Elemental Hunger (12 page)

“Yes, we are,” Adam interrupted. “We just got separated from the others in Gregorio.”

I stared at him in disbelief. His words sounded so natural, so easy. He didn’t give away the lie on his face either. My doubts about him resurfaced. If he could look and sound so convincing while lying, how would I know when he was telling me the truth?

Chief Tavar looked at Adam and then to me. I forced a laugh that sounded, well, forced. “Yeah, separated. We do need an Unmanifested, though.”

The Chief smiled. “I might have someone for you. A boy—almost a man—fifteen years of age. He has not Manifested any gifts.”

“Gifts?” I asked.

“Of the spirit,” the Chief replied. “He’s been talking of leaving the settlement. This might be a perfect arrangement.”

I glanced at Adam again, but he didn’t look at me. See, I doubted a “perfect arrangement” existed.

I knew I was right when we entered the village amidst a chorus of silence.

Men, women, and children with skin just as dark as the Chief’s cowered in tent flaps. They watched me pass with wide, golden eyes. Whispers reached my ears, but I couldn’t understand the language.

“Here he is. Mr. Kilpatrick—my son, Hanai ‘Silent Soul’ Tavar. He is Unmanifested, and seeking a place on your Council.”

A guy stood in the doorway of the only permanent structure—a well-built log cabin. More the color of molasses than honey, his eyes searched me from head to toe.

I likewise sized him up. Already taller than me, he was also twice as wide. He wore a cream-colored shirt with leather breeches. His long, dark hair had been pulled into a ponytail at the nape of his neck. He didn’t have shoes, but he stood with his feet shoulder-width apart, like guys do. I shifted my feet, which had been touching.

Hanai dropped to one knee and bowed his head. “Father. My Firemaker.”

I deliberately didn’t look at Adam so I wouldn’t appear like I knew nothing.

“Nice to see you, Hanai,” Adam said, saving me from what would’ve been an embarrassing exchange.

“Adam,” Hanai said, rising with a grin. He clapped Adam on the back in a one-armed embrace. “You weren’t lying. I guess I was wrong.” He kept his gaze on me.

I smiled and stepped forward too. “Hey, man.” It sounded so, so fake. “I’m Gabe.”

Hanai’s smile remained in place, extending into his eyes. “You took our smoke. That was so
Manifested
. My dad nearly choked.”

I found myself at a loss for words, so I kept the smile cemented in place and shrugged with only my right shoulder. I’d seen Jarvis do that—very masculine.

“So…now what? Baths? You two stink,” Hanai said.

My heart thumped in an uneven pattern as I caught Adam’s eye. He shook his head just as Hanai looked at him. Then his face broke into an instant grin. “Yeah, sure, baths. But let’s have Gabe go first. Maybe he can heat that iceberg you call a pool.” He slapped Hanai on the shoulder.

“Good idea. I haven’t had a warm bath in six months.” Hanai ducked back into the cabin, leaving me alone with Adam.

“Heat the pool? Can I do that?” I asked without moving my lips.

“’Course, man. Didn’t you see what you did with that smoke? You could probably turn their pool into a hot spring.”

“What? What did I—?”

“Here’s some soap. A towel.” Hanai shoved some stuff into my hands. “Follow me, I’ll show you where the pool is.”

I held Adam’s gaze for a moment before following him into the trees. Thankfully, Hanai led me away from the main village, away from the fire, away from everything. With each step, my anxiety grew. Hanai didn’t seem stupid, and he’d notice certain things at the pool that would blow my cover.

After ten minutes, Hanai stopped. He pointed down a faint trail. “Down there, a couple hundred feet. You can wash the clothes you’re wearing and change into your dry ones.” He looked at me, then Adam. “Do you have dry clothes?”

“Adam has some,” I said. “I’ve got some tops—um, shirts—but no jeans.”

“I can find you something,” Hanai said. “You look about the size—”

“No, it’s okay,” I said. “They’re not that dirty.” When I looked at my pants, I cringed. Not only were they crusted with mud, bloodstains trailed down one leg.

“You’ll need shoes too,” Hanai said. “I can’t wait to hear the story of how you lost that one.” He grinned at my bare right foot, and then at me. “C’mon, Adam. We’ll be back in a couple of minutes, Gabe.” He walked off, Adam right behind him.

I watched them go, my mind racing. Twenty minutes. Ten there, ten back. I had no clean pants. Panic welled up, almost covering my fire.

A breeze washed over my face. “Just go, I’ll help you,” it whispered, sounding very much like Adam.

I took a deep breath and turned toward the trail. Steps had been cut into the slope, reinforced with branches and rocks. At the foot of the staircase lay a pool of clear water. Brown and white stones littered the bottom, and a slight ripple disturbed the surface.

I plunged both hands into the pool, meeting liquid ice. My breath came in ragged gasps as I
f-f-forced
fire into the water.

A mist arose as the hot water steamed in the frigid March air. Perfect cover. I undressed quickly, tossing my clothes into the pool. The hot water unknotted my muscles and screamed through my injured feet. After a moment, they settled into the heat as the steam cleared my head. I only allowed myself a short minute of relief. Then I scrubbed my skin and clothes with soap. It smelled faintly of pine needles and ashes—a soft, soothing scent. I wrung out my clothes, heated some rocks and laid my clothes on them to dry. Just as I was rinsing my hair, Adam’s loud voice drifted down the staircase.

“…take them down. Gabe sort of has a temper…don’t want to interrupt. You stay here.”

A small smile curved my mouth. His last three words sounded like a command. My smile vanished as I remembered how clear the water was. And the fog had dissipated into the chilly air.

“Wait!” I cried out. The scuffling of Adam’s steps stopped.

“Gabe?” Hanai called.

I groaned inwardly. “I’m fine,” I called back. “Just need another a minute. Adam,” I added as an afterthought.

I got out of the pool and wrapped the towel around myself. “Okay,” I whispered, and Adam immediately started down the steps again. He appeared only a few seconds later. He kept his eyes on mine, holding the clean pair of pants in front of him like a shield. It might have been funny if I wasn’t naked beneath the thin towel.

He set them down on a rock a few feet from me, along with a clean T-shirt, a pair of socks and shoes, and the magical cloak. His gaze flickered to where my clothes lay drying and I almost fell backward into the pool. My underclothes…were clearly feminine.

“Is it hot?” he asked, meeting my eyes again.

“Hot enough,” I whispered. “I don’t know how to do anything. You know that, right?”

He walked over to me and cupped my face in his palm. “You’re wrong. Just feel, don’t think.” He trailed his cool fingers down my neck and over my shoulder. Then he turned and bounded up the steps.

I couldn’t breathe. His touch burned a path as permanent as if he’d branded me—or worse, tattooed himself into my skin.

I shook away the confusion that came with my mixed-up feelings. Turning back to the pool, I saw another ripple cross the surface.

I jumped back in and swam to the far side, where the water moved the most. I sucked in a breath and dove under. Feeling with my hands, I located the water bubbling into the pool. Temperature: Ice cold.

Without thinking, I pulled on my Element and sent a super-heated ball of flames into the bubbly opening.

I kicked to the surface, gulped in another breath, and dove again. This time when I pressed my fingers to the opening, the water trickling into the pool felt blazing hot.

I laughed underwater, large air bubbles escaping my mouth. I broke the surface, nearly choking as I inhaled a lungful of half air, half water.

Sputtering and coughing, I swam to the edge of the pool and climbed out. Wrapped tightly in the towel, I held my burning hands over my underclothes to finish drying them.

Bonus: I didn’t have to pull on icy underwear.

Hanai’s breeches were too big, but I cinched them tight, admiring the soft leather. Just as I pulled the cloak over my clothes, Hanai called, “Can we come down now?”

“Yeah,” I called back. I arranged several stones into a circle and lit a fire.

Hanai crouched next to me. “What took you so long? Even girls are faster than you.”

I worked hard to breathe in and out. “I made your pool a hot spring,” I said. “And if you had a fire in the middle of these rocks, your clothes would dry faster. And they’ll be warm when you put them on. I thought that might be nice.”

Hanai opened his mouth, but Adam cut him off. “Hey, Gabe. Why don’t you go get Chief Tavar? He can bewitch the flames so they’ll never go out. We should be done by the time you get back.”

I stood up, Hanai copying my every move.

“That’s what I was going to suggest,” he said. “We’re already on the same mental wavelength. This is so
Manifested.
” He grinned at Adam and then me.

Adam smiled. “Do you remember the way, Gabe? Don’t worry if you get lost, just follow the smoke. Take your time.”

Again, his last three words came out as a command. I didn’t care. Hanai peeled off his shirt and started fumbling with the buttons on his pants.

Blazing infernos!
I bolted for the stairs without looking back, even when Adam laughed. And laughed. And laughed.

By the time
I made it back to the bathing pool with the Chief, Hanai—fully dressed, thankfully—lay stretched out beside the remains of the fire, his long black hair steaming as it dried. The Chief joined him and poked at the glowing embers, stroking them back into flames.

“They’re talking about you.” Adam spoke in a soft voice as he stepped next to me.

I didn’t look at him, but kept my eyes on the steaming water. “What’re they saying?”

“They’re happy you’re here…. Hanai is gushing about the hot spring…. Chief Tavar wants us to stay awhile.”

I grunted. “Should we? Stay awhile?”

“I think so,” Adam whispered. “They won’t hurt us, we can regain our strength, go to Gregorio in a month or so. They’ll even teach us some magic.”

“Don’t you already know magic? I mean, how can you hear them?”

“The air tells me everything.”

I shifted, making rustling noises in the forest debris.

“Like right now you’re scared. Why?”

Scared wasn’t exactly right. More like nervous. I cleared my throat. “Can they teach me how to read?”

“You can’t read?”

“Hot blazes. Scream it, why don’t you? No, I can’t read, all right?”

Adam took a step back, his eyes searching mine. I put on my best
I-dare-you-to-say-another-word
face.

“Sorry, sorry. I can teach you to read. That’s definitely something you need to know. All Firemakers—”

“Firemaker?” the Chief asked. “Would you like to participate in the bewitching ceremony?”

“Sure,” I said at the same time I turned around. Relieved I didn’t have to endure Adam’s lecture about what all Firemakers should know how to do, I hurried over to the Chief.

Adam came up beside me, and the four of us formed a circle around the fire.

The wind picked up, snaking its way down the collar of my cloak. Adam raised both hands and shoved them forward, palms out. The wind whistled before disappearing into the trees.

“Impressive, Mr. Gillman,” the Chief said. “Almost as impressive as Mr. Kilpatrick’s hot spring.” His gaze landed on me, and I squirmed under the weight of it. “But let me show you what Spirit-speakers can do.”

He started chanting, a low sound that originated in his throat and didn’t go much further. I couldn’t understand his language, but the song had a familiar rhythm. As the minutes passed, my heart beat in time with the melody.

“One,” the Chief intoned without breaking the continuity of the chant.

I locked eyes with Adam, almost sensing his pulse within my own chest. It fluttered too fast—frantic almost. I smiled, though not all the way. His face relaxed, the crinkles around his eyes creasing as he smiled back. His pulse slowed, matching mine.

“Two,” the Chief said, his eyes closed now. The chant picked up in tempo; my heart matched it. The curling smoke soothed me, and I wanted to close my eyes and get lost in the woodsy scent of it.

Forcing myself to keep my eyes open, I glanced at Hanai. He grinned at me like a kid who’d just been chosen for a Council. His pulse thrummed too slowly, and I frowned. He did too, his heartbeat quickening.

“Three,” the Chief said, the underlying rhythm unbroken. He thrust his hand into the fire, still chanting in the back of his throat.

My heart stopped completely at the sight of his fist in the flames. He seemed to be stroking them, actually touching them. As he did, they turned colors, first burning green, then purple, then blue.

I wanted to see Adam’s and Hanai’s reactions, judge them against my own, but I couldn’t look away from the multicolored flames. At last, they blazed orange, and the Chief withdrew his hand, the chant dying in his chest.