Burning Violet_Urban Elemental Series Book 1 Read online

  “I don’t think so, Wolfram, he’s just standing there. He doesn’t even look alive.”

  Wolfram started pacing again. “Is he saying anything else?”

  “No, just repeating those words. What does it mean?”

  I looked back at the ghost figure and it faded, and was fading still. “It’s leaving.”

  “No!” Wolfram shouted, grabbing my arm again. “Make him stay. Talk to him!”

  “Uhh, alright. Don’t go, ghost guy!” I said to the ghost, but it didn’t look at me. It had faded to an invisible mass, only an outline.

  Wolfram turned to the ghost and started shouting words at him in a different language. The ghost didn’t seem as if it recognized anything Wolfram was saying, and then it vanished completely.

  I tugged on Wolfram’s arm. “He’s gone.”

  Wolfram cursed and shrugged my arm off, stalking to the far corner of the room again.

  “Okay, please tell me what’s happening,” I said to Wolfram’s back. He leaned on fists against the wall.

  “That was my father,” Wolfram finally said, his voice broken.

  My lips parted, but I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t have to. Wolfram turned, his eyes blazing. “He was speaking in his native tongue, though I suspect it was just an impression, and not really his ghost. He must have used an his dying breath to create the impression.”

  “What’s an impression?” I asked, my insides clenched.

  “An energy imprint. Fire users can make them, usually to tell people who their killer was if they are being murdered, or as a keepsake for a family. Usually, a strong empath will trigger the impression.”

  I sorted through the information, my head sluggish. “So, why couldn’t you see him?”

  Wolfram met my eyes. “Because you’re the stronger empath between the two of us.”

  My eyes widened. “Oh.” Well, that’s weird. “What’s an empath?”

  “It just means you can see invisible energy better than most.”

  I took a deep breath and sat on the bed. “Are you going to explain to me what he said?”

  “It was broken, the sentence. He probably couldn’t get all the words out as he was dying. But...the words were ‘boy, death, fire, lies.”

  My hand flew to my mouth and my insides clenched even tighter. “Does he mean--”

  “My little brother must be the boy. Death--obviously. Fire and lies, I’m not sure what it means.”

  I leapt off the bed and bolted to the desk, rummaging through the drawer for a pen and notepad. I scribbled the words down like a list, then like a sentence. “Was it supposed to go in that order do you think? Or could it be scrambled?”

  Wolfram looked over my shoulder at the paper, shaking his head faintly. “I think it’s supposed to be in that order. “

  I chewed lightly on the tip of my pen. “But the word lies is confusing. Does he mean lying down or not telling the truth?”

  Wolfram frowned. “Not telling the truth. He wouldn’t have used that word if he meant the other.”

  “Who’s not telling the truth? Fire? The Fire Kingdom?” I asked.

  Wolfram’s jaw set. “I was told by my family that the Air Kingdom killed them. The word ‘fire’ should never be in this message.”

  I bit my lip. “Were they killed by fire?”

  Wolfram’s head snapped to me. “No,” he said coldly, “You ever hear the phrase ‘can’t fight fire with fire?’ Well, it’s true. Fire doesn’t fight their own because it doesn’t hurt them.”

  I frowned. “Never?”

  Wolfram shook his head. “Personal spats, hand to hand combat, fine. But not with our powers, it’s pointless.”

  “No! No, I saw you spear Cole with a fire blade.”

  Wolfram shrugged. “That’s a specialized move I learned during my time in Wildfire. Not even the Kingdom’s military knows that one.”

  I raised my eyebrows. “So...Wildfire fights their own with fire.”

  Wolfram shook his head. “They’ve never attacked the Fire Kingdom--they’re too loyal to Fire for that. They taught it as a precautionary.”

  I watched his face turn to stone as he fought against the sick thought churning in his mind.

  I hesitated before I said it. “Could it have been Wildfire that killed them?”

  I dared to peek from behind my eyelashes at him, but was surprised to see his expression unchanged.

  “It’s the only thing that makes sense, don’t you think?”

  Still, he stood unmoving and I wasn’t sure of what else to say. “Shouldn’t you tell someone? Your mother is the queen. Surely she’d shut them down, especially if she knew that they...I mean, that was her husband and baby, for Christ’s sake.”

  Finally Wolfram looked at me and I flinched. The anger in his gaze caught me off guard and I felt myself involuntarily submitting to his power. “My mother can’t contain them and the military won’t fight them without strong evidence. If I told my mother, it would only open old wounds.”

  “Isn’t there a police force?”

  “Yes, magistrates use blocking magic cuffs on criminals, and we do execute when it is needed but that sure as hell wouldn’t work on Wildfire. The magistrates have learned to leave them alone--what do they care if they terrorize other Kingdoms? As long as it’s not on Fire, they don’t care.”

  I huffed out an impatient breath. “But it’s their King and Prince who were murdered. Surely they’d do something.

  “Where’s the evidence? The impression is gone--it’s done its job. It isn’t coming back.”

  “So, what, you’re just going to let them get away with it? After everything they’ve done to you? They killed your father and brother, lied to you about who did it to get you into their sick group, when it was them all along.”

  Wolfram turned toward me more fully and I felt my defenses rise even though I knew he wouldn’t hurt me. It was just the anger, it was alarming.

  “Of course I’m not going to let them get away with it. I’m going to find every last one of them, make them beg on their knees for their lives, and wipe them from existence.”

  ◆◆◆

  I knocked on room twelve, loudly. Since there was no one in the inn but me and Wolfram, I could be as loud as I wanted. “Wolfram, open the door!”

  I peeked in the door viewer and saw Wolfram emerge from the bathroom, his head bent, drying his hair with a towel. He was naked.

  I jumped back and knocked again, deciding to pretend I hadn’t seen that. “Open the door, sleepyhead!” I yelled.

  Two seconds later, Wolfram opened the door. My eyes trailed down his damp torso to the low-slung jeans on his hips. His hair was wet and slicked back.

  He looked at me with a guarded, but expectant expression. “Yes Miss Peterson?”

  That damn impersonal greeting. I wanted to smack him again. “I wanted to say good morning,” I lied. “Let me in.”

  Wolfram turned his back to me abruptly and strode back into the room, plucking a gray dress shirt from the bed and tugging it on. He left the door open, so I took that as invitation and entered the room jauntily, taking a seat on the bed. My hair was up in a high ponytail, the heavy hair hanging to my shoulder blades and I wore the same red shirt and skinny jeans I’d slept in, the rest of my clothing packed in a bag by the door in my room. As was my toothbrush, book, and phone. The extent of my possessions.

  He threw a duffel bag on the bed and sat next to me, lacing up his boots. His wet hair blocked his profile from my view. I inspected my nails, trying to remain casual. “When are we leaving?”

  Wolfram’s movements slowed as he finished tying his other boot. “I am leaving immediately. You will stay here and manage the inn with Row.”

  I jumped up, my hands on my hips. “I want to go with you. I can contribute my powers against Wildfire--my Air powers. I can extinguish their flames.”

  Wolfram stood, looking down on me. “No. You will stay here and Row will take care of you while I’m gone.”

&n
bsp; I scoffed, my eyebrows reaching my hairline. “Row will take care of me? I’m not a child.”

  Wolfram slipped his watch on and secured the clasp against his wrist. “I didn’t imply that. I thought he was your boyfriend.”

  I blinked. “What?”

  Wolfram glanced quizzically at me. “You hug every guy on the street like that?”

  My eyes widened. “This coming from the guy who kissed me twice within twelve hours of meeting me.”

  “That was purely a means to an end. It meant nothing.”

  I knew that, but the words still stung. Why, though? I was messed up. This guy had a girlfriend anyway. Plus, he was my boss. And a fire demon.

  Wolfram headed toward the door, but I sprinted and blocked his path, my arms clutching the sides of the door frame. I knew that he could overpower me if he wanted to, but I hoped he would hear me out. “I’m coming with you.”

  Wolfram pushed his chest against mine. “You are not. Move.” My nipples puckered against his hard chest.

  I growled and instantly Wolfram’s eyes flashed copper. I growled again and they flashed brighter. I laughed. “That pushes your buttons, doesn't it?” My voice was husky, and a wildness overtook me.

  He moved closer still and I clutched the door frame to keep my body from moving back. His nose almost brushed mine, and his scent was all over me, his breath on my lips. “Move,” he ground out.

  “Or what?” I challenged, nudging his nose with mine.

  Wolfram let out a ragged breath and grabbed my ponytail, tugging slightly, exposing my neck to him. My lips parted and suddenly my body was on fire and I just wanted his mouth and his hands on my skin.

  He leaned in,the stubble on his jaw scratching my face as his mouth tickled my ear. He wrapped my ponytail around his hand and tugged again. “Or I punish you.”

  “Please do,” I purred back, and that was what startled him. He tensed and pulled back, piercing me with eyes on fire. He searched my face, his eyes roaming and snagging on my mouth. I bit my lip and he groaned.

  Yep, groaned.

  Suddenly he released me, his voice rough. “Hurry the fuck up and pack your things. I’m leaving now.”

  I ran into my room, grabbed my bag and caught up with him just as he was opening the front door. “You already had that packed, didn’t you?” He asked flatly.

  I smiled and he grumbled as he walked down the icy steps and settled into the frigid car. It was cold, I could feel that, and acknowledge it. But it didn’t bother me. It was like my body temperature adjusted perfectly to keep me neutral.

  “Where will we stay?” I asked as we turned onto the familiar road with the cave at the end.

  “The castle, of course.”

  We rode over the barrier, and the slight buzz from the border washed over me, alighting my skin in faint prickles. “What will you say about me? About why you’re there? It’s been fifteen years since you lived there.”

  I watched as Wolfram got out without a response and open my door. “Thanks, Prince Wolfram.”

  Wolfram rolled his eyes as I got out and we entered the cave. This time, I lit a torch on my hand, too. “They’ll suspect something is wrong unless we make it a convincing story.”

  Wolfram grunted in response. “They won’t suspect the truth. And they have no way of finding out.”

  “What about me? Will I really not be accepted?”

  Wolfram shrugged and I carefully made me way down the slope that I’d fallen down the first time through the cave.

  “We shall see.”

  He was being too cryptic, but I knew that he couldn’t know how they would react. We exited the cave into evening, the smell of summer grass and wildflowers on the air. I smelled the sea again and spotted the transporting stone. My body buzzed with sudden energy, and I didn’t know where it had come from.

  I ran to the stone and leveraged my weight on it, surging up and to the top in a few seconds. I landed on my butt, folded my hands in my lap, and waited for Wolfram to join me. He raised his eyebrow at me as he climbed easily to the top. “You are a child in a woman’s body.”

  I laughed. “I just feel really energetic all of a sudden. Did you see how fast I got up here?”

  He sat down with a ghost of a smile and we blipped out of time and space.

  Chapter Nineteen

  The greeting in the bailey was much more aggressive than it had been before. I was in cuffs before I knew what was happening, and Wolfram held a blade to a guard’s throat. I gave him a questioning stare, wondering why he was using a regular blade and not a Fire blade. The Fire blade was cooler.

  “Let her go. Does it no longer matter that I am a Prince, my mother the Queen of this Kingdom? I could have you both slaughtered like the pigs that you are. I could do it now.”

  The guards’ eyes flicked toward each other before they looked away. The guard holding me against the rough stone of the bailey shifted his stance, now unsure. “Is it really Prince August, Freddie?”

  The guard with the blade against his neck tried to eye Wolfram behind him, but couldn’t quite see. “Not particularly sure, to be honest.”

  The cuffs leached the heat out of my bones, quelling my Fire. But little did they know, it did nothing to my Air. They should probably work on that. I wanted to use my powers, but Wolfram’s tight lipped expression told me not to.

  “For devil’s sake, men. That’s August and his human.”

  I turned, my spine twisting, to see Baal approaching. He was just as big as before. He winked at me and I looked down at the stone at my feet. He was much too overwhelming, much too big.

  “She ain’t human, Sir. I smell Fire. She might well be a lesserborn, though.”

  My cuffs clanked and then I was free. I turned swiftly and punched the guard in the nose.

  “The fuck, woman!” He held his bleeding nose and I walked past him, catching up to Baal. Wolfram appeared at my right side with the bags as we entered the dining hall and walked through. As before, everyone stopped eating mid-chew, utensils hovering above their plates. I tried to keep my eyes forward but they kept slipping to the rich-looking people eating at the fancy tables.

  “Punching guards is not a good way to gain favor in my Kingdom,” Baal said to the left. I glanced at him and noticed his eyes flashed red. Interesting.

  He raked my body with his gaze, his expression smug. “You survived. Came back to warm my bed then? I like that ponytail.”

  “Fuck off, Baal,” Wolfram ground out as we reached another corridor.

  Baal raised his hands. “Excuse me, didn’t know she was truly yours.”

  Wolfram scoffed. “She’s not mine.”

  I smiled tightly and turned to Baal. “He has a human named Stefani.”

  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Wolfram wipe his hand down his face, muttering curses, and I bit back a laugh.

  Baal looked impressed. “How many humans are you seducing, August? And why aren’t you sharing?”

  Wolfram stopped, and wheeled around, pointing at me. “She’s not human. She’s Fire, lesserborn. You haven’t asked why we’re here.”

  Baal eyed me and shrugged. “I don’t care. I know you won’t be here long.”

  Wolfram crossed his arms over his broad chest. “That depends.”

  Baal’s eyes narrowed. “On what?”

  “On how long it takes me to find a mate.”

  Someone must have punched me in the gut, which is why I choked on my own spit. Mate?

  “Oh that’s wonderful, August! I am so pleased! Have you spoken to Adara?” A woman’s voice resounded off the stone walls and I turned to see the Queen making her way down the corridor, her emerald gown kissing the ground so perfectly it looked like she glided instead of walked. She held her hands in a prayer-like pose as she approached Wolfram and enveloped him in a warm embrace. Wolfram gave her a brief hug and pulled back.

  The Queen beamed at him, her face lit in the brightest smile. She was breathtaking when she smiled. Dark hair and features, wide
cheekbones, and she didn’t look a day over forty. I could tell then where Wolfram got his looks. Though his eyes he must have gotten from his father. His mother’s were bright blue, when they weren’t shining copper.

  Her eyes wandered to me and she flinched. Well, that’s promising.

  I smiled tightly and curtsied the way Wolfram had taught me. I wobbled a little and stumbled, then righted myself. When I looked up, the Queen was staring at me, wariness in her gaze. “You lived. But you didn’t see Alfie.”

  “We did,” Wolfram cut in swiftly before I could speak. “We came back to find him soon after leaving.”

  The Queen frowned. “That must have been why I couldn’t find him afterward. Do you know where he’s gone?”

  Wolfram didn’t miss a beat. “I wasn’t aware he had left so soon, though he did mention taking a holiday. He said as much after he brought Miss Peterson’s magic out.”

  Okay, he was much too good at lying.

  The Queen smiled at me then, seeming appeased. “Miss Peterson, I am so glad you are well. I will send you a lady’s maid to help you get settled in to a room. Then we can discuss permanent lodging or employment in the city later on.”

  I nodded, keeping my eyes averted. I didn’t plan on staying here in the Fire Kingdom permanently. The plan was to get in, kill Wildfire, and get out.

  And, apparently, find Wolfram a mate.

  A deep, primal part of me silently growled at the thought, though I didn’t know why. I didn’t even know what mate meant.

  When we reached the stairs, I counted several fancy-looking people at the bottom, conversing smoothly and drinking out of silver goblets. I saw the lean brother who’d mistrusted me before, and he saw me, his eyes narrowing on me and then on Wolfram. We walked right up to him, and Wolfram nodded in greeting. “Aiden.”

  Aiden smirked and shot me another scathing look.

  “Maybe I should punch him too,” I muttered into Wolfram’s ear.

  “What are you doing back? No one wants you here,” Aiden said, surprisingly, not to me. His ire was directed at Wolfram. Now I really wanted to punch him.

  Wolfram smiled flatly. “I’m thirty four.”