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Adam had never been vulnerable with me as much as he had today. Guilt ate at him. I could see it in his eyes, in every line of his face.
I gave him a little smile. “Adam, do you know why I married you?”
“My height.” He joked, but we both knew that’s what first caught my attention, just as my height had caught his in return.
I walked to him and didn’t stop until my arms were around his neck and my lips were pressed to his.I married you because you fill the empty place in my heart. I married you because I knew, despite the rumors, that when wrong was happening, you’d fight it. I still believe that, Adam. It’s not going to be easy, but no one else can do this. Carmon won’t be down long, and if he is, I know you can lead these people to victory. They’ll follow you, Adam, because they believe in you too. It’s your place to lead.
Adam stilled. When he pulled back from me, an idea ran amok in his head. His eyes were glazed over and staring past me into the woods beyond.
“It’s my place.” He smiled. “Come with me.”
Adam dragged me back into the house, where people were finally coming out of their stupors. Many of them looked over as Adam began explaining his thoughts.
“What’s one thing that Bard and Onyx have that the Mindolin doesn’t seem to?” Everyone looked bewildered at his question. “Come on, guys. Think.”
“A soul?” Grace replied. I knew her from Mount Pickett. Many men sought her attention, and she was the greatest female warrior. I’d wanted to be like her for so long, but I wasn’t a fighter. Neutrals didn’t fight.
Adam waved for them to keep throwing out ideas.
“Um, I got nothing.” Chris threw his hands up.
The baby in Jazz’s arms woke up and began to fuss. “I need to feed him.” Her shoulders fell. “You know what? Chris, make a bottle. I’ll nurse the next ones. Right now, they need to eat, and I need to help save the world. I’m too tired to do both.”
“It’s okay, Jazz.” Sylee gave her a warm smile. “No one here is judging.”
“What do they have that the Mindolin doesn’t?” Drew asked as Chris began making a bottle and another baby woke up fussy.
“A place.” Adam smiled, but everyone still looked confused. “Bard has his forest, and Onyx has her pool. Why doesn’t the Mindolin have a place, or did he? Does he need one?”
“Huh.” Carmon sat up on the couch. Apparently, he’d woken up.
“Hey, how are you?” Sylee asked him while rubbing her hands up and down his arms.
The way Carmon smiled at his mate, he loved her so much, it made me glad I had Adam back. “I’m okay. Trying to wrap my head around this new power, so for the time being, Adam is in charge, but I’m good. Things are coming into my head, memories or knowledge, something. I can’t process it all, so I’m trying to ignore it. Lady Life made the correct choice by holding off on giving me this power until now.”
“What is it?” Dalton asked.
Carmon shook his head. “I’m not exactly sure yet. I know I’ve been gaining in strength.” He looked hesitantly at Sophie. “When I had to kill the Dark king, the act didn’t drain me like it should have.” He looked back to Adam. “What are your thoughts on the place?”
Adam walked to the fireplace and held his hand out. He straightened and brought his hand back before he turned to look at me. “Brynn, start a fire while I answer Cal.”
Wait, what? Hadn’t Adam said I couldn’t start fires? Not like him, anyway.
Adam walked back to the group, and I made my way to the fireplace. He wasn’t even going to tell me how? I understood we had different abilities, but he wasn’t going to give me the support I needed? Yeah, I’d told him to do his job, but how in the blazes did I do this? One second I’d been a boring Neutral, the next a fire-breathing Elemental. Not literally, but this was all new! It wasn’t like I could just walk up to these logs and say, “Hey, heat up for me.” That would be like walking up to a nail on the table and putting in a request for it to heat up and burn the wood around it.
“Yikes!” I spun at the outburst from one of the girls. Flames roared on the coffee table, in a corner. Chances of there being a nail there, pretty good.
The fire disappeared in an instant, and I dropped onto the bricking, my face in my hands. Humiliation pinkened my face, and a tear rolled down my cheek.
Large hands pulled my hands from my face. Adam smiled at me. “You’re doing great, baby.”
“I lit the table on fire, Adam. That’s not what I would call ‘doing great,’ but that’s just me.” I shouldn’t have snapped at him, but my face still glowed, and another tear fell.
“Baby, I can’t help you. I don’t know how to do what you do. Don’t be afraid of your gift, and don’t be embarrassed if you mess up. It’ll be—" Someone pushed Adam over, and then Grace knelt down in front of me.
“That little speech, not helpful.” I laughed at her candidness. “Truth is, you have a power in you. Tell it what to do. I control air temperature and create air where there is none. My element, the air, listens to my command. I am its overseer. Make fire listen to you, Brynn. Assert yourself. If you haven’t before, do it now.”
I’d never asserted myself before. Doing so would only cause me trouble as a kid. While my childhood hadn’t been as bad as Adam’s, it hadn’t been good either. Still, Grace looked at me like she believed in me, like she knew I could do this.
