Horizon

Every writer has invaluable people in their lives that help them do what they do best. I am no exception. To Max, always, for loving me and supporting me through this strange and beautiful experience. To my children for bring joy to my life and for loving me when I am writing instead of spending time with you. To Mom and Dad, for examples of true love.

I’d like to thank a few amazing people for helping me with Elemental Enmity. This is by no means a complete list, but these are the people that have touched my life and made my journey as a writer better and easier.

Nancy Straight, you are my hero. Thank you for always being there for me and for putting your life on hold when I needed you most. You are a true friend. Teri Thomas for lending me your keen mind and for being honest with me. You’ve made this series much better, and I will always have a special place in my heart for you. To Nancy, David, Krystal, Karla, Boyce, and Nicole for being the best beta readers in the world. Thank you for your support and believing in me. Rebecca Hamilton, you are an inspiration and such a kind soul. Thank you for teaching me some of the ropes.

To all the readers and bloggers who have taken the time to share Elemental Enmity with your friends and family, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are the reason I am where I am right now. Every time you share your honest review, it helps this series become stronger.

To my creator for sending me such a rich life full of blessings and pain. I am thankful for all my experiences, for I would not be who I am without them.

Travis Keller waited in the dim-lit room for another one of Lambert’s
tests
. The detestable man had pushed Travis to his moral limits, and he would go no further. Travis didn’t consider himself a religious man. Hell, he’d only been an actual man for a few years.

Unfortunately, the deeper he sunk into the ranks of the Order the more he realized how screwed up the organization was. Having been raised in a small town had been fine with Travis. He’d never cared much about the big city like Rayla did. She was always yapping about it whenever they spent time together.

Even though she was his cousin, he’d always felt close to her, but he didn’t—couldn’t understand her desire to have more than what they’d grown up with. Castlerock had been a great place to live. There were always plenty of pretty girls to keep him distracted, and entertainment was easy to find if a person used his imagination.

Rayla had been really fun as a kid. She came up with the weirdest games. She even tried to get him to play fairies with her and Cassie a few hundred times.

He’d watched them from the bushes, once in a while, just to see if he was missing out. It must have been a girl thing because Travis couldn’t understand the appeal of wearing glittery wings and dancing about like drunken ballerinas.

He laughed. Rayla was a kick in the pants and always had been. He’d missed her more than he thought he would when she left for college. The truth was he’d hoped they’d have a few more years together to chum around at Snow College, but he’d never admit that to anyone, especially her.

Thinking of her now in the silence of his prison heightened the home-sick knot in his gut. Lambert had done a good job of providing distractions up until a few weeks ago, when each one had become darker, more twisted. He didn’t know how much more of it he could take and stay who he was inside.

Footsteps sounded in the hallway then scuffling that lasted way too long. Something banged against the door. What the hell was Lambert doing—dragging in a body?

The door opened, allowing light to spill into the room. Lambert ambled forward with a woman attached to his side. Her hands were tied behind her back and she’d been gagged.

Great. Not again.

“Ah, my boy,” said Lambert in an overly chipper tone. “I’m so glad you are awake. I’ve brought a present for you.”

Travis grunted. He was sick to death of Lambert’s
presents
. “I’ve already told you I’m not interested.”

The man shrugged. “I’ve made every accommodation for you, Travis, and I will make no more. This is the last one. You either comply or she dies.”

Travis gritted his teeth. “You wouldn’t.”

Lambert stiffened, gave Travis a hard stare then pulled something from his pocket. He held the switchblade in front of the girl, only waiting moments to release the blade. “Try me.”

It was a bluff. Lambert wouldn’t kill an innocent girl. He couldn’t be that despicable. Travis frowned at the man he’d always looked up to. Not anymore. He couldn’t look up to a guy that lived the sordid life Nigel Lambert did.

Frustration leaked from Travis when he spoke. “Why do you care so much if I get laid?”

A wicked smile spread across Lambert’s mouth. “Just testing out a theory. Now what’s it going to be.” He tilted the trembling girl’s neck, repositioning the knife just below her jaw.

Even though her fear permeated the space, she struggled against Lambert’s body, making high pitched mewling sounds. Her captor yanked her closer to him then pressed the knife deeper into her throat, drawing forth a mumbled scream.

Travis stepped forward. His voice dipped low, menacing. “Don’t hurt her.”

Lambert’s eyes darted to his. Travis could hear the guy’s pounding heart and the rush of his blood, another recent ability he had no idea what to do with. He gave the man a once over. He was a coward ready to run. Just then resolve flashed in Lambert’s face, making Travis question his previous thought. Lambert shifted again, but this time Travis hesitated to push him. The girl let out a whimper but remained still as a cornered rabbit after that.

Lambert glared at him with the force of a tornado. “Then do as you are told, Keller.”

When Lambert shoved the girl forward, Travis caught her around the waist, halting her fall. He glowered at the man in front of him, asking, “Who is she?”

“Nothing more than a good time, boy.” Lambert turned to go, but hesitated then looked over his shoulder. The light from the hallway cast his face in shadow. “I’ll be back to get her in two hours. Oh, and Travis, since you don’t seem to like the whores, this one’s a virgin.” Laughing, he let himself out and closed the door softly behind him.

Bile rose up Travis’s throat. How could he do this? He’d be no better than Brody Smith. He shoved the memory out of his mind. He had to focus.

The girl’s body shook so badly he was afraid she’d be nothing more than dead weight in a moment. He lifted her into his arms and lowered her gently onto the bed. Soft sobs escaped her. Gagged and bound, she was at his mercy. Her tear filled green eyes searched his, but how could he offer her any comfort, especially since seeing her in such a compromised position was surprisingly erotic?

He reached out and touched the line of blood flowing down her neck and she stiffened, quelling his desire for her. Travis shut his eyes tight against the vision. Once he had composed himself he knelt beside her, noticing for the first time her flowery scent. He brushed her dark hair out of her eyes and sighed. “I’m sorry about this,” he said. “But I’ll be damned if I’ll let him kill you.”

The girl nodded once, her eyes trailing down his body then back to his face, unspoken trepidation lingering in those green depths. She was pretty and soft in all the right places. If he could get her into it, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad for either of them.

He removed her bindings then her gag. She sat up, rubbing her wrists. Her eyes fluttered before she gave him a shy glance. A hoarse whisper passed her lips, “Go ahead. Just get it over with.”

He shook his head. “I don’t’ like this anymore than you do.” To calm his ragged heartbeat, he took a deep breath. “
If
we do this,” he said, “we’re both gonna enjoy it.”

She frowned at him, but she didn’t push him away when he kissed her.

Nigel Lambert waited in the hallway, listening to the conversation. He’d done everything in his power to turn this boy into an Order soldier, but even with ongoing injections of the serum the stubborn lad was too much like his adoptive father. John Keller had resisted his attempts until Nigel thought he’d go mad.

The truth was he needed this boy if he was to ever get Ainessa back. He’d willingly given up everything: his wife, his daughter, his only chance for finding true happiness for a fae princess that had betrayed him. She thought him a simple human, yet, if his hunch was right, this simple human had the one thing in the world Ainessa needed.

He walked to his office and turned on the news. With so much war and destruction going on, he couldn’t see any reason to fight for humanity. His princess would make this world right again. She’d left before he could share his extraordinary findings with her. He had to get her attention somehow. And Travis was the key. He didn’t know what about the boy had interested her so much, but he sensed something…a subtle difference that he couldn’t define. It didn’t really matter; Travis was nothing more than a bargaining chip.

Even though Ainessa had betrayed him, he still wanted her. He smiled, anticipating the day she’d come to him. She’d beg him to help her again and that would be the day he would rule the world.

All was going as planned, yet a twinge of guilt marred his happiness. If only Amy was out of the picture for good, yet he couldn’t bring himself to order her killed. She’d been his faithful wife, after all. The least he could do was keep her alive.

His deft fingers riffled through the pictures on his desk, finding the one he could not part with. His eyes traveled the soft slope of her cheek toward the lips he longed to kiss, even now.

Amy had been beautiful, no stunning, in her younger days, and, even still, being more than twice their age, she rivaled most Elementals. He’d considered himself lucky to have found such a vibrant woman full of youthful innocence, yet her innocence had been the constant barrier between them. A worldlier woman would have appreciated his ambitions, but not his Amy.

She had been an idealist, hopeful that the world could change, people could change. A dark chuckle escaped him. He knew better.

Real change happened only through force. If there was one thing he had learned from the Order, it was that.

Even so, no amount of coercion would ever really change a person inside—even when the coercion came from a fae princess or a future king. His only hope was that he could get the boy to bend to his will for a time. He looked at the couple in the monitor and smiled. At least for today, he had accomplished his goal.

An unrelenting chill beckoned me out of a dreamless sleep. My eyes refused to open, yet I couldn’t quite retreat into the pull of the netherworld. As my mind focused, I realized only half of my body quivered from the cold. The other part of me lay within a blissful cocoon of warmth.

The firm object I rested against radiated heat better than a stoked furnace. I rolled closer to the source, trying to bury myself inside it. With the movement, my muscles groaned, making me aware of muscles I’d managed to never use in my entire life until last night. In fact, oddly enough, every part of me hummed as if I’d run twenty miles in ten minutes flat.

Unbidden images from last night flooded my mind, my body tightening in response.

Heath.

My husband.

The fire lord.

A tight squeal wanted to race up my throat, but I managed to keep it in. He slept peacefully right next to me, after all.

My eyes followed the taut curve of his shoulder, down his chiseled bicep to his long, tapered fingers. I could still practically feel his hands on me…his lips…his teeth. I shivered with the memory, which only managed to make me more aware of the man lying next to me.

Funny that a few short weeks ago, I would have never admitted my feelings for him. When I first met Heath in the fire realm, I did everything in my power to avoid him. Even with the enviable position of possessing power over all five elements, my attempts hadn’t helped me at all. I smiled, remembering the way he’d bullied me into caring about him.

From almost the beginning, I’d thought I’d known who I would choose as my bondmate, and, actually, I did end up boding with Zach, but Heath had stolen my heart right out from underneath Zach’s…and Luke’s grasp.

So much had changed since I crossed into the Fae realms. Before everything shifted, I’d thought I would belong to one of the two men that had captured my heart at St. Mary’s College. Unfortunately for them, I’d been able to resist their compulsion long enough to let Heath have a shot with me.

My mind recoiled from thinking about those two. Even with everything that had happened between us, I still cared about them; but Ainessa, a fae princess with ambitions to transform our world into her own creation, had gotten them both, and I still didn’t know what I was going to do about it. No matter what, I was going to figure out how to help them.

Even now, I wondered how long she’d been controlling them. Luke was the first to attempt a bond with me back at school. He claimed it had been a mistake, but he ended up repeating the process here in the realms. He’d sworn he had things under control after we escaped the island, but Ainessa had been the one at the helm. Had he been influenced from the beginning? Had Zach? There was no way for me to know for sure.

One thing was certain, though, if it hadn’t been for Creed’s interference, I was pretty sure I would be bound to Luke right now. Creed had gotten me out of a couple of really tight spots, and I would be forever grateful to him and his monster friends. Creed happened to be the leader of the Dark Realms. When he found out Ainessa was after me, he set out to protect me, and he’s been absolutely true to his word. I owed him my life and my freedom, and I wouldn’t forget what he’d done for me. If I ever was in a position to help the creatures that inhabited this forbidden place, I wouldn’t hesitate to do it.

I’d taken so much for granted. Where I grew up, people did what they said they would— for the most part. Even now I found myself expecting people to keep their word. But that was the old Rayla talking. I had to toughen up to have any chance of facing Ainessa and winning.

I still couldn’t believe she’d gotten to Zach. I thought him incapable of being compelled. If I was being fair, I’d thought that about all the lords. They were so big and strong, brave and loyal. Truthfully, I figured they’d be able to protect me no matter what, but come to find out, I should have listened to Gibbit.

The little troll had been telling the truth when he warned me to stay away from the Water Realm…and I’d made fun of him. I’d done so many stupid things. The worst of which was giving up on Heath just because Tabitha showed me a stinking vision that included him losing his soul. To my defense, I had been trying to protect him when I agreed to go with Tabitha back to Lombarda, but it still didn’t seem like a good enough reason now.

If it wasn’t bad enough that I barely managed to escape Luke, I’d bonded with Zach because Tabitha told me it was the only way to save the people I love, including Heath. It took every ounce of gumption I had to go through with it.

My feelings for the other lords had changed when I committed to Heath. I still loved them, in a way, but I had made my choice, and I was sticking to it, or him, as the case undoubtedly was.

I had no idea Tabitha and Heath had set the whole thing up to see which lords were being controlled by Ainessa. I was still trying to get over feeling betrayed by them. Every time I thought about it my insides boiled, but I hadn’t addressed it with Heath—yet. I didn’t want to waste time being mad at him when I just got him back. However, that didn’t stop my mind from rummaging through worst case scenarios again and again.

As it was, I had no clue how the fae council would react to what I had done. Valen, the council chairman, told me if I didn’t give myself fully to Zach, he would choose someone to take over. I hadn’t purposely held back when I bonded with Zach; yet, I was able to resist his compulsion. Well, it was really Ainessa that time, but I wouldn’t have been able to manage it if it hadn’t been for Heath’s help.

My power had never been stronger when I’d blasted Zach’s body with pure lightning, and I was sure it was because Heath was there guiding me. I still had so many questions, so many worries. I was sick to death of making so many mistakes. I needed answers, and I was going to get them even if I had to invade Heath’s mind to do it.

His arm flopped over me, instantly sheltering me from the cold. He grumbled some incoherent phrase, and I smiled, curling into his embrace, eating up how close he was. A soft glow emanated from the fading candles in the corner of the room, casting his chiseled features in exaggerated relief. My lips curved in a smile I couldn’t have held back any better than Niagara Falls. Well, maybe I could have handled that particular wonder of the world more easily.

His chuckle startled me, but I managed to stifle my gasp. The raspy sound of his morning voice held a sexy base that wasn’t normally there. He trailed a finger along my cheekbone. “Can’t get enough of me, huh?”

At any other time I would have snarked out a comment, but right now, I couldn’t. “Never,” I said, placing my hand above where his heart beat a steady rhythm. I could never get enough of touching him, either.

Warm fingers traced a line along my side. He gave me one of his tiger grins, and I shivered. “In that case…” He pulled me closer, scrambling my brains again, and I succumbed to my desire for him. A desire so bright, I was sure it would never fade.

Heath was true to his promise to give me some time to settle down. He kept us holed up for more than a week, not that I was complaining or anything. No one disturbed us, and I could have stayed like that forever, if my conscience hadn’t been gnawing a hole in my gut.

As much as I loved him, which was more than I’d ever thought possible, I had other people I had to worry about. I also had to figure out how I was going to break the binding spell the Royal Guard placed on me, so I could actually do something useful. Jerks bound me to the realms, which pretty much made my vow to destroy the Order a vain threat.

Waiting had never been one of my strong suits. I’d asked Heath to bring Tabitha to our room so we could clear the proverbial air.

His hand coiled around mine moments before she walked through our doorway. The instant I saw her, my insides stiffened. I’d let her rule me because of my fears. I’d let her manipulate me into bonding with Zach, when it should have been Heath all along. Nothing she did made any sense.

I’d been warned about the treacherous fae council. I’d been warned about trusting anyone within the realms, and the moment I put my trust in her, she betrayed me.

She flashed her teeth at me; however, the gesture had no chance of resembling a smile. Her voice came out low when she spoke. “Good to see you among the land of the living.”

What was she being grumpy about? I’d been the one that had to face the consequences of her decisions. Besides, if she was so worried about how I’d handled things, she could just rewind time, unless that had been an empty promise as well.

“Come now, child,” she said. “Complaining will not aid you in getting what you desire.”

I scoffed at her. “Seems neither will you.” So much for diplomacy.

Her face twisted into something akin to regret, if that was even possible for her. “Rayla,” she said, her wispy tone full of so many unspoken emotions.

She wasn’t about to disarm me that fast. I glared at her. “What?”

To my surprise Tabitha’s expression softened. “I’m sorry for deceiving you.” She splayed her hands sideways. “There was…no other way.”

I shook my head. “Ainessa could have taken control of me at any time. How could you put me in that kind of danger knowing what she has planned?”

She didn’t even flinch when I said Ainessa’s name even though I had been berated for using it in times past. It was stupid to say her name out loud, but sometimes it just came out of me. Besides, it reminded me of who I was up against.

She sighed and said, “There are things you do not understand; things I need to explain. You were being guarded. There was no way she could have captured your mind. Give me some credit.”

A disgusted huff raced up my throat. “After what you pulled, you’ll be lucky if I ever speak to you again.” I walked closer to her, but my mind traveled to the last time I’d seen Zach, crumpled, broken. My temper died on a gust of remorse. He hadn’t even moved after I blasted him. “What if I hurt him?” I said to no one in particular. I let the real question fizzle before it fully formed in my mind—what if he wouldn’t forgive me?

Tabitha’s expression held the sad sympathy of a parent gazing at an injured child. “Ammon is fine. In fact, as we speak, he is organizing your rescue.”

A jolt of fear shot through me. Had I misheard her? “My what?”

She shook her head as her pale gray eyes settled on mine. “He
is
your bondmate.”

“But…Heath…”

“Is aware.” She finished for me.

My hand flew to my mouth. “What are we going to do?”

She chuckled. “It’s good to see you asking for a change.”

Why did she have to do things like that? Was she trying to make me angry?

She cocked an eyebrow at me. “Shove your temper in your pocket, girl. We don’t have time for it.”

I laughed, looking down at my t-shirt and sweats. “I don’t have any pockets.”

Her smile crinkled the corners of her eyes, lending her an unusual softness. “I know you secretly hoped that you and Heath could stay here forever, but such a thing is not possible. This is only a temporary fix for a problem I’m afraid has no answer.”

What did she mean she didn’t have an answer? “This whole thing is your fault!” My voice kept rising with my words. “What did you think would happen when you had me bond with Zach? That his sister wouldn’t try to compel me? That he wouldn’t care that I want Heath instead of him?” I grunted in frustration. “I’ve hurt him in every way possible. How could he possibly want me back?”

She cleared her throat, clasping her hands in front of her. “Are you quite finished?”

My eyes narrowed until she was the only thing I could see. “I haven’t even begun, you crazy old woman!”

“That’ll be enough of that,” said Heath from behind me.

I whirled around, hurt eating up my face. “You’re taking her side?”

His expression softened. “This isn’t about sides, Rayla. You’re still focusing on the wrong things.”

My hand found my hip. “Oh, really, and what exactly should I be focused on?”

In a heartbeat, he slid his tongue along his upper lip and smiled, making me aware of my own parched mouth. So not fair of him. I gritted my teeth together. Neither he nor his darned mouth was going to distract me again.

I’d somehow managed to get Tabitha to come here, and I wasn’t about to let her leave before I knew exactly what I was up against. Every time I had mentioned talking to her before now, Heath had set about diverting my attention to more pleasurable things. Well, it wasn’t going to work this time around.

His long legs made short work of the distance between us. With a crooked tilt to his lips, he smirked. “Care to say that to me out loud?”

My eyes shifted to his collarbone. As tempting as it was for me to let them wander down the valleys of his bronzed torso, I kept my focus. “Do you always walk around half dressed?”

The smile in his voice was hard to miss. “Not sure yet. It
is
rather hot down here…” He leaned in closer then pulled in a long breath, tickling my senses. “…especially when I’m near you.”

“Oh, you’re bad,” I said, smiling. Movement across the room caught my attention. Tabitha was trying to escape…again. I glared at Heath, who shrugged, and raced after the reluctant mage. “Where do you think you’re going?”

She whirled around and groaned. “All right, child, I will talk to you, but not here. It is not secure enough.” She glanced at Heath and said, “Bring her.”

We followed Tabitha into the tunnels that from what I could see made up the hub of the dark realms. They went every which way, seeming to have no order at all. A body could get lost here in a second. Being the wimp that I was in the dark, I grabbed Heath’s hand.

The farther we travelled, the more my stomach hurt. Pretty soon, I swayed on my feet from disorientation and nausea. Without warning Heath picked me up. Telling me to hold on, he took off at hyper-speed, sending my head on a trip to never-never land. I buried my face in the hollow of his neck, concentrating on breathing.

When he finally placed my feet on the ground, I twisted away from him, hurling the contents of my stomach onto the musty dirt. My head still hadn’t stopped spinning, and I started to believe it never would.