The Essential Elements: Boxed Set

by Elle Middaugh

Jay glared at her. I did him a favor and answered anyway.

  “Elise kinda freaked out,” I said. “She accused me of hiding things. Then she accused Chase of being an inside player. She tracked my lookalike through the woods and never came back. Chase is gone now, too.”

  “Your lookalike?” Sienna asked at the same time Jay said, “Chase is gone?”

  My eyes darted as I pieced together the questions and answers. “Yes, and yes.”

  After I explained everything that had happened, we all sat in silence. I could tell they were thinking, could practically see the cogs spinning beneath their skulls. Mine were spinning too.

  Loren was an Elitist. She hated me, yet she’d come to pressure me onto her side anyway, which meant the Elitists felt they needed me. She would have never ‘asked’ me to join her team otherwise.

  The thing that got me the most, though, was her altered power. How the hell, how the hell, how the hell? It rang over and over in my mind, and there was a Cade quote whispering in response that I couldn’t ignore: You don’t get that powerful without blood on your hands.

  It seemed Elementals could gain power from darker acts—murder, I assumed, but I couldn’t be sure. Had Loren killed someone just to add a little stickiness to her element? It seemed insane, but not unthinkable.

  Jay cleared his throat. “So do you guys really think it’s Nicholai framing the humans?”

  “Don’t you?” I asked.

  I felt bad for cornering him. It was like saying Don’t you believe my father and me?, which wasn’t very fair, but I needed to know. Jay was my voice of reason.

  His features strained. “I don’t know. I hate to be a conspiracy theorist, but…this feels like a government cover-up. Like, we’re trying so hard to fit together peacefully, and it’s not working, but we don’t want to admit it, so we lie about it.”

  Sienna formed a mini tornado in her palm and studied it intently.

  “So you’re suggesting that the humans truly hate us,” she said. “But that Elementals—Modernists, in particular—don’t want to admit defeat, so they’re feeding us a line of bullshit to make us think everything is okay when it’s really not?”

  “I guess so. Yeah,” he said.

  She shook her head. “That couldn’t possibly last long. Soon enough we would realize relations weren’t civil. Shit would go downhill real fast.”

  “You mean like it is right now?” Jay countered.

  “Touché.”

  I bit my lip. As much as I wanted to believe my father—though I didn’t particularly want to blame my grandfather—I still trusted Jay’s judgment. He made a pretty compelling argument.

  “What about Chase and Elise?” Sienna asked.

  Jay shook his head. “I’ve known Chase for years. I can’t imagine him being an inside player.”

  “Yeah, well, I dated him for a week,” Sienna said, “and I can totally imagine it.”

  Jay rolled his eyes. “As for Elise, I can’t figure out why she’d just lose her shit. She was always so collected.”

  “It’s gotta have something to do with my double,” I said. “Any idea who it might be?”

  Sienna went back to eyeing her tiny tornado. “Loren did just so happen to turn up right after the double ran away.”

  “Why would Loren dress up as Valerie?” Jay said doubtfully.

  “Why would anyone?” Sienna argued.

  It was a good argument, unfortunately.

  I snarled in frustration and began pacing the room.

  “I hate this! I need answers, but my mind keeps running around in endless circles of questions! What the hell am I supposed to do?”

  Sienna dismissed her tornado in a small puff. “I don’t know, Val.”

  Jay scrubbed his face with his palms. “Why don’t we just take a break? We’ll let all this information soak in slowly, and we’ll come back to it once we’ve cleared our heads.”

  I was pretty sure I knew what he was up to, but I asked anyway.

  “What do you suggest we do?”

  He shrugged. “We could go back to The After Dark?”

  Bingo.

  “I knew it!” Sienna said. “You’re into Adira, aren’t you?”

  “No! For the last time, she’s just a friend.”

  They must’ve argued about it sometime before.

  She tapped her chin. “How does one become friends with a club owner, anyway?”

  “By going to their club.”

  Sienna raised a brow. “That’s it? So if we go, she’ll be all BFFs with me since I went there once?”

  Jay closed his eyes slowly, shaking his head like he was fighting anger. “Fine, by going to their club a lot.”

  “I don’t remember you ever going before,” she said suspiciously.

  Neither did I, actually.

  “I don’t remember you being around much before three months ago,” he snapped. Then he glanced at me. “Either of you.”

  He was right, of course. I’d only recently moved back after three years of being away, and Sienna had never lived there at all until her late father had gotten a recruiting station nearby.

  He sighed. “Listen, I go there when I need to not think, you know? Sometimes I just need an escape from reality…”

  Oh, I knew. I totally knew. So did Sienna, whether she admitted it or not.

  I glanced at the clock on the living room wall: it was right around two in the afternoon. The After Dark was in Northland, which wasn’t far. If we left now, I’d have a little over four hours to spare before dinner with Holden. What else was I going to do, anyway? Let the endless questions eat me alive? No thanks.

  I sighed and stopped pacing. “Let’s go then.”

  Jay nodded and stood, a relieved smile on his lips.

  Sienna stood up too and shrugged. “Who am I to turn down a party?”

  I chuckled and followed them out the door.

  Aside from needing a break, I had an ulterior motive. The last time we were there, I’d bumped into Cade. He’d been spying on Nicholai, who’d been in a meeting with some mystery man. I was hoping maybe this time I could solve that mystery. If I knew who Nicholai’s insider was, maybe I could finally make an informed decision about what to do.

  I just had to not get caught.

  Chapter Twelve

  I closed my eyes and focused on my breathing as we pulled into the abandoned mineshaft, the cryptic parking lot of The After Dark. My pulse thrummed in my ears. My nerves hummed, irritating my skin. I was second-guessing my ability to pull off this little spy mission.

  When I dropped from Jay’s truck, my landing was shaky.

  That may have had less to do with stress and more to do with my ultra-thin black high heels, but still. I smoothed my club dress—a short emerald number whose sequins gleamed like a disco ball—and caught my balance. I didn’t even look to see if they were watching. If I could pretend they hadn’t seen, I could pretend the unsteadiness had never happened.

  Jay led us inside and down to the metal door with the sliding peephole. It opened half a minute later and we were met with those same steely eyes.

  “What do you want?” the gruff guard asked.

  “We’d like to come in,” Jay said, speaking for all of us. “Jay Walsh, Sienna Aeris, and Valerie Moore.”

  The guard’s eyes narrowed. “Wait here.”

  It was like he’d never seen us before, as if he hadn’t just let us in the night before. I suspected he was always cautious like that.

  When he returned, he had Adira with him again.

  She whipped open the door and leaned against its narrow edge. The smile on her face was plump, her lips a shade of deep purple. A look of expectancy gleamed in her eyes.

  “Welcome back.”

  She wore a crop top, violet and sequined like a mermaid. Her bottoms were tight, black, and gleamed like the reflection of the moon on a lake. Red velvet pumps completed the ensemble. The woman had sexy down to a T.

  She handed Sienna and me VIP cards then looped
her arm through Jay’s.

  Sienna scoffed. “Again?”

  Adira shot her a murderous glare.

  “You do not wish to be considered a very important person?” she asked in her accented speech. “You do not wish to accept the generosity I extend to you? You have not been forced into my club, but you can be forced out.”

  Jay smiled and smoothly stepped in between them. “She didn’t mean anything by it.”

  Adira quickly turned away, her long hair snapping like a whip. She stomped off to the left, dragging Jay behind her by the fingers.

  Sienna and I blinked then carefully made our way through the open door. Half of me thought it was going to slam in our faces; the other half didn’t know what to think.

  I needed to find out more about what was going on with them. Apparently Jay had known Adira for quite some time, but I hadn’t, and I wasn’t so sure I trusted her. If my grandfather was using this establishment as a base of some sort then it was likely she was an Elitist, and that wouldn’t be good news.

  I stopped dead in my tracks and repeated what I’d just said. Then I altered it slightly: being an Elitist wouldn’t be good. I rolled the words around, testing where the pieces fit in my mind.

  It all seemed right.

  I realized in that moment that, while I still wasn’t ready to choose a side, I knew for sure I couldn’t choose the Elitists, no matter how many fights I’d have to have with Loren or anybody. I thought I’d maybe always felt that way in the pit of my stomach, but my brain had refused to acknowledge the fact until just then.

  It was actually a huge relief. I could cross off one of the questions from the list, narrow down some of my options, and funnel my choices in a more precise direction.

  Sienna waved a hand in front of my face. The VIP cards were in it.

  “Hello? Valerie? I said, do you wanna use these to get some drinks?”

  I glanced left to where Jay and Adira had disappeared. Then I scanned over the crowd to find the door I had followed Cade through last night. Finally, I looked right to the circular bar, glowing neon blue.

  The club looked…different. Everything was in the same place, but the décor was much more modern. The oasis theme from the night before, with the sandy tones and draping greenery, had been replaced by thousands of crystals that hung from the ceiling and refracted the light of the dancing lasers. The walls, I noticed, were actually full-length electronic screens, a digital honeycomb of colors fluctuating to the beat of the music. Maybe that was how the theme changed so easily?

  My eyes found Sienna’s again. “Sorry.”

  She frowned and smiled at the same time. “What’s up with you?”

  “Just a little distracted lately.” I snagged my card out of her hand and grinned. “But sure, let’s grab a drink.”

  One fruity Tequila Sunrise and a tart Purple Haze later, Sienna and I tucked ourselves into the soft leather seating of an open lounge. A couple of guys immediately came over to flirt, but I casually turned away, swirling my drink until the layers blended into a solid tangerine color.

  So much had changed since our careless days of partying in the woods. My pride in drinking like a sailor had faded. My haphazard attraction to any and every guy had disappeared. I wasn’t interested in flirting with these two strangers, or anyone else at the club. I knew who I wanted, and this time I wasn’t giving up on him. The certainty was refreshing.

  I stole a glance at Sienna. Not long ago, she was blowing through boyfriends every week. Right then, though, even with having the spotlight entirely to herself, her smile seemed a little lackluster.

  Life was more serious now; it affected all of us. Every action felt heavy. Every consequence reverberated into the next. Doing things for fun had somehow become irrelevant. Honestly, I felt guilty for even sitting there. I should have been tracking down a lead and figuring things out.

  Squirming uncomfortably, I adjusted my sparkling green dress. If I’d been the watch-wearing type, I would’ve checked the time. I was getting antsy. I took the first sip of my drink, swallowing its familiarity with a practiced tongue. It did nothing for me.

  One of the two guys was staring. I sighed and looked away again, but he approached anyway. His head was shaved and polished, skin a tanned bronze. There was a subtle quietness and maturity to his demeanor. He sat down beside me and crossed an ankle over his knee.

  “What happened?”

  I raised a brow. “Excuse me?”

  He tipped his head toward my face. “The gash, how’d you get it?”

  I forced a smile. I’d forgotten about it, actually.

  “I don’t really want to get into it.”

  His gaze narrowed. Black liner traced the insides of his lashes, making his dark eyes pop.

  “An aggressive boyfriend?” he asked.

  “What? No!”

  He leaned back and grinned.

  “So there is a boyfriend, then?” From a back pocket he withdrew a tin of salve. “To help it heal.”

  “Thanks.”

  I took it and dabbed it on the wound, but felt no immediate effect. This guy might’ve been an Earth, but he was nowhere near as skilled as Aunt Marge or Cade.

  Speaking of Cade…he wasn’t technically my boyfriend, but I wanted him to be, so I decided to treat him as such.

  “And yes, there is a boyfriend. Sorry.” I handed him back the tin.

  He half-shrugged as he re-pocketed it.

  “It’s all right. You can’t blame a guy for trying, though. My name is Brad, by the way, Brad Rosenthorn.”

  I shook his outstretched hand. “Valerie.”

  “Well, it was a pleasure to meet you, Valerie.” He stood and straightened his ribbed sweater. “Hopefully I’ll see you again soon.”

  The corners of his eyes crinkled as his broad smile spread, and I found myself smiling back.

  “Goodbye Brad,” I said with a small wave.

  When he and his friend wandered off, I slid back over to Sienna.

  “Your cut looks a little better,” she said without even looking at it. She was eyeing her nail polish impassively. “He seemed nice.”

  I rolled my eyes. “He was nice.” The flatness in my tone was obvious, even to me.

  “He’s not gonna replace Holden, is he?” She smiled because it was meant as a joke, but it hit too close to home. Holden had already been replaced—by the guy I’d wanted in the first place. The guy I’d wanted since…forever.

  I was just the only one who actually knew that.

  With a soft smile, I simply said, “No, he’s not gonna replace Holden.”

  “Good! Because marrying him is the only way you and I can be related! And I totally want my best friend to be a part of my family someday.” She flung her hand in my direction. “But you already knew that.”

  I did. She’d said it before, I just hadn’t realized she was still going on about it.

  “Sienna…” I chose my words as carefully as I could. “I don’t think I’m going to be marrying Holden.”

  “Well not any time soon!” She half chuckled, half scoffed. “We’re still young! But, you know, eventually.”

  I shook my head. “Or not.”

  Her brows knit into a frown. “Like…ever?”

  “Probably not, no.” My smile was apologetic.

  “Well, damn.”

  She finished off her Purple Haze, and the sharp smell of gin and raspberry tinted the air as awkwardness slowly squeezed between us. I glanced at my own glass, still full, and took another sip.

  Finally she sighed. “Just tell me it’s not because of Cade.”

  I nearly choked. “Why?”

  She groaned. “Damn it, I knew it!”

  “What’s so bad about Cade?”

  “He’s a douchebag!”

  I immediately became defensive.

  “No, he’s not. That time you met him at his house…I don’t know what was going on, but he wasn’t his usual self.”

  She scoffed. “What about the time after t
hat? When he and his friends crashed our party in the woods, nearly exposing Elementals to humans?”

  “Um, just one human, and that was me. I’m not even human, anyway.”

  She crossed her arms and legs. “What about his parents trying to kill you?”

  “What about my grandfather actually killing his mother?” I countered quickly.

  She raised a brow. “True.”

  “Besides,” I said, shaking my head, “that’s not the point. His parents’ actions don’t define him.”

  “What about his own actions, then?” Sienna argued. “Turning you away when you needed his friendship, accusing you and your family of being evil warmongers, vengefully tracking and spying on your grandfather—and you know he’d kill him if he could. Do those things not count?”

  I sighed. “Yes, they count, but what about the good things? That’s what I see. He risked being ostracized by his family and the rest of the Traditionalists to spend time with me. He got to know me, probably better than most of my friends, by asking me cute little questions on index cards. He created a lilac bush and gave me the flowers when I told him they were my favorite. He explained everything I wanted and needed to know about Elementals and their history when I was confused. He came to warn and comfort me about the trouble I was in for ‘knowing’. He calmed and encouraged me when I realized I was kind of claustrophobic. He—”

  “Wait, you’re claustrophobic?”

  I shrugged. “I guess so. I kinda freaked out. I almost killed him with my water, actually.”

  She thrashed her head. “When were you and Cade trapped in a small space together?”

  “Oh, um…like, last night?”

  “What!?”

  I grimaced. “Sorry. I meant to—” I stopped, because my words weren’t going to be true. I hadn’t meant to tell her, or anyone. I sighed. “I didn’t want anybody to know.”

  She blinked sassily. “Oh? Why not?”

  “Because of what we were doing beforehand,” I muttered.

  Sienna laughed sarcastically, throwing her head back. “I can only imagine.”

  “No! Not like that, damn it! We were eavesdropping on Nicholai.”

  Finally, she sobered up. All disdain washed away, leaving behind wide gray eyes and a ghostly pale face.