Lessons Learned (The Gifted Realm Book 2)

by Jillian Neal

  Rainer smiled as he saw the fierce fire that lit in Chloe’s eyes. She stared Marlisa down.

  The Captains’ challenge was an intricate maze of energy diodes, which would add to the energy streams and energy drains. Each captain had to draw from a large battery and then convert the energy to electricity. The electrical current had to be moved through three drains and three additional sources, then pushed through a magnetic field. An Iode sat at the end of the obstacle. It would only release when it was hit with exactly 12 volts of electricity.

  “Captains, prepare to summon!” Another announcer had taken over for Governor Sapman. He’d joined his wife and his two sons in the Angels box. “Summon!”

  Chloe had the battery drained first and shot the stream through a drain. The other captains hit a source first. It was a risky move. Rainer leaned forward in his chair to watch the energy fly around the field.

  Marlisa chose to balance her draws and drains in order. She hit a battery draw, and then immediately hit a drain.

  Chloe, who’d been challenging since she’d was the Captain of the Venton Vixens at the Academy, had an entirely different approach. She hit her three drains in a row. She had barely any left by the time she completed the last drain.

  With a smile on her face, she raced forward and drew heavily from three different diode sources. She had more than 12 volts easily. She passed it through the magnetic field until she felt she had the correct amount, and then shot a violent stream of electricity at the Iode. It exploded on impact and the Angels raced onto the field to embrace her.

  “Chloe Sawyer of the Arlington Angels takes first place in the Captain’s Challenge!” the announcer sounded disappointed.

  Rainer leaned forward to see the press box. The current announcer was dressed entirely in Neutron blue.

  “Well, so much for a nonbiased announcer,” Logan joked.

  Rainer turned back to the field. Marlisa was carefully moving her current through the magnetic field. She was ahead of the Bomber’s Captain and the Captain of the Amps.

  She leapt and shot the current at the Iode, but nothing happened. She moved quickly to hit a drain again briefly, and then shot again. Her Iode exploded at the same moment as the Captain of the Amps. They’d tied for fourth.

  Marlisa’s fury grew with every step she took back towards her teammates. Chloe and the Angels were still celebrating on the sidelines.

  “Ok, Em’s in the next challenge,” Logan urged excitedly. Every Haydenshire in attendance eased forward to watch the Kinetic Competition.

  Each Captain would use one of their team’s Receivers and one of their Shields to try to convert as much potential energy as they could draw out of the available diodes and into their team’s Iode.

  The Iodes for this kind of challenge had energy reflectors surrounding them. It would be Emily’s job to convert the energy that Chloe passed to her, and then get it around the reflectors and into their Iode.

  The Iodes were almost touching, and were completely surrounded by deflectors. It would be easy to accidently drop the stream in the wrong team’s Iode. It took a great deal of finesse.

  The Shield would try to prevent other players from drawing on Emily’s stream when she threw it towards the Iode. Since the point of the exhibition was to showcase all of the players’ skills, Chloe had chosen Emily and Katie for the Kinetic.

  Emily and Fionna would also be competing at the end of the Exhibition, in the Receivers’ Relay, with all of the Receivers from the other teams.

  Rainer stood with the Angels’ fans and cheered as Emily, Katie, and Chloe raced back onto the field. Unlike the previous challenges, for this challenge, the players’ Joule Meters would be monitored, just like they are in challenges between two teams. Emily would need to get the energy stream into the Iode before her Joule meter was depleted.

  The buzzer sounded, and Chloe summoned from one of the five Iodes near her. She shot the kinetic energy to Emily. Katie immediately summoned, and casted a shield around the stream.

  The Receiver from the Neutrons had been just slightly faster than Katie, and he was pulling from Emily’s stream. Katie raced closer and amped her shield. Her Joule meter dipped to four bars.

  The Neutrons Receiver’s draw was bounced back, and Chloe drew from another diode. This time, she waited on Katie’s shield before she added to the one Emily was already holding.

  Rainer studied the field. Marlisa was drawing from her third Diode, but their shield wasn’t holding. The Bombers Receiver was pulling half of their draw.

  “Looks like our newest little fillies of Summation are having a tough day,” the announcer tried to sound sympathetic but missed the mark. “Looks like there may only be room for one all-ladies team. The Angels of Arlington have always been Summation’s sweethearts. Haven’t they?”

  The fans went wild. Emily beamed as the Angels Iode began filling rapidly. She edged closer to the Iode.

  The Angels were going to come in first. Katie’s shield held, and Chloe fed Emily the kinetic energy in rhythmic pulses. She was losing very little in her conversion. Rainer’s heart raced as he saw Marlisa’s face contort in ire.

  Before the thought could formulate in Rainer’s mind, Marlisa’s eyes narrowed. She drew from her fourth Iode, and shot the stream. Her Receiver could barely hold the amount of energy she’d already been given to try and convert, but winning was no longer Marlisa Wretchkinsides’ goal.

  “No!” Rainer leapt from his seat. His heart pounded in his ears. He couldn’t draw breath. The stream hit the reflector that was less than two feet away from Emily.

  Marlisa had calculated it perfectly. It appeared that she’d missed her Receiver, but the stream bounced off of the reflector and, with a horrifying scream, Emily’s body doubled over, she clutched her right side, and collapsed on the ground.

  “Shit!” Vindico gasped.

  “She’s okay. She’s getting up.” Logan tried to reassure Rainer, but his concern was evident in his tone. Emily took a few steps, but then she cringed and clutched her right side again. She went down hard. Chloe, Fionna, and Katie raced towards her as the referees halted the challenge.

  Rainer couldn’t stand it. He tore out of the box with Garrett, Logan, and Vindico right behind him. He shoved people out of his way, and did his best to dodge the vast number of cameras that appeared to be coming out of nowhere to capture his sprint.

  Rainer made it to the Medio’s tent on the side of the field just as Chloe and Fionna helped Emily limp inside.

  “Baby!” he panicked as he rushed to her. She lay against his chest, and finally gave in to the tears she’d been fighting. A cameraman shoved through the tent flaps. Vindico ordered him out furiously.

  Rainer’s shield spilled from his pores. He filled it with soothing energy as he held her tenderly. The Medios stood back from the powerful shield, but were ready to aid at a moment’s notice.

  He kissed her forehead and edged her shirt up slightly. She was still clutching her right side. A Medio stepped closer.

  “Just give me a minute,” Rainer demanded.

  Gently, he eased her uniform shirt up and grimaced as he saw the huge purple bruises forming over the side of her rib cage.

  “Hold on to me, sweetheart.” She managed a slight nod. Her entire body trembled against him as he slid his fingers over the bruising as tenderly as he was able. The Medio who stood nearby awaited Rainer’s assessment. “They’re broken.”

  The Medio moved in, but Emily clung to Rainer.

  “No,” she shook her head. The horrible pain etched her face. She shuddered with every breath she attempted to draw. “I want Rainer to do it.”

  His shield kept some of the pain away, and kept her from having to feel all of the emotions around her. Everything, from her brother’s worry, to the Medio’s tension, to the reporter’s dogged drive to get in. She could feel it all.

  Rainer’s heart fractured. He glanced at Garrett.

  “Em,” he soothed. Fionna nodded and urged Garrett on. “T
he Medio can do it so much faster. Rainer’s a Shield, not a healer,” he pointed out.

  The Medio, who appeared well-equipped to handle broken ribs, stepped in and gave Emily a kind smile.

  “How about I mend them, dear, and you hang on to him. Ribs can be tricky, because I have to move around your heart and lungs, okay?”

  Rainer prayed that Emily would agree. To be Gifted with a healing Predilect usually meant that you had a very pure heart, just like Adeline. They had to be able to take over a person’s energy and guide the body to heal itself. It required a very empathetic person, who was able to put patients at ease enough for them to relax and allow the Medio’s extraneous energy to join with their own.

  Ioses Predilects were the most difficult to heal, because of their body’s drive to protect itself. After a few more tears, Emily begrudgingly agreed.

  “Hold on to her tight,” the Medio instructed, “This is going to hurt.”

  Emily began to sob as Rainer embraced her. He watched the Medio summon, but Emily was too distressed. She blocked him instantly. Rainer could feel it as he held her.

  “Come on, baby,” he whispered, “I’ve got you. Just let him heal them, okay?”

  Garrett looked distraught as he watched Emily cry. He patted her leg consolingly. Logan’s eyes closed in anger and angst.

  “Fionna, you’re going to have to step in for this challenge,” Medio Sawyer, the Angels majority team owner and Chloe’s father, stepped into the Medical tent.

  “Oh, yes, sir,” Fionna patted Emily’s leg and returned to the field.

  “Shhh… come on, Em,” Rainer continued to soothe.

  “Keep talking, Mr. Lawson,” the Medio whispered, “I believe you hold the key.”

  Her rhythms soothed to the sound of Rainer’s voice.

  As the Medio summoned again, Rainer immediately began whispering in Emily’s ear how much he loved her, and that he’d take her home right after the game and take care of her.

  She relaxed enough to let the Medio in. Rainer watched, and felt as the bruising began to yellow. After several long minutes, she was able to draw a full breath without wincing.

  “There,” the Medio smiled as he released Emily. “That’s about all I can do for you right now. If you still want to play in the relay, you can.”

  “No,” Rainer commanded.

  “Rainer, I have to,” Emily argued.

  “This is actually a good thing, Lawson. Think about it,” Vindico hissed.

  “How is this a good thing?” Rainer was on the verge of shouting.

  “If Cascavel went back and told Nic how she threw that cast when he tried to take her then her getting hurt would probably make him doubt that,” Vindico phrased through his clenched teeth.

  “Thank you,” the Governor huffed as he threw back the tent flaps. Rainer hadn’t heard him coming, but assumed by his demeanor that the press had mobbed him on his way.

  “Are you all right, baby girl?”

  “Yeah, Daddy, they healed me. It was three broken ribs,” Emily explained dejectedly. She sipped from a can of seltzer water that one of the nurses had handed her.

  “I spoke with the referees. They felt it was a mistake, and that there was no foul play,” the Governor informed them quietly.

  “Right,” Vindico scoffed.

  “But you want me to just send her back out there with that bitch who tried to kill her?” Rainer sneered.

  “I don’t want you to do anything, Lawson,” Vindico spat, “All I said was that this wasn’t all bad.”

  “She is not going back out there. Let me see your side, Emily,” the Governor commanded.

  “No, Daddy, I’m fine.” She jerked the uniform shirt out of her father’s hand. “And I am going back out there. This isn’t like at Venton, where it’s no big deal. I get paid to do this. I have to work that relay. Then I can leave.” Her determination seemed to gain intensity the longer she spoke.

  “She’s right. Marlisa won’t even be out for the Receivers’ Relay. She’ll be fine,” Garrett vowed. “Nic’s little bitch princess will have to be on her best behavior now anyway. She tries anything else, they’ll end her career.”

  “Just let her go compete, Lawson, then I can use this to get Sapman to allow Iodex to be on the field for next week’s challenge. I told you, all in all, a few ribs isn’t so bad,” Vindico continued to infuriate Rainer.

  Medio Sawyer returned to the tent. “She okay for the relay? It’s about to start.”

  “She’s fine. Probably won’t win much for the Angels right now, but she’ll make it to the end. Just try to get some rest this afternoon, Ms. Haydenshire. Nothing strenuous for the next few days, and try to lie on your left side.”

  “Mr. Lawson can run a cooling wave through his hand and place it gently over the area for about twenty minutes, once an hour, for a few hours today. I’d say by Monday, you’ll be back to normal,” the Medio gave his instructions.

  “Yes, sir. Thank you.” Emily slid off of the table. “Just pick me up at the locker rooms,” she requested of Rainer.

  The fear in her eyes crushed him, but before he could stop her, she was back on the field.

  Conflict

  Rainer pulled the Mustang into the driveway. Logan’s Accord followed him. After going inside, and setting Emily’s bag in their room, he pulled her close.

  “Let me see the bruising again.” He wanted to make certain it was still healing.

  “I cannot believe I came in last place because of that bitch!” Emily was still furious.

  “Baby, they couldn’t even get your Joule meter to read five. Of course you came in last. You should never have competed. Your energies were trying to heal you, not transfer electricity to heat.”

  “As soon as I put my ring back on, it stopped hurting,” she explained as Rainer lifted her shirt.

  “Good,” he turned to admire the view of her in a sports bra and boy-short panties. He ran his hands over the approximate location of the broken ribs. The bruising had been yellow just before they’d left the arena. She’d put her engagement ring back on in the car, and she appeared to be healed completely.

  She yawned as he traced over the area with slightly more pressure, to make certain the ribs were all in one piece.

  “Why don’t you take a nap, baby?” He patted the bed beside him.

  “Will you hold me?”

  “Of course,” he assured her. Her confidence was shaken, and she was scared, though she never would’ve admitted that.

  He waited on her to crawl into bed beside him, covered them in the sheets and blankets, and then pulled off his shirt.

  He wanted to be able to feel her energy with more than his hands while she slept. He wanted to know if she was in any pain. She sighed contentedly, and wiggled down into his embrace. Rainer said yet another prayer of overwhelming gratitude that she was all right as he watched her fall asleep.

  This had to end. Wretchkinsides and his daughter needed to be stopped once and for all.

  Rainer guided Emily into the farmhouse kitchen. He inhaled the familiar scents of home.

  “E-E!” Keaton squealed as he raced into Emily’s arms. Rainer chuckled as Keaton’s head shook back and forth when he scrubbed his hair.

  Henry toddled behind his brother, and extended his arms up to Rainer. With a delighted grin, Rainer tossed him in the air before he landed him back in his arms and fed him a cracker from the jar on the counter.

  The Governor carried in a large platter of burgers from the grill. He kissed Mrs. Haydenshire’s cheek and then Emily’s.

  “You ok, baby girl?”

  “Yeah, Daddy, as soon as I put my ring back on, it healed completely.” Emily lifted the side of her shirt.

  “Good,” her father sighed as he glanced nervously at his wife. “Garrett just called. He’s on his way.”

  “Oh good. As soon as your dad gets here, we’ll eat.” Mrs. Haydenshire gave a weary smile.

  “Grandpa’s coming?” Logan tried to hide his disappointm
ent but failed miserably.

  “Yes, and Nana and Paps,” Mrs. Haydenshire chuckled.

  Emily and Rainer began buttering the hamburger buns so they could be toasted.

  Adeline carried Henry on her hip while she set the table. Garrett arrived, followed by Will and Brooke. Patrick was unusually quiet as he slunk into his seat at the vast dining room table.

  “Lucy coming over tonight, son?”

  “Uh, no dad, she’s busy,” Patrick stalled.

  “You break up or something?” Logan asked.

  “No, Lo, we didn’t break up. Mind your own business!”

  “Patrick,” Mrs. Haydenshire raised her eyebrow in irritation. “Could we please eat in peace?”

  “Sure, ‘til Grandpa gets here.”

  As if on cue, a knock sounded at the door. Grandpa Haydenshire marched to his seat at the table. He scowled down the line of Haydenshire men seated at the table, until he landed on Emily.

  Grandpa appeared to be in a more vicious mood than usual. Rainer braced as everyone began passing around platters of burgers and baked potatoes.

  “So, I hear you decided to move in with Mr. Lawson, there, and give up the milk before he bought the cow.” Emily’s eyes goggled as Rainer’s mouth fell open. He tried to think of how to defend her.

  “Dad, could we make it through the blessing before you start saying offensive things to my children?” Governor Haydenshire spat.

  Grandpa Haydenshire did manage to keep his mouth shut through the blessing, and he helped himself to a burger and slaw.

  “And I hear you’re planning on adding more to this litter?” he gestured to everyone seated around the table as he asked Will the question.

  “Uh, yeah,” Will was clearly not certain if he should take offense. “Brooke’s due around Thanksgiving,” he informed his grandfather. Brooke beamed as Will rubbed his hand across her abdomen.

  Will and Brooke had waited until Brooke was well into her pregnancy before they’d informed their families, and her bump had grown quite a bit since they’d made the announcement.

  “Yeah, that’s what got you in trouble in the first place,” Grandpa Haydenshire pointed to Will’s hand on Brooke’s stomach.