Gareth nodded and slid the paper to the side. A connection to law enforcement could be troublesome. “Christopher Merrick?”
“Water Elemental. Sixteen. A bit of a loner at school, from what I could see. I thought perhaps he was our weak link, but then I discovered he was romantically linked to a Becca Chandler.”
Gareth looked up. “Chandler. As in Bill Chandler?”
“The very same. You should see her. She’s a dead ringer for Bill. I think he’s her father.” Silver leaned forward. “I also think she’s a rogue Fifth.”
A rogue Fifth would be an Elemental who could control all the elements of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water—but who had never been trained to fulfill his or her duty. Silver and Gareth had been trained to destroy pure Elementals who only controlled one element. A rogue Fifth would not only be dangerous because of her ability to focus and intensify the powers of a pure Elemental, but because her connection to the human spirit would make her more willing to side with them.
Gareth tapped his pen again. “Bill never claimed to have any children. Have you spoken with him?”
“Bill Chandler hasn’t checked in with anyone since August.”
Gareth raised his eyebrows and made a note on the paper. “Interesting.”
“What’s more interesting is that this Becca Chandler is not the only rogue Fifth in town. I also identified a Hunter Garrity.”
Gareth’s eyebrows went way up. He wrote the name on the cover of his folder. “As in John Garrity? The Guide who died in the car wreck?”
“Indeed. And to complicate matters, young Master Garrity is living with the Merricks.”
Gareth let out a low whistle. No wonder Silver had ended up in over his head. He went back to the original papers. “So I also have Gabriel and Nicholas Merrick.”
“Identical twins. Seventeen years old. Fire and Air Elementals, respectively.”
“So you’re telling me that with Hunter Garrity living in the home, there’s a perfect circle of Elemental power just outside of Annapolis.”
“And there are more, younger children who may or may not develop into their full Elemental power.”
For the first time, Gareth allowed an edge to enter his voice. “I’m more concerned with the immediate threat of a house full of pure Elementals.”
Silver wasn’t easily intimidated. He held Gareth’s gaze. “I will not underestimate them again.”
Gareth sighed. “We’ll have to lure them apart. I don’t like this law enforcement connection. Or the rogue Fifths. What about the twins? Any vulnerabilities there?”
“Gabriel is a noted danger. He was accused of the recent arson attacks in town, though later cleared. It’s been widely reported that he assisted in rescuing numerous students from a fire in the school library.” A pause. “If you read his file, there are notes that he caused the fire that destroyed his parents.”
Gareth glanced up. “Interesting. Was he responsible for the recent fire at the school carnival?”
“No. That was caused by Calla Dean. I have very little information on her.”
Gareth flipped through the papers, remembering the name. “She’s listed as one of the missing students.”
“She’s dead.”
Gareth stopped riffling through the pages and looked at him. “No body?”
“I shot her in the middle of the carnival. I had no way to remove her body.” Silver must have seen the judgment in Gareth’s expression, because he quickly added, “It was a clean shot.”
“But she isn’t listed among the dead.”
Silver had nothing to say to that.
Gareth shifted back to the Merricks’ file. “What else can you tell me about Gabriel?”
“He’s involved with a girl, a Layne Forrest. He spends a great deal of time with her and her younger brother. Their father is a defense attorney—an influential member of the community.”
Meaning they would need to be careful not to let these Forrest children be injured in any crossfire. The last thing anyone wanted was a lengthy investigation driven by a distraught parent. That was almost worse than the attachment to law enforcement.
“And Nicholas?”
“Some involvement with a girl named Quinn Briscoe. No Elemental connection I could detect.”
Gareth studied the paper. Nicholas Merrick. Hello, weak link.
But an Air Elemental. That begged caution. An Air Elemental wouldn’t have the flash and drama of the others. An Air’s power was far more subtle—and far more subversive. At seventeen, this boy might not have the more nuanced abilities of sensing emotion or detecting an enemy from a great distance, but he’d surely feel any breath of power in the atmosphere.
This assignment would take patience.
Gareth pulled a few more pages from his stack. “And these young men?”
Silver glanced at them. “I know nothing more than you see there. Seth Ramsey isn’t a pure Elemental—and he’s on some kind of probation or house arrest due to an incident with Becca Chandler. He’s a minor, so the records were sealed. Tyler Morgan isn’t a pure Elemental, either. His sister died five years ago—and it’s rumored that Michael Merrick had a hand in it.”
“I know Tyler Morgan.”
Silver’s eyebrows went up.
Gareth shrugged. “His family was quite vocal about the Merricks at one point. I assume that hasn’t changed?”
Silver shook his head. “I had no time to observe him.”
“And the only Elemental to be destroyed so far was Kate Sullivan.” Gareth glanced up. “Your trainee.”
“Collateral damage. Kate lost sight of our goal here.”
Gareth nodded. “It happens.”
And it did. Not often, luckily, but their connection to humanity sometimes left them vulnerable to the weaknesses of others.
Silver had been doing this long enough to have lost any empathy for humans.
So had Gareth.
He gathered his papers and slipped them back into his briefcase. “Are you ready to get out of here?”
Silver nodded. “What is our plan?”
Gareth stood. “Close your eyes and take a deep breath. Make it look like you’re having trouble breathing.”
One thing Silver had always been good at—following orders. He pressed a panicked hand to his throat and sucked in a long rush of air.
Gareth’s power latched on to that air, feeling it move into Silver’s lungs, making them expand, exchanging oxygen for carbon dioxide.
Silver felt that power. His eyes snapped open.
“Again,” Gareth said, keeping his voice even, reassuring. His power filled the air in the room. This was all part of his plan. “I’m going to call for help in a moment.”
Another breath.
“One more,” said Gareth. He moved toward the door. “Hold it. Pretend you can’t breathe.”
Silver inhaled, a breath full of Gareth’s power. He held it.
Gareth gave the element a little push, quadrupling the pressure inside Silver’s chest. He felt the other man’s shock. His sudden fear. His pain.
But his death was silent. Air rushed out of his mouth, but it was too