EarthBorn (The Elemental Born Book 1) (4 page)

“Well…mmm,” she stuttered, barely looking at me. As our eyes met for a brief moment, I saw the sweet, kind girl I had cared for in my youth. She was still in there, and for that one perfect moment, I had been given the chance to look upon her again. But it didn’t last.

Closing her eyes briefly and taking a deep breath, she climbed out of the car before turning to look at me, her eyes once again full of anger. “Next time, don’t bother stopping.” Then she slammed the door, causing the whole car to shake before storming off up the drive and disappearing from my life… again.

~

Finally pulling into the garage almost four hours after I had dropped Frankie off, I made my way through the silent manor hoping to avoid any questions as to where I had been. That’s if Frankie hadn’t spilt his guts on the way up to his room. Passing my father’s office on the first floor, I heard him speaking with his Beta, Ryan. “So they have all selected a gift?”

“Yes, Alpha, and I have taken note of all the gifts they have chosen. Though I don’t have anything written down for Ethan yet,” Ryan informed him.

“What?”

“I know that he went down there to select one and Isaac told me himself that your son did indeed chose a gift, but as of yet, Ethan has not come forward to tell me what his choice was.”

And I wasn’t planning too. Picking up speed, I made my way as silently as I could pass his office, sure that my father had sensed me but had decided to let me be for the time being at least. No doubt I would be called to his office bright and early, though. It was crazy not to tell my father what I had selected, but somehow, with the reminder it gave me of Kaia, I didn’t want anyone to see it. I didn’t want to give anyone the chance of figuring out my true feelings.

I remember the last time we were truly friends, the day of her thirteenth birthday. I had gone to the cave to meet her, tightly clutching the white gold ring that had once belonged to my mother in my hand. Before she had died she had given it to me, telling me that I was to give it to someone special, my one true friend. That had been Kaia. Her face lit up when I presented her with it. Her eyes had shined with unshed tears. Lifting up on her tiptoes, she had placed a kiss to my cheek, the first and only time she had kissed me, and my wolf had demanded that I grab her and claim her as my own then and there. Thankfully, I’d had a good hold on my wolf even at that young age. Kaia was far too young to be mated, and so was I.

We had sat and talked for hours, hands twined together as I watched the ring catch in the moonlight above us at the entrance to the cave. A week later, when we were supposed to meet again, I had planned to ask her out, to tell her I no longer wanted to hide our friendship. But she wasn’t there. I waited for hours but she never came. She was absent from school also, though no one seemed to know why. Every night I would sneak off to the caves and wait, hoping that she might show up. Then I turned up one night two weeks later, to find an envelope, a note and the ring inside. The note wasn’t very long and I hadn’t believed she really meant the words she wrote at first, not until she came back to school and proved them.

Ethan, I don’t want to see you anymore. Wolves and Wiccans should not mix. I am just so much better than you.

She broke my heart. I spent the next year trying to avoid her while she spent it throwing insults and getting into fights with everyone she could. I think half the coven wanted to abandon her in the end.

Finally making it back to my room, I was relieved when I found my bed empty. Quickly stripped down, I climbed under the covers, closing my eyes, desperate to see something, anything but those beautiful green eyes that I knew would haunt my dreams forever. But as I knew would happen, they were all I could see.

Chapter Six

~

Kaia

Mad wouldn’t even begin to describe the look on Grace’s face when I turned to face the woman that had treated me as her own these past few years. She may be centuries old but you wouldn’t know it without looking deep into her ancient eyes. She had the body of a healthy thirty year old, with long raven locks that ran down her back and seemed to blow in an invisible wind when she cast spells. Hands on hips, her golden eyes glaring at me, routing me to the spot. I was in big trouble.

“I knew very well that you and Dyanna wouldn’t stay in tonight and I let it go, sending Tony and Matt to watch your back, but never did I expect to get a call from them telling me that you had run off, leaving Dyanna behind, and before they could catch up with you, you’d gotten into some stranger’s car. And worse of all, that was over three hours ago,” she raged. “What do you have to say for yourself?”

Moving over to the sofa, I collapsed into the soft cushions. As I explained why I had run from the pit, her eyes slowly softened. “Has there been? Has the demon already started searching for me?”

Taking a seat on the coffee table in front of me, she took a hold of my hands and spoke softly. “Not as far as we know, but I didn’t want to take any chances. I thought it was best to be cautious. The demon hasn’t been seen in this country for at least a decade that we know of, but that could easily change. I didn’t tell you so as not to worry you, you already have so much on your mind with performing this ritual four years early. Now I see that it would have been best if I had taken the time to fill you in on all the preparations. But that aside, you still need to explain why you got into some stranger’s car and where the hell you have been for the past three hours.”

“He wasn’t a stranger,” I mumbled, not really wanting to talk about Ethan but I knew I had to explain some things to her. “It was an old friend. He offered to give me a lift home but didn’t realise that I wasn’t staying with my mother. By the time I realised his mistake, we were almost there, so he dropped his friend off and turned back around to bring me here.”

“A friend huh?” Her voice was laced with scepticism. “And what would this friend’s name be?”

“Mmm… Well…”

“Kaia, you left over three hours ago with some boy I do not know. I expect you to, at least, give me his name.”

Nodding as I rose from the sofa, wanting to make a swift exit, I locked gazes with hers, swallowing the lump in my throat. “Ethan. His name is Ethan.” I saw recognition light in her eyes and quickly exited the room before she could ask any more questions, heading up to my room only to be ambushed again by Dyanna.

“What the hell, Kaia,” she stormed, slamming the door behind me the second I stepped through it. “How could you just run off like that and leave me there? Hannah wouldn’t give me a lift home and Greg was no help. I would have just spelled myself home but you know I can’t do that after I’ve had alcohol. I ended up with Tony and Matt dragging me back and Grace ranting at me for the hours that it took you to get your ass back here. Where the hell were you? I was worried sick.”

I hated that I had caused her so much trouble and worried her. I hadn’t meant too, I’d just needed to get the hell out of there. And then Ethan turned up and everything but him just vanished from my mind. “Sorry, Dyanna, I just had to get out of there before I lost it and someone noticed.”

“Noticed what?”

“The cracks in the floor beneath my feet. The slight trembling of the earth.”

“Oh. Shit, Kaia, I hadn’t realised,” she apologised, pulling me into a hug.

“It was low level but I had to get out before it escalated. With Greg talking about the Circle and what they had been doing out there, my mind just went on overload thinking of all the reasons they would be doing that. I just freaked out a little.”

“But you’re okay now?” she asked, looking me in the eyes.

“Yeah, I'm good.”

“You sure? You don’t seem it.”

“I'm fine, just tired.” Turning away from her, I began removing my shoes in a hope that she would take the hint and leave. She now knew why I had left, but so far she hadn’t asked who I had left with and I really didn’t want to get into that with her either.

“Okay. Well, I’ll see you in the morning,” she said, moving to open the door. Just as she was about to close it behind her, she turned back. “Do you still want me to be nearby tomorrow at the ritual?” Nodding, she granted me a small smile before shutting the door and leaving me alone on the last night of my life as I knew it. Tomorrow night I would more than likely be going to sleep in another bed, in a strange place, with a man I was tied to for the rest of my short life, and the blood from his impending death on my hands.

~

The day went by in a blur, the time seeming to rush past with the wind, leaving me with a sense of panic and despair. I wasn’t ready for this. Everyone kept telling me that with my protector I would be safer, have a better chance of living, but I didn't see it that way. No, I would never be safe. All I would be doing would be dooming another to the terrible fate that awaited me.

I’d gotten up to find the place empty but for Grace singing happily in the kitchen. Everyone else had gone out to finish preparing for the ritual. They wouldn't be there for it, but there were still plenty of things that needed doing before I could leave for the Circle in a few hours. We wanted to get there early so we could go over the spell one last time before the men arrived. I was terrified, not wanting anything to do with what I knew had to happen tonight, but I was glad for the distraction.

All night my dreams had been filled with images of Ethan. Of The past, the future we may have had if I had never been cursed with the powers I held. Because that's what they were… a curse.

"Did you hear anything I just said?" Grace’s fingers snapped in front of my face as I sat staring into nothing at the breakfast bar.

“Sorry, what did you say?” 

“I said, I think it would be best if you kept your head covered with your cloak while you do the spell tonight. I don't want everyone to see who you are, only your chosen protector and his family, pack or coven. They will need to know of the danger you are in too, and the importance of keeping you safe. I don't think any of those coming tonight would betray us, but I think it's best to stay on the side of caution… just in case.”

“Okay.”

How about we just didn't do it? Surely that would be the most cautious route to take.

As if reading my mind, she sighed, turning to face me. “Kaia, this really is the best option we have. Finding your protector will give you the best chance of survival. You'll see. When you meet your match, everything will fall into place.”

Somehow I doubted that. I had a feeling that tonight would be one of the worse nights of my life.

~

Stepping out of the car, my heart began to pound in my chest as Grace and I made our way up the path to the Circle. Normally Grace would have brought us straight here by magic, but with all the extra protection spells that had been placed around here, even she wouldn't have been able to get us anywhere close enough.

The lads had done a great job clearing the place, the path leading through the wood to the Circle was clear of brambles and now wide enough that no one would have to move in single file. As the path ended, we stepped out into the now wide open space. It looked so different. Before it had been a field of wildflowers, the top of the four rocks sticking up slightly above the tall flora, but now the whole space had been cleared and transformed into a rolling meadow with the element stones standing proudly in the centre. How many people were we expecting tonight? Surely they had gone a little overboard. 

“We have just two hours before the ritual, so I would say that gives us an hour before anyone shows up. So, let's get started.”

One final time we went over the incantation and then we set the offerings before each of the four stones. It was customary before a ritual was performed at the Circle for offerings to be set before the four stones, one for each Elemental. “It's kind of strange placing an offering to myself.” I laughed as I arranged cut flowers and gemstones before the Earth stone.

“Don't think as it as an offering to yourself. Think of it as an offering to those that have come before you, and prey that they guide you in the tests that are to come.”

Nodding, I carried on, spending more time on the Earth alter than any of the others. When we were done, I had just a few more minutes to get ready before the first guests arrived. Stripping quickly, I passed my clothes to Grace, who folded them neatly, placing them in a small holdall I had packed earlier in the day to take with me after the ritual, wherever that may be. Handing me the long full-length robe, I fastened it around myself, shivering from the cool evening air as the sun began to sink over the horizon. By the time everyone would have arrived the Circle would be in complete darkness if not for the moon.

“Underwear, Kaia,” Grace said, holding her hand out waiting for me to give her the one item of clothing I had yet to remove. Reluctantly I removed them, sliding them down my legs and kicking them up from the ground for her to catch. “Don’t give me that look,” she said when she caught the face I was pulling. This really was the worst experience of my life. “At least you have a cloak, that’s more than anyone else has ever gotten.”

“I know, but even with it on I feel so exposed.”

“You’ll be fine. Now let’s fix this hood and get your face concealed before anyone gets here.”

Five minutes later my face was completely hidden by the hood and Grace had placed a concealment charm on it just to make sure that anyone whose eyes were especially good in darkness – the
Were
’s for example – wouldn’t be able to see my face either.

Pulling me into a fierce hug, she asked, “You ready for this?”

“Not especially,” I whispered, smiling weakly.

“Well, I do believe our guests have begun to arrive.” Indicating behind me, I turned around to look back towards the path just as the males of the Eastern Coven arrived, all looking upbeat and happy to be there. “You better begin casting the Circle. You remember everything you have to do?”

“Yeah.” Moving away from Grace, I left her to great and welcome the men. They looked so excited, as if they wanted nothing more than to be there and have a chance to be chosen. Did they realise how lucky they would be not to be?

~

Ethan

The day didn’t start out great and it was only getting worse. First my father’s Beta, Ryan, had woken me up at stupid o’clock in the morning to tell me my father demanded that I present myself in his office within the hour. Thinking that I would make it there in plenty of time I’d decided to take a quick shower, but I wasn’t so lucky. Living in a house of this size – with the mass amount of people in it that there was – hot water was not always available. So, of course, it would be just my luck that a bunch of the females with young had decided to get up early so that they could take baths before their day of diapers and bottles commenced. After my freezing cold shower, I’d discovered that I had forgotten to put my laundry out in the hall for collection for the second week running, meaning that it took me a good fifteen minutes to find anything decent to wear. Then it took another ten minutes to track down Jane, to beg her to take pity on me and sneak it into the laundry room without her mother noticing so I wouldn’t have to wait another week to get it there. Jane’s mother was the formidable female in charge of house laundry. If you didn’t stick to the rules and have your basket out in the hall for 7 pm on a Friday night, it did not get done. I’d finally headed in the direction of my father’s office with just five minutes to spare when Chelsea stepped out into the corridor and blocked my path, a look of anger on her face.

“Who was that in your car last night? I saw you bring Frankie home and then you ran back to your car, and I know there was someone in the passenger seat, I saw them. I asked Frankie but he was too pissed to make sense, just blabbered something about ‘an itch’ or something like that. So come on, tell me. Who was she?”

“Who said it was a she? Could have been a guy.”

“Yeah right.” She laughed bitterly. “I know it was a female and I'm going to find out who. She from another pack or something? Because I know none of our females would dare mess with my male.”

Her male?
My father was so right. I should have ended this thing with her years ago.

I didn’t have time right now to deal with her. Looking down at my watch, I noticed that I was now five minutes late meeting my father.

“Chelsea, I have to go. I’ll talk to you later,” I said as I moved past her and down the hall as quickly as I could before she tried to stop me.

“No, we will talk now! Tell me who she is?” she screamed with rage.

My hands clenching into fists, knuckles whitening as I tried to calm my wolf. I was a dominant male, a future Alpha. She really shouldn’t be raising her voice at me like that. If I hadn’t been late I would have turned around and put her in her place, made her submit. But I was late, and the Alpha was pissed.

“You’re late,” he snapped before I even reached the door.

“Sorry, Alpha, I was held up.”