Hell, this old man was right. I was basically holding my breath waiting for an arrest or to bleed out in a gunfight.
Maybe I could use this new place to my advantage. It’d be a new playground for my cons, and I could plot my revenge on the tribe while I was at it.
I wasn’t sure I had a choice.
“Okay,” I said. “I’m in.”
Chapter Two
Ava-Marie
The day I was born, the world went mad.
And I went mad with it.
The pounding of the hippogriff's hooves beneath me was like a war drum beating a prayer song. I could feel the music that resonated through the earth as it sent power flowing through my blood. The valley ahead of me was green and open, welling with sunlight on a fresh August morning. The hippogriff herd pressed around me as the mountains of Northern California rose in the distance, redwoods like soldiers standing tall against the blue sky.
I could feel everything that was alive, smell the resonance of life as energy ricocheted through the air. I could see the entire universe, spread out like a map that was mine for the taking. I rode upon a euphoric high, feeling more powerful than a god and never wishing to come down as the colors began to bleed together into a watercolor painting.
I dug my hands into the creature's feathers and held on tight, pressing myself to the bird's neck and urging it to go faster. The half-horse, half-eagle creature let out a low whinny, enclosing its wings around my legs. I laughed along, giving a sound that was shrill and ignited the world.
Eventually, the valley came to a close as the mountains grew higher above us. The hippogriff slowed, until it jogged to a stop by the opening of a cave entrance. I slid off and patted the hippogriff's neck as the colors of the world bled away and became normal once again. “Good girl. Thanks for the ride."
The hippogriff snorted, blowing back my hair before taking off into the sky. The herd followed, spreading their wings to follow the lead mare into the clouds.
I looked back. My brother was clinging to the back of the slowest hippogriff, who rounded up the last of the herd. His black hair was wild and stuck up on one side, and his cheeks were bright red.
"Ava-Marie, wait up!" he complained. His hippogriff skidded to an abrupt halt. Ezekiel yelled as he was tossed forward and sent sprawling into the ground, tearing a hole in his jeans.
I put a hand over my mouth and laughed again as Ezekiel spat out dirt. The hippogriff huffed and kicked up its hooves, flying into the sky with the rest of them.
Ezekiel gave me a sour look. "You could wait for me every once in a while."
"You wouldn't fall behind if you were a better rider." I reached out a hand to pull him to his feet. Ez and I often raced hippogriffs, but he rarely beat me. He could never tell which ones would be the fastest. I could.
We turned toward the cave entrance. Ezekiel's mouth fell open as he gazed upward, taking in the sight of the cave— and the various signs around the entrance warning that further venturing would be trespassing on government property. As this cave was outside the Hawkei reservation, whatever was found within it was free for anyone to take— as far as the colonizers were concerned.
"Are you sure we should be doing this?” Ezekiel asked. “It definitely counts as illegal activity."
"Stop being such a baby." I reached into my backpack and took out a headlamp, fastening it before clicking on the light. "It's the weekend. No one's at the worksite."
"If we get caught here, it's a federal crime," Ezekiel said, pointing at the cords roping off the entrance.
I rolled my eyes. "What, like the colonizers committed a crime by stealing our land? Those artifacts are Hawkei property, Ez. They belong to the tribe. Now we're going to get them back. Do you really want the colonizers to put our heritage in one of their museums? It's not right."
"No, but—"
"Then what's the issue?"
Ezekiel's tone was flat. "I don't feel like going to jail."
"You're such a goody-two-shoes. Let's go."
"Ava-Marie!"
I'd slipped under the ropes before he had a chance to stop me. Ezekiel fastened on his own headlamp and hurried in behind, like I knew he'd always do. The sunlight vanished as we wandered further into the cave.
I got that Ez was nervous, but he needed to chill. This was the right thing to do. The supernatural world had suffered enough from humans in the past— the Hawkei being one of their greatest victims.
The Hawkei were an indigenous people who'd lived in California for thousands of years. We'd nearly been exterminated when the colonizers came to our territory and began terrorizing our tribe. We'd pleaded with the ancestors for help, and they'd answered our prayers, and gifted us our powers— the magic of the elements.
We became the Elementai— elementals— and grew strong enough to defend ourselves from the humans. We separated into five Houses for each of the five elements— Koigni, for Fire; Toaqua, for Water; Nivita, for Earth; Yapluma, for Air; and Anichi, for Spirit.
Though we had to keep our magic a secret, I wasn't about to let some colonizers get their filthy hands on what belonged to us. I was doing the right thing. They were trying to steal our culture. Now I was stealing it back.
The headlamps didn't provide enough light, so I lifted my hand. A ball of fire burned within it, illuminating the path ahead with light.
Ezekiel looked on in awe. "I'm so jealous. I can't wait to get my powers."
"You're seventeen. They'll show up soon."
Supernaturals got their abilities when they came of age, but Ez hadn't shown any magic yet. I was almost two years older than him, but I'd gotten my Fire magic the day I'd turned eighteen.
Though Ezekiel's powers would be different from mine. Our parents were from separate Houses. My mother was Koigni. My father was Toaqua. Elementai always inherited their powers from their same-sex parent, so Ezekiel would have Water magic instead of Fire like me.
Ezekiel scowled as the walls of the cave began getting narrower. "You could at least tell our parents where we're going. I don't like lying all the time. If he finds out we're here, Dad will be madder than when you got your tongue pierced."
I waggled my piercing at him. "Well, someone's gotta be the rebel."
"Not all the time. Can't we have a normal day for once?"
"I do what I want."
I held my arm out as the cave path came to an abrupt halt, leading to the edge of a cliff. I sent the fireball sailing downward. It landed on the cave floor twenty feet below, where it shone light on piles of pick axes, shovels, and wheelbarrows full of dirt. The fireball fizzled out, leaving the area below in darkness.
"There's the excavation site." I slipped off my bag and began pulling out my gear. I pounded an anchor into the floor and strung a rope through the safety clips before slipping on my harness. I was rappelling down the side of the cliff before Ezekiel even had his harness on. I landed on the ground safely and unclipped myself while Ez clumsily— and fucking slowly— descended.
Ezekiel got tangled up in his climbing gear a foot above the ground. He struggled with the ropes and glanced at me helplessly as he spun in circles against the rock.