Void(101)

“A dinner celebrating you!” a familiar voice from the head of the table said. I blinked a couple of times until I could see the scrawny figure in front of me.

“Judge Braxton?” I asked, frowning. “Tell me what’s happening, right fucking now,” I groaned before nausea bubbled up in my throat. Suddenly I remembered Hyde and how Banner had knocked him out. “Tell me where Hyde is!” I screamed. The last thing I’d seen was his weightless body crashing to the ground after a pipe had hit him—a pipe wielded by Banner. What the fuck?

“Lower your voice. That’s not polite, Devicka,” a soft voice said to my right. I turned and gaped at the woman sitting there. My mother was dressed in a red evening gown with sequins that littered it with reflected light.

“Mom?” I asked before shaking my head. This felt so wrong, so godsdamned chaotic and confusing, but ultimately there was a steady believability to this odd situation that cut me like a knife. I’d been drugged and kidnapped. And my mother was a part of it.

“You’ve done so well, Devicka. I’m so proud of you,” she cooed before placing her hand on my shoulder. I flinched at the contact.

“Where am I?” I asked again. Council members beamed at me like I was a trophy on their shelf.

“A ceremony of sorts. You’ve made some impressive strides. We think you’re ready, Devicka,” Banner said with a grin.

“Ready for what?” I asked as a waiter put steak on my gold plate and poured water in my wine glass. I was starving, and I realized that I couldn’t remember the last time I’d eaten. As my mouth watered in front of me, I reminded my empty stomach that Banner liked to drug people, and that I shouldn’t trust the delicious smelling food in front of me.

“Eat, Devicka, you’ll need your strength,” Mother ordered before handing me a fork, and I half wondered if she would force feed me. This was so strange, I couldn’t connect the dots. Did I miss something?

Another rolling surge of nausea crept up my throat, and I had to swallow the rush of saliva that flooded my mouth.

“Need my strength for what? Please tell me where Hyde is...he’s my bonded,” I tried to explain. I had fleeting hopes that there was a part of the woman I once loved still in there.

I frowned when a fork was held in front of my face, my mother holding it for me expectantly. I turned my head away, only to see Banner shake his head. “Now, now. Your mother already asked you not to be rude.” The threat was clear in his face and in the way his hand tightened around me. I didn’t understand. How could Banner, who I thought was on my side, be in on this? I knew he’d been acting weird, but I didn’t expect this.

When it was clear I had no way out of this, I dutifully opened my mouth, and my mother shoved the forkful in. The food was cold and hardened, like it had been sitting uneaten for an hour. I chewed it, moving it around with my tongue, tasting nothing. She fed me bite after bite, like I was a little girl again, too young to feed myself.

“There,” she said, beaming. “That should help, dear.”

“Help what?” I asked.

If I’d had the strength, I would have thrown back my chair and made a run for it, but my body still felt weighed down, and Banner kept pumping his power into me, depriving me of my only defense.

“You’ll be giving us power, of course.”

“What? I-I can’t. Last time I did it, I almost died. The power has to come from somewhere,” I explained pleadingly. “I spoke to someone, and she explained what I really am. I’m an elemental of Power. What you’re saying isn’t good for me. It’s not what my power is for, I said, trying to get out my explanation as quickly as I could. If I could just get her to understand…

Judge Braxton stood up on the other side of the room and slammed his palm on the edge of the table, but his physical weakness dulled the effect, it was more like a puny slap. He popped his neck before running his hand through his thinning hair before walking over to me, an angry pep in his step. He was wearing baggy clothes again. It was so odd, seeing someone so weak with so much power over everyone.

“Thanks to Banner, we know all about your visit with Emilia Dupree. Although I think less drastic measures could have been more effective, we appreciate this developing news about your power. With the exhilarating display you showed last time when you successfully switched the elemental powers, we feel it’s time to use your abilities to set things right.”

I blinked in surprise. “Set things right? You mean...I’m just here to switch back the powers of that vamp and shifter?” I asked hopefully.

Judge Braxton laughed. “Why would we waste your power on them?” he scoffed, and everyone at the table joined him in his obnoxious guffaw. “The council wants you to replenish your mother and give your power stores to ranking officials that have earned it,” Judge Braxton went on to explain. I gaped at all of them.

“You want me to give you all more power?” I asked for clarity.

“I want you to give back the power you stole from me,” my mother amended, looking pissy with her pursed lips. “It’s only fair, Devicka.”

I turned to Banner and scowled at him. “What about you, were you in on this right from the start?” I demanded, feeling pissed that I’d ever been attracted to this asshole.

He had the decency to look slightly ashamed, but the expression faded as quickly as it came. Judge Braxton answered my question for him though. “Banner was very instrumental in helping you learn your powers. I plan to reward him handsomely for his hard work.” Of course he did.