Caution to the Wind: Book One of the Elementals Series (7 page)

Loren nodded as she made note of it. Her gaze lingered on the photographs for one last look.

When she saw a familiar face smile down at her from a frame on the wall, she stopped. Her breath hitched. She took a step closer.

Callum paused with her. “Ah, that’s Fredrick Castle.”

The name didn’t ring any bells, but she knew that man. She knew his face, his kind eyes, and the gentle genuinely happy smile.

“You recognize him,” Callum stated. It wasn’t a question.

              Loren nodded again, not looking away from the photograph.

“I do. I know him.” She wanted to touch it, but she refrained. “That’s the man. That’s the man who gave me my powers.”

Chapter Seven

Loren was seven years old when the strange old man had given her superpowers.

Eighteen years ago. To Loren, it was as if it had been yesterday. The bigger kids were mean, teasing her. They'd taken her backpack and as she tried to chase them, they'd laughed. Her desperate pleas went unheeded and they threw her bag into the bushes and fled.

When she couldn’t breathe, she stopped running. She sat on the ground and gasped. Her chest constricted. Her face burned. Her inhaler was in the bag and she couldn't breathe without it.

Through blurred vision, she saw the old man as he walked toward her. His hair was white and his face wrinkled and speckled with age spots. He moved past her, giving her a cursory glance. He approached the bushes. It took him some effort to retrieve her fallen bag and amble back to her. She didn’t know how he’d gotten there, or how he had known to take the inhaler from her backpack, but he did.

She took it from him with shaking hands. She puffed deeply once, twice. The medicine took immediate effect and she breathed with ease once again.

His eyes were a warm brown. His smile was kind, but sad.

He pushed the stone into her hand. It was small and flat, the color of egg yolk, smooth on two sides and jagged on the others. It fit perfectly in her palm.

The man had a soft-spoken voice and his words were few. “This stone is very important, as important as you are. Keep it.”

Before she could ask what he had meant, he spoke again. She didn't understand the words and, to this day, she still didn't. He placed his warm hand atop her head.

Colors flashed in her vision before everything swam into focus again, more vibrant than before. She took a deep breath and exhaled. Everything hummed around her.

The old man kept the sad smile on his face. “Be careful. Be safe. Keep it with you.” He walked away, his footsteps shuffling through the gravel. Loren remained there with the stone in her hand until the man was no longer in sight. Dark clouds rolled in and it began to rain.

She ran the rest of the way home, faster than the wind, the stone clutched in her fist.

As she looked at the picture, her eyes watered, but she didn’t cry. All the same, she wiped at them with the back of her hand. When Callum offered a handkerchief, she took it.

“I only met him once. He gave me my powers and he walked away. I never saw him again. He said I was important and he—” Her voice trembled and she stopped talking.

“He was a good man.”

“Yeah. I uh got that impression.” Loren glanced off to the side. “I didn’t know who he was, or his name or anything.”

“He was a friend of my father’s—an old friend from way back. I remember first meeting him when I was a boy.” Callum studied the photograph. “I've been waiting to see if you’d mention him.” He paused there and looked at her. “We all got our powers from him.”

“How?” she asked. “Why?”

“He met my father in the 1970’s. Castle was already an old man by then. He possessed abilities, like ours. No,” he paused and corrected himself, “
exactly
like ours. All the elements. He could control them. My father used to tell me he was more powerful than the richest, most influential leader in the world. He had a lot of respect for him. And trust.” He sighed. “They were close.”

He placed a gentle hand on Loren's arm. “Walk with me.” She gave one last look at Fredrick Castle’s portrait before she fell into step beside Callum. His hand remained on her arm.

“Castle wasn’t human, at least, not in the beginning of his life. It’s extraordinary and unbelievable, but he came from another world.”

“Another world? Not human?” Loren blinked a few times, trying to process the new, incredible information.

“Yes. He came from another world, nearly one hundred years ago.”

Her mouth dropped open, mouthing a silent
oh
. A hundred years. What was the guy’s secret to aging so well?

She drew her own conclusions. “He’s immortal. He came from another world and had all these magical powers. Is he a—”

“A god? Yes.” Callum nodded. “Incredible, isn’t it?”

She shook her head in disbelief. “That’s insane.”

“Do you want me to continue?”

She nodded. It was a lot of fantastic and heavy information, but it was also essential. If she didn’t know the details, she’d never feel like she’d fit in, be important, or understand. She needed to know for her own sake.

“He came into our world through a portal—a magical doorway between worlds. He didn’t come alone. He brought his brother with him.” Callum paused and glanced up at the ceiling to gather his thoughts. “Most of this information came from Castle himself. Some of it came from the recollections of my father. Castle was his real name.”

“His last name?”

“No, his first.”

“That’s a weird first name.” They entered a large, airy room with many windows. Moonlight streamed in, creating a beautiful ambiance. Loren paused to take it all in.

Callum paused the discussion to watch her reaction. When Loren noticed his stare, she blushed. “The room is lovely,” she said.

“I thought you might like it.” He gestured toward some chairs paired at a small table. “Sit, please.”

Loren nodded. Callum sat with her, leaning forward. He resumed. “No, Castle was his first name, his only name.. We found it strange too.” He smiled some. “His brother’s name was Tower, originally.”

Loren lifted her eyebrows. “Did their parents name them randomly or something? What do you mean by
was
?”

“I believe it was a custom to name one's child after common objects, things, places.” He waved a hand. “And I say
was
because his brother changed his name. Mal, he's called.”

“Mal?”

Callum nodded. “The names aren’t what’s relevant to the story.”

“Um, sorry. I'm just curious.”

“You want to know everything.” Callum shifted in his seat. “But let’s focus on the big details for now and we can discuss the smaller ones later.”

Loren nodded again and let him continue.

“Castle and Mal came to our world through a portal. Travel between worlds isn’t common. In the past, there were gateways, but they became concealed, lock. Only accessible through magical means. Castle told me something happened when they were younger. It changed Mal. It made him angry. He sank into a dark place.” Callum frowned. “Castle never told me the details of it, only what happened after.”

“What happened?” Her voice was barely a whisper.

“He waged a war against Castle. It tore their world apart. It threw everything out of balance. Castle ultimately defeated his brother and sent him to a place where he couldn’t harm anyone. Mal didn’t settle for having lost. He plotted revenge. He eventually came upon a weapon. It could destroy his brother and everything he’d worked to preserve.

“The weapon came in the form of a stone tablet, inscribed with ancient runes. He believed the stone tablet could neutralize Castle’s powers. Castle learned of it and went to find his brother and the tablet to destroy both. It was a tough decision.” Callum paused and looked down at his hands. “Castle struggled with it for a long time. It was his brother. They had grown up together. Loved one another. But he had no choice. He had to choose between saving his kingdom and world and his people from ruin or allow his brother to destroy everything. So he met with his brother. There was a fight.

“During the battle, Mal was wounded. Castle begged him to stop what he was doing, to relinquish his hold on the tablet. He offered him a chance to reform. Mal refused.”

Callum stopped and rubbed his hands over his face. His voice was softer when he resumed the tale. “Mal activated the power within the tablet. Instead of harming his brother, the tablet did something neither of them expected. It opened a portal. Mal saw an opportunity and took it. He went through it and Castle followed, believing his brother would continue his reign of terror in whatever world he found himself.

“They came to our world. Upon arrival, they discovered their abilities greatly diminished. The stone, however, vibrated with energy and they fought over it. Castle feared Mal would use it to return to their world or another to continue his conquest. Mal believed the stone still held the power to destroy Castle. In the end, Castle managed to break the tablet into four pieces. He left Mal injured and weak before he fled with the broken stones.”

There was silence, but Loren knew the story hadn't ended. Callum pressed his fingers against his chin and remained quiet and thoughtful. It seemed a lifetime before he spoke again.

“Castle took the stones and separated them. He believed that if they joined again, it would open the portal. Three of the stones are secure. My father ensured as much at Castle’s request. The fourth was never recovered.”

The stoned weighed heavily against her chest. Her heart thudded against it and Loren swallowed. “What do the stones look like?” She needed to be certain.

Callum leaned back in his seat, his hands resting on his lap. “Small, square—broken where they split from the original tablet. I only saw the three of them, once. The runes Castle mentioned vanished from them. Red, blue, and green in color. The fourth was yellow, I was told.”    

Loren looked away from him. She resisted the temptation to touch the stone she wore. She didn't know what to say.

“We never knew what became of the last stone. After his death—”

“He
died
?” Her breath caught.

Callum nodded, watching her reaction. “Yes. It happened shortly after he divided his abilities between us. Sometime shortly after he gave you yours, I imagine.”

The new information spun in her head. She tried to make sense of it all, to sort her thoughts and emotions. She was saddened Castle was dead. She hadn't known him, but she knew the loss. He was the one responsible for everything. He'd given her the ability to control air, had given her the stone from a mystical tablet.

Her thoughts broke off when Callum spoke again.

“We knew there was another. Castle told my father of his intentions. When they discovered his body, it was clear he had passed on the gift. He left no indication whatsoever of how we were to find the recipient. We searched, but...” he trailed off with a shrug.

“No one found me.”

It was heavy information, to know people had searched for her. She had meant something to them. Loren put it out of her head. She wasn’t important. It was her abilities. That was all. A small frown tugged at her mouth.

“No, we didn’t. We’re sorry for—
I'm
sorry for that. If one of us had found you—if my father had found you—we would’ve brought you immediately here. You would’ve known everything then and could’ve learned to control your ability. My father exhausted so many resources searching.”

Loren rubbed her hands on her jeans and nodded. Words failed her.

Callum attempted a small, sympathetic smile. “I’ve given you too much again, haven’t I?”

“No, no. I mean, well,
yes
but I’m okay. I’m just sorting through it.”

There were questions—always so many questions. She didn’t know where to start. Her brow furrowed. “Castle came from another world,” she began, stating the information aloud for her own clarity. “He fought with his brother, Mal, who came here with him. There was a mystical stone.” She swallowed hard. “A tablet, which had broken apart. The pieces were hidden away, except for one, which became lost.”

“That’s right.”

She nodded. “What um happens if the piece is found?”

“By Mal?” Callum sighed and leaned back in his seat. “Nothing good. For a hundred years, Castle kept the stones safe. I never understood how the last became lost, but it's possible Mal could have it. We don’t know.” He frowned. “If he does, it wouldn’t be good.”

“What if the stone is lost? What if he doesn't have it and it's only lost. If it’s lost, no one knows where it is.” That was sound logic.

Callum pulled a face. “It’s dangerous, regardless. If Mal hasn’t found it yet, it means there’s a chance he
could
. It would make me rest easier at night to know all the stones were somewhere safe and secure, away from him. He’s weaker in our world. Mortal. If he returned to his home world, he’d regain his full power and without Castle to no longer oppose him, he’d destroy that world.”

“When Avery said we were saving the world he didn’t necessarily mean
our
world?”

“He might’ve meant both.”

The weight of it all pushed down on her. Suddenly, Loren wanted nothing more than to be in her apartment in her blanket cocoon. She longed for the simplicity of her former life. It looked good right now.

“I don’t think I can handle it.” She couldn't be important, she realized. Even though she wanted it, craved it. She had too much anxiety. There was too much at stake.

The air shifted around her.

“Take deep breaths,” Callum spoke gently. He leaned on the edge of his seat. “Breathe in, exhale slowly,” he instructed her.

Loren focused her eyes on him. She sucked in a breath, and then let it out. Then again. The shifting air around her settled. She brought up a shaking hand to smooth back her windblown hair.