House of Cards (2 page)

             
“Did you know she’s got a half-brother who can do basically the same thing? Heard he’s locked up. The guy’s a danger to himself and everyone else. How much you want to bet she’ll end up the same?”

             
“Privy Council only wants her here because of her father’s stuff.”

             
“Nah, they want her here to see what happens when you cross two tatù people.”

Someone laughed.
“They’ll put her in a special room with a spinning wheel, pellet food and a bottle with a water dripper. She’ll be the Privy Council’s very own guinea pig.”

She turned off her heighten
ed hearing, a skill she had copied from Devon. That was enough for now. The words stung but she needed to hear them, to know where she stood, what preconceived notions she would need to overcome, and how close to the truth people actually were.

             
Rae’s tatù was unique. While she did have her father’s gifts and her mother’s, she was ultimately even stronger than the two combined. Where her father could mimic other tatù abilities when he touched someone with ink, Rae could do the same but also recall those abilities whenever she needed them, while her father had only maintained those skills until he copied another tatù. She briefly recalled when she had learned that little tidbit, when she was locked in the tower at Guilder by then-Headmaster Lanford. He had been the one person she truly trusted when she had first arrived at the school, and in the end, had proven himself to be her enemy. She regretted the trust she’d mistakenly placed in him, but she couldn’t regret how the experience had unlocked the next level of her powers. Her body was becoming so in tune with her ink, it would automatically switch to whatever she needed to use.
Like being able to hear whispers from across the room
.

It was an
involuntary action, she’d tried to explain to her boyfriend, Devon. He’d gone on some secret mission but had managed to call her last night and this was what they had talked about. Except he seemed to think her reactions needed a stimulus and argued her tatù had become more of a reflex not a switchboard.
I’d like to give him a bit of a reflex right now.
He had promised he would be here when Julian brought her. Just because no one, aside from Julian, knew they were dating, was no excuse. Even though tatù people were forbidden to date, he had no excuse, in her opinion, not to be there. A promise was a promise. Plus, she needed all the support she could get. Even if she couldn’t quite figure out whose side everyone was on, the old saying went “the evil you know is better than the evil you don’t know.” She knew it wasn’t an exact fit for the situation she was in, but close enough. She had learned the hard way that trust and friendship didn’t necessarily go hand in hand. In accepting the position with the Privy Council, she knew she was stepping even deeper into the shadows, where the truth would be harder to discern, not easier. So while she cherished the friendships she had already, she was constantly holding back just enough to make her feel safe. She held back from everyone: Carter, Devon, even Julian. Strangely, she only felt guilty about Julian. He’d been nothing more or less than the perfect friend every step of her journey. It seemed wrong to doubt him. However, she couldn’t afford to make a mistake just now. So she valued his friendship, but held back just as she did with everyone else.

A gentle nudge from her good friend reminded Rae she needed to move. Taking a deep breath, she stepped further into the brightly lit gymnasium and focused on the surroundings instead of the people,
with a perfect smile plastered on her face.
Mask on, time to work.

Bone-white walls with the odd spot having a black smudge and blue mats surrounded the bottom third of them. The high ceiling made the mats appear small, but they had to be at least ten feet up the wall. Even a few spots on the ceilings, in between the fans, had mats.
Interesting…

Julian chuckled, following her gaze. “So, this is where we spar and train
in our free time. There are also several rooms through those doors,” he pointed to blue doors that matched the color of the mats, only several feet shorter, “where you’ll personally have your one-on-one prep.”

“Like one-on-one training?”

“Sort of. You’ll have a Botcher and you’re the Dagonet.”

Rae cocked an eyebrow and looked at Julian questioningly.
“The what and what?”

Julian grinned. “Privy Council loves using Tudor
references. The Botcher is basically a mentor. I actually looked the term up. A Botcher back in King Henry’s time was a mender of old clothes. So I questioned Carter about it. Apparently it was a secret term back then to hide the trainer of tatù people back when the whole school and Privy Council started. Their job was to fix and mend tatù abilities to perfection.”

“Then what’s a Dragon net?”

“A
Dagonet
.” Julian laughed. “Ironically, it refers to a foolish, young knight.”

“One in need of teaching and training?” Rae pulled on her shoulder length hair. She’d gone and had it nearly all shaved off and bleached blonde almost a week ago. It had seemed like a good idea at the time but Molly, her best friend,
had freaked when she saw it. That same afternoon, she had dragged Rae to a hair salon out of town. Molly found a girl with a tatù who had hair and supposed nail ability. She had turned Rae’s hair colour back to its natural dark brown. When Molly pulled the girl aside and asked her about her ink, the girl smiled and said she could do more. So now, Rae could mimic the ability. She now knew how to return her hair to its original colour and also lengthen it. The ability might prove handy if she ever had an undercover op to do.
Or a need to disappear.

Right now, every night her hair grew about an inch longer. Rae knew how to stop the rapid growth when it reached the length she wanted. She planned to go back to its original long length.

“Rae? Are you listening?”

She blinked and stared at Julian. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”

He shot his eyes in the direction to her right. “Carter’s coming.”

“What?” She straightened and realized the room still remained quiet, but everyone was now watch
ing the man walking toward her.
Does everyone here know he’s the president of the Privy Council?

“Rae, follow me.” Carter nodded. His face revealed nothing, but the sharpness in his voice startled her.

She glanced at Julian who shrugged in surprise. She had no choice but to follow the tall man across the gym to the blue doors on the other side. The butterflies returned and it seemed to take forever before she finally stepped through the door Carter held open for her.

The bright hallway contained a long row of doors on each side with a fire exit at the end.

“This hall doesn’t lead back to Guilder does it?” she joked nervously. Then annoyed at herself for feeling as she did, she forced the anxiety out of her system. The Privy Council had asked her to work for them, not the other way around. She had agreed to the job in order to find answers and today was the perfect time to start.

“The underground passageways are not connected to the training facility. This building is newer, originally
built in the sixties and then revamped several times.” He must have sensed the change in her attitude and stuck his hands into his pockets. “I wonder if a tunnel dug here and connected would save students some time – the ones working here and trying to get to class.”

Rae walked beside him down the hall, noticing windows in some rooms, others with lo
ud noises, both mechanical and human, coming from them. “Why keep the Privy Council’s building locations a secret from students at Guilder?”

“Fair question. I used to ask it myself when I first started.” He paused at a door with a window and frowned at the vacant inside. He glanced down the hall and sighed before opening the door and stepping in. “It’s safer for the students, and for us. It also holds an allure about keeping it hidden.” He wouldn’t say more.

He sat down at the oval table so his chair faced the window and door. He pointed to the chair closest to Rae. She pulled it out and sat down with her back to the door.

Carter sat silent, watching her and glancing to the window and door behind. He tapped a thumb impatiently against the table top. After a few moments, it grated on Rae’s nerves.

“Who are we waiting for?” Rae hoped it was Devon. Carter seemed to like the two of them working together. Maybe he would be her Botcher-instructor-thingy.

Carter opened his mouth, about to answer, but stood instead and walked over to the door. He opened it.

Rae turned in her chair, expecting to see Devon. Instead a tall, lean, beautiful woman dressed in tight, black leather pants stood in the doorway. Her long, brown hair, pulled tight in a ponytail, swung as she strode into the room. She stopped short when she saw Rae.

“You have
got
to be kidding!” she exclaimed to no one in particular.

Carter cleared his throat. “Jennifer, I’d like you to meet Rae. Rae, this is Jennifer.”

Rae stared at the woman. She didn’t mean to, but it was hard not to. The woman held a power that could still an entire room with one hip swing. The tight clothes showed off muscle and strength Rae could only dream to having.
What’s her tatù?

Jennifer crossed her arms over her perfect chest. “Stand up.”

Rae rose from her chair and pulled her shirt straight. She suddenly wished she had worn the Lululemon outfit Molly had bought for her to train in instead of her comfy grey jogging pants and old Converse t-shirt. She stood awkwardly beside her chair.

Jennifer looked her up and down, glanced at Carter and then gave Rae the once over one more time. She shook her head. “I can’t believe it!”

“I told you.” Carter pointed to Rae’s hair. “She cut and dyed her hair a week ago and must have changed her mind. When I saw her today with the shoulder length, I thought it was
her
for a moment.”

Hello. I’m still in the room.
Who were they comparing her to?

Jennifer cocked her head to the side. “How do you know she won’t end up like the bastard?”

Rae stiffened with indignation. She didn’t know who this woman was, but she’d had enough of people pre-judging her based solely on her parentage for one day. “I am
not
my father.” She gave the woman the same once over Jennifer had given her. “And who are you?”

Jennifer actually smiled. “You sound like her, but with a lousy accent.”

“I don’t have an accent.” Rae knew she sounded childish and petulant, but didn’t care.

Carter finally moved and sat down at the table, motioning at the chairs for them to sit down.

Rae sat back down in her seat.

Jennifer came around and leaned against the wall. “I prefer to stand.”

“Fine,” Carter said. “Rae, Jennifer has offered to be your Botcher.”

Seriously?
I didn’t catch the “voluntary” vibe from this Laura Croft wannabe.

Carter smiled.
“This is a huge compliment, Rae. Jennifer’s pulled herself out of the field and wants to train you.”

“You’ll be working with the best.” Jennifer looked like she couldn’t care less. She stood head bent, checking her phone.

Where did she pull that out of?
The tight leather couldn’t hide a thing. Rae couldn’t even detect panty lines, so the question remained. “To make me better than the best?” Again, the childish dig came out of her mouth before her brain could process it and warn her to shut it down.

Jennifer’s eyebrow rose. “I offered because you’re Bethney’s.”

Mom?
“How do you know my mother?”

“We were best friends, and partners here at the Privy Council.”

Tete en Tete

What?
Jennifer seemed nothing like the type of person her mom would have hung out with. Sh—
Wait a min… Mom worked with the Privy Council?
Rae couldn’t imagine her mother knowing about the Privy Council, or wearing the leather outfit, but these days, nothing should really surprise her anymore.

She pictured her mother and pretended she was in the room so she could talk to her.
Mom, why didn’t you tell me you worked for the Privy Council?
What would her mom say?
Sorry dear, it never came up.
Rae rolled her eyes.
Wake up, Rae, she told herself. You didn’t know your mother. You were so young when she died, how can you have any concept of her as a person? You never really knew her.
“How could…? But my father… wanted to destroy…” She looked at Carter, hoping the confusion she felt showed clearly on her face.

“There’s a lot you don’t know, Rae.”
Carter’s voice carried sympathy but also something else. Mystery? Could he be hiding something? Did it matter? It only served to make her temper flare. This was exactly the reason she had to hold back. How could she truly trust anyone until or unless they told her everything? Every time she turned around someone was confessing that she had not been told about something, that they had withheld info for one reason or another. It didn’t matter why anymore. She didn’t feel protected. She just felt betrayed. If anyone in the entire world deserved…no needed…needed to know the entire story of her parent’s lives from start to finish, including every tiny little incident or coincidence, it was her. After all, she was judged by it. It was only fair she at least know about it.