“I’ve heard the name.” Barely, but seeing as I can’t concentrate, we may as well have a conversation.
“He was a sixteenth century philosopher. And an alchemist. You know the four elements, right? The building blocks of nature?”
I’ve learned a good bit about them in my reading and research on witchcraft. “Earth, air, fire, and water.”
Leo nods. “Paracelsus believed that there are mythical creatures that embody each element.” He flips to a chart in the book, then to several Renaissance era illustrations. “So gnomes are earth, sylphs are air, salamanders fire, and undines water. They’re like your Green Knight—of nature, but alsosupernatural. Spirits that have material bodies. What we call Elementals now.”
Greedily, I take command of his book, flipping back to the woodcut of a salamander. “These are on some of the Tarot cards.” Mostly on Wands, the suit associated with fire.
Leo’s brown eyes sparkle, even in the unnatural blue light. We bend our heads together over the pictures, his hair tickling my temple.
“Look at this,” he says, turning to a spread of river nymphs, mermaids, and some pretty horrific-looking sirens. “The folklore of almost every culture has undines of some sort, but the Japanese?—”
Suddenly, I feel prickly all over. And hot. Like I’ve stepped out of a cool building into a blast of summer heat. Leo’s mouth moves, but I can’t make out his words. I swallow and turn back to the book, trying not to give the sensations my attention. But instead of going away, they build and wind tighter.
I suck in a breath, clutching Leo’s arm as my stomach plummets. There’s no ignoring it. Somewhere nearby, someone is experiencing intense emotions.
Ugly emotions.
“What is it?” The book slides to the floor as Leo turns to me and takes hold of my chin. “What’s wrong?”
I shake my head. I can never answer that question. I can’t identify the energy until I’m right in the middle of it, and by then it’s too late to warn anyone. Whatever bad thing is happening right now is already in motion.
Thank god Leo is alert. While I struggle to cut through the static, he’s taking in our surroundings, watching for the first sign of trouble. With him beside me, I can take the time I need to read the vibes I’m picking up. Dark but not black. Angry. Indignant. The tension is a lot like what I felt when Liv was fighting with her parents. I exhale. Yes, something is wrong, but it’s not catastrophic. Nothing is on fire. No one is gravely injured. There’s no active shooter.
I loosen my grip on Leo’s arm. “Someone’s angry.”
He’s only half listening, his gaze directed over my head toward the center aisle. “Not just someone. Zander.”
“Zander?” I look over my shoulder, seeing no one but the same few students who’ve been parked in their carrels all evening.
“He just passed by.” Leo gets to his feet, tense and defensive. “He’s looking for someone.”
My pulse revs. “For me.” I sit up on my knees and shove Leo’s backpack at him. “Go.”
For a heartbeat he freezes, but when understanding kicks in he does exactly what I ask, disappearing around the far end of the stacks.
At the same time, from the other direction, someone barks my name. I whirl around and find Zander, blue eyes burning into me from all the way down the aisle.
“What are you doing here?” I ask him, praying he didn’t see Leo.
“What? I can’t use the library?”
In the year that I’ve known him, he’s never voluntarily come here. Not even for research.
“Because I’m a stupid frat boy?” His voice is even, but his lips are drawn back in a snarl. Tension rolls off him and consumes the space between us. “Not like your new boyfriend, huh?”
He prowls toward me and I scramble to my feet. The closer he gets, the stronger the smell of alcohol.
“Zander, don’t make a scene.”
“No scene, babe, I promise. I didn’t come here to fight with you. I came to warn you.”
Warn me? “How did you know I was here?”
He shrugs. “Your BFF’s onmyside.”
Dammit, Liv.
