“I’ll pass the torch.” He pulled back his hand to release the fireball.
I stole his call, pulling the flames to me and snuffing them out. He first looked to his hand, then to me, frowning as if I’d just taken his favorite toy. “What the… Why’d you do that?”
“Because you’re acting like a child throwing a tantrum. Leo’s got a point.” I walked up. “You were the leader of the quad squad. No leader, no squad.”
“You can be the leader.”
“Yeah,” Clay jumped in. “You’ve already got us wrapped around your finger.” He waggled his eyebrows.
Unbelievably bad timing, dude. I avoided my mom’s gaze but felt it burning into the back of my head nonetheless.
“I’ll be a little busy for extractions.” I couldn’t believe I was about to turn down the one internship I’d wanted more than anything else before the school year had started. Was that really only a week ago? “In addition to TAing for Stace, I’m going to intern for Syd. I’m going to be a healer.”
“How are you going to find the time with all your classes?” Bryan asked as he joined the conversation.
“I’ll just have primary and Arts & Crafts.”
“At least I still get to see you in primary.” Clay lowered his hands now that Rob no longer had a fireball ready to hurl at Leo.
“About that.” I forced a smile when he lost his. “I’m changing houses.”
“To what?” he whined. I forced my smile wider, and his eyes rounded as he shook his head. Vehemently. “No. No way. You can’t move to Terrae. They all smell like dirt. Come on, Montana. Don’t do this to me.”
“I may be a quint, but my primary is earth. You know that.” Everyone knew earth was my primary. It was time for me to accept it as well.
“Traitor,” he grumbled.
“Clay, it’s where I belong.”
Bryan nodded. “Yeah, it is.”
Rose walked up and elbowed him in the ribs. “You don’t have to gloat.”
He rubbed his side where she’d jabbed him and colored to his ears. It had to be one of the cutest things I’d ever seen, a grown man minding his manners in front of his mom. It reminded me of something my dad used to say. “Watch how the guy treats his mom, Katy. If he’s good to her, he’ll be good to you.”
I’d met all the parental figures over the summer. Rob’s mom, Rachel, a small brunette with fierce control over five huge sons. He’d insisted on driving whenever we went somewhere so she wouldn’t have to. With my fire elemental, it was always about control.
Leo had been raised by his grandparents. His grandmother, Loretta, had the same crazy blond curls and piercing blue eyes as her grandson. He’d held the door for her as well as her chair and always offered his arm when we walked anywhere. So, it made sense why my water elemental always checked on me.
Clay’s mom, Maxine, her dancing emerald eyes behind square-rimmed glasses, a long brown braid down the center of her back. He’d never let her carry anything, always using his element to do it. My air elemental usually took my book bag and carried it for me. Now I knew why.
Bryan’s mom, Rose, with her kind eyes and propensity for hugging. He’d become the man of the house at an early age and was very protective. It took him most of the summer to warm up to Syd and even longer for him to warm up to the idea of Syd dating Rose.
Based on my dad’s theory about how guys treated their moms, I’d hit the lottery.
While Syd checked out each of the guys, even though they all insisted he start with me, I sat next to my mom, about a million and one questions on the tip of my tongue, me too chicken to ask any of them.
“Bryan?” Syd nodded for him to follow him into the next room. Rose joined them, leaving me staring at the floor to avoid my mom’s gaze.
“Where’ve you been?” I finally asked when I built up enough courage. I still kept my attention on the shiny linoleum. It was easier than looking her in the eye.
“Europe, mostly. I couldn’t risk one of the Council’s watchers spotting me. They aren’t scattered across the country to only babysit potential elementals. They also report anything out of the ordinary. Seeing someone who’d supposedly died would definitely be out of the ordinary.”
Fair point.
“Especially someone as famous as the prophecy,” she added, clearly proud of that fact. Being the prophecy didn’t make a person famous. I would know since I had firsthand experience in that department. Being the prophecy made you a target.
I dropped it, not wanting to start an argument within the first few hours since she’d returned. The tension between us was already awkward and uncomfortable. I didn’t need to add to it.
Bryan walked out with his mom and nodded for me. “He wants to see you next.”
I shook my head and motioned at Leo. “He’s the one with the knot on his noggin.”
“I know better than to argue with you.” He thumbed for Leo to head into the room he’d just vacated.
One by one, Syd examined the guys, each one walking out of the room and motioning for me to go next. And each time, I shook my head and made one of them go before me. I was fine. Well, aside from sitting next to the woman who’d given me life and struggling to make small talk. I barely knew more about her now after half an hour of conversation than I had when she’d left. She’d been hiding out in Europe. Thought about getting a dog but decided against it. Loved frogs and couldn’t stop herself from buying little figurines of them. This I already knew and had started picking them up myself. They reminded me of happier times, back when it’d
