Elemental Assassin 03 - Venom

physical pain, not like being in the presence of Mab Monroe’s Fire power did. But it still made me uncomfortable. Air and Stone were opposing elements, just like Fire and Ice. Jo-Jo’s Air magic just felt strange to me, just like my Stone and Ice power would to her. The magical, elemental equivalent of nails on a chalkboard all the way around, as it were.
    Jo-Jo’s magic also made the silverstone spider rune scars on my palms itch and burn. Silverstone was a very special metal, capable of absorbing all kinds of elemental magic. In a way, silverstone was hollow, empty, and hungering for enough magic to fill it up. Lots of elementals had charms or medallions made out of the metal, in which they stored bits and pieces of their power. Sort of like magical batteries. My mother had used her snowflake rune that way. I eyed the primrose medallion that rested in the hollow of Bria’s throat. I wondered if she had learned how to do that trick too, along with booby-trapping her freezer.
    The primrose wasn’t the only silverstone Bria wore. I picked up her hand and looked at the three rings on her left index finger. They were nothing fancy, just three thin bands stacked on top of each other, although there seemed to be patterns in the metal. I squinted at the bands and realized that they had tiny runes carved into them. Small snowflakes ringed one of the bands, while ivy vines curled through another. The final ring, the top one on Bria’s finger, was stamped in the middle with a single spider rune—my rune.
    My heart twisted. Baby sister wore a ring, a symbol, for each of us. My mother, Eira’s, snowflake. Our older sister, Annabella’s, ivy vine. And my spider rune. Somehow Iknew she wore them all the time, just like she did her own primrose medallion. She still remembered us, still remembered me, all these years after that horrible night. She remembered what I wished I could forget. I let out a tired breath and gently put Bria’s hand down by her side.
    Jo-Jo passed her hand over Bria’s midsection several times before releasing her grip on her magic. The milky white glow on her palm faded, and the dwarf’s eyes returned to their normal translucent color.
    “There,” she said. “Good as new.”
    I peered over the dwarf’s shoulder. Sure enough, the nasty hole in Bria’s side had vanished, replaced by smooth, pink skin. Jo-Jo had also taken the time to get rid of the scrapes and bruises that had dotted my baby sister’s arms, hands, and face.
    “Thanks, Jo-Jo,” I said. “I’m sure Bria would tell you that too, if she were awake.”
    “No problem, darling.” Jo-Jo reached over and tucked a lock of Bria’s blond hair behind her ear. “After all, she’s family now.”
    For some reason, the dwarf’s soft words made me shiver.
    By the time Sophia dragged the remaining bodies outside and the rest of us straightened up as much of the bloody mess as we could, it was well after midnight. I hauled another garbage bag outside and dumped it in the plastic pickup container. My eyes scanned the darkness, but I didn’t see anyone or anything moving in the black night. Bria’s house was more than a half mile from the others at the end of the street. At this late hour, everyone else inthe immediate vicinity had long ago retired to their bedrooms. Only a few security lights mounted over garages and outbuildings broke through the night. Low, thick clouds obscured the moon and stars, and a metallic scent filled the air that told me snow was on the way.
    But a couple inches of the white stuff wouldn’t be nearly enough to cover up the bloody bit of violence I’d done in Bria’s house tonight—and what I was planning to do to Elliot Slater as soon as I got the chance. I was going to make sure the giant got dead before he had the opportunity to hurt Bria or Roslyn Phillips again. And there were plenty of other people in Ashland who wouldn’t mind living in a world without Slater in it. All this pro bono work I was dabbling in really was turning into public service. The mayor so needed to give me a medal.
    As I peered into the night, the front door opened and Jo-Jo Deveraux stepped outside. The dwarf settled herself on the steps that led up to the porch, draping her fuzzy pink housecoat over her knees. I stood at the base of the steps and leaned against the handrail.
    “You did a good thing tonight, Gin,” Jo-Jo said. “Saving your sister like that.”
    I shrugged. “It wasn’t so much a good thing as it was