Origin of Angels: Elemental Legacy Book 1 (3 page)

I leveled a hard stare her way. “Prove it.”

She studied my face so long I was sure she wouldn’t say anything else. Just when I was ready to walk away, she said, “What do you mean?”

Anger and worry exploded from me. “Send me back!”

Her head started shaking before I could finish my sentence. “Travis, it isn’t a good —”

“The Order isn’t just Lambert.” My feet itched to move, so I paced in front of her. “You can’t outwait him, and I’m beginning to think you can’t outwit him. He learned from his father who learned from h
is father, who learned from ... you get the idea.” I stopped to stare at her. “He’s planning something big. I don’t want the man to be able to raise his replacement ...” I didn’t want to release my greatest fear, but I needed to. “... especially if it’s my son.”

Giving a shiver, Rayla nodded. “They experimented on you, too?”

I frowned, disbelief tightening my body. The time had come to face the truth. “If you call making me rape women to keep them alive an experiment.”

I STOOD, SPEECHLESS FOR A WHILE. Believing Travis should have taken longer, but considering what Lambert planned for me and Roger Wayne, the idea really wasn’t a stretch. I’d been marched up to a corrupt priest, who married the two of us without my say-so. I barely escaped my wedding night when I ran for it. Heath had caught me, and he and I had come to an agreement which didn’t involve Roger at all. I’d promptly reneged on our deal. Yeah, I knew what it was like to have regrets. With gentle fingers, I reached for Travis. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”

He released a huge breath, his tawny hair puffing out around him. I wasn’t so sure I liked his new look. He’d always worn his hair long, but he’d cropped the sides close to his skull with the very top pulled back into a small ponytail. It had darkened, too. He looked so much different now. He stepped away when I reached for him again. “How long has it been? Human time?” he asked impatiently, shaking me off.

I sniffed, taking a moment to answer. He wasn’t going to like what I had to say.
“Perhaps a year or two. We haven’t been here that long.”

An impatient noise shot out of him. “Lambert’s got Valen to tell him how to run things now. I can’t believe you’re gonna give him time to strategize. We’re wasting efforts here. Without Elementals, the fae are weak. He’s got nearly all the supply. How many Elementals did you end up with?
A few hundred? He has tens of thousands, and now he’s got fae ... you do the math.”

Even though I didn’t want to admit it, Travis was right. Worry about not acting soon enough swirled within me. The biggest deterrent to rushing in was without a good plan, we’d put people at risk unnecessarily. I did my best to stay calm, but Travis was pushing my buttons, as usual. “I understand the gravity of the situation, but we don’t want to make a mistake we can’t undo.”

He grunted. “I’m not asking you to do anything other than let me go. If I knew the way, I’d already be outta here.”

I cocked a hip. “And what are you going to do when you get back to the human realm? If Valen is running the Order, he’ll use his warriors to track you. You won’t stand a chance. They’ll snap you up in a nanosecond. We don’t have any more sanctuaries. I’m sure Lambert would love to get his hands on you again.”

Travis frowned as if he would argue but soon released a loud sigh. “There has to be a way to avoid the trackers. We don’t even know if I have Elemental abilities. They might not notice me at all.”

“Do you want to find out the hard way?” I gave a smirk. “Trust me; it sucks.”

IF THE RISK MEANT GETTING BACK to the human realm before it was too late to make a difference, I would take the difficult path. Too bad Rayla didn’t want to give me the option. I would have to look for help getting out somewhere else.
Best to placate her. “You’re probably right,” I said, instilling my voice with resignation.

She gave a small smile, clasping my forearm. “I know w
hat it’s like to miss someone ... to want to move heaven and earth to find the person, but rushing in could put her in danger. I’ll ask Heath what he thinks when he gets back.”

Her sad smile softened my resolve, but only slightly. I’d give her a day. If nothing happened, I’d find another way. “Okay.”

She bit her lip, eyeing me up and down. “That’s it?”

I chewed on the inside of my cheek. Why did she have to know me this well? “I’m not giving up, if you’re thinking I should.”

She patted my shoulder. “I would never be so foolish.” With a puff of breath, she gave a pout. “Come back to the meeting.”

With her big gray eyes trained on me, how could I refuse?
“Fine.” When she smiled prematurely, I contin-ued. “But I’m outta there if I have to listen to Ainessa suggest herself as my bondmate one more time. I’m not into her at all, so don’t even consider it.”

Rayla grinned. Ainessa was a problem without a good solution, even for my enterprising sister. Her response provided some relief, but I didn’t know if Rayla had the final say in any of this, even if she was queen. “I wouldn’t sic her on you, bro. I’ve got your back.”

As she moved to leave, I placed my hand on her back to stop her. “When exactly do you plan on testing my powers?”

She gave a crooked smile. “Why do you think I came to get you? You’re next on the agenda.” She gave me a friendly shove to the chest. “You would have figured it out if you’d have bothered looking.”

I laughed. True enough. I hadn’t even glanced at one of the four pages she’d put in front of me. “You know how much I hate reading.” I could read fine. I simply disliked anything related to school. I used to hang out with my friends as much as possible to avoid homework, but mostly home. With my parents regularly absent and a houseful of females, who needed it? All they ever wanted me to do were chores anyway.

Rayla scoffed. “How did you manage to graduate?”

A nostalgic tickle settled into my heart. I missed bantering with her, so I took the opportunity. “I paid attention, even if I didn’t like doing it. Old Ms. Carron used to go red-faced every time I aced a test. It was the only way I passed her class. She even made me retake the final with the questions all jumbled up.” I grinned, letting it spread over my face. “I told her homework was for kids who needed reminding.”

My sister nodded along as if she experienced the same thing. “Eww, I hated her. She was so mean.” Rayla straightened, her expression brightening. “You were the one who keyed her car!”

“No, I didn’t! That was Brody.” The humor on her face vanished. I took one look at her and cringed. “Man,” I said, backpedalling as fast I could. “I’m sorry, Rayla. I didn’t mean to —”

I RAISED A HALTING HAND, PUTTING Travis out of his misery. “I know. It’s okay.” The memories of my old boyfriend didn’t haunt me as badly as they used to, but I didn’t like thinking about him at all. “I’m pretty sure we’ve established you’re smart, which is why I need your help. I’m worried. Something’s not right, but no one will tell me what’s going on. Even Heath can’t get anybody to talk.” I turned toward the meeting hall but hesitated. Maybe I did have the morsel which would get him to stay. I let the silence hover for a while for effect. “I was hoping you could spy for me.”

His lips twitched. “You want me to be a nark?”

He was making fun, but I was serious. Not so smooth, after all. My fists came up to cover my eyes before I let out a hearty groan. “I’m supposed to be this great leader, but I’m totally not. Everyone says they’ll help, but when it comes down to it, they don’t want to give up what they consider theirs to get something different. I’m beginning to think combining the realms was the wrong decision.”

He gave a vigorous shake of his head. “They would bicker no matter where they were. Bringing them closer together is a good idea. Give them time. They’ll realize
it’s better.”

I sniffed, not so sure. “Some already do, but I notice people. A lot of them aren’t happy.”

We walked slowly toward the hall, neither of us in a chatty mood. Travis seemed trapped in his thoughts, just as I was. I couldn’t seem to focus on anything but fixing the contention among the people I was supposed to lead.

To take my mind off, I focused on the distance. As was always the case in Faeresia, the afternoon was bright, the breeze soft, and the temperature a perfect seventy-seven degrees, but ahead two lords argued. Straining to hear the conversation, I cut my eyes to Travis, who kept his attention pinned forward as if he didn’t notice the ruckus.

As we got closer, the two men’s voices became clear. One of them was Luke. With fae traditions for maintaining the same style within a house, it was hard to tell people apart from a ways off. When he came into view, his face was tight with anger. I cringed. What was he doing out of the meeting?

His voice boomed. “I don’t care what you think is your right. Things have changed.”

The other man was from the house of air, if his tawny eyes and hair were any indication. He frowned at Luke. “You are a traitor. You should be rotting in a cell, not representing your people.”

Uh-oh.
I quickened my step until I was close enough to speak without shouting. Neither of the men acknowledged me. “That’s not your decision to make,” I said, full of annoyance. “We do not discriminate based on past mistakes. Everyone made a decision to be here. We also promised to work together. Whatever disputes you may have had in the past have no place in our future.” I swept my arm, circling to highlight the mountain valley I created. “All of this came from your realms. Isn’t it better this way? Isn’t integration preferable to what you had before?”

The man with Luke appraised me with shrewd eyes. “Not much has changed as far as I am concerned.”

I frowned, trying to put a royal twist to it. “What is your name?”

His tone remained belligerent, but at least he used my title.
“Braiden, your highness.”

My heart stuttered as heat shot up my neck.
Of course. No wonder he was angry. Even though I’d never been introduced to him, he definitely knew who I was. I’d stolen his bondmate from under his nose. Well, Heath had been the one to actually take Jessica back to the human realm, but I could understand his point. Jessica had been given to Braiden so Taylor could court me. Braiden had been an underlord then, and as far as I knew, he still hadn’t moved up in rank. With our current predicament, there was no way for the lords to advance. I was hoping to find a resolution to the bonding problem that could appease all involved, if such a thing were possible. “Please, call me Rayla,” I said with a tentative smile. He frowned while Luke offered me his signature smirk. I promptly ignored him, turning my attention back to Braiden. I didn’t know why, but I wanted this man to like me. My fingers found his upper arm. His muscles twitched uneasily under my light touch, but I didn’t let his reaction deter me. “Would you like to participate in our planning meeting?”

Braiden flinched as if I’d punched him. He studied me for a few moments before saying, “Yes.”

I smiled, clasping his forearm to pull him into motion. “Come, then. Your ideas and thoughts are welcome.” When I looked to him, his dubious expression nearly made me laugh. I didn’t dare, though. I’d already offended him enough for the day. The Uldranians were proud and held to tradition more than any of the other houses. If I could win over both Taylor and Braiden, perhaps others would relax.

When Luke didn’t automatically follow, I beckoned to him over my shoulder. He rolled his eyes but started after us. Since I’d chosen Heath for my bondmate, Luke had distanced himself. I understood, even appreciated his consideration, but hoped at some point in the future I could win his trust again. I valued all the lords. Apart from my mother’s previous bondmate, Theran, who was nearly as vile as Valen, I hadn’t met a truly bad man among the remaining fae. They all had an agenda, but if they were being truthful about the reasons behind their plans, the lords should be resting easy. They were closer than ever to getting direct access to Elementals. Unfortunately, not many of them seemed happy.

Part of the problem was the reluctance of the Elementals they’d saved from the Order to undergo a bonding. Without having time to get to know a lord, how could any Elemental make a decision which would change the rest of her life? To the lords, the idea of dating was distasteful. Bondings were meant to produce strong unions, not love. I hoped to alter those sentiments. I also hoped my brother or I could change the way Elementals were created. It seemed a horrible solution to take an Elemental from her family during the bonding period, only to return her to the human realm once the bond fizzled out. The woman would forget the details of her fae life and start again with an Order member to further the race.

The whole thing was barbaric as far as I was concerned, but I hadn’t found an easy solution. In fact, I hadn’t discovered a plan beneficial to everyone. My thoughts continued to cycle as we made our way to the meeting hall. Even when I took my seat at the front of the hall, I couldn’t concentrate.

A low rumble of mumbling like swarming bees pricked my ears. I raised my hand. “Quiet, please.” Within a few moments, the room fell silent. “Thank you,” I said, truly grateful for the fae ability to follow orders. It was moments like these I liked being queen. “I apologize for the delay, but a few issues needed to be dealt with.” I glanced at Braiden, who had taken a seat in the second row next to Taylor. I gave a nervous grunt to clear my throat before looking at the agenda in front of me. “If I’m not mistaken, the next item to discuss happens to be my brother.” Travis didn’t return my smile, but I continued as if he had. “We need to begin testing him for powers. Even though Ainessa claims she can feel his energy, we will need proof he doesn’t already possess control before we proceed with a bonding.”