“Claire!” he roared, the name a plea.
My gut twisted that something might have happened to her, but I couldn’t help Claire right now. Titus was the one about to rip himself in half, and I had to get him under control.
Control, the one thing I feared losing, slipped over me like a breeze, and I glanced back to see Vox with his arms spread and his hair flung out around him like an ancient god of the fae. Few knew his true power, but I did. It was why he’d been assigned to me and also why I trusted him.
He wasn’t afraid to contain the earth.
The wind listened to him, swirling the fires aside and giving me the energy I needed to keep my own unruly power in check.
Bless you, Vox.
My skin took on an impenetrable armor, and the heat lessened to a manageable level. I stormed up to Titus and grabbed him by the neck. “You need to stop!”
“Claire!” Titus repeated, the name a vow.
Then I felt it.
I felther.
That ache inside my chest grew and became a clawing need. It was coming from Claire.
My eyes went wide.She’s dying.
“Impossible,” I breathed. Claire and I hadn’t made a connection, hadn’t bonded even on the lowest level, but she was inside my soul, reaching out to me, begging me for my element.
No wonder Titus was losing his shit.
I turned to see Vox concentrating on keeping the inferno in check, as well as stabilizing my energy, but Claire could do that for me.
If I just gave in, we could help each other.
The fires loomed, building walls that crept closer to the edges of the quad and threatened to reach the trees bordering Earth Quad. These weren’t normal flames. They would consume everything in their path, and nothing would stop them. Titus had lost control, being the only bonded mate that Claire could reach out to, and she’d taken too much.
It was as if something had sucked the very life out of her, forcing her to latch onto those closest to her, to help her reinforce her elements.
Without the added strength, she’d die. I could feel it in my very soul. There was no choice here. Either I let her in or I allowed her to perish.
And damn it, I couldn’t let that happen.
“Vox!” I yelled, sending my voice booming across the distance between us. “It’s Claire! Let her in!”
He flinched and his winds twisted. “Are you insane? I can’t let you go; you’ll be even worse off than Titus!”
I knew Vox’s fears. If my control slipped, even for a second, I could split the world in two.
Titus grabbed my shoulder and squeezed, his hot fingers a brand even against my armor. His eyes glowed with rage and fury and desperation. “Give her what she needs,” he begged. “She’s dying. I can’t give her enough.” He sounded so broken. So alone. So anguished.
And it was all the encouragement I needed. I closed my eyes and felt her spirit slip inside as if it had always meant to be there. The sweet flush of peaches filled my senses, and her earth warmed over me like an embrace. I fell to my knees, relieved when Vox’s steadfast control retreated as he followed suit.
The world trembled, burned, and my ears suffered the howl of a thousand hurricanes.
But Claire would live, if only for just a few moments longer.
It would have to be long enough.
Because I felt it now, the water energy joining the others.
You better save her, Cyrus,I thought.Or there will be hell to pay when you return.
