Magic of the Wood House (The Elemental Phases Book 6) (27 page)

“Hang
on, I don’t think that’s
‘fine,’
at all.” Pele objected.

Teja
ignored that, too.  “But,
that
man,” she pointed at Sullivan, “had
nothing
to do with this and I will kill anyone who says otherwise.”  Her gaze fixed on
Eian.  “And that’s a goddamn
promise
.”

Sullivan’s
mouth curved upward at one corner as Teja ended her rant.  “No emotions, huh?”

“Shut
up, Sheriff.”

Eian
eyed Teja with palpable hatred.  “You don’t
deserve
a Match.  Not when
so many Phases have none.  Why would
you
get the only human half-breed
we’ve ever found?  Our brightest hope?  The man
all
these better women,
from better Houses, want for their own?”  He gestured around the Council Hall. 
“Why
you?
”

Honestly? 
Teja had no idea.

Sullivan
kept staring a Teja.  “Because, she’s the one I’m in love with.”  His head
swiveled around to pin Eian with a deadly look.  “And if you say another
fucking word to her, I’ll drag you over that table and beat you to death.”

Eian’s
eyebrows shot up.

“Oooohhhh! 
I hope Eian’s stupid enough to say something to her.”  Frankie rubbed his hands
in anticipation.  “I got five bucks on the human.”

Teja
blinked at Sullivan.

Hang
on… He loved her?

Oh
shit
.

Beneath
her frozen emotions, something started getting a lot warmer.  It felt as if the
ice encasing her heart was completely melting away.  Panic washed over her.  “You’re
not supposed to love me.”  She blurted out, confused and off-balance.  “We had
a whole discussion about it, Sullivan!”

“Yeah,
well,” Sullivan shrugged, not meeting her eyes, “a lot of the stuff the Cult
says doesn’t make sense, so I’m good at ignoring it.”  He looked back at Job. 
“Are we done here, yet?”

“I
think so.”  Job smiled at him like a proud father and glanced around.  “Who
here believes the testimony of Sullivan Pryce?”

Hands
shot up all over the hall, some of them just from spectators in the gallery.

“As
do I.”  Job banged his gavel.  “The Council therefore finds the Fire House
innocent of these crimes and we wish them well.”

“Yeah,
blow me, ya dicks.”  Djinn flicked them all off.

“That’s
not fair!”  Eian began in an outraged voice.  “You can’t just…”

Job
interrupted him.  “As for Eian, King of the Cold House.  I move that we begin
an immediate investigation into
his
role in this bombing.  And I suggest
we keep him confined until he tells us what he knows about Vandal, of the Light
House.”

The
Light Phases grunted in agreement.

Freya
closed her eyes in sorrow as the Council voted to imprison her brother.

Eian
slowly got to his feet.  “You think you can beat me, Job?”  He hissed.  “You
think you can beat
Vandal?
  He’s the greatest warrior who’s ever lived
and you’re just a weak puppet of the Fire House.  He’s going to free this realm
from your tyranny.  When he rises up to usher in the Dark King, this world will
finally be cleansed.”

Job
didn’t look impressed.  “If Vandal could beat me, he wouldn’t be hiding.”

Eian’s
mouth tightened in fury.

Kahn
started for Eian.  “Tell us where Vandal is
right now
and we’ll let you
keep most of your fingers, you little toad.”

“I’ll
tell you nothing.”  Eian’s gaze flashed back to Teja, his eyes glowing with
wintery death.  “This is
your
fault.  It’s
always
your fault.”

“I
didn’t want this.”  She said dazedly, most of her attention still on Sullivan’s
mind-blowing assertion that he loved her.  “I wanted to be a family with you
and Freya.  You were the one who couldn’t accept me.”

Freya
looked over at her and then back to Eian, her expression turning hopeful.  “We
can still be a family if…”

“
I
will never have a Fire Phase as my family!
  It’s me or her, Freya! 
Remember that!”

Freya’s
face went cold.  “Teja’s
my
family.  And if I have to choose between
you, it’ll be
her
.”

Teja’s
head whipped around in surprise.

If
he’d been standing closer to his sister, Eian would’ve hit her.  “You traitorous
whore!”

“Teja
saved me from the bomb
you
set, Eian!  She came for me, when you left me
to die!  What do you expect?”

“You
weren’t supposed to be there!  It wasn’t supposed to hurt anyone important!”

Freya
shook her head in disgust.  “I have no idea who you are anymore.”  She looked
over at Teja.  “I’m sorry.”  She said, simply.  “I didn’t want to admit what,
deep down, I knew was true.  Forgive me.”

Teja
blinked.  “Uhh…  Okay.”  She had no idea how to deal with Freya not arguing
with her.  It felt awkward, but in kind of a good way.  She floundered for what
to say next and finally went with the practical.  “You want to stay at the Fire
Fortress while your palace is rebuilt?”

The
Fire Phases cringed in unison.

“Okay.” 
Freya echoed and gave Teja a tentative smile.  “That could be fun.  We can do
girl stuff!”

“Girl
stuff?”  Teja looked over at Sullivan in horror.

“Maybe
you can show her how to sword fight.”  He suggested, amused and happy for her.

Teja
let out a shaky breath, the panic from his earlier declaration receding from
her mind.  For the first time since the Fall, she felt everything.  Absolutely
everything.

…And
all of it was love.

She
wasn’t frozen.  She never had been.  Her emotions had always been there.  She
knew that when she looked at Sullivan, because the feelings went straight down
to her soul.  It was all so clear.  She was
completely
in love with this
man.

Why
had that ever scared her?

“Neither
one of you is worthy of my House!”  Eian reached beneath his robes and came up
with his own Phase-killing gun.  He could only have gotten it from Vandal.  “I’ll
kill you, Freya, for your betrayal, but first
you.”
  Wildly
out-of-control, he pointed the barrel at Teja.  “Why should you get to live
when you’ve taken
everything
from me, you evil bitch?!”

Even
now, Teja hadn’t thought her cousin wanted her dead.  Not really.  Wanted to
fight with her, and try to Banish her, and even to hate her, but to
shoot
her…?  No.  She just stood there, hesitating for half-a-second, her brain
trying to catch-up.

Everyone
else froze, too.  Elementals didn’t use
guns
.  No one had seen this
coming.  Eian was going to murder her with a human weapon and nobody could react
fast enough stop him.

Except
maybe a human soldier.

Sullivan’s
powers slammed out.  More Wood energy than anyone had ever let loose before and
it moved in an off-center, unPhase-like way.  Teja realized she’d been right
before.  Without his walls, Sullivan could accomplish magic.  He didn’t play
inside the Elemental box, because nobody ever told him that the normal methods
even existed.  Eian might think he was unpredictable in pulling that gun, but
he had no
idea
who he was up against.

Her
Match was off-the-charts powerful and he’d received most of his training from
comic books.

The
Fire House’s humongous Christmas tree was still in the center of the Hall and
it was suddenly… alive.  Covered in barbed wire and implements of death, it
reached for Eian.  It literally
reached
for him.  The whole monstrosity somehow
lurched forward, grabbing the Cold King in its sinister branches.

“What
the
fuck!
”  Eian forgot about Teja and began wilding firing into the
ornaments and garland.  “
No!
  Somebody do something!”

It
was no use.  Limbs wrapped around Eian, holding him tight.  The tree pulled him
deeper into its dense foliage, refusing to give up its prize.  A hungry hole
opened in its massive trunk, its bark becoming jagged teeth.

The
rest of the Wood House looked amazed at the spectacle.  None of them had ever
thought
of something so grotesque.  Of course they hadn’t.  Because, Sullivan Pryce
wasn’t part of the upright, rule-following, goody-two-shoed Wood Phases.

He
belonged with the weirdoes of the Fire House.

Screams
erupted throughout the Council Hall.  People ran for the exits.  Freya turned her
face, so she didn’t have to watch.  Gion scrambled over to protect Ty and Nia. 
Kahn moved in front of Mara.  Satour woke-up with a start, blurting out
obscenities and tumbling out of his chair.  The rest of the Fire Phases were already
on their feet, beaming at their carnivorous decoration.  Job shook his head
like he couldn’t believe the amount of power he was witnessing.

Teja
barely noticed the chaos.  She couldn’t look away as Eian was dragged into
tree’s horrible mouth, stilling shrieking.  It closed around him with a sicken
crunch.  …And there was a sudden silence.

The
Christmas tree ate her cousin.

She
slowly turned to Sullivan, who was watching the now dormant spruce.

“Alright. 
You win, darlin’.”  He said calmly.  “I guess I am part Elemental.  But, that
still
would’ve been a lot easier if you hadn’t confiscated my gun.”

Frankie
started laughing.  “Fuckin’-A, would Oberon love that boy.”

But there
is another element, more important than all,

without
which there cannot be the slightest hope of a permanent peace.

That
element lies in the heart of humanity

Calvin
Coolidge- Inaugural Address

Christmas
Night

Djinn
gave Sullivan a flea collar for Christmas.

Sullivan
gave Djinn a McDonalds’ hamburger.

Djinn
frowned down at his double quarter-pounder with cheese, a baffled expression on
his face.  “What’s this for?  Is it poisoned or something?”

“It’s
made of cow.”

Djinn
glanced at him sharply.  “
The
cow?”

Sullivan
gave a meaningful shrug, letting Djinn draw his own insane conclusions.  If the
Fire House accepted that their bovine nemesis was dead, life would a lot more
peaceful.

“Hot
damn.”  Djinn grinned with the demonic glee.  “That spotted bitch finally
kicked it, huh?”  He took a huge bite of his burger, chewing happily.  The
maniac couldn’t have been more pleased if he’d just shot out someone’s eye with
a Red Ryder BB gun.  “Now,
that
tastes like a jolly fucking holiday.”

Around
them, the Fire House celebrated Christmas with typical restraint.  A hip hop
version of
Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer
was blaring over the
stereo, as Hope and Kingu decorated a new tree.  With Freya staying in the fortress,
Teja had vetoed the idea of dragging the original man-eating spruce back home. 
The Fire Phases had pouted about the loss, but Kingu created a new twenty foot
pine for them, along with whole undead army of jagged, creepy, sometimes oozing
ornaments.  Sullivan found the skeletonized Kris Kringle on the top branch
especially festive.

Yes,
Virginia there really was a Zombie Claus.

“Is
this just melted ice cream and bourbon?”  Melanie asked.

Sullivan
glanced at his cousin, who was squinted down at her eggnog.  “It’s whiskey.” 
He corrected.  “Missy tells me it’s a secret recipe.”

Melanie
wrinkled her nose.  “Are you sure you wouldn’t rather come back to the Wood
House with Uriel and me?  This place is kinda weird.”

“Wait
until they open the rest of their presents.  Missy got them all monster
trucks.”  His mouth curved, gazing around the mayhem.  The Fire Phases were
crazy and irrational and lived in a constant state of chaos  …And for the first
time in his life, Sullivan didn’t feel out of place.  “I belong here, Mel.”  He
said quietly.

”I
know.”  Melanie sighed.  “I see it, too.”  She leaned over to kiss his cheek. 
“Congrats, Sully.  You deserve to be happy.”  She paused for a beat.  “So what
are you going to do about your Match?”

Teja
was avoiding him.

His
declaration of love had probably freaked her out and sent all her “frozen”
emotions into a panic.  Sullivan wasn’t about to take the words back, though.  He
couldn’t, even if he wanted to.  He was in love with the woman and she was just
going to have to deal with it.  In fact, spending time with the Fire Phases was
rubbing off on him, because Sullivan saw only one logical way to deal with her reticence.

“I’m
going to kidnap her.”

Melanie
blinked at him.  “You’re going to kidnap, Teja, of the Fire and Cold Houses?” 
She repeated in astonishment.

He
nodded.  “Just a little bit.”

Melanie
belted back her eggnog and went to get another.  “Christ, he really does belong
here.”  She muttered to herself.

Sullivan
took that as a compliment.  He checked his watch and saw that it was about time
for his nefarious crime to begin.  “Kingu?”  He looked over to his accomplice. 
“Everything ready?”

Kingu
gave him a thumbs-up, not lifting his head from kissing Hope under the
mistletoe.

Excellent. 
Sullivan got to his feet and headed downstairs.  The Fire Phase dungeon was
look noticeably less gloomy thanks to Kingu’s finger-snapping efforts.  The smell
was better, too.  The cell where they’d held him early now had an actual bed,
with pillows, and some candles burning, and door that closed.  And a mirror
ball.  He didn’t recall requesting that, but it was a thoughtful touch.

Sullivan
checked his watch again and leaned against the wall.

Waiting.

Thirty
seconds later Teja jumped into the cell, her gaze sweeping around and settling
on him.  “Are you alright?”  She demanded, sounding out of breath.  She was so
frantic, she didn’t even notice the cell’s new décor.

“I’m
fine.”  He crooked a finger at her, pushing away from the wall.  “Come ‘ere,
darlin’.”

Teja
moved closer, not suspecting a trap.  She trusted him so deeply that it was humbling. 
When she’d shouted at the Council that he was the best person she knew,
Sullivan had been overwhelmed.  There was no one in any dimension like this
woman and she was
his
.

He
just had to convince her not to dump him.

“Kingu
said Djinn re-kidnaped you and locked you down here.”  Teja frowned, still
looking concerned.  “Are you
sure
you’re okay?”

“I’ve
never been better.”  Sullivan arched a brow.  “You know when you told everyone
how honest I am, though?  Well, it turns out, I’m occasionally okay with lying.” 
His palm shot out encircling her arm.  Spinning her around, he quickly wrapped
the plastic zip-ties around her wrists.  “Sorry about this.  It’s for the
greater good.”

Teja
automatically tried to get the handcuffs off, but they weren’t budging.  “What
are you doing?”  She asked in confusion.  “Hang on, are you
kidnapping
me?”

“Just
a little bit.”

Teja
stared up at him for a beat, an unreadable expression on her face.  “Shit.”

Sullivan’s
stomach sank.

Teja
shook her head in amazement.  “I can’t believe I didn’t see this coming.”  Her
mouth curved into a dazzling smile.  “It’s
just
what a Fire Phase would
do.”

Relief
poured through him.  “I thought you’d like the plan.”  He backed her up so she
was against the wall.  “Want to talk about why you’ve been avoiding me all
night?”

“You
told me you loved me.”

Damn
it, he’d
known
that was the problem.  “I do love you.”  Sullivan kept
his gaze locked on hers.  “I loved you before I even knew your name.”  Right
from the beginning, his instincts had known she was his and he was hers.

They
belonged together.

“But,
you don’t trust me.”  Teja went up on tiptoe, her body moving against his. 
“And if you don’t trust me, you won’t Phaze with me.  And if we don’t Phaze,
you could still leave.”  She ran her tongue over the ridges of his scar.  “I
don’t want you to leave, Sullivan.  It would take hours to track you down again
and I need you now.”

Sullivan’s
eyes flickered shut.  He had no idea how his energy could have stayed hidden
from him for so long.  He could feel the powers pulling against his control,
trying to reach her.  “I’m not leaving you, Teja.  Ever.  And I do…”

She
cut him off.  “So, I haven’t been
avoiding
you.  I’ve been thinking of
ideas.”

“Ideas?” 
His hands went to her sweater, unbuttoning it, because he had to see her. 
“That sounds ominous.”  With the handcuffs in place, he couldn’t get her
cardigan down her arms, but he was nothing if not flexible.  He left it hanging
open and started on her blouse.

“It’s
good
ideas, wiseass.”  Teja leaned forward, urging him along as he began
stripping her.  “I’ve been making a list of ways to
make
you trust me.”

He
smiled at that.  “Like what?”

“Well,
obvious, I thought about stealing you something nice.  Like maybe a tank.”

“Very
thoughtful.”  He got her shirt open, too, and let out a long breath.  “No
bra?”  He got out hoarsely.

“You’re
welcome, Sheriff.”

Sullivan
chuckled at that.  He dipped his head to suck one of her taunt nipples into his
mouth.  God, this woman was really was one of a kind.

Teja
made a low sound of pleasure, arching into his touch.  “Of course, the problem
with the tank,” she continued breathlessly, “is that girls are
always
buying you pretty things.  You’re probably immune to gifts.  It’s all been
done.”

“A
tank
does
have a way of standing out from the crowd, though.”  He
switched to her other breast, nipping gently.

Teja
jolted.  “Gaia, I know you like to go slow, but…”  She trailed off with a
whimper.

Sullivan
felt it, too.  The Phazing energy between them was tighter than ever before,
dragging them both deeper and faster into pleasure.  There was no way he was
going to be able to drag this out for long.

His
eyes locked on her and he began unfastening his pants.

She
swallowed.  “So, then I thought of
another
idea.”  Her gaze went down to
his straining erection and she bit her lower lip in anticipation.  “I thought maybe
I could charcoal someone who really annoys you.”

“I
do have a shortlist of really annoying Cult members, I’d like to see extra
crispy.”  Sullivan switched back to her clothes, yanking the jeans from her
legs.  She wasn’t wearing underwear, either, God bless her.  “Start with flambéing
Gion.  He’s right at the top.”

“I’d
love to, but that won’t win your trust, either.”  Teja shook her head.  “You’re
so strong, Sullivan.  If you wanted someone gone, you’d just get rid of them
yourself.”  She gasped as he lifted her off the ground.  “God, you’re
sooo
strong.”  Her lips found his, kissing him hungrily.

Those
damn powers went crazy.  If they didn’t hurry this up, he was going to lose his
mind.  Sullivan trapped her between the wall and his body.  He nudged her legs
opened, his free hand testing the soft, wet evidence of her desire.  He groaned
at how ready she was for him already.

Teja
moved against his fingers, needing more.  “Hurry.”  She whispered.

Sullivan
shook his head.  Teja’s hands were still behind her back, leaving her
vulnerable to anything he wanted to do.  “Wait.”  His jaw clenched, trying to
hold back.  The Fire House influence told him that this was exactly how it was
supposed to go, but he had to be sure she was okay.  “Do you want the handcuffs
off first?”  He wanted to keep playing bad cop with her, but he’d stop if she
asked.

Somehow.

“Don’t
you
dare
untie me.”  Teja’s legs wrapped around his waist, tugging him
closer.  “I’m being kidnapped and it’s fucking perfect.”  She slid against him,
her body like something out of a dream.  “I swear, only a Wood Phase would ask
such stupid questions.”

“You
say such sweet things to me.”

Teja
laughed out loud at that dry statement.  She always seemed to appreciate his
snarking.   “You know, I waited a long time for my Match.”  She grinned up at
him, her hazel eyes glowing.  “And you were
sooo
worth it, Sullivan.”

He
nuzzled the blue streak at her temple.  “Does that mean you’re not divorcing me
anymore?”

“Do
you know what I finally decided about my list of ideas?”  She said in way of an
answer.  “I realized that isn’t a way to
make
you trust me.  Not unless
I tell you the truth.”

Sullivan
braced himself.  “Which is?”

“I
am totally, hopelessly, sickeningly in love with you, Sullivan, of the Fire
House.”  She smiled.  “Take all the time you need to trust in that, because I’m
not going
anywhere
.”  Emotions warm and real lit her stunning face.  “We
can wait to Phase as long as you need to, okay?”

Sullivan
felt tears sting the back of his eyes.  “Okay.”  He said hoarsely and lowered
his mouth to hers.  Swinging her around, he carried her towards the bed. 
Sullivan dropped onto the mattress, with Teja on her lap.

She
immediately maneuvered herself onto her knees, so he was right at the entrance
of her warm channel.  “Hey, I like this even better.  I’m on top, but still
erotically abducted…”  Her words stopped on a gasp.

Sullivan’s
hands found the curve of her waist, drawing her down until he seated deep
inside of her.  There was no telling where he left off and she began.  Teja’s
body melted around him, as he filled her completely.

She
was right.  It was fucking
perfect.

Teja’s
head fell onto his shoulder, like she could no longer keep it upright.  “Okay. 
Enough screwing around.”  She panted.  “You need to take me,
right now
. 
I mean it.  The energy is…”  She broke off with a moan, moving against him.  “
Now
,
Sullivan.”

He
couldn’t agree more.  But, still he needed to tease her just a
little
.  “I’m
pretty sure I’m the kidnapper here, darlin’.”  His palms cupped her breasts,
squeezing them together and admiring their weight.  “That means I get to set
the pace.  It’s one of the perks of criminality.”