by Kristie Cook
“Now practice with your left,” she said.
I threw what I thought was a left hook. Tristan said it was more of a jab and showed me the correct way, then put me to work, repeating the move.
“I don’t see why they’re so uptight about another daughter,” Charlotte went on. “If Rina and Sophia say it’s going to happen, we need to let it happen when it’s supposed to. Otherwise . . .”
I slowed my moves when she didn’t finish. “Otherwise what?”
She tapped her finger against her lips. “Well, there’s a reason Dorian came by himself, right?”
I stopped my punches and stared at her.
“Charlotte,” I said, “do you know Chandra very well?”
“Sure. I often work under her when I’m in India or the surrounding area. Why?”
“She mentioned something about Dorian not going to the Daemoni.”
Char pressed her lips together and nodded. “Some people want to believe that. In fact, some think he might even be able to lead the Amadis.”
“What?” My eyebrows flew up. I glanced at Tristan, but skepticism darkened his eyes.
“Martin has mentioned it, but I don’t see how. We’ve always been a matriarchal society.” She shrugged. “It’s not my forte, and it’s pointless to speculate. My job, at least for now, is to teach you how to protect yourself. Tristan, let’s show her some kicks.”
After I practiced a variety of kicks, we moved on to combination moves. At first it was exhilarating, even fun, but eventually it became tedious as they made me practice the same moves over and over again. My body, into the rhythm, did everything on its own, while my mind wandered, thinking about Dorian, the council meeting, the “voices,” and what the one said about the girl. Then I thought about Rina and wanting to work with her instead of doing these silly exercises.
“Alexis!” Tristan’s bark snapped me out of it. “Pay attention.”
My mind returned to my surroundings. The punching bag I’d been working with swung violently on its chain, its insides bursting out of a huge hole.
“Did I do that?” I asked, jumping out of its way as it swung toward me.
“Yes! Because you’re not focused.” Tristan’s angry growl bemused me.
“I’m sorry. I’ll fix—”
“The bag’s not a problem,” Charlotte said, her voice much calmer than Tristan’s as she waved her hand. The stuffing sucked back inside the bag, and the hole closed itself. “But your lack of concentration is.”
“Yes, it is a problem,” Tristan said. “You have to focus. When you’re in the middle of a fight, your mind must be one-hundred-percent directed on what you’re doing. You can’t let it wander.”
“But I’m just doing the same hits and kicks over and over—”
“You need to learn the moves. Your muscles must memorize them.”
“Which they seem to be doing very well,” Charlotte added, more kindly than Tristan’s tone, but then her voice became firmer. “But you must be alert and aware at all times, regardless of how mundane the situation seems.”
I shook my shoulders and arms out. “I’m sorry. I’ll focus more.”
Tristan walked away from the punching bags, over to an open area. “Practice on me, not the bags. Maybe then you’ll pay attention.”
“I said I’d focus.” I didn’t understand why he seemed so upset. You’d think the punching bag might suddenly grow arms and fight back when I wasn’t watching.
“I want to see how much strength you’re putting into it.”
I blew at the hair that had escaped my ponytail and fell in my face. “Fine.”
“Do the jab and roundhouse combo,” he said. “Full strength.”
I did the move several times. He could take my full strength, although his balance faltered more than once.
“Good. You could probably knock out a large man with that kick. But you don’t always need to make them unconscious. Sometimes you only want them on the ground. Use less strength.”
So I did. Tristan’s anger ebbed as we did the moves several times and I controlled my strength.
“Now,” Charlotte said, “pretend Tristan is a Norman about to enter danger and you only need to scare him so he’ll run away. Hardly any force. Just enough to grab his attention.”
I lightened up more, barely striking Tristan with my hand or foot. I continued the moves as long as they kept saying, “Go!” and, as I swung my leg around in what felt like a lazy roundhouse, I wondered how much longer we’d be at this because it really was ridiculous. Fist fighting? Really? When I could shoot a lightning bolt out of my hand? This was a waste of time I could be spending with Rina.
The next thing I knew, my leg became trapped, and my body suddenly flipped over, my stomach flipping with it. The hand released my leg, and two arms caught me right before I hit the ground, breaking my fall. Still, they felt like two bars of steel against my back, knocking the wind out of me. The beams above swam in and out of focus. So did Tristan’s face as he laid me on the ground and stood over me, his hands on his knees, his arms braced as he glared down at me.
“I said harder,” he snarled.
“I didn’t hear you.” I meant to match his ferocity, but I was still catching my breath.
“Exactly.” He turned and walked away.
I forced myself to my feet and found disappointment written all over Charlotte’s face.
“If you don’t focus, you can easily be taken out,” she said, her voice low and calm.
Tristan spun around and suddenly stood in front of me. “In other words, you let your mind wander and you could be dead.”
“I’m pretty sure, in a real fight, I would be completely focused. This just seems pretty freakin’ stupid. As if we’d ever fight this way.”
“How did you fight Vanessa?” Tristan asked, his voice still venomous. “Wasn’t that hand-to-hand?”
“Of course it was. I didn’t have powers then, remember?”
“You can’t always rely on your powers!” He whirled again and paced.
“Alexis, you have to be prepared for any situation,” Charlotte said. “We’re not gods who can go around wielding powers out in the world. Sometimes we go face-to-face, mano-a-mano. Sometimes we use weapons. Sometimes we use our powers. You must know how to handle every situation. You must be prepared.”
“Okay, I get it.”
Tristan appeared in front of me again, too fast to see him move. “Are you sure? Because that just now, in the real world, would have been the end of you.”
“I said I get it. Sorry if I have a lot on my mind!”
He opened his mouth, but Charlotte interrupted him.
“I think we’ve done enough for today,” she said.
“I agree!” I stomped to the changing room to retrieve my clothes then stomped out of the building, toward the mansion. Tristan appeared next to me, pacing his strides to mine.
“Lexi,” he said, “I’m sorry.”
“You should be!”
“I had to get your attention. Your mind—”
“Was elsewhere, I know. You didn’t have to throw me on the ground.”
“Well, technically, I didn’t. I threw you into my arms.”
I gave him a sideways glance and saw the smirk I expected. “I sure hope that’s not your idea of romantic because if it is—”
He stepped in front of me, cutting me off both verbally and physically. I blew out a breath of exasperation and stared at our feet. He lifted my chin with his fingers to look me in the eye.
“The thought of you fighting scares the hell out of me. If something happens to you . . .” His voice trailed off. He shook his head, as if erasing a horrible thought. “I can’t lose you, my love. I need you to be prepared for anything.”
The pain in his eyes, dimming the gold flecks, engulfed me. My throat worked to swallow the lump in it.
“I’ll try harder next time,” I murmured. “I’m just anxious to see Rina. If I can get the telepathy thing under control, we c
an find out about this girl. She and Dorian are all I can think about.”
Before Tristan could respond, we were ambushed by a six-year-old. Dorian came out of nowhere, flying into his dad’s arms.
“Can we play now?” Dorian asked. Tristan looked at me.
I waved my hand, as if shooing them away. “Go. Have fun.”
They took off, Dorian jabbering away.
After a quick shower, I rushed downstairs, picked up on Rina’s mind, and followed my sense to her. I hadn’t realized what I’d done—picked out her “voice” or brain wave or whatever it was—until I raised my hand to knock on the door of her study. I paused to consider that. I hadn’t heard her thoughts, but I knew it was her I was sensing. Maybe . . .
“Come in, Alexis,” Rina called aloud from the other side of the door, interrupting my near epiphany.
I entered and closed the door behind me. Seeing Rina renewed my frustrations, but I pushed them aside. She had her reasons for her behavior, as did I. Besides, she was my grandmother, and I didn’t have much family. I needed to forgive her. Or at least move on.
“Is this a good time?” I asked.
She put aside whatever she’d been working on and moved, graceful as always, to the sitting area.
“Yes. Learning to control your gift is a priority.”
She sat in one of the high-backed chairs, and I sat on the small leather sofa, nervously groping for the non-existent pendant. My hand dropped with a heavy sigh. Something else to worry about, too. Tristan had made it clear we needed to recover the pendant from Vanessa. He’d said it couldn’t be in the Daemoni’s hands.
“Alexis, darling, we face many challenges, but we cannot solve them all at once,” Rina said. “But working on your powers is a good first step.”
“So, what am I doing wrong?” I blurted out. “It was so easy before, when we were at the beach house. Even with the Daemoni attack and Vanessa and everyone, I could still focus. Now I can barely control myself.”
Rina nodded. “You had just gone through the Ang’dora. Your power has probably strengthened since, becoming more difficult to control. But, it is really more about your self-confidence. When Tristan was trying to kill you, you knew what you needed to do for him.”
I thought about that day, waking up and feeling all-powerful. I’d been so excited to finally be like Tristan, and I did believe I could conquer pretty much anything. My confidence had wavered, but not nearly as much as now. The feeling of being an alien, combined with all the problems nearly overwhelming me, weakened my spirit.
“A lack of confidence is understandable,” Rina said. “You have been uprooted and replanted in a very strange place. It has been over one hundred years, but I remember well when I was brought to the Amadis and went through the Ang’dora. It takes time to become accustomed to it all, especially to your powers.”
“I feel like we don’t have much time, though. There’s so much going on.”
“You still measure time with a Norman perspective.” She shifted in her chair and folded her hands into her lap. “However, you are right. We have little time regarding the traitor. We must identify him as soon as possible, before any serious damage is done.”
So she still didn’t hold an ounce of belief in what I heard at the council meeting. She searched for someone else, a “him,” and some other way someone was betraying her. If that motivated her to help me sooner rather than later, though, I would let it go.
“So what am I doing wrong?” I asked again.
“Let us focus on what you are doing right first,” she said with a small smile. “You still have the wall I taught you to raise?”
“Yes, but barely. It seems to fall so easily anymore.”
“Mmm, yes. The wall is . . . how do I say it? It is what you call training wheels on a bicycle, yes? I taught you to envision it as a temporary solution to help you learn control. However, to use this gift to its fullest potential, you will eventually have to stop using the wall.”
I hadn’t realized I’d been leaning closer to her until now, when I shrank back with anxiety. “But I like the wall. It keeps everyone’s thoughts away and protects my own from jumping into their heads.”
“You are mistaken, Alexis. The wall only keeps others out. You protect your own thoughts. You can only share those if you want to, and you are already very good at that.”
I fidgeted uncomfortably, but I needed to discuss this with her if I ever wanted to have a sex life again. “And the other night? Every time we have sex?”
Rina lifted a shoulder in a graceful shrug. “There is not much you can do about it. To truly enjoy the moment, you must be willing to completely let go. If you inhibit this part of you, you hinder other parts, too, such as the physical enjoyment.”
“So I’m doomed to either no sex, bad sex, or letting everyone ‘hear’ me?”
She sat back in her chair. “I would say that is your decision to make, but truthfully, it is not. You and Tristan need to be making love. As often as possible.”
If I’d been drinking anything, I would have spewed it in her face. Did she really say that?
“I apologize for being so blunt, but we need a daughter. But do not worry. Any other time, your thoughts are shielded.” She pursed her lips and tilted her head. “In fact, your shield is too heavy—it protects your vulnerabilities, but it also inhibits the power of this gift.” She paused, rearranged her expression and waved her fingers dismissively. “It will resolve itself on its own, I am sure. In the meantime, let us concentrate on controlling the many voices in your head and eliminating the wall.”
My heart jumped. “Already?” I squeaked.
“Not completely. We will practice—you will practice—extensively first. Eventually, you will feel comfortable with letting it go.”
I took a deep breath and nodded. “Okay. So how do I practice?”
At her request, I explained my usual technique with the black cloud that gave me something to focus on as I opened my mind to others. It worked well when it was only Tristan, Owen, and me, but not so much anymore.
“Yes, that is an imperfect way to envision it,” Rina agreed. “I expect it is easy with Tristan and Owen because you know their voices so well. You probably do not need that vision with them anymore. You are able to identify their specific mind signatures.”
“Their what?”
“Mind signatures. That is what I call them. It is difficult to explain, but if you have felt it, you understand what I mean. It is like a thought current I receive, but I do not actually hear the thought yet.”
“Oh! That’s kind of how I just found you. I didn’t hear your thoughts, but I did pick up your voice or your brain wave or something, and followed it here to your office.”
She smiled. “Then you are becoming more familiar with me. You identified my mind signature. What you felt is produced by every brain, and each one is unique. Rather than sending out your cloud, imagine identifying the signature you want and then focus on it until you receive the thoughts. The signatures are already out there. Simply let yourself feel them and decide which one to focus on.”
“And I have to let the wall go to feel the signatures.”
“Correct. To start with, imagine the wall as a screen, letting only the signatures through, but not the thoughts. Become accustomed to the mind signatures, then learn to find the thoughts behind them, letting only one person’s stream of thoughts through the screen at a time. If too many thoughts start flowing through the screen at once, you can solidify the wall. When you are not practicing, you can keep the wall up. You will learn, however, to function almost normally without the wall or screen, letting the signatures . . . hmm, how do I say? . . . float—I suppose that is a good word—around you.”
“So how long do I have to practice before I get another chance with the council?”
“The council will not gather again until the coronation ceremony in three months.”
Three months! That was too long. If I had a daughter out there . .
.
“But I will try to provide you with opportunities to be near council members individually before then,” Rina added. “I need to know if my interpretation of the Angels’ message is correct sooner rather than later. First, however, you need to practice as much as possible.”
I promised her I would. This was just as urgent to me as it was to her, although for different reasons.
“Let us start, then.” She paused for a moment, her head tilted to the side as if listening for something. “It is only you and me here. Dissolve your wall, and make it into a screen.”
I stared at her for a long moment, then inhaled a deep breath. Please be okay. Please be okay. I so did not want to do this, but the thought of a little girl reminded me I had no choice. With my eyes closed, I imagined the wall as a big, black structure in my mind and visualized the tiniest of holes puncturing it all over. I held my breath, waiting for something to happen, but nothing did. No thoughts from the other side came crashing into my mind. So then I imagined the holes disintegrating the wall even more, into a screen. Still, no one else’s thoughts invaded.
“Okay,” I said.
“Can you feel my mind signature?”
The visual in my mind was too clear, and I tried to actually see a wave of something floating through the screen. I wiped my mind clean of the image and made myself feel the screened wall instead, and then feel for Rina’s signature as an energy current, just as I had felt it earlier without realizing it. I detected her signature immediately. She must have sensed me.
“Now focus on it and allow yourself to receive my thoughts.”
I mentally pulled the signature toward me, and her thoughts slowly became defined until I could hear them loud and clear.
“Very good, Alexis.”
Next, she explained how to let go of the thoughts and let the signature float. As I practiced this, I realized her signature was no longer the only one nearby.
“I think someone’s coming,” I said.
Rina smiled and nodded. “Try to focus on the thought, and you will identify the owner.”
“Solomon,” I said as soon as I focused. His low voice rumbled in his head.
“See how his mind signature is different than mine? Become familiar with it.”