginger-haired teen in my third class caught my attention because I didn’t remember seeing her before. Even though I didn’t know every child’s name yet, I had met most of them in the three months since the school year started. “Are you new?” I asked her.

  She shook her head. “No, Mr. Sanders. I’m Mandy Roland.”

  “I thought I met everyone.”

  She shrugged. “I never get in trouble.”

  That didn’t mean she never did anything wrong, only that she never got caught. I was strangely unsettled, but my intuition didn’t warn me of anything wrong. In fact, the more I studied her, the more familiar she looked, so I let it go and started the class.

  * * *

  At the end of a long day, I found a note on my office door telling me that the new literacy teacher for students aged fourteen to seventeen had finally arrived. Since we lost two of our three literacy teachers early in the school year, the replacement teacher was getting tired of covering both positions.

  I went to Mrs. Baumwirt’s old classroom and knocked on the door. “Come in.”

  The classroom hadn’t changed much. The north wall was entirely taken up by bookshelves and a whiteboard spanned most of the south wall. There were student desks in neat rows and a teacher’s desk facing them. Unlike in human schools, there were no computers or projector screens. The new teacher was putting plastic tubs of supplies into the cabinets under large windows along the east wall. The only new additions were motivational posters and literacy reference posters on the walls, as well as a pegboard for displaying exemplary student work to the left of the door.

  The teacher was in his mid-thirties with short, styled black hair and dark brown eyes. He wore a business shirt, black pants, and a tie. “You must be one of the deputy headmasters,” he said, holding out his hand. His Japanese accent was thick.

  “Yes. I’m Devon Sanders.” I took his hand and my intuition woke up like a live wire. I jerked my hand back automatically, but he showed no offense.

  Most shifters were predators. There were a few non-carnivorous shifters, but they were by no means prey. For example, one of the teachers of the North shifted into a red kangaroo. He wasn’t considered a predator compared to a wolf, but he was a tough bastard. It was a survival thing; there was no point in shifting into an animal that couldn’t protect itself in the dangerous wild.

  There were even some shifters that seemed to be more animal than person. This man was designed to kill. It was his only purpose. He somehow felt more dangerous than a vampire.

  “I am Ichiro Kubota,” he said, unconcerned with my rude staring.

  “It’s nice to…” Yeah, I couldn’t get that lie out. “You’ve met Ms. Hunt, right?”

  He smiled. “Yes, I have.”

  “What are you?”

  “You must sense my animal,” he said, still taking no offense. “It normally only bothers other shifters. Please be assured that I am completely harmless to the students and staff here.”

  “I don’t mean to be impolite, but I’m not assured.”

  “As long as I am out of water, I could not hurt a fly.”

  And then I got it. “You’re a shark.”

  “In the aquatic sense only.”

  “You don’t have any shark-like personality traits?”

  “Not that I cannot control. I take precaution and never eat meat. I also avoid bloodshed.”

  “How often do you let your shark out?”

  “Never. That would be a terrible idea. The one and only time I shifted was to come to this country, and it was nearly impossible to become a man again.”

  “Because the shark is too strong?”

  He nodded. “My mother gave into it, and I was raised by my human father who thought I was a demon.”

  At least I knew he couldn’t shift and hurt anyone, since that would mean death for him. “What about if you get wet?”

  “I can never go swimming, and I have to be careful when showering or in the rain. I have never shifted accidentally. These students have nothing to fear from me.”

  “Even with the supermoon?”

  “Shifters are adaptive. That is the most fundamental aspect of our paranormal gene. That is the essence of our being. If I shift out of water, I will die. As powerful as my shark is, even he knows this.”

  “Well, welcome to the school.” I started to leave, only to pause at the door as curiosity struck me. “What kind of shark are you?”

  “You do not want to know.”

  * * *

  I finally got to sit at my desk in my office and check disciplinary forms (which mostly involved Halloween pranks) and absentee forms (which mostly involved Halloween prank victims). The students responsible had to clean up their messes, including rebuilding damaged property, but Dr. Martin was overrun with injured kids and staff.

  Fortunately, I didn’t have to worry about cults, demons, or monsters… again. It had been two full months since we had such an incident. When I heard a tentative knock on my door, I said, “Come in.”

  When Jameson opened the door and entered hesitantly, I tensed. The young twins, Jameson and Jason, were John’s children and together, they could see the future and control minds. Their human mother couldn’t handle them, so she sent them to the school when I became a vice principal. That basically meant they were my responsibility, and when they broke the rules, their teachers complained to me.

  Unfortunately, although they were too young to do permanent and severe damage to someone, Jameson was headed down that path fast. Jason was better, but he would never stand up to Jameson.

  They resembled their father with dark brown hair and dark brown eyes. This time, however, Jamie’s eyes weren’t full of anger. He looked unsure of himself. If I didn’t know better, I would think he was Jason.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing.” He sat on the couch and looked at his hands.

  He of all people couldn’t be pressured into talking. It would just make him go on the offense, and he could be pretty offensive. So instead, I returned to my paperwork without another word. I half expected him to get up and walk out, half expected him to throw a fit.

  * * *

  An hour later, he finally broke the silence. “Have you had any… weird dreams lately?”

  “I have,” I said, putting my pen down and turning to him.

  “With other people? In, like, a ro
om with no doors?”

  “I was alone in a room without doors, but I could hear a little girl.”

  “I was in a room with a boy. He covered his face and yelled when I tried to touch him.”

  “Yelled how? Was he angry?”

  “He sounded like I was hurting him. He wouldn’t talk to me. Jason had the dream, too, but he was somewhere else. He saw shadows of people, mostly kids, but he couldn’t talk to them. What do we do?”

  “I got the name of the girl I could hear, and her mother’s name, so I’m going to try to find her. Until then, sit tight and let me know if either of you has another dream like it.”

  “There’s nothing we can do to stop them?”

  “I don’t usually try to fight dreams like that. They’re meant to help us.”

  “Unless someone else is using it to find and hurt us.”

  I opened my mouth to say that wasn’t likely, but thought better of it. Jamie, Jason, and I shared a dangerous ability. Jamie knew how dangerous magic could be, especially psychic magic. “I’ll talk to Vincent about it,” I said.

  He sneered. “Like he knows anything.”

  “John couldn’t see the future. Vincent can.”

  * * *

  Jason found Jamie and they went back to their room. Between interruptions and the extra paperwork for holiday damage, I didn’t get out of there until late, so I made myself a sandwich and headed to my room.

  My bedroom was sixteen-by-sixteen with stone walls, rich redwood floors, and a high wooden ceiling with beams. There was a fluffy antique-patterned rug on the floor beside the bed. The king-sized bed against the north wall was made of solid wood with a royal blue canopy, curtains, and bedclothes. There was a nightstand and gas lamp on either side of the bed. On the left nightstand was a battery-powered alarm clock and a glass bowl for my keys. At the foot of the bed was a wooden chest. To the left of the bed was a fancy wardrobe. Beside the door on the south wall was a work desk with a gas lamp. On the east wall was a large window with wooden blinds and dark blue blackout drapes.

  To my pleasant surprise, Remy was in my bed, reading. I closed the door behind me and said, “It looks like I got my Christmas present early.” Remington Hunt was in her late twenties with a shapely, athletic figure, long, chestnut-brown hair, and striking green eyes.

  She was flirty and confident, so I could be myself around her. I didn’t need to protect her, and if she wanted something from me, she’d tell me. She wasn’t hiding something that would build up until it exploded and ruined our relationship. Long before we were dating, we were friends. It wasn’t a friendship like I had with Astrid, though; it wasn’t about being lonely.

  She laughed and lowered her book. “I can handle your quotes of sage wisdom, but sappiness will get you kicked out of your bed.”

  “Duly noted. Why aren’t you out celebrating the first day of Moon Night?”

  “I wanted to celebrate, but you decided to work late.”

  “Should I eat my dinner or did you have other plans?”

  “You’re going to need your energy. I’ll just be over here, entertaining myself.”

  I tossed my sandwich on the desk and joined her on the bed. “That wouldn’t be very gentlemanly of me.”

  “If you hadn’t noticed, I don’t care very much for gentlemen.”

  “Then I won’t be gentle.”

  * * *

  Monday, November 14

  I was disappointed, but not surprised that Remy was gone when I woke. When I got to the cafeteria, I noticed three teachers chugging coffee like it was the only thing keeping them going. They had partied too hard for Moon Night, Part 1.

  Although my intuition was quiet, there was something ominous in the air that made me tense. I tried to brush it off because my intuition always warned me when danger was nearing.

  “You alright?” Darwin asked, sitting across from me with his plate. He was his usual hyper self.

  “Just tired.” And distracted.

  “Oh, did Remington keep you up all night? I saw her go to your room.”

  “It’s none of your business what we did.”

  “He who denied it survived it.”

  “You’re insane.”

  “There’s a ridiculous queue in front of the coffee. You’d think everyone was up all night, partying.”

  “You weren’t invited to the wild rave last night?” I asked.

  Darwin often joked about wanting to party and look at strippers, but it was an act. His real idea of fun was sticking his nose where it didn’t belong and hacking computers.

  “Yeah, keep takin’ the piss and I won’t invite you to the real parties this holiday. Speaking of, my pack had so many pups born last spring that they’re going to start having non-denominational winter parties at the den. Traditions of all religious factions are acceptable because of the pups. It should still be a fun get-together for the adults, though. You want to come?”

  “How many wolves and pups are we talking about? Your parents, Amy, and you are great, but one of your pack mates is dating my ex, and another tried to kill you. I don’t think I like your pack much.”

  He scoffed. “Jefferson isn’t allowed to bring Regina, and he’s not real popular because of his choice in mates, anyway. As for the wanker who attacked me, he’s been dealt with.”

  “Is your father going to mind you inviting an outsider?”

  He rolled his eyes. “My fiancée is fae.”

  “So is his wife. I’m a wizard. I’m not pack or a potential pack member.”

  “You’re part of my pack. Unless I go rogue and start a new pack, that means you’re part of his as well.”

  “He’s okay with that?”

  “If he wasn’t okay with you, he’d already have chased you out. That’s why he met you at Drake’s club; he was getting your scent to decide if you were welcome or not. If he hadn’t approved, you’d know it. He’s got a slight problem with Henry, but he trusts me to keep him in line.”

  “Henry? Because he’s a jaguar?”

  “It’s not so much a problem with cats as it is with the feline personality. Henry is more likely to shift and attack one of Dad’s pack members than you are. Henry doesn’t play by pack rules like wizards or humans do. You guys understand the “greater good” mentality that packs have. Henry and other solitary shifters put themselves and their children above anyone else on the planet. In his mind, it’s him and Scott against the world.”

  “But he has risked his life for us.”

  “That’s his human half. His human half wants to protect his friends, and his cat half is confident enough in his survival skills to allow it. His human brain sees you as an alpha, whereas his cat brain sees you as a slow, crippled pet that should probably be put out of your misery.”

  “I’m afraid to ask what your wolf sees me as.”

  He smiled reassuringly. “My wolf is very protective of my slow, crippled pet. He won’t let the big scary kitty hurt his widdle wizard. My human brain thinks you’re a complete moron, good only for science experiments and laughing at.”

  “I need new friends. You two suck.”

  He laughed. “Most alphas would have a problem with non-wolf members, but my dad is open-minded. Shifters can sense your mind-control and interpret it as strength. Coupled with your take-charge, rational personality in the face of danger, and you come across as an alpha at Dad’s level. It’s only those of us who know you that think you’re a slow---”

  “Would you shut up?” I interrupted.

  * * *

  I went to Remington’s office in the East. When I knocked on the door, she told me to enter. She looked tired, but she was going through a huge stack of paperwork, so I wasn’t surprised. She glanced up at smiled. “Hey.”

  “Hey. How long have you been up?”

  She shrugged. “Since two or so. Paperwork was calling to me.”

  I would have let it go, but my intuition told me she was lying. “Did you have a bad dream?” After a moment, she nodded. “Did it
have anything to do with kids?”

  She frowned and shook her head. “It was of John. Sometimes I dream that he captures me again or that no one found me before. I know what he was capable of. I know how much worse it could have been.”

  Remington was one of the toughest women I knew, despite her father trying his hardest to shelter her. Flagstone might have known her better, but I knew her dark secrets. I stepped up beside her and rubbed her shoulders. She groaned appreciatively. “You should get some more sleep. Can you take a couple hours off?”

  She looked at me and sighed. “I suppose I could if you care that much.”

  “I do.”

  “You’d better.”

  I kissed her and left. Halfway to my office, an adolescent lion ran around the corner and crashed into me. I automatically detected and recognized his mind. “Kimba! What did I tell you about running in the halls?” His parents weren’t kind to him.

  He clumsily scrambled to his feet and hung his head. He had crashed into and seriously hurt a dozen people since the school year started in August. I sensed fear, not shame, though.

  “What happened?”

  I watched as he replayed it in his mind. On his way to class, he came upon a pool of black liquid. He was smart enough not to step in it, but before he could avoid it, a slimy black monster emerged from it. He shifted on instinct, which wasted valuable running time, so by the time he could stand on four legs, the monster was inches from him. He bolted without looking back.

  I drew my power out of his mind. “I understand. It looks like another Halloween prank, but I’ll check it out. Go back to your room, get dressed, and go to class.”

  He nodded and walked away. I headed for Darwin’s math class. Darwin loved pranks, but he loved knowledge even more, so when the shenanigans got in the way of his teaching, they became a problem.

  I didn’t find anything but slime residue in the hallway leading to the science classroom. When I knocked on the door, William Grant told me to enter. It was clear what had happened the second I opened the door; there was black slime everywhere. Slime was splattered over the floor, walls, ceiling, furniture, and most of the students. It resembled a crime scene.