Elemental Fae Academy: Book Two: A Reverse Harem Paranormal Romance Page 8

  A shadow whose thirst for Claire crawled inside me, sinking its inky claws into our bond and inching ever closer to my mate.

  No! I shoved it back, but it grew more powerful—hungrier—with every second. It reminded me of a black hole, spinning and sucking, needing to feed off the spirit energy thriving around us.

  If that thing hurt Claire, I’d never forgive myself.

  And I needed all my strength to battle the presence overtaking my being.

  I will not become your puppet, I growled, determined.

  We’ll see, the foreign presence taunted, pressing deeper.

  Fuck you, I seethed.

  Laughter filtered through my conscious, the perpetrator amused.

  Are there two? I wondered, dazed. It felt too energized to be a lone entity. Too consuming. Too… familiar.

  The identity kept swirling in and out of my thoughts, too powerful for me to hold on to for long. Which was precisely why I had to close myself off from both Claire and the evil being threatening to take control of my spirit.

  I slid into the recesses of my mind, preparing my blockade, hell-bent on strengthening my reserves before I came out swinging.

  But it would take time.

  Days.

  Weeks, maybe.

  A month.

  And I had to say goodbye to my Claire. At least for a little while.

  I sighed as the last ledge of the barrier began to form, my heart aching for the bond I had to lock away. Not broken, just closed. For now. Until I was strong enough to protect us both.

  Don’t give up on me, Claire, I whispered to her. I’ll reach out again soon. I promise.

  Darkness descended on the message, following the chain to the woman I’d allowed into my heart. I screamed in rebellion, using the last vestiges of my power to cut the fae off and blast the asshole backward.

  An “Oomph” followed, telling me I’d won.

  For now.

  A temporary victory, one that would only enrage the being more.

  Who are you? I wondered, infuriated that I couldn’t identify the familiar brush of power.

  Ah, it didn’t matter.

  As soon as I recharged, I’d destroy whoever tried to subdue me. I was the rightful heir to the Spirit Kingdom. I’d denied it all my life, but now it was time to embrace it. All I needed was to harness that strength and use it.

  Soon, I swore. Soon.

  The last vestiges of my cage assembled, I shut my eyes and closed myself off from everything and everyone.

  The battle had not yet begun.

  But when it did, I’d land on top.

  I always did.

  Claire

  A Little Over a Month Later…

  The pixie chirped at me in delight, causing my lips to curl. “I have no idea what you’re saying,” I told it. That only seemed to make the little fairy more excited. She began to dance, her dust flying around her and causing me to laugh.

  A second appeared beside me, this one conjured by Elana, and the two began chattering in their little language while flying in hypnotic circles across the dining area.

  This had become my favorite part of our sessions—the creation of life through magical means.

  Elana’s energy warmed mine, her smile one of approval as I called another pixie into formation with my mind, this one a male. The two females immediately drew near, their intrigue evident.

  “That’s new,” Elana murmured.

  I lifted a shoulder. “I have a few males to draw on for inspiration.” Five, to be exact. Six if I included River. Sol, Vox, Titus, and Cyrus had become permanent fixtures in my life, with Exos a nightly feature in my dreams. The only female I’d grown close to over the last month was Elana, but I couldn’t exactly call us friends. She was more like the fairy godmother I never knew I needed.

  She laughed as the females began to chase the male around the room. He squeaked out some kind of command they didn’t appear interested in following, and beat his wings harder to get away.

  “Is that how you feel daily?” Elana mused. “With all those male fae circling your powers?”

  My cheeks reddened. “They don’t chase me around.” They just, sort of, followed me everywhere. Titus waited downstairs for our session to end, and we’d likely be intercepted by Vox or Sol on the way back to Spirit Quad. “They’re a little protective.”

  Not in an overbearing kind of way, but in a responsible manner.

  Their defensive energy had heightened over the last month while I continued to master my elements. It was as if they didn’t like the attention I brought upon myself, but I couldn’t help it. The whole point of the Academy was to learn.

  “You have five elements,” Elana murmured. “It’s not surprising you’re attracting mates from different sides.”

  “Oh, it’s not like that.” At least, I was trying very hard for it not to be like that. Titus kept me well satisfied, and my spirit still very much belonged to Exos. “We’re all just friends.”

  The words came out stilted, but I had to believe them.

  While Exos once said I’d likely need a mate for each element, I was determined to prove him wrong. Five men? I almost laughed.

  Or maybe I wanted to cry.

  Shaking my head, I focused on the pixies and created another male to join the foray, which caused all three to halt their dance about the room.

  Louder chirping sounded as the original male squared off with the newcomer.

  Hmm, seemed the little guy didn’t like competition.

  It made me frown. Titus never acted like that. Actually, none of the guys did.

  So yeah, just friends. That was why Sol never brought up the Solstice Ball again and why Vox seemed to only open up to me while in the kitchen. And Cyrus, well, he was just an ass. Nothing new there.

  The pixies continued yipping while I yawned.

  “Tired?” Elana asked, her gray eyes holding a touch of motherly concern.

  I nodded. “I didn’t sleep well last night.” Or the night before. Or the night before that. And, well, for the last four or five weeks.

  Exos came to me every night, causing me to awaken with a broken heart every morning. I could feel our connection wilting with each passing day, the bond corroding over time. Cyrus said it was a result of Exos closing me off, that if we didn’t rekindle the relationship soon, it would wither and die and we would never be linked again.

  My chest ached at the thought.

  But I had no idea how to find him. He’d shut me out with a few whispered words about not giving up on him. Well, that would never happen. However, it would have been nice to be given a clue about his situation.

  “Are you all right, Claire?” Elana studied me in that uncanny way of hers. “You’re making great strides in your control. I mean, that evidence is dancing on the table.”

  I forced a smile at the show and shook my head. “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just been a long month.”

  “Exos,” she said, giving a knowing nod as my gaze flew upward to hers. “I had wondered why he would leave in such a crucial time of your relationship. Perhaps you should call him home?”

  Such an innocent question underlined in genuine concern.

  Cyrus thought she might be behind Exos’s kidnapping, but after five sessions with her, I knew he was wrong. This woman cared too much about peace and finding harmony among the fae to harm another. She often cried when we had to dismiss the pixies, and they weren’t even real.

  I sighed. “I miss him.” But I can’t tell you why or where he is. Because even if I knew her to be innocent, I couldn’t bring myself to betray Cyrus’s trust. He was busy working this case from other angles, not that he seemed to be getting anywhere.

  But if anyone cared for Exos as much as I did, it was Cyrus.

  So I would trust him until he gave me a reason not to.

  “Call him home,” she said again. “Or tell Cyrus to.” A knowing glimmer creased her eyes into a smile. “Or I can tell him to, if you prefer. I know how intimidatin
g Cyrus can be.”

  “Oh? I think he’s positively charming,” I deadpanned.

  She laughed outright. “Isn’t he just?” She swiped a tear from the edge of her gaze and shook her head. “He’s a stubborn one; that’s for sure.”

  “Understatement,” I muttered. “I’m sure he means well, but yeah, he’s a force of nature.”

  Elana nodded. “Yes. He’s definitely his father’s son. Strong-willed and dominant and unfailingly loyal.” She finished her tea and set it off to the side with an indulgent smile. “You may not want to hear it, but you’re very much like your mother, Claire. The history everyone speaks about her is tainted in so many ways.” She lost some of her sparkle, her features falling. “The Ophelia I knew was determined, smart, and so very talented.”

  I leaned forward, intrigued to hear more about the mother I didn’t know. Elana had mentioned her in passing a few times but never provided much context. This was the first time she’d indicated any doubts about my mother’s legacy. “What do you mean by ‘tainted’?” I asked.

  She sighed, waving her hand and dissolving the pixies to dust on the table. Normally, this was when she shed a tear, but she seemed too distracted by the past to see the present.

  “There’s so much about those days that remains unclear. I mean, for one, they never found your mother’s body. And Mortus sometimes swears he can sense her.”

  “Wait… I thought he killed her?” Why would he talk about sensing her if he knew she was dead? Did he believe in ghosts or something?

  “Oh, he claims to have killed her, yes. But no one actually found her remains.” She pinched her lips to the side, and then sighed. “Honestly, I don’t know why I even bother speculating. It was an impossible fight for her to survive, and her body likely dissolved beneath the energy backlash of a failed bond. But the plague that followed doesn’t really make any sense. Fae dropped to the earth in waves, their souls snatched from their bodies as if sucked up into the clouds. It was all very suspicious, for lack of a better term.”

  Elana swallowed, her hands clasping tightly over the ornate table of her dining room. Ghosts danced in her gaze, painting a haunting history one had to live through to understand, and it scattered goose bumps down my arms.

  “Chaos rained down upon us, Claire. For weeks. It’s truly hard to say what did and did not occur.” Her silver eyes met mine, her expression grim. “Your mother’s infidelity is absolute and you’re living proof, but circumstances of that decision seem, well, harsh.”

  “The plague is spreading to the Earth Fae.” I’d witnessed it with my own eyes. Two Earth Fae students had gone home ill in the last month, leaving Sol even more aloof each time. He seemed to blame himself for surviving, and I saw the worry in his gaze for each of his classmates. I wished there was something I could do, even if it was just to talk to him, but whenever I brought it up, he changed the topic to training or some sort of instruction. Then he’d find a way to excuse himself.

  “It is spreading, yes,” Elana confirmed quietly. “They blame the Spirit Fae, but there’s not many of us left to take credit. Which is why I’m so focused on harmony—because I believe the cause isn’t a shattered bond at all, but distrust amongst fae kind. Rather than work together to survive, we’ve divided our elements into kingdoms and fight for power amongst ourselves. It’s why you’re so important, Claire. You hold the key to bring us all together.”

  “Because I have all five elements,” I whispered.

  “Exactly.” Her shoulders relaxed, her lips curling. “It’s not a discussion for today, dear Claire, but you must see your potential. There are those who wish to destroy it. I would prefer we cultivate it. It could be the key to saving us all.”

  I wasn’t sure how I felt about either alternative. One clearly equated to death, while the other hinted at the possibility of being used.

  “Chancellor.” Titus’s voice came from the doorway, his tone modest, while his fire warmed my skin.

  “Yes, yes, it’s time.” Elana waved her hand, standing.

  “I didn’t mean to rush you,” he said, sounding contrite.

  “Oh, no, we’ve already gone over. It seems to be a continuous habit.” She winked at me. “Same time next week?”

  I nodded. “Yes, please.”

  “Excellent.” She beamed at Titus. “You can have your mate back now, Fire Fae. Be good to her.”

  “I will, ma’am,” he promised, his arm settling around my lower back as I stood.

  Elana gave a wave, showering the room in dust that grew into an army of new pixies. “We have a dinner to prepare, little ones,” she announced, her focus having already shifted to the next task at hand.

  Titus and I left in the middle of her instructions, his lips curled in amusement. “You should do that in the Spirit Quad. They could cook all our meals.”

  “I think Vox enjoys the kitchen too much to allow that to happen,” I teased. “But maybe they could help us clean?” The boys were messy. Especially Sol, who seemed to track loose stones everywhere he went.

  “True.” He brushed his lips against my temple, guiding me out of the house and down to the trail that led us back to campus. “How was your lesson?”

  “Good.” I frowned, thinking about what Elana had revealed. “Actually, it was enlightening.”

  “How so?”

  “I don’t think she has Exos.” I’d told Titus about Cyrus’s suspicions last month, not wanting to keep anything from him. He’d agreed with the logic, saying that, while dangerous, it made sense to get closer to her to see what I could learn. And today seemed to have taught me more than the last several weeks combined. “Did you know my mother’s body was never found?”

  He considered for a long moment and slowly shook his head. “I’ve never heard that.”

  “Elana said Ophelia’s body was never found and that Mortus claims to sense her sometimes,” I said, thinking out loud as I played the scenario through my thoughts. “What if Ophelia is still alive?”

  Cyrus chose that moment to materialize, his water element heavy in the air. “Well, that’s an interesting theory,” he replied, causing Titus to scowl.

  “I fucking hate when you do that,” he muttered.

  “Ditto,” I agreed.

  Both men cocked their brows.

  “It means I agree with Titus,” I clarified.

  “Of course you do,” Cyrus said, smirking. “Regardless, I need you to come with me, and we can continue discussing your little theory along the way.”

  Little theory. What an ass. “Titus and I have plans.” We didn’t, but it was the principle of the matter. “So go mist off somewhere else.” I started walking again, but Cyrus’s response froze me midstep.

  “I have a lead on Exos, Claire.”

  Cyrus

  Claire rotated so quickly that Titus had to grab her hip to keep her from falling over. “What?”

  “I don’t like repeating myself.” She’d heard me just fine. “Will you come with me or not?”

  “We will come with you,” Titus said while Claire’s mouth moved silently over words I couldn’t hear.

  “No.” I met the Fire Fae’s gaze. “Only Claire.”

  “Why?” he demanded.

  “Because we need to go to Spirit Kingdom.” And only a Spirit Fae could survive there without lasting consequences.

  Titus’s answering expression said he knew it, too, his face going white at the prospect. “You can’t be serious,” he breathed.

  “It’s a solid lead.” Mainly because I’d followed Mortus there the other night and there could only be one reason he’d chosen to venture into the dead kingdom—Exos. “We’ve searched the Academy grounds, and we’ve even combed through the enchanted forest. Where we haven’t been is the Spirit Kingdom. And it would explain how my brother was able to cut himself off from everyone.” There were elements in the dead realm that could facilitate such a trick. It would also mean he might be harvesting leftover energy to put up a fight.

  “Y
ou need her to help you sense his presence.” Titus sounded horrified.

  “I do,” I admitted. “I tried myself last night and came up empty-handed. Maybe Claire will find something different.”

  “At the risk of her own life,” Titus managed to say, his teeth clenching. “The Spirit Kingdom is a wasteland.”

  “True.” On both accounts. “So I guess the question is, how much is the little queen willing to risk for her spirit mate?” I arched a challenging brow at her. “Are you strong enough, Claire? Or would you rather leave him to suffer until it’s too late?”

  “That’s not fair,” she whispered.

  “What’s not fair is my brother lying in the ground somewhere,” I argued. “He’s dying, Claire. And every day we pretend he’s fine is another day closer to his demise. So either—”

  “You’re the one who said we should go on like nothing happened,” she snapped, squaring off with me. “You won’t go to the Council. You won’t corner Mortus. You are the one killing him, Cyrus. Not me.” She sent a blast of air straight into my chest, sending me a step backward. “Don’t you dare talk to me about his death as if I’m the one causing it. You’re not the one going to bed every night and dreaming of him and waking every morning trying to find him in the connection he turned off.”

  I rubbed the spot where she’d assaulted me and grimaced. “You might not agree with my methods, but I—”

  “I don’t agree with you popping up and acting like I won’t do everything I can to save him. You want me to go to the Spirit Kingdom? Fine. I’ll go. But I don’t need you to provoke me into it. I want to save him just as badly as you do, if not more. So fuck you and your mind games, Cyrus. Either take me or mist off.”

  Titus gaped at her, shocked by her outburst.

  But all I could do was smile.

  That was the fighter I required. The woman beneath the elements who would do what was needed to save those under her care. No tears. No excuses. Just a warrior ready for battle.

  And maybe my methods made me an asshole, but they’d worked.