Under the Winter Sun (Elemental Enchanters Series Book 3) (2 page)

“No. Never.” She sighed. “This is such a mess. How could that happen? How could Corbin’s soul fester inside Colden for so many years? Who knew that was even possible?”

“Before I met you, I didn’t even imagine any of this being possible.”

She looked up into his eyes. “What about you? How are you handling all of this?”

He rubbed his face. “I should’ve practiced more. And Seth, too. We were denying it and rejecting it in a sense. But this is what I chose. It’s who I am now.”

Ava suppressed a sigh and sat up. “Peter, I know I ask you this all the time, but you don’t seem to tell me the truth. Are you sure you’re happy with your decision?”

He averted her eyes. “Of course, I am. I just never expected to lose all of my friends. Or for any of them to die.”

A pang of guilt settled in Ava’s stomach. Had she left him alone from the beginning, he’d still have his friends. He’d become an Enchanter for Ava, and she’d started feeling unworthy of such a decision.

“But I have you, Ava. And stop feeling guilty. They turned Seth, and they were coming after me, whether or not you and I knew each other. I will have my revenge. I plan to train harder because I can’t let that happen again.”

“It wasn’t your fault.”

“Not completely. But when everyone started running toward the battle, I ran away. I got scared and I ran. I could’ve been stronger and protected everyone, including Seth.”

“That’s a natural response. You came back, though. You saved me. Twice. If anything, Savina and Aaron shouldn’t have left when they did. But that was my fault.”

“You never did find out why your mom pledged your soul to Havok, though. Does Savina know?”

“No.”

“How are you going to find out?”

“I’m done with that. I can’t put everyone’s lives in danger just because I want to know my mother’s motives. She betrayed us and lied to everyone.” Ava could hear the bitterness in her voice. “I want nothing to do with her.”

Peter squeezed her hand. “Are you still having nightmares?”

She didn’t want to tell him that she was, because she didn’t want to make him feel bad for not staying with her. “They’re not bad.” It was a lie. She dreamed of Luci’s spirit convincing her to join Havok. Or Colden’s gentle eyes turning dark and sinister as Havok emerged. Or the feeling of snake venom in her bloodstream. Melissa being carried away.

Her eyes watered.

“You’re lying.”

“I just wish you’d stay with me.”

He frowned. “I hate staying here, Ava.”

“So do I.”

“I’m sorry. Maybe you and your dad can move soon.”

“Yeah.” She straightened the silver bracelet that Peter gave her for her birthday. Engraved on it was,
without you, I’m nothing
. She wanted him to ask her to stay with him. At least for one night.

He reached up and caressed her cheek with his knuckles. He leaned forward as if to kiss her on the lips, but then brushed his lips across her forehead.

Someone knocked on the door and then it opened.

“Ava,” her father said. He arched an eyebrow as he saw Peter. His gray hair made him look older than he was. It was hard to imagine him being a strong half-Enchanter at one point by his gangly posture and small protruding stomach. She guessed the wrinkles on his face weren’t only caused by the aging his body was experiencing ever since Ava gained her powers. They were probably from raising a rebellious and reckless teenage daughter. The look on his face told her he wasn’t happy to see her and Peter alone in the room kissing. “Dinner’s ready.”

Her heart dropped at the thought of dinner without Colden or Melissa or Joss. Colden always cooked. Her stomach made a funny noise and she felt sick. “I’m not hungry.”

“You’re eating dinner. Now, come on.”

She wasn’t going to cry. The lump in her throat would just have to wait.

Peter stood and brought Ava to her feet. “We should eat.” They followed her father down to the great dining hall. Her dad went to sit with Aaron and Gustav at the long table, but Ava didn’t want to sit with the Elders.

Instead, she and Peter dropped down in the chairs closest to the exit across from Gabriel, Natalia, and Eric. The closer to the exit, the better.

Except, she couldn’t escape the glare from Natalia. To some, Natalia exuded perfection with her olive skin and slicked-back bobbed black hair that was never messy. As a Siren, she could have any enemy on their knees in a matter of seconds. To Ava, Natalia was a cold bitch. She had never treated Ava with any kindness, especially after what Ava did to Colden. She hated that Natalia intimidated her.

“Hey,” Gabriel said.

“Hey.” Ava met his tired crystal blue eyes. His short black hair laid flat except his bangs, which were raised. His thick eyebrows were pulled toward his straight and narrow nose and his smooth pale face now had a five o’clock shadow. He leaned his slender muscular body forward and rested his elbows on the table.

“I can’t believe you have the nerve to sit near me,” Natalia snapped. Her cold hazel eyes trained on Ava.

Ava felt her cheeks redden, which was rare. “I’ll eat fast. Will that make you feel better?”

She raised an eyebrow. “Let me just explain something to you.”

Gabriel sighed. “Give it a rest, Natalia.”

Eric rolled his eyes. “Seriously.”

“After what you’ve done, you don’t belong here,” she continued. “I’m surprised you haven’t been banned yet because you deserve it. You are the reason for all of this happening and yet you walk around here like you don’t care.”

Ava’s temper flared. “I’m well aware of the mistake I’ve made. But don’t you dare think for one second that I don’t care.”

The quiet chatter around them ceased and Ava could feel several eyes on her. She felt Peter squeeze her hand. She wanted to run back to her room, but she refused to let Natalia bully her, so she remained in her seat. Slowly, the chatter resumed.

“You okay?” Peter whispered.

She nodded.

Konstantin Volodin, the telekinetic Enchanter, dropped down in the chair beside Ava and gave a small smile. “Good evening.” Sometimes Ava had a hard time understanding him because of his thick Russian accent. He rolled his r’s and extended the vowels and would sometimes pause to find the right translated word.

“Hi,” she said.

“How are you doing?”

“Okay, I guess.”

“I know what you mean.” His pale eyes held sadness.

As they sat waiting for the dishes to be placed, feeling the mourning and depression from different people, Ava knew it overwhelmed Peter. Each time she thought of her friends, she sensed Peter’s shame. She couldn’t do that to him. She had to stop lamenting over them for his sake. She had to start learning to hide her feelings. Gabriel was always good at that. He could teach her.

Anastasya Grigoryev, the older woman in Gustav’s Aureole, and Katarina, the young woman with the electric blue hair, emerged from the kitchen with soup kettles and placed them on either ends of the table. Ilya brought out baskets of fresh warm bread, smiling at everyone as he placed the baskets on the table.

Ava looked around the smaller group of people. All that remained were the Elders, the Russians, Gabriel’s Aureole minus Joss, Ava, Thomas, Gillian, Lance, and the newest Enchanters, Peter, Link, and Nicole.

She couldn’t stand the uncomfortable silence as they ladled soup in to their bowls. Every few seconds, she heard spoons clinking the bowls and the occasional clearing of a throat or cough or small talk pleasantries. It had been like that ever since the night of the attack and Ava couldn’t take much more.

She stirred the rich brownish red soup absentmindedly. Her gaze landed on an empty chair and she thought of Joss. She missed her vibrant violet eyes smiling and her cheerful voice. Ava had gotten close to Joss, and now she was gone. Ava was so grateful to her for her incredible understanding about Peter. She remembered Joss mention how intense she and Peter were, but in the past few months, that intensity had been replaced by distance. He struggled with his new life as an Enchanter, and Ava hoped that by now he was ready to fully commit. He remained a little distant, but she knew he needed time to cope with losing Seth.

And she needed time to deal with the loss of Colden and her friends. The familiar ache in her stomach returned. It was as if someone reached inside and clutched it.

A spoon clinked against a bowl. It was Peter. He dragged his hands down his face. His shoulders curled over his chest while remorse seeped through his necklace. Ava hadn’t meant to think of Joss. She immediately stopped but felt bad for reminding Peter of the pain.   

“You should eat,” Gabriel suggested in a low voice.

“I’m not hungry,” she mumbled and pushed her bowl away. 

“It will replenish you. Your body needs as much as it can get.”

“He’s right,” Peter added, picking up his spoon.

She grabbed her spoon and sipped the warm liquid. “Happy?” She felt awful for snapping at Gabriel. He’d saved her life on more than one occasion and was one of the few people who stood beside her. She’d grown close to him in the past year and felt a connection with him. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay.” The way he said it, she knew he meant it, but it still didn’t excuse her.

Natalia let out a disgusted sigh as she gave Gabriel a sidelong glare. She shook her head and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

Savina Geddes, the Elder who took charge most of the time, stood from the table, clasping her hands in front of her. Ava had never seen her green eyes look so sad, but ever since her brother died she hadn’t been the same. She blamed herself for leaving everyone to fend for themselves against the Cimmerians in order to find a cure for Colden. It was the first time since the battle that she joined them. “I would like to say a few things before we disperse,” she said. Her voice was unusually monotone and somber. Her red hair was as long as her black robe that barely dragged along the floor.

Aaron, her mate, never took his russet eyes off her. He was so regal, even when he looked at her with so much love. He had been with Savina for centuries. Ava wondered what it was like to be with someone for that long and still love each other.

“Firstly, all of you are still welcome to stay here, but I know some of you have homes and families to whom you’d like to return,” Savina said. “I assure you, it is safe to do so. Also, I believe the young Enchanters.” Her eyes swept over Ava, Peter, and the others. “Will return to school on Monday.”

Ava’s jaw dropped and she heard a few spoons clink against bowls. “School?”

“Are you serious?” Thomas asked. Ava saw the annoyed look in his blue eyes. He used to be her boyfriend, but he’d turned into an aggressive jerk. He had changed ever since he killed his father, under the Cimmerians’ influence. He raked his fingers through his strawberry blond hair.

“There is nothing we can do until you are all healed and your powers have returned,” Savina said. “Plus, I believe it will help keep your mind off things since you will be busy.”

“We’re supposed to go on acting is if nothing happened?” Ava asked.

“Ava.” Her dad warned.

Link cleared his throat. He was leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He shook his head and rolled his brown eyes. “Can’t we home school? I don’t see the point in going back.”

Natalia gave a loud sigh.

Aaron stood and everyone hushed. He was always kind, but could be daunting, even though he spoke like a Southern gentleman. “You will all listen to Savina. You will return to school because that is the right thing to do. There is nothing anyone can do until we can all begin training again. You will obey these rules.”

Great
, Ava thought. She wasn’t sure she could handle the stares or whispers. It was bad enough after the bombing, but what would they say about their friends being gone? Students had been “leaving” for months. Halflings that didn’t want the Enchanter life were gone. Seth, Trent, Jonah, and Drew died. Valerie and Amanda left. The Ephemerals blamed Ava and the rest of them for the bombing.

“This will help your mind become stronger,” Savina said.

Ava suppressed a sigh. She wanted to leave and get away from the tension, but so many thoughts bubbled on the tip of her tongue. “I don’t understand,” she blurted. “Why can’t we go after them now? I mean, if it takes so long to get there, by the time we got there, wouldn’t our powers be back?”

“Ava, please,” her father tried calming her.

“We must be ready before we leave,” Aaron explained. “There will be no more discussion about this.” His stern tone prevented her from arguing. “Furthermore, we will start training in the evenings, so you are welcome to join us.”

“How can we train without our powers?” Link asked.

“You will learn fighting techniques that are useful with or without your abilities.”

Lance and Thomas nodded in agreement, seemingly pleased with the invitation. Ava wasn’t sure how she felt about it. She felt so weak she didn’t think it would help.

“That is all,” Aaron said.

Everyone began to scatter from the table, but Ava couldn’t make herself move. She couldn’t let her emotions show or let Peter feel them. She needed Gabriel to teach her how to hide them.