Free Magic of the Wood House (The Elemental Phases Book 6) by Cassandra Gannon Page A

Eian’s unfairly
targeting my House.  That’s what important here.  It’s ‘cause I’m a
better cousin, and a better king, and way better looking.”  He counted
off those points of comparison on his fingers.  “Meanwhile, Eian’s got no
Match, no kids, bad hair…”
    “Tragic
fucking hair.”  Pele lamented.
    “I know.” 
Djinn gave a sad shake of his head.  “The list goes on and on.  The guy’s
totally insecure about the fact that he sucks and he blames me for it. 
It’s like a Freudian thing, I think.”
    “Also you
beat him up that time.”  Pele volunteered.  “It was way hot.”
    “The point
is, you can’t ever trust a Cold Phase, Sully.”  Alder instructed just in
case Sullivan still didn’t understand that the Fire Phases were inexplicably
cast as the white hats in this soap opera.  “They’re evil.”
    “Don’t
worry.  I don’t trust any of you.”  Sullivan assured them.
    Teja made a
face.  “The Cold Phases aren’t evil.  They’re just boring scientists with a superiority
complex.”  She turned back to Sullivan.  “And what do you mean you don’t trust
us?”  She sounded annoyed again.  Or possibly still.
    “I don’t
trust anyone.  It cuts way down on the problems in my life.”
    She didn’t
seem satisfied with that answer.  “But, I’m your Match.  You have to
trust me.  It’s part of the whole deal.”
    “I never
agreed to any deal.”  He was getting tired of being told what he had to
do.  “Look, maybe you’re right about all this bullshit.  Maybe there’s a box
that steals happiness…”
    “There is.” 
Alder hesitated.  “At least, we think that’s what it does.”  He held up
the Etch-a-Sketch so they could all read the squiggly vulgarity.  “Ta-da!”
    Sullivan kept
going.  “Maybe my grandfather hid it somewhere in Mayport.”
    “He did.” 
Pele assured him.  “Parson would’ve kept it close.”
    “Maybe some
mutant war is raging around me.”
    “We’re not
mutants!”  Djinn shouted.
    Sullivan
disregarded all their commentary, his eyes on Teja.  “But, I don’t care about any of that.”  He finished firmly.  “I don’t want any part of this
asylum.  Not the box, not the ‘Phases,’ not you .”  He refused to be
fooled by her beauty and magic.  “Hell, keep the gun, if you’re so fascinated
with it.  It doesn’t matter to me.  I’m not one of you weirdoes and I’m not
getting mixed up in your weirdo games.  I just want to go home.”
    She frowned. 
“But, it might not be safe to…”
    He cut her
off.  “Take me home , Teja, or I’ll figure out a way to get there
myself.”
    She studied
him for a beat and then let out a sigh.  “We really need to talk.”  She glanced
over at her family.  “Alone.”

Chapter Five
    From
one to the other side did leap and dart,
    From
heat to cold, from cold to heat again:
    And
not an instant through their anguish great,
    In
either element might they remain.
     
    Richard Watson Dixon- “Mano”
     
    Christmas
Eve Afternoon
    “This isn’t
going to do any good.”  Sullivan muttered as Teja hustled him into her
bedroom.  “I don’t see what else you and I have to discuss.  You’re crazy.  I’m
not.  Let’s just…”  He trailed off and looked around her room.  “Hey.”  He
sounded surprised.  “It’s almost normal in here.”
    Teja
automatically followed his gaze.  She was used to seeing her bedroom, since
she’d basically had it decorated the same way since the mid-1930s.  The
straight, asymmetrical lines of the rosewood furniture appealed to her.  So did
the champagne colored walls, the Art Deco mirror over her dresser, and black
and white architectural prints on the walls.  Unlike the rest of the Fire
Fortress, there were only a limited number of swords and axes around.  Very few
people had ever been inside the space.
    Seeing
Sullivan standing in the middle of her sanctuary was actually a little
unnerving, now that Teja took