Gift from the Stone (Source of Elementra Book 2), page 43
Hesitantly making his way in behind Gaster, Codi looks between me and Oakly like we’ve set some sort of trap for him. Following the same thing I just did to Gaster, I try to get a feeling for what he’s, well…feeling. He’s staring at me intently while I search his aura for an answer. The color popped up almost as soon as I commanded my gift out, but for the life of me, I can’t figure out what this really dark, deep magenta means.
“Gaster, I can see the color clearly, but I’m lost here on picking it apart,” I announce.
“It seems you girls have Codi here nervous and so he’s a bit apprehensive. There’s a mingling of red, black, and purple in his aura,” Gaster explains and confirms the colors I was seeing as well.
“You told me they summoned me. Of course I’m nervous. I know who their Nexuses are and Ry said they’re trouble,” Codi declares, turning to scowl at Gaster.
“Gaster.” Me and Oakly snicker at the same time, not bothering to hold in our laughter.
“I don’t believe I used the word summoned, but anyhow, Willow, try to sense his element,” he says very unconvincingly, and looking at the tilt of his upper lip, he most certainly said summoned.
Swallowing down my laughter, I focus back on Codi, keeping in my snort when he begins shuffling on his feet. Pushing all jokes aside, I set my intentions to show me his element, and as I send out my gift, I picture his element coming to life before me.
I expected the same sort of results Gaster was explaining, like his hair changing. What I didn’t expect was his entire body to change right before my eyes.
Shimmering, like a mirage, Codi’s porcelain skin changes to match that of the bark on a tree. For a brief moment, it’s like I’m seeing Groot in front of me.
“Earth. He has an earth element,” I breathe astonishingly. As soon as I say the words, Codi blinks back to normal, a surprised look on his face.
“Very good, Willow.” Gaster beams.
“Do you mind if I try to sense your gift? I’m kinda using you as my guinea pig right now,” I ask Codi.
“Sure, but my gift isn’t one that can reach out or like a shifter. I have to touch someone,” he says, and Oakly immediately takes a step back toward me, smiling at Gaster.
It takes considerable mental strength not to just reach out and read her thoughts since she clearly knows his gift and I don’t, but I want to try this and that will just give it away.
“Fine, but just a little bit,” Gaster agrees, eyeing Codi seriously.
Focusing hard, I track Codi’s hand all the way to where he places it on Gaster’s shoulder. I have no clue what it could be, and just as I feel a little tingling of something, a massive yawn leaks out of me, breaking my concentration.
“Damn, I lost it. My yawn messed me all up,” I say, covering my mouth as another escapes me.
“It didn’t mess you up. That was his gift, child,” Gaster states groggily, shaking his body out as Codi removes his hand.
“What?” I ask.
“I’m a sleeper. I can put people to sleep with a touch,” Codi informs me.
“Holy shit, that’s incredibly cool and very frightening.”
“Luckily, your shifter nature and fire would burn right through a gift such as this, so nothing for you to be frightened about. Let’s take a break and get some coffee. No time for a nap,” Gaster declares, still shaking his head out as he makes his way to his bag.
Good to know I can’t just be put to sleep like some helpless princess…
“Want me to explain the similarities in my gift to Gaster’s while he does that?” Oakly asks.
“Absolutely, is it really hard?” My question, both laced with excitement and challenge, causes her to snort and link her arm with mine.
“No. You’re picking things up fast and now that you got an idea on how to sense something, it’ll come even easier. That’s the second part that my gift requires in close quarter tracking. I have to have a sense of the person or whatever it is, to look for them. Say I wanted to track down one of my guys in this building, it wouldn’t call for blood since that’s really only used for farther tracking, but I’d need to either be familiar with their magic or I’d need to be in possession of something of theirs,” she tells me.
“Okay, explain that a little more. You lost me at being familiar with their magic,” I confess.
“We’re all able to push our magic out to test the strength of someone else’s. It’s like getting a reading on how powerful they are compared to you. You remember how your magic responded to Dr. Evie when she touched you, how it spread out to examine hers?” she asks, and at my nod, she continues explaining.
“Well, that’s what I do, but instead of just testing, my magic memorizes theirs. I send my magic out with the intention of remembering that person’s, the feeling of it, the strength. Mentally, I really won’t remember or be able to tell whose signature is whose or what I have stored, but my gift will if I ever needed to find that person. I’d just have to think of them. Practice on me. Picture your magic flowing out of you and embracing mine,” she instructs.
Calling my magic forward, I push it out toward her, aimed at her chest since that’s typically where most everyone’s magic sits, and hold it there for a moment. It doesn’t take very long for a vibration to pass through me, alerting me to something.
“Good. I can sense you pushing your magic onto mine. You’ll be able to pick that up as well if someone were to do that to you, but now think about your magic giving mine a hug,” she directs.
And that’s what I do. I wrap mine around hers for a moment, like I’m cocooning her in a blanket of me, then I pull back.
“Perfect. Let’s try it on Codi in case our bond is making it easier,” she declares, sending him an evil smirk that has him pushing off the wall.
When he gives me a nervous little nod, I command my magic out, pinpointing it at his chest as well. I give it a few beats, not feeling the vibration like I did with Oakly’s, and then I command it to spread farther across his chest.
Unlike hers and mine, where our magic seems to kinda sit behind our heart, his is center focused where my elements and bonds are. The second the vibration starts, I wrap my magic around his, then call it back.
“Could you tell what I was doing?” I ask him.
“No, but that’s not an ability my gift would manifest. Not all gifts have that capability,” he answers honestly.
“Now what?” I turn to Oakly.
“Codi, will you go hide? Anywhere in the castle is fine, just obviously don’t leave,” she asks him.
A Cheshire smile crosses his face, and he rubs his hands together, excited for the challenge before taking off in a sprint, out of the room and down the hall.
“Here, girls, drink your coffees, then you can find him. It’ll give him a minute to hide good.” Gaster laughs, passing us our cups.
The perfection of the coffee makes me and Oakly hum at the same time and I grin over my rim at her.
“All right, so what do I do?” I ask, clapping my hands together after I chug my coffee and set it down.
“Close your eyes and think of Codi. Picture him. Then focus your mind on finding him. Set that as your intention. Tracking Codi. When you push your magic out, it’s going to feel like an imaginary string is pulling you toward him. Follow it,” Oakly says, coming to stand shoulder to shoulder with me as we stare in the direction he went.
Closing my eyes, I picture Codi in my mind just as he was moments ago. The feeling that comes over me reminds me of the one and only time I went fishing in my life on that godawful business retreat my father dragged me to.
It feels like I threw my line out, and I’m waiting for the tug on the other end. The moment my gift picks up his signature, the line draws tight, sending a small vibration through me, then begins to pull.
My eyes fly open, and I immediately take off speed walking down the hall, Oakly on my right giggling, Gaster on my left, encouraging me to continue following the feeling.
Around and around hallways we go until we climb the stairs to the second floor. For a moment, I’m jolted by the noise from the prisoners as we pass by them, their snarls, curses, or begs to be freed, but I ignore it all as best as I can, single-mindedly focused on following the string.
Coming up to a shut door at the end of the corridor, I immediately sense it’s not just Codi in that room, so with a huge smile on my face, I push through and am met with four grins and an unamused Codi, who’s sandwiched between them.
“Found you,” I announce cheerily.
“Using our E.F. members to practice your tracking, are you, Primary?” Caspian asks.
“Yes, and I did it.” I beam.
They all four move as one, surrounding me. Tilting my chin up with his finger, I meet Corentin’s bright whiskey eyes.
“Good job, princess.” He praises.
Fuck, I wonder if they’ll practice with me.
Maybe naked…
Twenty-Three
Willow
It’s gorgeous.
As I step out of the transport, my feet sink slightly, and my mouth gapes open at the stunning beach in front of me. The white powdery shoreline stretches out in a graceful curve, decorated with shiny seashells that glimmer like scattered jewels beneath the sun. Crystal-clear waves lap tenderly against the towering cliffs to my right, their rhythmic melody echoing through the air.
Following the sound of the water hitting weathered stone, I see the vague silhouette of the mountain ranges in the distance, then glancing to my right, it’s polar opposite. Sand stretches on, meeting the oncoming blue abyss.
“Stand right here, little wanderer, just like this,” Draken giddily demands, moving me to stand with my legs spread about shoulder length apart.
“Draken, what in the world are you doing?” I giggle as he continues to nudge my feet apart.
“You’re now standing in both Terian and Aquaria.” He beams.
My eyes widen as I look around, taking in the scene behind me. I was so mesmerized by the beach I didn’t bother turning around.
“Marka is truly right on the line between the two territories,” I breathe.
The large and lush trees that take over most of Terian are thinned out at the shoreline and they thicken the more into the territory they go, whereas on the Aquaria side, they continue to thin out until there’s nothing but beach shore and sand dunes.
“Exactly on the line. The community is right up the road in the least forested area. Let’s get a move on. We’re in and out quickly,” Corentin demands, placing his hand on my lower back, steering me onto the path that’ll lead into the community.
After spending the entire day at Rebel Castle yesterday not finding much more useful information, Corentin decided we’d have breakfast then head straight here to find Layton’s parents, or at least hopefully find them.
I didn’t talk to the kid yesterday, but seeing him broke my heart. I watched from outside his cell as Tillman and Draken went in to inform him we were coming here today, and the look of both hope and heartbreak on his face was so sad, I wanted to cry for him.
He only relaxed a little when Draken commanded it. I understand what it feels like to live in constant anxiety, so I feel for the boy.
“So we’re looking for a house with a pink door. Are we just going to walk through the streets until we find it?” I ask.
“You’ll see in a second, Primary, but this little town is pretty much just one street,” Caspian says.
And of course he’s right. As we walk around a bend in the well-worn path, there’s a single street that continues on straight and on either side are houses, along with a few other buildings.
This is an extremely small community.
A few people peek outside their doors and windows as we pass by, but for the most part, the shifters who are out and about just simply wave or go on about their business. I’m not picking up any thoughts that would lead me to believe they’ve fallen into the hands of the Mastery, which is a good sign.
As a bright-ass pink door catches my eye from two houses down, I giggle. Yesterday when the guys asked Layton to describe his home so we’d find it easier, a childlike smile broke out across his face as he told them the story about how his mom really wanted a pink door, and when his fathers said no, she made her own paint, did it herself, and dared any of them to touch it.
The fact that she did it anyway, then gave them some sass, brings me so much joy. It seems like something so silly to say no to, so I’m completely on her side and I don’t even know her.
“I think I should knock,” I announce, which is answered with an echoing of nos.
“You’ll stay right in the middle of us where you are, princess. In and out like I said,” Corentin declares and the others murmur their agreements.
“You’re all being ridiculous, but fine.” I roll my eyes.
I don’t have the slightest feeling that anything is off in this little community, thankfully, but I’m not surprised by their normal overprotectiveness.
Corentin approaches the door as the four of us stand a few feet behind him, and I give him an incredulous look as he bangs on the damn thing like we’re getting ready to break it down.
If I were in there, I’d ignore his ass.
“Who are you?” a deep voice hisses out from behind the partially open door, and I feel all the guys move closer to me.
“Corentin Vito. I need your Nexus and Primary to come with me,” he responds just as forcefully.
“Tough shit. We’re not going anywhere.” The man sneers. Before he can slam the door in Corentin’s face, a softer voice filters through to my ears.
“What’s this about?” she asks.
“We shouldn’t discuss this here. You all just need to—” Corentin starts again, but I push past the others to stand next to him.
“Sira, right?” I ask softly.
“How do you know my name?” she asks, her eyes studying me like she’s searching for some sort of inkling as to if we know each other or not.
“Layton told us,” I say quietly.
The demeanor of both of them instantly changes, and it’s as if I watch them age in front of me. Their faces wrinkle in concern and heartbreak as their auras grow dark and gloomy. Sira’s eyes fill to the brim with tears ready to fall at any second, and the man’s shoulders slump as his pleading gaze bounces back and forth between me and Corentin.
“Do…do you know where he is?” she whispers.
“Yes, and he’s safe. That’s why we need you to come with us,” I urge.
She turns around, rushing back through her house, and I hear her calling out the names of the rest of her men. It wouldn’t surprise me if they came out here fired up, hearing her scream their names that way. If I called out to my guys like that, they’d come out gifts blazing.
Linking my arm through Corentin’s, I pull him a couple steps back, out of the center of the doorway as I hear the rumble of footsteps coming back toward the door. Sira obviously told them what little we’ve told her because all three men who now join us are wearing looks of hope and disbelief.
“You know where our son is?” one of them asks.
“We do, but we’re not discussing this here. We don’t know who lives amongst you in this community. I give you my word, he’s safe and we’re taking you to see him. We will discuss everything with you there,” Corentin declares, growing impatient that they’re not just listening to him. But I can hear and sense their hesitation. After watching what happened to their son, it’s no surprise they believe this is some sort of trap.
“You’re referring to the people who took him? None of them live with us. They’ve never returned since that day, and we’ve never been able to find where they went,” Sira pleads. Her mind is running wild between believing we’re really here to help or we’re leading them all to their deaths.
“I know we aren’t being very forthcoming and this is confusing for you, but I promise we’re not here to harm you in any way. It’s just that it’s not safe to openly discuss anything that he’s been through since he’s been gone, so it’ll need to wait,” I say, reaching out to grasp her hand.
I meant it as a reassuring gesture, trying to push some comfort to her, but as our skin touches, a jolt zaps across my mind, and I think intently, unconsciously about Layton. Her forcefully hitched breath causes me to pull my hand back quickly and step into my men as hers steps closer to her.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t—” I start.
“She’s telling the truth. They have our Layton. You’ll take us to him now, right?” she manically asks, reaching back out and grabbing my hand with both of hers.
“Sira, are you okay?” one of her guys asks, pulling her away from me.
“Yes. When she touched me, I saw images of Layton with these men. They have him. He’s okay,” she cries out.
I cast my wide eyes to my men, landing on Tillman, looking for an answer. We knew we could send each other stuff and things to the guys, but neither of us has broadcasted anything to other people.
Fuck me, I think I, we, I don’t know, just unlocked a new ability from our bond.
“Later, little warrior,” Tillman grunts.
“Let’s get the fuck out of here,” Caspian demands, pulling me into him.
“We’re going to transport you to where your son’s being held. You’ll have to hold on to the two of us the entire time till we pass through the ward. Once we’re in, there’s no way for you to leave without one of us, just to warn you,” Tillman states as he and Draken step up and stretch out their arms.
I force down the growl trying to escape me when Sira lays her hand on Draken because my very human side can obviously see and knows she has to, but my dragon does not like that shit at all.
Draken’s grin screams his pleasure at my jealousy and possessive claim. It’s not helping.
The battle over my feelings eases as Corentin steps in front of me, blocking my sight, but they swiftly turn inappropriate as he presses into me, sandwiching me between Caspian.
