Evan Elemental (The Evan Elemental Series) (9 page)

"How
do you know my sister?" he asks, his tone hesitant and his expression
pained. He must be used to apologizing for her. I ignore the warning bells that
the word "sister" set off and do a decent job at feigning
indifference.

"I
met her at tea, with the ladies council."

Josh's
eyes widen slightly. "You're Magda Price's granddaughter?" he chokes
out.

"You
didn't know already?" I ask, cocking my head to the side, eyebrow raised.

Now
that I know whose bloodline he shares I'm ever more reluctant to open up to
him.

"No.
You seem too nice, anyway," he replies slyly, his mouth turned up at the
corner.

I can't
help but grin. "Luckily, for both us, some traits aren't genetic."

.

Over
the next few hours the party starts to pick up. Delia is the center of
attention at all times which I don't mind since that means no one is paying
attention to me. I'm having a pretty good time, anyway, talking to and getting
to know Josh.

"You're
not still in high school, are you?" I ask in mock disbelief when he tells
me he's looking forward to school in the fall.

"Yep.
It's my last year," he answers with a smirk. "I like school, because
Delia generates enough attention to herself that my parents tend to forget I
exist."

"Wait.
Hold up. You're a senior? I thought..."

Josh
lets out an exaggerated sigh. "Yeah. We both are." He looks at
me and smiles
. "Twins."

My jaw
drops slightly making Josh laugh. "Dude. My condolences."

"Dude?"
Josh's laugh comes out like a bark, which is kind of cute. I just shrug and
raise my eyebrows.

"You
wanna
get out of here?" Josh asks once his
laughter dies down.

"Oh,"
is all I can manage, the atmosphere suddenly awkward.

Josh's
eyes go wide. "No, no. I didn't mean it like that. I just meant this party
sucks and there's this coffee bar that's open practically all night. It'd be
better than this shit." He shrugs and attempts a friendly smile.

I
exhale, relaxing. "That sounds cool, but I'm here with my friend." I
turn to look over to where Jessie has been with that guy all night. Except,
she's not there. I stand up and scan the clearing, panic rising in my chest.
There are too many people though, and I can't tell if she's still around or if
she left. It wouldn't be the first time she left me high and dry at a party.

"Looks
like she bailed," Josh says as he stands to help me look.

I know
better than to worry about her. Jessie's always taking off with some guy she
barely knows. Somehow, she always manages to be fine, but it doesn't stop me
from being terrified for her. I stand on my toes and examine every face in the
crowd. Then I see her. She's standing next to Delia and Delia is whispering in
her ear. I suddenly discover in myself a new capacity for anxiety. Fuck.

As if
they can sense me staring, both girls look up. Delia's eyes lock with
mine and a slow wicked smile
spreads over her face. My skin
breaks out in chills and I am dangerously close to vomiting. I sense Josh come
up close behind me, the tension rolling off his body.

Delia
sneers at me. "Evan.
Going
somewhere?" she
calls across the clearing, her voice beyond frigid.

Jessie
raises her eyebrows and glances between the two of us but doesn't say anything.

"Maybe,"
I reply, not breaking eye contact with Delia, even though I'm sure I'm going to
get frostbite from the icy malice in her eyes.

Delia
is the first to look away. "God, you're boring," she says finally.

Just
when I think that maybe I'm going to get away from this ordeal unscathed, Delia
starts walking toward me. Her steps are slow and deliberate; it's that same
unnatural way of moving that I noticed before. It takes all my self-control not
to step back, not because I'm scared of her, but because she's creeping me the
fuck out. I inhale slowly and concentrate on the fire nearby without taking my
eyes off her. I focus on pulling its power into myself. The flames flicker and
wane and I feel the heat swell beneath my skin. Delia pauses and clenches her
jaw. Her eyes betray a hint of fear but she continues stalking toward me.

"Stop,"
I demand, lifting my hand out in front of me. At my will I feel heat
concentrate in my palm before I send it in one pulse from my hand. The heat
swells into an invisible barrier. Delia stops, her eyes widen slightly but her
brow quickly melts into a scowl, masking her uncertainty.

"Look,
Delia. Whatever you have against me, get over it. I'm not going to engage in
some stupid, small town rivalry for best hair or whatever." I lower my
hand, but I can still feel the energy in me and around me.

"That's
pathetic," Delia scoffs. "You are pathetic. You may be a Price but
you'll never be one of us."

Suddenly
my power evaporates, leaving me feeling slightly weak. I tear my gaze from
Delia and take a look around at all the faces staring at us, waiting to see
what will happen. They're mostly drunk and confused, but some are slowly
filling with mistrust bordering on hate. She's right. I didn't know anything
about this place or anyone in it until a couple of months ago. Even now that
I'm here, I don't know anything about it or feel any connection to this place;
I don't even think I want to. I look back at Delia and see the satisfaction in
her face because she knows she got to me.

"Evan,
we should go," Josh says in a low voice, taking hold of my elbow. I nod
slowly, careful not to take my eyes off of Delia.

On the
way out of the clearing I pause and look at Jessie. "Jess?" I say,
nodding my head back toward the path in the forest.

Jessie
bites her lip, a telltale sign that she's about to disappoint me. "I think
I'm
gonna
stay
Ev
," she replies, her tone casual even though there's
an apology in her eyes.

I turn
without another word and leave.

"Hey!"
Josh calls from behind me as I make like a bat out of hell through the woods.
It's so dark I'm practically blind, making it so that I'm stumbling through the
woods more than running, scraping my hands and arms against tree bark as I go.
Josh is following close behind, but I'm doing my best to ignore him.

"Evan!
Come on. Do you even know where you're going?" he calls out in a
breathless attempt to rationalize with me.

I
stumble over a tree root and brace myself against its trunk to keep from
falling. I'm barely winded, but my heart is pounding violently.

My
momentary pause allows Josh to finally catch up with me. "What was that
all about? With my sister?"

My already
strained heart leaps to my throat and I start moving again, this time pushing
harder through the tangle of trees and rocks trying to get away from his
questions.

"If
you talk to me, maybe I can help you," he says, trying to grab my elbow to
stop me but I yank it away.

"Fuck
off, Josh," I mutter loud enough for him to hear me.

I hear
him sigh loudly but I keep going determined to get out of here and put as much
distance between Delia and myself. Between this whole night and myself.

"Evan!"
Josh yells again, his voice demanding and no longer pleading.

I stop
dead and turn to face him, seething. He's red faced and winded, which makes me
smirk.

"What?"
I ask, my voice deadly calm.

The
wounded look on his face makes me relax a little. He doesn't have anything to
do with what's happening; I know that. I roll my eyes and cross my arms over my
chest waiting for him to speak, my resolve already cracking.

"I-
uhm
. I'm sorry?" he says, wincing.

He
sounds so pathetic I have to laugh. "For what?" I ask, cocking an eyebrow.

"My
sister. She can be so..." he trails off.

"Malicious?"
I finish for him. I bite down on my bottom lip to hide my grin.

Josh
lets out a short laugh. His shoulders relax slightly as some of the tension
between us fades. He's cracking just as easily as I am. "Yeah, and
jealous," he says finally. "My parents are kind of on her case all
the time, to be perfect. I got it easy. I've been at boarding school most of my
life."

Both my
eyebrows shoot up this time. "I thought you said you go to Price?"

Josh pauses
before responding, considering his words. "I do," he says slowly,
"now. When I said earlier it was my last year, I meant first and
last."

That
explains so much: why he's so easy going, why he seems so clueless about
whatever the hell is going on in this town. I nod but don't say anything,
hoping he'll explain further.

"So,
do you?" he says after an awkward beat.

My
forehead wrinkles in confusion. He's the one who's supposed to be giving
answers. He didn't even ask a question. "What?" I ask, annoyed.

His
face melts into his trademark easy smile. Even in the dark I can see the amused
glint in his eyes. It's unsettling how familiar he is to me already. "Know
where you're going?" he asks gently, a hint of playfulness in his tone
meant to assure me he's not being an ass.

"Right
now, or for the rest of my life?" My voice is dripping with sarcasm but I
give him a playful smirk.

Josh
crosses his arms across his broad chest and scrunches up his face as if in deep
thought. "Well," he says, "I was thinking more like right now,
but we could talk about the other, later, if you want." He matches my
sarcasm beat for beat. I can't bite back my smile any longer.

"To
answer your question, no. How about you?" I cock my head to the side
genuinely curious what his answer will be.

Unfortunately,
it's not real helpful. "Boarding school, remember? I haven't spent more
than a month here since I was ten, and I didn't really spend that time tramping
about in the woods." He shoves his hands in his pocket and glances around.
Even though we're lost he appears completely at ease.

I let
out an exaggerated sigh and wrack my brain for some magical answer, but I can't
remember the path Jessie and I took to get to the clearing. As sober as I am
now, I sure as hell wasn't when I got myself into this mess. Wherever the path
is, I have little doubt we're nowhere near it now, not that I can tell in the
pitch-black forest. I let my gaze trail up to the night sky, the only clear
thing tonight.

"I'm
gonna
try something, but you're not allowed to ask me
how or why, OK?" I ask without looking at Josh.

"Okay...
does this have something to do with what happened back there, with the fire?”
His question surprises me; maybe he's not as clueless as I thought.

"I
said no questions. Now, let me concentrate."

I turn
away from him and close my eyes. I have no idea what I'm doing but I have to
try to do it, if that makes sense. Breathing seems to be the key to focusing my
energy, so I draw in a deep breath and hold it for a second before exhaling. I
repeat the exercise a few more times, all the while concentrating on finding a
way out of here. I take one final deep breath and count to ten while I hold it
in. On the exhale I whisper, "Lead me." I feel completely stupid and
I'm sure I failed, but then I feel the wind stir almost imperceptibly. It's
possible it's just a coincidence. As if sensing my doubt the wind picks up
speed, whipping around us, fierce yet gentle. Demanding, yet reassuring.
An old friend.

Suddenly,
my eyes snap open and my body begins to move of its own volition, as if it
knows the way without me telling my brain where to go. I run smoothly through
the woods, no stumbling and scraping this time, as I follow the invisible path
laid out by the wind. I can hear Josh struggling to keep up with me but I don't
slow down or stop, I can't.

"Evan!
Slow down!" he shouts, his voice betraying how much work he's putting in
to keep up.

"I
can't!" I shout back. Somehow I pick up speed, my body pushing itself
beyond its capacity.

In what
seems like an instant later, the sensation of open air engulfs me and the
forest floor gives way to asphalt as I burst from the woods. The supernatural
energy that's sustaining me evaporates, leaving me weak and breathless. I bend
over and brace myself with my hands on my knees as I try uselessly to catch my
breath. You'd think with
all the
running I've been
doing lately I would be in better shape.

"What.
The. Fuck. Was that?" Josh pants as he comes up beside me and crouches
down in a similar position, except he's clutching a stitch in his side.

I want
to laugh but I'm too out of breath. "I have no idea," I manage to
choke out.

.

Once he
can tell about where we were, Josh calls one of his friends to pick us up. We
stand in silence while we wait, which
is
somehow not
awkward even if it is loaded. I can tell he wants to ask me a million questions
but, thankfully, he refrains. I remember when
Lex
said he didn't want to have to lie to me and I now understand exactly what he
meant.

Headlights
come around the bend and light up the road, stirring me from my thoughts. I can
feel Josh relax even though we're feet apart. I almost feel bad for making him
uneasy. I rationalize that he didn't have to follow me out here, but I'm sure
he was trying to be nice and I should probably give him a break, right? Fuck.

"Look,
just have whoever drop me off at home and I'll be out of your hair," I
say. I make for casual but I just sound hollow.

Josh
stares at me, obviously confused. "You don't
wanna
come hang out?"

My
eyebrows shoot straight up to my hairline. Either he's crazier than I am, or
this is some kind of a set up. "You really want me to? After all that
freaky shit?"

He
laughs softly and steps closer. In the moonlight, I can see the gold streaks in
his dark eyes. "Of course. You're a hell of a lot cooler than every other
asshole in this town."

The
manic blush returns. Luckily it's dark and he can't see the beaming shade of
pink that is my face.

"That's
really nice of you Josh," I say slowly. "But, at the risk of making
things awkward, I have a boyfriend." Technically, that's true, even if
Lex
and I haven't exactly
DTR'ed
yet.

Josh
doesn't say anything for a second and I'm afraid I bruised his ego.

"Look
Josh, I'd still like to get to know you better.
As a friend.
I could really use a friend right now..." I trail off. I'm pretty sure my
face has just reached new levels of pink previously unknown to humanity.

When
I'm sure I'm going to die from embarrassment, Josh laughs. The color drains
from my face, which is somehow worse than a blush. Maybe my earlier confidence
was a little bit unfounded. I turn on my heel and start walking in the opposite
direction, away from Josh and the car that just pulled up on the other side of
the road.

Just
like before, I hear Josh's footsteps behind mine. I want to curse him for
trying to be such a goddamn gentlemen all the time, but my jaw is locked up.

"I'm
sorry, Evan. Wait," he says, gently grabbing my elbow, stopping me.
"I didn't mean to laugh. It's just that..."

He
drops my elbow, but I don't move. I don't turn to face him either. I can't look
at him but I want to hear what he has to say, even if I have to sacrifice a bit
more of my pride.

Josh
blows out a puff of air. "I'm gay," he says simply.

My jaw
drops and I spin around, covering my mouth with my hand.

"Oh,
my god. I am so sorry. I'm such an asshole." I need an ego check, fast.
Normally I'm good at reading people and picking up cues, but I was so desperate
for a confidence boost I only saw what I wanted to.

Josh
takes in my horrified, apologetic expression and just chuckles, his right
shoulder lifting up in a shrug.

"Do
you really have a boyfriend?" he asks, the amusement back in his voice.

I scowl
and pretend to be mad. "Yes, I do," I answer in mock annoyance.

Josh's
grin widens. "Alright, alright. He's lucky I am gay." I playfully
punch him in the arm and head toward the car.

"So,
you're coming then?" Josh asks hopefully.

"That's
what she said," I answer, making him laugh.

The driver
of the car is a guy with dark curly hair and pale blue eyes. He isn't
traditionally handsome, but he does have a certain bad-boy sex appeal. The most
standout thing about his looks is the long translucent scar that runs from his
temple to his chin alongside his jaw. When he catches me looking he just grins.
There is nothing good about a grin like that.

"Hey,
Conner," Josh says as he slides into the front seat. I'm sitting in the
back. "This is my friend, Evan." He gestures to me over the seat.

Connor glances
at me again in the rearview mirror. "Hey, Evan." Josh looks over the
back of his seat and winks at me.

"Where
to?" Connor asks Josh, his eyes lingering on me for a second longer. I
shiver involuntarily and fight the desire to wrap my arms around my body.

"I
was thinking Il I," Josh replies as he shuffles through the iPod that's
plugged into the stereo through an aux cable.

Connor
nods. "Right on."

He
shifts the car into gear and yanks the steering wheel making a tire screeching
U-turn. I grip the seat and try not to think about the accident, but fail
miserably. Bile rises in my throat and my stomach heaves. I close my eyes and
think about
Lex
instead; a slow calm begins to eat
away at my anxiety. Soon enough, we're pulling in to an empty parking lot
behind what looks like a warehouse.

I'm
nervous but I decide to trust Josh. He knows I'm capable of something
dangerous, even if he doesn't have the name for it yet. Let's face it, neither
do I. We get out of the car and, instead of heading for the warehouse like I thought
we would, we begin walking toward the alley between the warehouse and a
vacant-looking office building.

As we
walk down the alley, I'm surprised to see Connor grab Josh's hand. He pulls him
close and plants a quick kiss on his cheek. Just as quickly as it happened,
Connor drops Josh's hand and picks up his pace so he's walking ahead of us. I
make a mental note to grill Josh about that later.

After a
minute or two, Connor leads us through a sketchy side door into a surprisingly
bright and comfortable looking room. It isn't exactly a café like I pictured
it, but there's an espresso maker and a bunch of plush couches and beat up
coffee tables.
An assortment of people sit
around the
room but none of them bother looking up when we come in. Most of them are smoking
pot, so that's probably why.

I look
at Josh and raise my eyebrows, but he just shrugs and flashes me a grin. His
perpetually easy-going nature is kind of wearing on me. Following his lead I
plop down beside him on a nearby sofa. Connor goes off to talk to some guy
who's sitting in the back of the room surrounded by a group of scantily clad
girls. He has drug dealer written all over him.