Page 69 of The Lost Elemental

That voice was familiar too.

I struggled against the foggy pull of the darkness, that warmth I’d found there. I wanted to move towards the voices around me. To crawl into them and never leave.

Light flashed in quick bursts as I managed short blinks.

A hand slid along my jaw, thumb brushing across my cheek. “There she is. Come on, Pip.”

It was the Pip that did it. Kai. I knew that voice. That feel of his skin against mine.

“Show me those beautiful gray eyes.”

I fought harder, slowly opening my eyes for longer periods.

“Are you in pain? Do you need something to drink?” Atlas pressed himself closer to me, his big body cocooning mine.

Where was I? Slowly the room came into focus. Large four-poster bed. Massive space with paintings that looked as if they could’ve been painted by Pollock. I inhaled deeply and knew it was Kai’s space. The scent of salt air and something else swirling in my senses.

“What happened?” I croaked.

Phoenix glared down at me, his grip on my thigh tightening. “That’s what we want to know.”

It came back in flashes. The air catching me off guard. Drue’s attack. The pain of each blow. Losing all control. I jerked against the pillows. “Drue.”

“Will be fine,” Phoenix said. “She said you lost it and attacked her, that she had no choice but to fight back.”

I gaped at him.

“But she was lying,” Atlas said with a certainty that had me relaxing a fraction.

“I was going back to my dorm and this gust of air took me out. It trapped me.” My voice trembled as I spoke, the feeling of not being able to move still alive in my muscles.

Atlas wrapped himself around me. “You’re safe.”

“Drue came out of nowhere. Said she was going to teach me my place.”

Kai let out a series of curses. “That fucking bitch.”

“She started hitting me. I think she cracked my ribs. Maybe punctured a lung.”

“She did,” Phoenix gritted out. “If Riven hadn’t gotten to you in time, you would’ve died.” His gaze traveled to a corner of the room.

I hadn’t even noticed him there, as if he were hiding in the shadows the way Phoenix often did. His gaze locked with mine. So much passed through those glacier eyes, but it moved so quickly I couldn’t pin down a single emotion.

Riven pushed off the wall. “I just called a healer, that’s all.”

“Sure,” Kai grunted.

Riven glared at him. “I need to go. There’s business I need to attend to.”

“Stay,” Atlas said. It was only a single word, but there was a plea beneath it.

Riven looked towards all of us piled on the bed and for the briefest moment, I swore there was longing in there. But it was gone so fast I told myself I’d imagined it.

He shook his head. “Some of us have responsibilities to attend to.”

“I don’t think there’s a damn thing more important than making sure Aura’s okay,” Phoenix clipped.

“Then do that,” Riven bit out. He turned on his heel and stormed out of the bedroom.