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Authors: Larissa Ladd
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wrists, at the shoulders, at the knees and the ankles; her energy was at a low ebb, but she was still fighting. It had only been a few days—she wouldn’t be totally incapacitated, but she was completely unable to subvert the bindings that held her where she was.
Dylan opened his mind up more. Leigh was in the deep desert, in a carefully concealed house—and she wasn’t alone. There were people there with her. Dylan counted six—not as many as Oriel said led the group, but they were all unstable—a morass of seething energies and conflicting feelings that rasped against Dylan’s perception enough to make him cringe. Dylan almost pulled away; it was too much. Instead he gritted his teeth and ceded control to Aira. He couldn’t locate the group as readily—he could only get impressions, feel the people there. Aira’s part of the focus moved in and out, and Dylan could feel her getting a sense of directions, of the precise location and how they would be able to find it.
A loud boom of thunder cracked the air outside and Dylan relinquished his hold on both Aira and Aiden, shaking his hands at the wrists as lingering energy tingled under his skin. “Did you get it?” he asked her, hoping against hope that they wouldn’t have to do it again. Aira opened her eyes and for a moment looked disoriented; Dylan could appreciate the feeling.
“I got it,” she said, sounding almost breathless. She reeled slightly and grabbed onto Aiden for support. “I know exactly where those assholes are. It’s not all of them, but we’ll nab at least a few. And we need to get Leigh out of there most of all.” Dylan smiled sadly. So she had gotten that perception, too.
“It’s too late to get a start now,” Dylan said, looking outside at the gradually clearing weather; even without the storm, it was evening. They wouldn’t make it far before they all had to rest. “First thing in the morning?” Aira looked at Aiden and nodded.
“First thing.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
THE TRIP WEST SEEMED INTERMINABLE. Dylan hadn’t been able to get a flash—even a glimmer—of Leigh since the massive effort he had made with Aira and Aiden. He kept opening his mind, trying to home in on her subtle, faint energy, but to no avail. He was starting to become truly worried; if the people holding Leigh had caught wind that he, Aiden, and Aira were on their way, they might have decamped.
It had been relatively easy to get a flight to Nevada; now that they were in the state itself, it was a question of homing in on the location itself. Dylan and Aiden took turns driving—Aira insisted that she was more than capable, but they didn’t want to take the risk that would come up if anyone was tracking them, interested in taking Aira out. The desert was a difficult climate for Dylan to adjust to; he knew that it was easiest for Aiden—with his innate heat tolerance, he was doing the best out of the three of them. For Aira, it was easy enough though she kept steadily drinking water. The lack of water in his environment made Dylan feel more than slightly disoriented. He was so accustomed to his element being all around him that it was difficult to gain his bearings.
“Are you getting anything, Dylan?” Aira asked, glancing at him. She had volunteered to take the back seat—though Aiden had been slightly disgruntled at the fact that she wouldn’t be in easy physical contact while he drove. Aira was homing in on the location they would find Leigh at, using her air-aligned abilities for finding—it was easier, she said, without the distraction of Aiden’s energy nearby. Dylan was seeking the woman who had begun to consume his thoughts in a different way, trying to feel his way through the little bit of water energy that the desert contained, trying to seek out her ephemeral and flickering energy.
“No,” he admitted with a sigh. What was it about Leigh, he wondered? He had responded to her right away—even before they had
Dylan opened his mind up more. Leigh was in the deep desert, in a carefully concealed house—and she wasn’t alone. There were people there with her. Dylan counted six—not as many as Oriel said led the group, but they were all unstable—a morass of seething energies and conflicting feelings that rasped against Dylan’s perception enough to make him cringe. Dylan almost pulled away; it was too much. Instead he gritted his teeth and ceded control to Aira. He couldn’t locate the group as readily—he could only get impressions, feel the people there. Aira’s part of the focus moved in and out, and Dylan could feel her getting a sense of directions, of the precise location and how they would be able to find it.
A loud boom of thunder cracked the air outside and Dylan relinquished his hold on both Aira and Aiden, shaking his hands at the wrists as lingering energy tingled under his skin. “Did you get it?” he asked her, hoping against hope that they wouldn’t have to do it again. Aira opened her eyes and for a moment looked disoriented; Dylan could appreciate the feeling.
“I got it,” she said, sounding almost breathless. She reeled slightly and grabbed onto Aiden for support. “I know exactly where those assholes are. It’s not all of them, but we’ll nab at least a few. And we need to get Leigh out of there most of all.” Dylan smiled sadly. So she had gotten that perception, too.
“It’s too late to get a start now,” Dylan said, looking outside at the gradually clearing weather; even without the storm, it was evening. They wouldn’t make it far before they all had to rest. “First thing in the morning?” Aira looked at Aiden and nodded.
“First thing.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
THE TRIP WEST SEEMED INTERMINABLE. Dylan hadn’t been able to get a flash—even a glimmer—of Leigh since the massive effort he had made with Aira and Aiden. He kept opening his mind, trying to home in on her subtle, faint energy, but to no avail. He was starting to become truly worried; if the people holding Leigh had caught wind that he, Aiden, and Aira were on their way, they might have decamped.
It had been relatively easy to get a flight to Nevada; now that they were in the state itself, it was a question of homing in on the location itself. Dylan and Aiden took turns driving—Aira insisted that she was more than capable, but they didn’t want to take the risk that would come up if anyone was tracking them, interested in taking Aira out. The desert was a difficult climate for Dylan to adjust to; he knew that it was easiest for Aiden—with his innate heat tolerance, he was doing the best out of the three of them. For Aira, it was easy enough though she kept steadily drinking water. The lack of water in his environment made Dylan feel more than slightly disoriented. He was so accustomed to his element being all around him that it was difficult to gain his bearings.
“Are you getting anything, Dylan?” Aira asked, glancing at him. She had volunteered to take the back seat—though Aiden had been slightly disgruntled at the fact that she wouldn’t be in easy physical contact while he drove. Aira was homing in on the location they would find Leigh at, using her air-aligned abilities for finding—it was easier, she said, without the distraction of Aiden’s energy nearby. Dylan was seeking the woman who had begun to consume his thoughts in a different way, trying to feel his way through the little bit of water energy that the desert contained, trying to seek out her ephemeral and flickering energy.
“No,” he admitted with a sigh. What was it about Leigh, he wondered? He had responded to her right away—even before they had
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