Whirl (Ondine Quartet Book 1) (17 page)

Marcella frowned. "You were Rogue. I assume
you stayed safe by hiding or constantly moving so Aquidae couldn't
track you."

I looked at her levelly. "Your sister kept us
safe by going out on patrol and taking out as many of the bastards
as she could with my father's
kouperet
."

All the blood drained from Marcella's face.
With her wide eyes and fine-boned features, she suddenly looked
very young and fragile.

"But…" Her mouth struggled to work. "That's
not possible. Naida trained in combat, but she couldn't possibly
have been fast or strong enough to —"

"She used her Virtue."

I quickly explained what I'd told
Tristan.

A heavy silence descended upon the room as
Marcella took a few moments to absorb this new information. When
she finally looked up, I saw the full degree of shock in her hazel
eyes. Other emotions also flickered in their depths. Regret? Or
maybe, grief.

"And you think you can use your Virtue to
accomplish the same thing Naida did?"

I nodded slowly. "I think so. She trained me
for years and sent me back here for a reason. I'm not sure how
Empath will work to my advantage in a fight, but I'm working with
Nexa to develop my magic."

Marcella exhaled deeply. "Kendra, how many
others have you told about this? About what your mother did while
you were Rogue?"

"Only you and Tristan."

"I think it would be best if you didn't share
this with anyone else."

"Why?" My voice was bitter. "Afraid that
everyone will think our entire family is crazy?"

"No." Her eyes flashed. "There are people who
would manipulate this information in a way that could have severe
consequences."

I gave a harsh laugh. "Who? Like my
grandmother? She's the one who locked her up in the first place,
right?"

"She wasn't locked up," Marcella snapped.
"Naida wanted to go."

I stared.
What the hell
?

"I deserve to know," I said as evenly as
possible.

Marcella sighed and got up to bring over the
pot of coffee. She refilled our mugs and settled back in her
chair.

"Yes, I suppose you do."

I rested my elbows on the table and waited. I
was gripping the mug so hard, I was surprised it didn't shatter in
my hands.

Marcella's eyes grew distant and unfocused.
"I was ten years younger than Naida and very much a child when
everything happened. Since the age of fourteen, my sister did
everything she could to convince others that ondines needed to
fight."

She took a sip of coffee. "Naida was a very
powerful Clairvoyant, and I've always suspected she had visions
about the issue. I remember her speaking often about how important
it was to the future of the water elementals." She shook her head.
"What Naida said upset a lot of people who didn't want the old ways
to change. Stories began to circulate about her. That she was
mentally unstable."

Her voice hardened. "Those rumors were not
true. Once she came of age, Naida became one of the most gifted
ondines anyone had ever seen. Like you, her magic was unusual.
There was no one who could help or guide her. That potent magic had
a price."

"What do you mean?"

Marcella glanced down at her mug. "Naida lost
control of her Virtue and couldn't contain the strength and
frequencies of her visions. She began to see terrible things that
frightened her. It affected her physical health and the rumors and
whispers about her grew."

She took a deep breath. "Naida went to Rhian
and asked for help. She needed a secure environment where she could
rest and come to terms with her powers. Rhian wanted her to stay at
the Governing House, but Naida insisted she had to leave and that
human medicine would be better than the Healers."

Although Healers could fix broken bones and
most wounds, their magic was also limited. When ondines got
terminal diseases like cancer or suffered from mental or
psychological issues, the only way to treat it was through standard
human medicine.

"Naida convinced Rhian to let her stay at
Lyondale Hospital." Marcella sighed. "The doctors provided her
medication which allowed her to sleep through the night and she
used the day to slowly learn how to control and harness her
Virtue."

I silently processed this.

"But why didn't she stay at the Governing
House and have someone bring in human medication? Why did she leave
Haverleau?"

Marcella shook her head. "I don't know,
Kendra. I've asked Rhian about it, but it's a painful topic for her
and she refuses to discuss it."

I took another sip of coffee. It was already
cold.

"Why did they go Rogue after I was born?"

Marcella considered. "When Ansel first
brought Naida back to Haverleau, she was very happy. But a few
months later, she changed. She was darker. Depressed." She shook
her head. "Naida shut everyone out and only spoke to Ansel. I asked
him many times what was wrong with my sister. But I was just a
child and he refused to tell me anything. You were born and before
I got to see you, they'd taken you and disappeared in the middle of
the night. Rhian declared them Rogue and refused to send anyone
after them. None of us knew anything about you until Tristan told
us that Naida had contacted him."

Her face tightened and her voice was heavy
with regret. "For years, I wondered why she left, wondered if
anyone could've done something more to help her."

I lifted my chin and stared straight into her
eyes.

"But you refuse to honor her memory."

Marcella looked like I slapped her in the
face. I didn't care.

"Your sister wasn't the greatest mother." My
voice was harsh. "She raised me to be a soldier. She thought her
job was training me to be a weapon against Aquidae."

I held on tight to the crack I felt inside
me. "But she was a great ondine. She wanted me to return here
because she believed things could change."

In her last letter, she wrote that I needed
to return to Haverleau to strengthen my magic. Since she'd always
stressed my physical training, I hadn't understood it at the
time.

Now, I did.

"My mother knew that it wasn't
either
magic
or
fighting. That it's not ondines on one side, and
selkies and demillirs on the other. It's both — magic
and
fighting. She wanted me to come back and make that happen."

The silence lay heavy between us.

Marcella didn't give or take any bullshit and
I thought she seemed fair.

She stared at me with an unreadable
expression, her face still pale.

"Gabe has influence, but it's not enough."
Her eyes glinted. "This is politics, Kendra. It's dangerous and
tricky. The law has to be overturned by the Governing Council and
doing so will have consequences. I don't know what the backlash
will be from the other races. I can't begin to imagine the turmoil
it may cause in other ondine communities."

I nodded stiffly, my heart sinking.

Marcella wasn't done. "I can't guarantee
anything. But I think there may be a way for me to try."

I couldn't believe it.

I managed to open my mouth. "You'll help
me?"

She gave a sharp nod, her mouth hardened in
resolve. "Yes. But not for you. For Naida."

THIRTEEN

"What is she going to do?"

Ryder and I crossed the Quad, the afternoon
sun warming our backs. I'd finally managed to get him caught up on
my meeting with Marcella this morning.

"She didn't tell me," I said. "But whatever
she's planning, I hope she does it soon."

"Do you really think this is going to work?"
He sounded apprehensive. "Gabe's going to blow."

Over the weekend, I asked Aubrey to
double-check every single regulation in the Chevalier training
program. Technically, I wasn't breaking any rules if I came by and
observed their classes. It took a little cajoling on my part, but I
managed to convince Ryder to take me to his combat technique
class.

It was a gamble. Although I wasn't really
breaking the rules, I knew Gabriel wouldn't be happy.

"Have faith, Ry. Besides, now I'll get to see
what you can really do."

I gave him a devastating smile. Shit, that
was low. Ryder's eyes lit up at the thought of showing off in front
of me, and I felt like a bitch. It was one thing to play around
with Jake or assholes like Dylan. But it didn't feel right with
Ryder. I pushed the troubling thought aside.

We walked into the Training Center,
attracting astonished stares from the other recruits. No ondine had
ever been inside the building.

Ryder explained that the four-story structure
housed several large gyms for maneuver and sparring classes, a
workout room filled with weights and cardio machines,
administration offices for chevalier business, and storage rooms
filled with equipment and weapons.

I waited for him outside the locker room, my
eyes taking in the modern, high-tech facility. Everything from the
glossy architecture to the polished interior looked like it was
state-of-the-art quality.

Ryder took me to a mat room located at the
end of the first floor hallway. Huge mirrors formed the wall on the
far side of the room. Long, wooden benches lined the other three
walls. A bunch of recruits were already warming up on the blue mats
that took up most of the floor.

Heads turned as I strolled in. Most of the
stares were shocked, but there were a few recruits who looked angry
or disgusted.

I showed them my teeth.
Tough shit,
boys
.

Gabriel was in conversation with Michael
Gaudet, an instructor known among the students as "Scary Mike"
because of his perpetually pissed-off look. They were talking in
the far corner of the room, their backs to the entrance.

Three gardinels, dressed in loose workout
clothes, demonstrated an offensive maneuver to several recruits. I
recognized one of the selkies from the club—Ewan, the one who'd
been in charge of protecting Aubrey. He caught sight of me and a
startled expression flickered across his face.

I strode toward a bench with as much
confidence as possible. The door on the far side of the room opened
and Tristan entered, wearing a black t-shirt and grey sweats. The
shirt showed off the toned muscles on his chest and arms and the
sweats hung loosely on his lean waist.

Stop drooling, you idiot
.

His face was alert, his dark eyes sizing up
the room. They landed on me and I felt smug satisfaction at his
bewildered expression.

It wasn't often that I got the jump on the
kick-ass Warrior Prince.

I casually sat on the bench and leaned back
against the wall.

"Listen up, everyone! Today we're going to…"
Gabriel turned around to address the class and his eyes fell on
me.

He froze.

Michael followed his gaze. When he spotted
me, his mouth dropped open. It would actually have been pretty
funny if they both weren't so pissed off.

I stood with my arms crossed. Tossing my hair
back, I gave everyone a cool, bold look.

Shaking his head, Gabriel approached and I
saw the storm brewing in his eyes. Tristan accompanied him from
behind.

An ominous silence enveloped the entire mat
room. The three gardinels leaned against the mirrored wall. Their
expressions were as stoic as ever, though I detected the faintest
trace of amusement in Ewan's eyes.

All the recruits stared with avid interest,
waiting for the impending drama. I braced myself.

"Irisavie, what do you think you're doing?"
Gabriel barked.

"I thought I'd drop by and watch the class,"
I said innocently.

Gabe looked like he wanted to throttle me,
and Tristan's frown deepened.

"You. Are. An. Ondine," Gabriel ground out.
The vein above his left eye began to throb. I made an effort not to
look at it. "I don't know what you're trying to pull, but I will
not allow you —"

"You can't stop me," I snapped, my eyes
narrowed. I swallowed back some of the nastier expletives I was
tempted to use. "I'm not breaking any rules and you know it. You
can't tell me to not be here!"

"Kendra!" Tristan warned, his voice sharp.
"You do
not
speak to a teacher in that way!"

I flinched a little and felt a flush creep up
my neck. I hated that he reprimanded me in front of witnesses. I
especially hated that he was right. The other recruits were
watching closely and I was treating Gabe like my uncle.

I refused to back down, though. This was too
important.

"I'm sorry, Chevalier Renard," I said
stiffly. There. I was being civil. Polite. Respecting authority. It
almost killed me.

"But there is nothing that prevents an ondine
from observing a class. I've gone through all the regulations
several times," I lied. "And my presence here as an observer
doesn't break any rules or laws."

Gabriel continued to gaze at me stonily. I
could practically see his mind racing through every code of
conduct, trying to find some reason to throw me out.

I was counting on it. He followed orders to
the letter. If a rule didn't exist, then he wouldn't be able to
enforce it. Tristan studied my face closely as if trying to figure
out my real intentions.

"Please."

Gabriel closed his eyes and inhaled deeply.
He looked like he wanted to be anywhere except here. After a few
moments, he opened his eyes and exchanged a brief look with
Tristan.

"Okay, Irisavie. I suppose there's no harm in
you watching." Gabe leaned close and his light eyes burned with
warning. "But if I find out you're doing anything more than
watching
, you'll never be allowed near the Training Center
again. Do I make myself clear?"

Giddy triumph raced through me.