Breaker (Ondine Quartet Book 4) (40 page)

What had happened between Ian and me in room 319 had been orchestrated by the Shadow for a reason.

Understanding why and how Ian had transformed might be a step toward finding my answers.

“Knowing won’t bring him back,” Julian said.

“I know.”

But maybe if I better understood what had happened to me in room 319, I’d better understand why it ended the way it did.

“But remember what he told us about why we were there?”

It took a few moments for him to answer.
 

“Who you are is revealed when everything else is gone,” he muttered.

Jeeves’ gaze flickered to his son.
 

Bastien always communicated through riddles and puzzles.
 

Everything in the GrandView had been planned and carefully executed.

You have everything you need to find your answers.

Part of the answer was hidden in what happened at that hotel. We needed to start with Ian.

I looked at Jeeves. “How do we make this work?”

“There’s a way to circumvent Patrice and the Council. We’d have to go through Daniel. Acts of justice cannot take place until a prisoner’s medical needs are properly attended to. That includes sentencing.”

Julian tilted his head. “So we make Gilroy look sick enough on paper to be hospitalized at Lyondale Hospital?”

He nodded. “We get him out of Haverleau and keep him in a secure facility at our disposal. It prevents the Council from taking action.”

The elemental wing of Lyondale Hospital was secure. Gilroy would be safe against the clutches of the Council and Aquidae.
 

And despite his mild-mannered appearance, Daniel was a tyrant within his environment. He wouldn’t let Gilroy get away with anything.
 

“How soon can we do it?”

He stood. “I’ll start arrangements. We’ll transfer him to the hospital tomorrow.”

The door shut behind him.

Julian studied me. “Disheveled clothes, blood on your cheek, and murder in your eyes. Something you want to tell me?”

“Careful, LeVeq,” I said lightly. “Someone might mistake your question for genuine interest.”
 

“Isn’t that what friends do? Check in to see if the other’s okay?”

I didn’t hear any bitterness in his voice. Only mild curiosity.

“I guess,” I said slowly.

“Impressed with my sensitivity?”

“Aaaand… you broke it.”

“Broke what?”

“The illusion. For a moment there, I was worried you might actually be an okay guy.”

The corners of his mouth quirked up. “Wouldn’t want that.”

I smiled. “Where is everyone? The center’s so empty.”

“I think they’re checking out Aubrey’s weapons presentation. I’d go but…” He indicated the pile of papers on his desk. “They’re exponentially multiplying by the second.”
 

I glanced at the clock. The presentation would be almost over. Maybe I could catch the tail end of it.

“Wait.”

I stopped at the door and looked back.

“Why did you do it?”
 

After Aubrey and Helene, he was the third person to ask me that question and it meant something very different.

Jeeves once told me Julian’s lack of friends was the reason he didn’t understand the power of what I was offering him.

What I hadn’t admitted then was that this was new for me, too, and I was still learning from Aubrey and Chloe. Cam.

Ian.

“I did it because he was my friend,” I finally said.

A subtle vulnerability shaded his brilliant eyes, a reminder of what had reflected back at me from a dirty puddle of water.
 

“Friends,” he repeated slowly as if trying the word out. “Like me.”

What had always bound us wasn’t our position as outsiders or our complementary Virtues.

It wasn’t the fear of rejection. It was the fear of acceptance.

“Yes.”

***

A familiar voice drifted through the slightly open door on my left.

“….and works best for those who are not as comfortable with guns.”

I quietly slipped inside and stood along the back wall.

The floor was packed.

A little under two dozen ondines currently enrolled in the training program occupied the first few rows. Much to the dismay of the Council, the number of participants had increased following the attacks on Merbais and Fontesceau.
 

Catrin stood along the west wall, her beautiful face smoothed into a careful mask of neutrality.

Michael, Garreth, Adrian, and several other familiar gardinels and chevaliers dotted the room’s perimeter.

Dax caught my gaze. I wasn’t sure if he was still upset about what happened at Daniel’s cabin.

But he simply nodded, his eyes solemn.
 

Most surprising of all was Holden. He slouched in the back corner as if trying to fade into the shadows, fierce lines of concentration carved into his brow.
 

Julian was right. Almost everyone was here.

And all eyes were focused on the red-haired ondine standing behind a folding table loaded with lethal weapons.

Aubrey picked up a small, silver crossbow. The straight lines and graceful curves of its limbs were perfectly balanced and made for an ondine’s smaller hands.

“Making it lightweight and foldable solved the portability problem,” she continued. “But two more issues needed to be resolved.”

“Loading time,” Michael spoke up. “After each shot, you need to reload. You can shave the time down to a couple of seconds, but it still requires taking your eyes off the target.”
 

She nodded. “In battle, the weapon is primarily suited for those situated several lines away from the front. Multiple attackers coming in hard and fast can be a problem, especially at close range. Ideally, it’s best to use it from a position near the back, preferably up high.”

“What about actual stopping power?” A selkie near the door frowned. “Bullets have enough kinetic energy to do damage that can significantly slow down an Aquidae, even if you miss the Origin. But a bolt wouldn’t have the speed to penetrate deep enough to make a significant impact.”

Aubrey smiled. She’d been waiting for that question.

“The solution is this.” She reached beneath the table and pulled out a beautiful, silver bolt.

The faint glow of Essence magic emanated from a lethal tip nestled between three razor-sharp blades.

“An expandable broadhead. These blades expand, securely lodging the tip inside of the target. The secondary damage caused by the bolt is significant, almost equivalent to that of a hollow point bullet.”

An audible hum of excitement raced around the room.
 

I didn’t realize she’d already been in touch with the Armicant and had made so much progress with designs and prototypes.

Once again, she’d worked with quiet deftness and created something astonishing.

I had absolute nothing to do with what she’d accomplished. But hell if I wasn’t bursting with pride.
 

“These are preliminary designs, of course.” A slight flush crept up her cheeks. “And they depend on several factors —“

“How do we ensure we have enough of these?” Catrin asked.

“The Armicant will need to keep up with production.”

I could contribute something here. “He’s already agreed to do so.”

Aubrey didn’t acknowledge me. “And production can begin once the Council approves and provides the necessary funds and workers.”
 

My heart dropped.

It was one thing for Aubrey and Ian to spearhead the project while I was Governor. I could’ve provided access to the funds and workers they needed.

But even if Aubrey worked twenty-four hours a day, she wouldn’t be able to produce the number of weapons we needed. Hiring workers and obtaining more materials meant money none of us had.

Aubrey was on the outs with her Redavi family. Rhian had left me a modest inheritance, but no where near the kind of funding this project would require.

Even if Chloe and Julian pooled their resources together, we wouldn’t have enough.

Patrice may be okay with the idea of ondine training, but she’d already warned me about the sketchy legalities of weapons production.

Catrin, Nanette, and Tristan would do what they could on the Council, but the likelihood of getting Aubrey what she needed was nearly impossible.

Catrin caught my eye. She’d reached the same conclusion.

If the audience felt disillusionment, they didn’t show it. Murmuring among themselves, the young ondines shot blatant looks of admiration at Aubrey as they filed out.

I waited until most of the room cleared out before making my way to her.

My phone buzzed. Tristan.

“Hey.”
 

A slight delay. “Hey, back.” Despite the spotty reception, the low rumble of his voice warmed my insides. “Is this…good time?”

I kept an eye on Aubrey. “Sort of.”

He continued but I could only catch every other word. “Want…ask…Dax..father?”

“What?” I shifted a few feet to the left “I can’t hear you.”
 

He said something else, but this time I only caught the end. “….soon.”

Aubrey began putting the weapons away. Damn it.

“Can I call you later?” I asked. “I’m right in the middle of something.”

Silence. “I’ll be back in Haverleau tomorrow,” he said quietly.

This time every word came through.

“Okay.” I smiled at the change in plan. The thought I’d get to see him again so soon made me ridiculously happy. “I’ll see you then.”

He started to speak but his voice got cut again.

Irritated, I glanced down at the screen.
 

Call failed.

The reception in the Training Center was spotty at the best of times. Being able to hear his voice, even for a moment, counted as a win.

Aubrey fiddled with a screw on the bottom of the crossbow.
 

“That was amazing,” I said.

She picked up a soft cloth and carefully wiped down a throwing star. Like their creator, the weapons laid out on the table were beautiful and sophisticated.

Silver gleamed under the harsh lights. Every curve, every line of design was carefully crafted.
 

Essence infused bullets, bolts, blades, and throwing stars rested beside crossbows, wrist gauntlets, and guns.
 

It was the beautiful result of a mortal ondine’s mind and hands with an immortal’s magic.

My throat tightened. “Aub —“

“Is that a
shuriken
?” Holden reached for one of the throwing stars.
 

“Hey!”

Ignoring her protest, he picked it up and examined the eight blades arranged in a perfect geometric pattern.

“Can’t be thrown from a distance,” he remarked. “Speed slows the farther the target is.”

Aubrey gave a stiff nod. “It’s a weapon of concealment. Highest effectivity is within a range of ten to thirty feet.”

His gaze transferred to her. “Risky. Aquidae could get ‘er before she has a chance to throw it.”

“That’s what training is for.”

The tension in her response didn’t bother him. “I can help you make more.”

“More what?” I asked.

“No,” Aubrey said at the same time.

Holden frowned. “Which is it?”

Aubrey glared. “Why would I want to work with someone who thinks I’m ‘a red-haired distraction’?”

“Did you really say that?”

“I got a solution to your problem.” Holden shrugged. “But if you ain’t interested in hearin’ it, then I got no skin in this —“

“What is it?”

He looked at me then addressed Aubrey. “You don’t need to go through that idiotic Council. We can help you build.”

“How?”

“We got money. We got access to the materials you need. And with me, Tara, Will, and Grady workin’ with you, I promise you’ll have as many of your weapons as you’ll need.”

The money would probably come from some sort of illegal activity. Material suppliers would likely be sketchy, underground contacts.

It wasn’t ideal. But we were out of options and couldn’t afford to be picky about .
 

“It’s the best idea we have.”

“No.”

“But —“

“This was you, wasn’t it?” She turned to me. “You put him up to it. You told him to help me.”

“Hey.” Holden raised his hands. “No one tells me what to do —“
 

“I had nothing to do with this.”
 

“This is so like you,” she continued as if I hadn’t said anything. “Ordering people around and deciding things for them.”

I’d already put up with this from Ethan and Blaise today. I was tired of being everyone’s punching bag.

Simmering restlessness sharpened. Hurt morphed into anger.

“Do you think I like this?” My voice rose. “Enjoy it?”

“Oh, please,” she snapped. “This isn’t about the prophecy or your heritage or any of that other bullshit and you know it. You’ve spent so much time figuring out how to get others to do things for you that you’ve forgotten the most basic thing of all.”

“Oh yeah? What’s that?”

“Friendship is a two-way street. You want something? You ask. We have something to say? You listen. You don’t lie, either deliberately or by omission. You don’t make decisions for others.” She leaned in, sparks flying in her emerald eyes. “Maybe if you stopped manipulating others you wouldn’t keep losing people!”

She stormed out, leaving an awkward silence in her wake.

Frozen, I stared at the door.

Maybe if I stayed perfectly still, the pain in my chest would gradually lessen.
 

“You sure suck at this.”

I slowly and very deliberately raised my middle finger in response.
 

“Leadin’ ain’t just about gettin’ results,” Holden continued, unperturbed. “It’s a slow, hard slog, not a fast race to the finish.”
 

The beginnings of a headache pulsed against my temple. “You gonna help me or just knock on me?”

Holden picked up a bullet and rolled it between his fingers. “Redgrrl just told you what you’re missing.”