by Cree Storm
Pit nodded and Calvin started explaining. “I was born into a family of the original elementals. Each member has some sort of elemental gift. My great-great-grandfather was a multiplex elemental, and my grandfather was born a multiplex elemental, but my father and all my brothers and sisters were not… then I came along and I was born a multiplex elemental. Although my grandfathers were all good men, my father was not. He was angry he had not been born, as Taco said earlier, ‘Special’. My father can only control weather, which is a great gift to have and can come in handy if you’re a rancher like all my grandfathers before me. It brought them millions. However, my father was rather spoiled and grew up hating ranching. He didn’t want to be a rancher, he wanted more. He started hanging with some really bad guys and getting into a lot of trouble. My grandfather threatened to disown him if he didn’t settle down and take his rightful place on the ranch. It wasn’t long after that that my dad married my mom.”
“Married? They weren’t mates?” Pit asked.
Shaking his head, Calvin replied, “No. My father doesn’t believe in mates.”
“Damn.” Jude whispered.
Calvin continued, ignoring Jude, “Father used my mother as a breeder, not a wife. He got her pregnant one after the other until I was born… or at least that’s what my oldest brother told me.”
“I don’t understand. You didn’t see her for yourself to know what was happening, or were you shielded from that fact?” Cobra asked.
Calvin turned away, his pain evident for all to see. “I never met my mother. I wasn’t permitted. I don’t really know why, but Gunther did sneak me a picture of her once...” Sniffling, he then said, “...but father found it and cut it to pieces.”
“But he allowed you to see and know your siblings?” Pit softly asked.
Calvin scoffed, “He needed them to make me do what he wanted.”
“He was after a multiplex elemental he could control.” Cobra stated.
Nodding, Calvin continued. “He ignored all eight of my brothers as well as my three sisters. His focus was on me and developing my powers. Gods, I hated those trainings. If I messed up he would knock me around, and if I said I wasn’t going to go to training, he would beat one of my sisters or brothers until I did as he ordered. When my grandfathers discovered what he was doing to me, they disowned him.”
“But didn’t take you out of the situation? That makes no sense.” Pit stated angrily.
“I refused to go.” Calvin whispered.
“Why?” Pit asked.
“He had one of my sisters hidden and threatened to kill her if I left.” Calvin explained.
“I’d have killed the fucker.” Cobra snarled.
“I wish I had it in me to do that, Cobra, but I don’t, and neither did my grandfathers. Not just because he’s my father and their son or grandson, but because elementals are peaceful. We have to be in order to maintain control of our powers, and therefore it isn’t in us to hurt anyone. That’s what makes how my father is so dangerous. He has no control. It’s what almost got me killed instead.” Calvin said, grimacing once more. “Can I have some more water?” Calvin asked, needing to get the lump out of his throat.
Calvin stopped speaking for a minute. He hated talking about his father. Each word made all his scars flare with remembered pain.
“You need to take your pain medicine and rest.” Jude insisted as he held the straw to Calvin’s lips once more.
Taking a couple of sips, Calvin released the straw, saying, “Let me finish this first, and then I’ll take you up on that offer.”
“It goes against my better judgement, but I’ll allow you just a few minutes more, and then I don’t care how much you want to continue, it will have to wait.” Jude stated firmly.
Nodding, Calvin continued, “Father started taking me out on some of his business deals which my grandfather didn’t know about. I didn’t want to do what he ordered me to do, but when I didn’t, he would hurt Teagan.”
“Teagan?” Pit asked.
Tears gathered in Calvin’s eyes, as he whispered, “My brother before me. He has the gift of water. He is what some would call a gentle soul and my father’s favorite whipping boy. Whenever I refused to do as father asked, he would beat Teagan until he was bloody and unconscious. Teagan begged me not to help father, but I was scared that one day Teagan would be beaten to death, so I started doing as he asked. At first it wasn’t so bad. It was just some warning tremors, sometimes a flood to take out crops of a fellow rancher, or causing a drought to force him to sell. I guess Agent Clem saw a pattern of sorts and he started investigating. He showed up at our home and spoke with my father. When he left, my father ordered me to kill him.”
“Son of a bitch.” Pit softly exclaimed.
Sniffling, Calvin whispered, “I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t kill a man just because he talked to my dad. I… I…”
Cobra leaned down, kissing the top of Calvin’s head, whispering. “Breathe, baby doll. Taco and I are here for you.”
Calvin’s tears fell down his cheeks as he hiccupped, stammering, “He… he was so mad, Cobra. I… I’ve se-seen my fa-father mad be… before, but no… not li-like this. He at-attacked Tea-Teagan wi… with a… ven-vengeance. My bro… brothers and I tri… tried to st-stop him. Whe… When Ky… Kyle and Ham-Hammond got father off… off of Teagan… he was bar… barely breathing. Kyle told me to-to get Teagan he-help. I di… didn’t know wha… what to do. I rode my li… lightning and went to Clem... Teagan was barely breathing. I told Clem everything. He promised to get Teagan help. I was scared for my brothers and s-sisters, so I went back. My father found me and beat me almost to death, demanding to know where Teagan was. I refused to tell him.”
Taking a deep breath and calming himself down a bit, Calvin rasped, “I woke up chained to my bed. Father would come in and at first he tried using his powers on me, but they didn’t do anything. It’s part of being a multiplex elemental. We can absorb the powers of single to triple power elementals. So, my father started to use other methods. His favorite was the hot fire poker. He would stab me with that thing until I passed out, then he got a hunter’s knife and started stripping my flesh from my body.”
“Jesus.” Cobra rasped.
Ignoring Cobra, Calvin continued, “I knew I was going to die. Before he could do anything more to me, he received a phone call and left abruptly. Kyle came to me that night and released me from my chains. He told me to run. I was afraid of what might happen to him, but he told me not to worry about them. I was to go and never come back. So, I used what little power I had left in me to make it to Clem.”
Pit asked, “Why did you know to go to Clem to begin with? He’s a human. What if he had told others about you and your family? Paranormals are supposed to maintain their silence when it comes to our kind, Calvin. For that alone I could take you to the council.”
Shaking his head, Calvin whispered, “Because I knew he was aware of our kind. I was outside in the barn when he was leaving from speaking to my father. He made a call to someone. Telling them that he thought he might have a case of a paranormal serialist that he might need some help with. He was going to get back to them when he had more information.”
Pit’s eyes went wide, “I remember that call. He said it was a mob issue that was looking bad.”
Nodding, Calvin said, “Yes, and he wasn’t wrong. Before coming here, Clem tried to hide me away twice. Each time my father found me and damn near killed me. I was stabbed the first time, before I got away, and the second time I was shot before I could make it to Clem. Bringing me to Drago was our last option. It was the one place I could live without fear of my father finding me, because to come here we use no credentials at all. Your set up is perfect, Pit. Whatever money we make goes into the bank here and then you give us a credit system we can use to buy what we need. Everything is under the D.O.A. name. There was no way my father could find me because I was completely off grid. It’s why I rarely go into town. I don’t want to take the chance of
any of my father’s contacts finding me. I was only supposed to be here for a few months. Clem was going to go in and get my father and put him away. Not just because of what he did to my brother and me, but for the other crimes he was being investigated for, and evidence I gave him to prove his crimes. The problem was, by the time Clem gathered who he needed, he said my father was gone.”
“Who is your father, Calvin?” Cobra asked.
Sighing, Calvin whispered, “My name isn’t Calvin.”
Everyone in the room drew in a sharp breath. Taco asking the question everyone else was wondering, “If your name isn’t Calvin, what is it?”
“Giovani Pasteli. Son to…”
“Marceli Pasteli, Godfather to all mob bosses.” Pit whispered.
CHAPTER 5
Cobra stood there looking at his sentience in complete shock. He was the son to one of the most sought-after criminals in the FBI. The man was an enigma. Hell, D.O.A. had gotten close to capturing him only one time, but by the time he was located, it was too late. He had already left the location. Yes, they had captured a good number of his men, but each and every time Marceli was nowhere to be seen. “You’re telling us that you’re Marceli’s son?”
Calvin bit his bottom lip, looking wary as he nodded.
“Could someone share with the class here? I mean I know I’m a sexy genius and all, but I can’t say I ever heard of the man. I mean, I know he has to be a really bad dude, even without the horror story Cal… Gio here just told us about and the word ‘Godfather’ makes me think of horse heads in bed and shit, but other than that I’m at a loss here.” Jude said.
Cobra replied, “Marceli is wanted for murder, slave trading, racketeering, drug and gun running, and a shit ton more charges. He was brought to us when Clem was given evidence of most of those crimes. Someone had kept some very precise records of most of his activities. They had pictures, recordings, and video evidence… holy shit! That was you, wasn’t it?”
Gio nodded, “I hated what he was making me do. I knew that I could be arrested along with my dad, since I was there and he would use me as his ‘muscle’. I didn’t care. I knew he had to be stopped. At first I was just keeping a journal, but I knew I would need more if I was going to prove my father’s guilt. I did some research and got a friend of mine to order me some things. At first it was just a small camera placed in sunglasses. Then my friend found a device that recorded. It looked like a pen so it wasn’t something that would catch notice, and then he found buttons I could have sewn onto my shirts, that if I pressed them they would record everything. It was all new and I have no clue how my friend found everything, but I will always be grateful for his help.”
“Who is this friend?” Cobra asked.
“Why?” Gio asked.
“Because if your father ever finds out about him… unless he already has… he could be in serious danger.” Cobra replied.
Shaking his head, Gio replied, “No. He’s fine. I’ve kept in contact with him and…”
“That doesn’t mean he’ll stay that way, Gio. We need a name. We need to get him here. From what you’ve said, your father isn’t stupid and has eyes and ears everywhere. We need his name.” Cobra insisted.
Gio nibbled on his lower lip, whispering, “Kimble Scott. He lives on the Poconos Boulevard.”
“He lives here? Shit! I thought you said you went ghost so no one could find you?” Cobra hissed.
Gio quickly replied, “I did, but like I already told you, Kim is really good at what he does. He said the second I went off grid there was only one place I would go and that was here. He’s been watching around town to make sure my father and his goons haven’t shown up. We never meet in person, but we do communicate in other ways.”
“Then we need to send him a message. We need to get him here and fast. I have a feeling your daddy may know where you are and he will be coming. We need to take away whatever leverage he has.” Pit stated firmly.
“And Teagan. My father knows there is nothing I wouldn’t do to keep him from harm.” Gio whispered.
“Why? Why were you willing to leave your other siblings behind, but you’d do anything for Teagan?” Cobra asked in confusion.
Looking directly in Cobra’s eyes, Gio replied, “He’s my twin. The connection with him is like nothing I can explain.”
Gio hissed as he tried to move up just a little, and Jude immediately went to him, saying, “Okay, question and answer time is over. Gio needs his pain medicine and rest in that order.”
Pit nodded, saying, “I want the guys all brought up to speed. I think I’m long overdue on having a talk with Clem. I need to know if there might be anything else he’s keeping from us.”
Gio quickly asked, “Can you find out if he knows anything about my family? Especially Teagan. I still don’t know if he’s dead or alive, and if he’s alive is he okay? Clem would never talk about my brother when I asked him about Teagan. Is he where my father can’t find him?”
“Hell, he might not have survived his injuries and Clem just didn’t want you to lose focus on staying alive.” Cobra stated.
Shaking his head, Gio replied, “No. If Teagan was dead I would know it.”
“How’s that?” Cobra asked.
Gio yawned, saying, “Like I said, Tea and I have a connection. I would know.”
“I’ll be sure to find out about all your family. Even your mother if you like?” Pit offered.
Cobra watched as a veil of sadness came over his sentience as he whispered, “I already know about my mother. She’s finally at peace. She killed herself soon after I was born.”
“Oh shit! I’m so sorry.” Jude said. “If you like, I’ll be happy to share mine with you. Hell, she’s adopted everyone here already so it’s like a done deal.”
Gio smiled as he closed his eyes, “Thank you, Jude. I hope to meet her soon.”
“Taco, you stay with our sentience and watch over him as he sleeps. I’m going to go with Pit while he meets up with the others.” Cobra stated.
“But what of the dragon heat? What happens if it hits you out of nowhere?” Taco asked.
Shaking his head, Cobra replied, “I’ll be fine. Taj has those herbs he takes. I’ll get some from him. It will hold things off until we can figure out what we’re all going to do. Just stay with Gio.”
Cobra watched as his maharishi shrank and then laid himself on Cal— Gio’s chest like a large tattoo. Gio gasped, saying, “I can feel him moving inside me.”
“Of course, you can. He’s your mate as much as I am.” Cobra stated.
Gio yawned, murmuring, “When I wake up, you guys are really going to have to explain all this to me, because I’m not having sex with a dragon, no matter how much I like him.”
Cobra left the room and found Pit standing there waiting for him. “You alright?”
Sighing heavily, Cobra replied, “I don’t really know how to answer that. I’ve waited to find my sentience for centuries, but for it to be the son of the godfather… my mind keeps going to what kind of things did Cal— Gio... do for his father and then I ask myself if I can live with whatever it is.”
“He saved your life, Cobra. While your mind is running wild, remember that tidbit. Also, you need to consider the reason he did those things and all he did to try and make things right. Ca— Gio is a good man. Everyone here loves him. There’s a reason for that.” Pit said as he left to go meet up with the others.
Cobra drew in a deep breath and let it our slowly. Pit was right. Gio did what he had to do, not just so he could survive, but so could his brother. It couldn’t be easy having Marceli as a father.
He could hear Pit explaining things to the guys as he walked into the kitchen. Blade saw him coming in, and said, “Dude, fate really knows how to pick ‘em. The son to a Godfather? Holy shit.”
“Shut the fuck up, Blade. Gio is a sweet sexy man who had a shit father.” Cobra snapped.
“I wasn’t dissing Calvin… I mean Giovani. I was just saying that your mate is in some
serious trouble. Marceli has big connections out there. Some of them are even in law enforcement. We all need to be on alert around here.” Blade gently replied.
Cobra patted Blade on the shoulder, “I’m sorry. I just need a bit more time to wrap my mind about everything I just learned about my sentience. He’s not who he says he is, he’s a multiplex elemental, and oh yeah, let’s not forget he’s the son to one of the most wanted men on the FBI’s list.”
“The one thing that makes all that shit mean nothing is the fact that he’s your sentience. That means the fates know he is a good man who needs a strong partner, and Cobra, you are one of the toughest SOBs on our team.” Nautical said from behind him.
Turning around, Cobra replied, “Thanks, Nautical. I appreciate that. I just need a few minutes to process everything.”
“I think it’s crazy that your sentience has been right here in this town since damn near the start, and you had no clue. I wonder if mine is too and I just didn’t know it?” Wiz said wistfully.
“You know it wouldn’t be a hardship to actually get to know the people in the town. Jude and I have been doing it since we got here and these people are all really nice. Some were a bit skittish at first, but now they are more relaxed and accepting of us. It’s your town. You should really know who all are here, and not just by name.” Bren suggested.
Pit nodded, “My sentience is right, and it’s something I was thinking about when we had the big celebration last year. Wiz has been putting together new files on all our residents. I want you guys to read them. Get to know the people, and from now on, we need to make ourselves more available to them. That means eating at the restaurant, shopping at the stores, getting our hair cut at the parlor.”
Jude quickly piped in, “Hell, that’s the best place to find out all the gossip. Like did you know that Old Man Timmons was gettin' some from Nancy Rutker at the hat shop, and it really pissed of Margret from the salon because—”
“Jude! We really don’t need to hear about Old man Timmons’ sex life.” Bren said with a shiver.
