Playing With Fire (Power of Four Book 2) Read Free Page B

struggled to go on. He dipped his head and his grip tightened on Kate’s hand. When he looked up, Aaron’s breath hitched at the raw pain glistening in his eyes. “I lost my brother,” he continued in a strained voice, “the same day you lost yours.”
     

 
    2
    The Past
     
    It took Aaron a moment to fully understand what his dad had said. Brother? He had a brother? No, he’d had a brother.
    Aaron looked from his dad to his mum. Both had the same look – pained expressions and shadowed eyes. Chris sat across from Aaron, pulling Kate with him, but she refused to sit. She stood by her husband’s side, her hand clasped in his.
    “I promised you I would tell you everything,” Chris started, fighting to compose himself. “God knows I never wanted to hide any of it. I was only waiting for the right time, for you to be older when I told you.” He took in a deep breath. “I lost both my parents when I was ten. The only family I had was my younger brother.” Aaron could read the grief on his dad. “Alex was only three when our parents died. I brought him up, looked after him. The other Elementals looked out for us.” Chris paused. “Do...do you know about the Elementals?”
    Aaron nodded. Rose had shown him the book she found that detailed the four Elemental families that descended from Aric. Each family had complete power over one of the elements. 
    Chris went quiet, then pushed on. “We lived in the City of Marwa – the city of the Elementals. Both my parents had been Hunters, and when I came of age, I followed in their footsteps. That’s how I met your mum.”
    Aaron’s wide-eyed gaze darted to Kate.  “You were a Hunter?” he asked.
    She shook her head. “Lurker,” she said quietly. “I worked with your dad on his hunts.”
    “We got married and your mum moved to Marwa to live with me,” Chris continued. “Then we had Ben.” Aaron could see the small smile touch his dad’s lips. “Ben.” Chris uttered the name again softly. “He was...something.” His smile blossomed. “Always jumping around, could never sit still. He was so full of life.”
    Kate shifted, pulling her hand out of Chris’s and turning around, her back to them.
    “It was Ben’s fourth birthday,” Chris said. “He wanted to go to the Halloween fair. We went every year.” He fell quiet. His hand came up to rub at his forehead and he took in a deep breath. “Marwa was supposed to be safe .” His voice was barely above a whisper. “It had every Glyph known to magekind. But somehow they found a way in.”
    “Who?” Aaron asked, forcing the word out.
    Chris's pain-filled eyes locked with Aaron’s. “Lycans.”
    Aaron’s heart twisted with fear, his mouth suddenly dry. The image of the terrifying beasts flashed in his mind. With their deadly fangs and sharp claws, Lycans were one of the most dangerous demons the mages hunted. Aaron stared at his dad, not sure he wanted to hear the rest.
    “They came out of nowhere,” Chris continued. “There were so many kids at the fair, so many mages, but not enough Hunters.”
    Aaron saw his mum’s shoulders tremble a little.
    “They went straight for the kids,” Chris said. A muscle twitched in his jaw, his hands balled into fists. “We tried to push the Lycans back, away from the mages and the kids but–” He faltered, squeezing his eyes shut. “But we were outnumbered.”
    Aaron listened with mounting horror, unable to peel his eyes away from his dad’s agonised face.
    “Your mum,” Chris continued in a harrowing voice. “She...she was pregnant with you.” His eyes lifted to meet Aaron’s. “She tried to run, tried to protect Ben, but...but the Lycans surrounded her.”
    A stifled sob interrupted him and all eyes turned to Kate. Her shoulders were hunched, head dropped, and the way she was trembling made Aaron’s heart twist in his chest. Chris was up on his feet, both hands on his wife’s shaking shoulders as she tried to suppress her tears. Without a word,