Breaker (Ondine Quartet Book 4) (8 page)

Glittering hazel eyes shot daggers across the room. If looks could kill, Julian would be dead three times over.

I liked her already.

Holden’s focus never wavered. He’d zeroed in on me from the moment he stepped into the office. Well, not me exactly. On the air around me.

Nixes shared a lot of the same magic as selkies, including the ability to spot an ondine’s aura.
 

“I won’t use my magic if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Sorry if I don’t quite trust your word on that.” His voice was low, slightly raspy.

A tense silence fell. Holden didn’t flinch.

“Perhaps you could tell us why you’re here?” Jeeves asked delicately.
 

“Ian said you were different,” Holden told me. “I wanted to talk.”

“So you decided to stroll into Haverleau without warning on the day security is at an all-time high?” Jeeves asked, incredulous.

“It’s because he wanted to meet with me.”

Gutsy move. Smart, too.

He wanted to ensure we talked face to face. Going through Ian and the usual diplomatic channels would’ve taken weeks of planning and bureaucratic red tape.

Instead, he’d taken a direct approach. Because of the high-profile nature of today’s event, any security alert would shoot straight to the top.

It’d worked. As soon as the nixes arrived, the gardinels notified Tristan who then contacted me. We met in this office five minutes later.

Of course, the plan could’ve also completely backfired. Security could have killed him or thrown him into a cell to rot.

Risky strategy, quality results. My respect shot up a few notches.

I rested my elbows on the desk. “I’m listening.”

“Only thing I care ‘bout is keeping my people safe. You understand ‘bout protection.”

I nodded.

“With the Shadow now out in the open, things will get crazy real soon.”

“You’re seeking sanctuary.”

“Safest place is always near elementals with money and power.”
 

“So why Haverleau? The other communities are all equipped with high levels of security —“

“How many communities you been to?”
 

The answer embarrassed me. “One. Rivellieu. They had excellent resources and security.”

“Rivelleu don’t count,” Holden scoffed. “New York’s a rich city and Marquisa Bessette was the best friend of the previous Governor. Their setup is better than any other community.”

“He’s right,” Julian spoke up. “Haverleau is probably the most secure place in the world right now.”

Holden narrowed his eyes. “Sean McKinley…no, John Gannon. Or was it Nick Giuliano? Oh wait, that’s right. Julian LeVeq, the Redavi chevalier. Hard to keep track of your lies.”

When Ian first arrived in Haverleau, Julian used Projection to infiltrate Holden’s group and gather intel on the nixes.

Clearly, that hadn’t ended well. Holden had done his homework before showing up.

Julian gave a mock bow. “At your service.”

A toothy grin flashed across Grady’s face. Will nudged him. He hastily adopted a more somber expression.

“You lied.” Cold accusation laced Tara’s voice. “You used us.”

Something that almost looked like regret flickered through Julian’s eyes. “I just showed you what you wanted to see.”

Her mouth tightened and she looked away.

“Trained demillirs with no aura and a Virtue." Holden raised his brow and looked at me. “And you wonder why we don’t trust elementals. But the lying chevalier agrees. Haverleau’s the most secure location. We want to stay.”

Tristan shook his head. “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

Holden eyed him warily. “Why?”

“I appreciate the courage it took for you to come here,” Tristan said.
 
“But with Rhian’s passing and the discovery of the Shadow, the community is in a very fragile state. We’re already concerned about Mr. MacAllister’s safety —“

“I’m fine,” Ian protested.
 

Aubrey’s brow furrowed with concern.

“While I’m glad to hear he feels safe, I am not quite as convinced,” Tristan continued. “Bringing
 
your group in now will place you in more danger, not less.”
 

Julian exhaled. “You want to kick them out?”

“Not at all. My suggestion is to provide safe sanctuary elsewhere. I will personally vouch for its security.”

Holden’s face turned flat and cold. “We’re not good enough for Haverleau?”

“That’s not what I’m saying.” Tristan held his gaze. “This is a temporary solution, not permanent. I’m asking you to wait just a little longer until Haverleau has calmed down enough to ensure your people won’t be in further danger.”

A long pause. I had the impression Holden was cycling through every possible option.

“We’re staying for the ceremony,” he finally said. “We’re not hiding from the Council.”

Tristan nodded. “You can stay at the Governing House until I arrange for a new location. That will make a strong statement of Kendra’s stance to both the Council and the community without compromising your safety.”

“I agree. On one condition.” I leaned in. “If you accept our help, you work for us. You work for me.”
 

Holden stiffened. “We don’t work for any—“

“Listen to me. Outside this room lies a community full of elementals who’d rather kill you than entertain your presence here for a second. The Warrior Prince has personally vouched for your safety. We will put our best men on you to ensure your protection. You have my word our people will put their lives on the line to protect you.”

A muscle in Holden’s jaw ticked.

“But if you’re serious about ending this war, about proving you’re not the same as Aquidae, you need to work with us.”

“You can trust her,” Ian said softly.

Holden studied him for a moment then directed his focus back to me.

Grady, Tara, and Will waited quietly while he made his decision.
 

My respect grew. He’d taken care of them for years and they trusted him implicitly.

I didn’t want to have to turn him away. But this was an ultimatum I couldn’t give up.

Finally, a nod. “Fine.”
 

“Good,” Jeeves said smoothly. “I will arrange for Holden and his friends to have something to eat while Prince Belicoux and I figure out how to seat them at the confirmation ceremony.
Sondaleur
, I believe Ms. Moreaux is waiting for you in the Council Chamber.”

Jeeves elegantly strode across the room, Grady, Will, and Tara right behind him. Someone’s stomach rumbled but no one thought it was funny.

Holden hesitated. “Governor —“

“Call me Kendra.” I stood. “Don’t make me wrong about this.”
 

“You got it the other way around, Kendra,” Holden said quietly. “Don’t make us wrong about you.”

He held my gaze a bit longer, all sharp cheekbones and hungry eyes, then left. Tristan, Ian, and Aubrey followed.

A final figure pulled away from the wall.

“Wait.”

Julian stopped.
 

“Is what Holden said true?”

He turned. “About what?”
 

“About the other communities. Is security weak? Is Haverleau safer because of the Redavi?”

He was the only one who could give me an unbiased answer on the topic.

Julian slouched against the wall. Without his usual posturing, he appeared thinner. Dark shadows hung under his eyes.

“We are what we know. Why are you able to fight and other ondines can’t?”

“Because no one told me I couldn’t.”

He nodded. “If you don’t know something is impossible, it’s possible. Same principle applies to quality. If you accept something as good enough, then you can’t imagine something better.”

Before I arrived in Haverleau, I’d never seen another elemental other than my parents. My mother had explained how selkies and demillirs moved, but hearing her description and seeing it were very different things.
 

I thought I was a good fighter.

But I didn’t know what it meant to be the best until I saw Tristan whipping around that corner in San Aurelio.
 

Seeing what was possible altered my perspective and gave me something higher to aim for.

“The level of security in elemental communities is only as good as what they know,” Julian continued. “Since Haverleau attracts the highest level of gardinel and chevalier talent, it’s obvious the other communities won’t have anywhere near the same standards as us.”

His statement left me uneasy. The majority of elementals lived outside Haverleau in one of the twenty-eight communities located worldwide. Lax security meant they were all vulnerable.

Julian turned to go.

“Why didn’t you call me in earlier? With Cam and the others?”

A pause. “I wasn’t sure you’d have time for it.”

I moved in front of the desk and perched on the corner. “Becoming Governor doesn’t change the fact that I’m a chevalier.”

“Really?” He faced me, his eyes icy. “So if you’re in the middle of a Council session and word comes in of an Aquidae attack in Lyondale, would you leave the chamber to fight? Or remain there and let the other chevaliers handle it?”

“I’d find some way to —”

“You don’t get it.” Julian shook his head. “You keep yourself busy trying to fulfill every expectation, so you don’t have to face who you are.”

“What are you talking about?“

“You’re becoming Governor to satisfy your grandmother. You became a chevalier to satisfy your mother. You became the
sondaleur
because of a prophecy.” He threw his hands up. “You let words you didn’t even write dictate the course of your life!”

“I choose my life.” I stood. “You’re wrong.”

“Am I?” He crossed his arms. “Face it, Kendra. Eventually, you have to decide who you are. You can’t be all things to all people.”

Stunned, I stared at him. I’d once said something similar to Tristan at the cove a year ago.

You don’t know who you are. Are you a gardinel or a prince?

Had duty transformed me into someone I no longer recognized?

Doubt whipped into anger. “What about you? You can’t even fulfill the one responsibility you have. You’d rather run than lead.”

He kept his voice light, but his eyes were hard. “I don’t do well with rules, sweet iris.”

“Bullshit. You’re afraid.”

“Of what?”

“Of disappointing them. Of failing and being exposed for what your mother always said you were.”

He paled.

I continued, relentless. “Better to run and disappoint them now rather than fail and disappoint them later, right?”

His eyes sparked. “You don’t know —“

“I know those chevaliers busted their asses to be inducted. They risk their lives daily and depend on you for guidance.”

“That wasn’t my choice. You ordered me to stay, remember?”

“Yeah.” I moved in front of him. “But
you
chose to be a chevalier in the first place, LeVeq.”

He froze.

“This doubt, this fear, is all her. Don’t let her take away what you dreamed of, what you wanted.”

Silence fell.

Julian leaned against the wall and rubbed his face. “Kendra, it doesn’t matter. If I don’t do it, someone else will be Head Chevalier. Christophe, Michael, Alain. I could be gone tomorrow. People leave. They die. War will continue and someone else will take my place.”

“It does matter.”

I couldn’t decide if I wanted to shake him, hug him, or punch him. Maybe all three.

“That’s the difference between you and me, LeVeq. You don’t believe in anything. Anyone.”

He made an exasperated sound. “And what do you believe in? A properly worded cause presented by the Council to control the public? In Jourdain who makes ondines dance like puppets? In Redavi who treat anyone different like shit on their designer shoes? In a war we don’t know why we’re fighting?”

“No.” I leaned in. “I believe in you.”

His gaze jerked to mine.

“I believe you can be a great Head Chevalier, a great friend. I only wish you believed it, too.”

I opened the door, pushed past him, and strode down the corridor.

Nothing but silence followed.
 

***

“Come on. Show me,” Chloe said.

I stepped out of the tiny changing area. “Have I ever told you how brilliant you are?”

She laughed. “No, but I’ll take that compliment any day.”

A knock came at the door. “Come in.”

“
Sondaleur
, it’s time,“ a familiar voice said.

Jeeves and Tristan walked in and did a double-take. Their expressions would have been hysterically funny if I hadn’t already been so nervous.

Jeeves recovered first. “I must say I thoroughly agree with Ms. Moreaux’s choice.”

Chloe beamed.

The corners of Tristan’s mouth twitched.

“Are you laughing?”

“Of course not. That looks familiar.”

“Thought you might recognize it.”

In a split second, his dark eyes heated and I wanted to touch him so badly it hurt.

“Come on, Jeeves,” Chloe diplomatically took his arm. “I want the best seat in the house. I don’t want to miss a single second of this.”

The moment the door clicked shut, Tristan’s strong arms wound around me, drawing me close for a kiss. His scent flooded me, clean and masculine, both familiar and comforting. The antechamber closed in, cocooning us until it felt as if the world had disappeared.

I smiled against his mouth. “You’re going to get me worked up.”

“I like you worked up.”

Warm lips moved down my throat, brushing against my shoulder, my tattoo.
 

I shivered. “I won’t be able to walk out there.”

He laughed softly. “You’re too beautiful not to touch.“

“Just a little longer,” I whispered.

“Tonight.” He rested his forehead against mine. “How are you holding up?”

“I want this over with.”

Being in Tristan’s arms gave me a moment to breathe. The tangle of anxiety in the pit of my stomach slowly unwound.
 

I glanced up at him. Light reflected off the amber stone of his pedaillon.