Power flowed from the very core of the earth. He felt it getting closer. Knew the instant it passed through the soles of his feet. His hands itched to create something. And maybe...to show off a little to the werewolves who clearly didn’t trust him. Logic won out over bravado, and he flexed his fingers, knelt, and touched the ground.
The tiny tremor wouldn’t rattle the most expensive crystal at Harrods, but he felt it all the same. A meter away, the thick carpet of grass split in two, and a spire of dirt rose, thinner than his index finger. The effort made his head pound, but the power was almost addicting, and he let the column grow until it was taller than he was.
Refusing to fall on his arse in front of Farren and the others, he forced a deep breath, then pushed to his feet. Using his connection with the earth to steady himself, he approached his creation, circled it, and then turned back to everyone gathered at the door.
Farren was the only one who moved, joining him at his side and taking his hand. “It’s brilliant,” she whispered. “But ya’ know this complicates—”
“Everything.” Eli threaded his fingers through her silver locks and tipped her head up so he could hold her gaze. “Do you still feel it?”
“What?”
“The connection between us. Do you still think I’m your mate?” He held his breath waiting for her answer. If she said no, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to walk back into that house. Not that he had anywhere else to go.
“Yes. I’m more certain now than I’ve ever been. Ye’re mine, Eli Escobar. No matter what power ya’ have. I only have one question for ya’.”
“Ask.”
“Now that ya’ have yer power back, what are ya’ goin’ to do with it?”
* * *
Twenty Years Ago
“Eli,we need you to come with us right now,” his mother said with a quick backwards glance down the hall.
“I can’t stop now, mum.” The wet clay was so close to settling into a shape that approximated a cup, and he’d been working on the stupid thing all day. Puberty, his da’ had said repeatedly. His elemental powers would be unstable for at least the next year, maybe two, depending on how quickly he “became a man,” whatever that meant.
All Eli knew was that when he got angry, he’d rattle the windows in their flat or raise a random mound of dirt in the center of the football pitch.
“You have to.” The worry in her voice made him pay attention and stop the pottery wheel. His parents, both earth elementals, were the calmest, most even-tempered people he’d ever met. In his fourteen years, he could only recall a single time Mum had raised her voice, and it had been to warn him out of the way of an oncoming car.
Her light green eyes were puffy, the bags underneath swollen, and her lips pressed to a thin line.
“Hurry, son. Your father is in the basement. Clean up and go there straight away. I’ll only be a few minutes behind you.”
She embraced him, so strongly he couldn’t breathe. “Mum, stop.”
A small sob caught in her throat. “You’re never too big to get a hug from your mum.”
He thought he might be. Almost a man, almost able to control his power. Almost ready to apply to university. To leave home. To become...his own person, not the son his parents wanted him to be.
As he washed the clay from his hands, he regretted his errant thoughts. His parents loved him. He’d seen how his best friend James was often ignored completely by his father, and how Penny’s mum hadn’t been sober in years.
He gave up trying to clean under his fingernails and wiped his hands on his jeans on his way to the basement.
“Eli, sit down.” Da’ looked as worried as his mum had sounded, so he didn’t say a word as he sank onto a stool in the center of the room. The large, mostly unfinished space was usually in complete disarray, boxes stacked haphazardly against the far wall, the drapes half open, a layer of dust covering everything.
Today, the drapes were drawn tight, and most of the boxes were gone. When was the last time he’d been down here? A week? Two? Three?
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“There isn’t time to explain,m’ijo. You have to trust us now.” Da’s eyes watered, and he swiped at them.
Was he...crying?
Mum came running down the stairs, breathless. “We have to do it now, Paulo. They’re coming.”
Eli sat up straighter. “Who’s coming?”
