Page 20 of The Elementalist
“I guess you are about to find out. At least, you are equipped to handle them now.”
“By unleashing fire and lightning and rain upon their heads?”
“In a word, yes. And anything else within nature at your disposal. There is a reason why elementals are used to restore balance. They are literally a force of nature. Some might even say unstoppable.”
“Me, unstoppable?”
“Yes, Max. Think about it... you can level towns with fire, floods, earthquakes and storms. You think one vampire—or even a host of them—could match your power?”
“Maybe not, but if they are as devious as you say they are, they might find other ways to attack me.”
“Are some clever? Definitely. Will some seek to outwit you? You can bet on it. But correct me if I’m wrong, don’t most private investigators have some sense of street smarts? Some sense of taking care of themselves? Not to mention having seen the seedier side of life. I am sure you have a few tricks up your sleeve, along with your newfound powers.”
“My last case was looking for a lost labradoodle.”
“Did you find it?”
“I did.”
“Thus employing your street smarts and tenacity.”
Hmm. The poor little guy had been dognapped by the woman’s ex-boyfriend. A series of clues and hunches had led me to the critter being kept in Spencer Heights, a good ways south of here, at an RV in a trailer park. I had kicked a little ass breaking into that RV. Street smarts? Toughness? Hard to say. But yeah, I guess I could take care of myself. And with these new skills... maybe I could take on the undead... if they really existed.
I thought of the young man who had shown up at myoffice door last night, the young man whose face I could seethrough, and who sported invisible hands. Yeah, that defied any explanation I could come up with in the rational universe. I had never encountered anything like that before… at least that I remembered. Could vampires be real? I didn’t know, but ‘hollow man’ at my door offered pretty damning evidence. Perhaps I should investigate the guy.
“I can say with certainty that the vampires will be coming for you, Max.”
“Well, that’s just great. There’s always a string attached, isn’t there?”
He nodded, then studied me. “Perhaps I should tell you a thing or two about vampires.”
We headed back to town, stopping at Pedro’s. I’d been going to that Mexican restaurant since I’d been a kid. As far as I know, it didn’t actually have a name. Just a big sign on the front that read ‘eat’ in all caps. Not sure where the name Pedro’s came from. Shit, I hope we weren’t being racist. Actually, I think that might’ve been the name of the owner. Anyway, the food was awesome, cheap, and it gave us an inconspicuous place to talk about conspicuous things.
Michael and I spoke well into the night about things I really didn’t want to believe in.
Chapter Eleven
The One
The next day, I ignored my alarm, slept a little late, and went downstairs after a lazy breakfast of a microwaved egg burrito. It’s a pity the old alchemists didn’t have microwaves. They spent so long trying to turn lead into gold, who know it would be this easy to turn bread into stone? Gotta eat it fast.
Never had being in my office felt so good. I knew this office. I knew my job, too. Both of them represented things quite normal, quite real. I liked normal and real.
This other stuff was... too crazy. Part of me still felt halfway certain I had dreamed the last two days. In fact, I’d been hesitant to test my newfound skills all morning. For now, mentally filing away the past few days as a dream afforded me a break I sorely needed. A rational explanation that made sense of it all.
So, I got back to work. Crystal Bradbury showed up a little after eleven, wanting an update on the case. Seeing her made me happy. She walked in on me making coffee at the little bar sink in the corner of my office. While it brewed, I headed back to my desk and sat across from her.
She looked… well, beautiful. If I hadn’t noticed it before, I sure did today. If possible, her second impression was even more stunning. Quite frankly, I had been in a dating slump since Sheriff Justine Waters. More precisely, I hadn’t wanted to date. I still didn’t, not really. I enjoyed being alone. I enjoyed my quiet moments. In the past, my relationships had proven to be more troublesome than they were worth. In truth, I felt pretty certain I’d never been in full-blown love, even though I had said the words on occasion. That was okay. I loved my quiet life, instead. My simple life. I loved my books and TV shows, and my long walks. I even loved my job. Stakeouts were a great way to relax and quiet the mind.
Or maybe I merely kidded myself.
Perhaps I really did want a relationship and I just hadn’t found ‘The One,’ as Ron always said. Could be I’d been terrified of finding my ‘one’ since that meant I could also lose her—as Ron had.
It surprised me to discover my heart beating a little faster than normal while I looked at Crystal. Geez, what was up with that? I hadn’t felt quite this way the first time I met her, so why now? Sure, I had admired her beauty... but what’s the deal with my pounding heart and shortness of breath?
I hadn’t a clue, but something came over me. She literally took my breath away in her knee-ripped black jeans and faded, tight black T-shirt with Victoria’s Secret spelled out in rhinestones across her chest. No bra, no makeup, no nail polish. Her hair was up in a casual ponytail, a messy one, even. She hadn’t dolled herself up one bit and, yet, I had difficulty focusing.
To be completely honest with myself, I might have developed a goofy, school-boy crush on Crystal Bradbury. Like, right now. In that exact moment.
