Furious Flames (Elemental Book 3) (5 page)

“Shit,” Darwin cursed. “Gale wants you sitting in a
jail cell when he goes after the amulet. Then he’s got you trapped when he
takes Henry’s power and comes to take yours. What evidence do you have that
Devon did it?”

“We have no evidence, but the humans we work with are
going to want to question him. Alpha Maseré instructed us to arrest Devon so
that if something does happen, we can claim we were questioning him about what
happened at his mother’s apartment. This is only for precaution, but we have to
make it look real enough for the humans we work with.”

There was a reason why I was a private investigator
and not a cop; I didn’t want to arrest people, deal with paperwork, and get
shot at.

“You’re giving him an alibi,” Darwin said,
understanding.

I thought about it for a moment. After the plan was
fully developed in my head, I nodded. “Alright then.”

“What’s the plan?” Darwin asked.

“We’re going to follow Gale’s plan, but we’re going
to add a step to it.”

The plan wasn’t actually that simple, of course.
First of all, we had to speak in our minds with my magic, just in case someone
had somehow managed to bug my apartment. I had suggested I use my magic to fry
any electronic spies, but Darwin balked at the idea, informing me that each of
his computers were hand built and worth more than my monthly salary. I told him
exactly how much my five-figure income was for the month before I attended
Quintessence, but he just rolled his eyes.

“My dad makes more than that in a day, bro. Just on
interest.”

“Then why are you complaining about the cost of your
computers?”

“Because that’s his money, which goes to charities
and research mostly. I buy my computer parts with
my
money that I earn
at my job. My computers are my carefully designed babies and I’ll bite anyone
who tries to fry them like sausages.” He sat on the coffee table. “
Now,
explain.
”

“
We’ll let the cops lock me up so Gale thinks his
plan is working. Meanwhile, you do whatever you have to do to get
Henry
to bring the amulet to you. If anyone can figure out how to use the amulet,
it’s you, so I want you to borrow Henry’s invisibility power and come to me.
When Gale arrives to confront me, you’ll use the amulet to suck away his power.
”

“
What if he doesn’t go to you?
”

“
He will, because we’re going to make him think I
have the amulet.
” I kept the link open and reached out for the increasingly
familiar mind of Maseré. Once I knew a particular mind, distance didn’t seem to
matter. I felt the man’s recognition of my presence and then the same welcoming
that his son always gave me. The wolf, however, snarled with warning. The wolf
would watch and wait for me to make a wrong move— a dominating move— and then
he would attack.

Normally, I would treat animals respectfully, but I
wouldn’t hesitate to use my power on them if they threatened me. This wolf was
just trying to defend himself and Maseré. “
Did you get ahold of Hunt?
”

“
Yes. He’s looking for Vincent now.
”

“
I need more help. We’re trying to set a trap for
Gale.
”

*          *          *

August 28, 12am

“You remember the plan, right?”

“No, bro, I wasn’t listening,”
Darwin
answered.

I sighed, making the drunk across from me look up.
Amelia had used her magic on me to keep me calm so that I wouldn’t accidentally
control someone’s mind, but Darwin was wearing it thin. Although Amelia warned
me it might make me arrogant and uncaring, I didn’t feel very different.
Teasing the wolf shifter guard was just a result of boredom. Then again, it was
a little odd to be bored during my arrest. I considered sitting down on the
bed, but the stains on it were unsettling.

Astrid and Amelia were looking for Regina while
Darwin searched for Henry and Hunt tracked down my uncle. Meanwhile, Maseré’s
wolves on the force were watching from a distance in case Gale tried anything
on me before Darwin could get the amulet. Stephen’s coven and the rest of
Maseré’s pack had even chipped in to spread the word of where I was and that I
had the amulet.

I just hoped Gale took the bait before the wizard
council heard it.

I sighed again. Amelia’s power was wearing off and
leaving me restless. Whoever suggested a plan that left me a sitting duck was
an idiot.
Oh, yeah, that was me.
I found myself reaching for the ring in
my pocket and stopped myself. Vincent told me the more I used my power, the
stronger it would become. I hated the dreams because they never made any sense,
but the visions I had when I put on my ring were usually much clearer and more
insightful.

Distracted by the uncharacteristic desire to use the
ring, I reached my hands through the bars to rest my elbows on the crossbars
and felt… fur…

I reached out my power for the invisible jaguar and
sensed his mind easily. Every shifter was two entities bonded together. In
person form, the person was in charge, while in animal form, the shifter had a
primarily animal mind. However, both entities were strongly influenced by the
other.

In Henry’s case, the influence was a lot more subtle.
They were both extremely different, with drastically opposing priorities and
desires. I had sensed Henry’s mind and the jaguar’s, but never as strongly as
that moment, and I realized then that if they ever stopped fighting each other,
they would be an unstoppable force.

Astonishingly, it was the jaguar that was more
welcoming. They had one thing in common and that was an extremely protective
instinct.
“Why are you here?”

“I thought you wanted the amulet,”
he
responded easily.

I was almost startled by how quickly he picked up the
ability, and more so by the fact it was almost like both the jaguar and man
were speaking to me as one.
“Did Darwin find you?”

“No. I was just about to go to bed when I felt the
need to bring you the amulet. Then I found you without having to track you or
anything, like I just knew where you were. I figured it had to do with your
psychic powers. Bear in mind, I have no control over my jaguar right now, as it
is the first of the three days of the full moon.”

“Your phone number was disconnected.”

“My parents have been going through my mail and
keep throwing my bills out. The amulet is around my neck. For some reason, it
can become invisible with me. Take it and back up so I can break you out.”

“I’m not trying to break out; I’m waiting for
Gale. Tell me you figured out how to use the amulet.”

“I have not. Now, either get out of that cell or I
will break it. I
hate
cages and it’s making the jaguar angry.”

I placed my hand on the lock like I had before and
tried to unleash my magic into it… nothing happened.

Jumping to the conclusion that it had something to do
with the amulet, I panicked, my adrenaline spiked, and magic suddenly surged
through me and out into the lock, which snapped with a bright flash of light.

Henry’s “camouflage” faded until he was his normal
self, only… “Did you get smaller?” I asked, wondering if I had imagined his
size when we faced the golems.

The jaguar narrowed his eyes at me.
“You try
sneaking through doors when you’re as big as a horse. I can fell trees at that
weight, when I prefer to hide in them and ambush… or at least my jaguar does.
What’s the next step in your plan?”

“My plan was to essentially trick him into coming
here.”

“Hey, is that a panther?!” the inebriate across from me
asked, swaying on his cot in a halfway sitting position.

Henry snarled at him. “No, you’re drunk. Go back to
sleep,” I said. My power reacted before I realized what I was doing and the man
immediately passed out. Henry looked at me, probably wondering why I was so
harsh on him. “I didn’t mean to do that.”

He shifted. In seconds, his bones reshaped, his fur
receded, and he became bipedal. When Henry stood in his person form before me,
completely naked, he frowned. “I thought you learned to control your power with
earth magic.”

“It’s a process, apparently. I seem to be getting
more powerful all the time and I’m not sure how much of it I’m going to be able
to handle.”

“Then perhaps defeating Gale will be a simple
matter.”

“Nothing is simple anymore.”

“That is the nature of the paranormal world. Now,
what is our plan?” he asked, removing the amulet from around his neck.

“Well, first of all, you need to find some clothes,
because if a cop comes in here and sees you naked, they’re going to put you in
a cage next to me.” He didn’t shiver or make a sound. Instead, the subtlest
shift in his eyes betrayed his jaguar’s protest.

He handed me the talisman. “Once Gale arrives, I will
distract him while you prepare your attack with the amulet,” he said, offering
his plan when I didn’t have one.

“I was relying on Darwin figuring out how to use it.
Felicity probably had to show Gale how to use it.”

“She didn’t, actually,” said the disembodied voice of
our enemy. Gale appeared just a few feet away from us. Like usual, he wore a
black, satin, button-up shirt tucked into his black jeans. Although nothing
about his average, almost boring appearance really changed, he somehow seemed a
little more esoteric each time I saw him, as if he was changing on the inside
and I could sense it.

Henry moved to attack him, but he waved his hand and
the shifter was thrown back. Earth magic gave me the strength I needed to
control my power and water magic gave me the courage I needed to trust my
friends.

I wanted Gale to burn.

I created a shield, like I had done in the warehouse,
but only over Henry. Protecting myself did little good if I couldn’t defeat
Gale, and this game of tag had to end before my friends or family really got
hurt. For some reason, that included Regina.

With Henry taken care of, I turned to Gale, focused
my power, and released it. I felt the block he had over his mind. Whereas he
had the stolen abilities of many paranormals, I had little more than mind
control, instinct, and visions. Thus, I had to make up the difference with
ingenuity and tenacity.

I reached into my pocket with my left hand and
slipped the ring on. With my other hand, I held the amulet. Normally, there was
an object for me to create my vision on. This time, I used the amulet, but
focused on Felicity. Gale had used the amulet, so I could use it to stimulate a
vision. I could because I had to.

I hope I don’t fall and hit my head
, was my
last thought before my world changed.

Although Gale’s mind was closed, his subconscious was
drawn in by the need to see Felicity again, and his mind couldn’t differentiate
the vision with reality.

I saw her through Gale’s eyes. At first, confused as
to why everything was blurred and dull, I thought my magic was inadequate.
Felicity was there, kneeling on a stone floor and completely naked, yet not
attractive in the least. Her red hair was the giveaway; Gale was not only in
serious need of glasses, but colorblind as well.

When she held out the amulet, he hesitated. “This
will give me power?”

“It will allow you to take the power of paranormals.
It will also seal our deal.”

“Then you will be mine?”

“Until your death.”

“What happens then?”

“Then you will have a choice to make.”

He took the amulet, which I held in my hand in
reality. I focused once more. Maybe I didn’t know how to use the amulet, but
Gale did, so I reached out through their bond that was forged that day and
activated the amulet, drawing Felicity’s power into me. The oddest sensation
was the ease of using the amulet, which worked like a mental syphon. It was
actually as simple as drawing magic from myself, except I was drawing it from
the amulet. Without proper direction, the amulet drew magic from everyone
around me and, although it drew Felicity’s magic, it wasn’t from the vision. It
drew her power from wherever she was in real time.

Which meant she wasn’t dead. It also meant I could
use the amulet with no limit over space.

The entire process happened in the span of about two
seconds. Before Gale even realized what I was doing, I raised my hand as if to
shove him back. A mixture of hate, anger, and greed came over me along with
Felicity’s power. Red lightning shot from me, burning my entire body
simultaneously, but not to the point of incapacitating me. Gale, however, went
down hard.

The hate and anger vanished to be replaced with sharp
regret. Felicity was fighting it. For some reason, her soul was tied to the
health of Gale and she couldn’t kill him. I couldn’t release her power
specifically, so I let all of it go. They both deserved what they got for
killing people, but I wouldn’t use her power to kill her husband, no matter how
their relationship came to be. I wouldn’t allow myself to become like them.

Gale struggled to his feet, shaking. Henry, once
again in jaguar form, lunged at him. “Stop,” I said, holding back my power.
Instead of obeying me entirely, the jaguar turned in his advance until he stood
between me and Gale. He growled and lowered himself for another attack.

Gale vanished, but Henry still growled at the empty
space.

“Is he gone?” I asked.

Henry shifted back. “Yes. Why did you let him go?”

To say that I didn’t want to kill him sounded foolish
and feeble after Gale killed many. “I don’t know,” I lied.

He nodded. “I understand. We could trick him the way
Darwin did before. Besides, you definitely don’t want to kill him using the
amulet.”

I groaned. “I hadn’t even thought of that. I would
have taken all of his power.” I had enough shit to deal with trying to control
my psychic power.