House of Cards

by W. J. May

  Carter had the decency to look guilty. “I’m sorry about that,” he said quietly.

  “Sorry about what? Treating me like a lab rat instead of a human being? Or not getting the answers when you wanted them?” Rae’s hands planted fists on her hips, and she began tapping the toe of her sneaker against the floor. “What do you know about Kraigan? And tell me the bloody truth!”

  “There’s not much to share. He won’t talk. You know more about his tatù than we do. You probably know more about him than anyone.”

  Because I’m related? Not by bloody choice! “He’s just waiting for the right moment. Don’t let him out. No good will come of it.” She sounded like her Uncle Argyle.

  “He’s already being transferred and the paperwork’s been filed now. It’s too late.”

  Rae shook her head. None of this made sense. “I don’t get it. Do you want me to die? Is this because I was a brat at the debriefing last night? Talk about harsh!”

  Carter walked around his desk and pulled a weird looking metal object out of a drawer. He set it on the desk and pressed the side button before checking his watch. “We have about a minute before they’ll figure out how to clear the scrambler. Listen carefully. I can only say this once.”

  Rae leaned in as Carter’s voice lowered.

  “Kraigan’s involved in whatever is going on. His tatù is still there even if he hasn’t used it. He knows something or will lead us to whoever took care of him before he arrived at Guilder. Someone like him didn’t plan his implantation into the orphanage and Guilder heist all by himself. He has connections. Those people are responsible for trying to assassinate me. They are trying to tear down this house we’ve built.”

  Whoa, change gears. “And expose us?” Her father was right, the Privy Council was like a house of cards. She had been so worried about whether or not to trust the Privy Council, she was starting to think like her father. She needed to choose to be with them, or against them. There was no way she would be able to sit on the fence for too long. At the least, she needed to figure out what the other side wanted from the PC’s… or her.

  She needed to get back to her dorm and read that journal. There had to be something in there. Some kind of clue. She had let other things get in the way, but now, there was no more time to delay.

  “That’s why we need Kraigan released. No matter the risk.”

  “What am I supposed to do?”

  Carter stared at her, his face solemn.

  Suddenly Rae knew what he was thinking. A slight glimpse into the future with Julian’s tatù and she knew. “No! He won’t believe me.”

  “He might.”

  She shook her head with emphasis. “No. He won’t. There’s no way he is going to believe I’d switch sides. That I’m becoming my father.” Her last words came out as a whisper, as if the mere thought of saying them aloud would jinx it and make them true. “I’m not going to have my friends think it might be true.” She couldn’t bear to hurt Molly, Julian or Devon – even for a short while. “There’s got to be another way. I’ll find it. I’ll figure something out.”

  Carter sighed. “He’s being released tomorrow. Think it over tonight. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

  Chapter 17

  Need You

  It didn’t seem possible that life could get more complicated. But it had. Rae left Carter’s office and walked across the cobblestones in a daze; buried in her own thoughts; trying to make sense of what Carter had just told her. Her phone vibrated in her pocket, and partly on auto-pilot she pulled it out and answered it without checking caller ID first. She presumed it was Jennifer. “I’m on my way.”

  “Really?” a male chuckled. “That’s impressive.”

  “Luke?” She paused beside the iron gate that led to the training facility. This is so not a good time.

  “Hey Rae. Whatchya doing?”

  She smiled, despite all the stuff running through her head. “Not much.”

  “How was school today?”

  She laughed. School had been the easy part. “Good. What’re you doing?”

  “Working. Just taking a break at the moment.”

  Rae didn’t know what to say next. She knew now was not the best time to be on the phone with a boy, but this little bit of normal felt like a lifeline. She wracked her brain and imagined seconds turning into moments. Molly never had this problem. “What do you do?” Lame, but at least it wasn’t silence.

  “Sometimes I crunch numbers, or gather data. Mostly I try to make sense out of nonsense.”

  Rae walked to the gate keypad and entered her number, the heavy iron gate slowly opened. “Sounds like the most exciting job in the world.”

  He chuckled. “I bet I can surprise you. Meet me for dinner tonight and I’ll tell you all about it. Even show you where I work.”

  Dinner? Like a real date? After her long day yesterday and then the crap news she had just heard? She didn’t think she could fake happy. She still had training with Jennifer to go through. “I’m not sure I can make it tonight.”

  “How about just an ice cream cone then? Half an hour and I promise I’ll leave you alone.”

  The slight pleading in his voice made her smile. “I’ll try. I have to meet some—I need to see a professor. I’m not sure how long the meeting will be. How about I text you when I’m finished?”

  “Sounds good. I’m working a bit late so I’ll text you where to meet. Do you still have a car to borrow or would it be better if I picked you up at Guilder?”

  “I think I can borrow one.” Julian probably wouldn’t mind if she borrowed his one more time. I need to buy my own car soon. I can’t go on borrowing vehicles. She slipped through the door that led down the hall to the gymnasium. “I gotta go. I’ll text you later.”

  Rae pushed the door open to the gymnasium and stood watching several groups of people training. One group was scaling a crazy-looking wall with little knobs on it. Rae watched and realized they were throwing the knobs and then climbing on them. Totally cool! Behind them, partially hidden by the wall stood Jennifer. Her hands moved in simple motions as she spoke to someone Rae couldn’t see. She seemed pretty intense.

  A gasp of surprise slipped out of her mouth when Rae moved past the wall.

  Devon. No, no, no, no, no! I can’t do this right now.

  His head turned to shoot her a quick glance. He had obviously heard her before noticing her. There might still be a chance to escape... Then Jennifer paused and turned to follow his gaze.

  Rae swallowed and tried to appear relaxed and normal. Devon must have been somewhere sunny. He had a good tan, which made his blue eyes even brighter. He smiled and quickly tried to hide it but not before Rae noticed his dimple. She wished she could make him smile again to see it one more time, and at the same time wished he wasn’t there.

  “Hi,” she said, trying to not appear awkward.

  Jennifer looked at her, then Devon and back to Rae. “You spoke to Carter?”

  Rae sighed and nodded once. “You know?”

  They both nodded.

  “You okay?” Devon asked.

  Rae’s eyes snapped back to his face. Why do you care? As much as she wanted to be anywhere but there at that moment, she coached herself to act normal. “I guess.” She glanced behind her. “Can we not talk about this here?” Please can we just make Devon leave? It hurts too much.

  “We probably shouldn’t. It’s classified info.” Jennifer pointed to the doors that led to the offices. “We can talk in there if you want.”

  What’s there to talk about? Her feelings? She had spent enough time with a counselor back when her parents had died, to never want to go through that again. Plus, the thought of being in a room alone with Devon and Jennifer, seemed like the worst possible move at the time. “There’s nothing to say. He’s out.”

  “We’ll stop him, Rae.” Devon said fiercely. He’s not going to hurt you.

  She could almost hear him say the last words before he thought them. Shock ran through her. How? She
realized Julian’s tatù had kicked in and given her a small glimpse. She quickly forced her body to switch to Jennifer’s tatù, anything so she wouldn’t hear Devon’s feelings; feelings he should not even have considering he had dissolved their relationship. What right does he have to feel that? He can’t feel that! Life was confusing enough at the moment. She didn’t need any more mysteries to solve. She was overbooked as it was.

  “Do you feel like doing some training today?” Jennifer interrupted her thoughts.

  “Is this a trick question?” Rae couldn’t be sure whether or not Jennifer was testing her, wanting to see if she would back down when things got tough.

  Jennifer shook her head. “If you don’t feel like training, it’s fine. Yesterday was a long day. I’m impressed with how you handled yourself – at the museum and during debriefing. There are some who still aren’t a hundred percent sure whose side you are on. You’ll earn their trust and respect… they just don’t easily give it out these days. Old men, new tricks.” She shrugged. “You know how it goes.” She pointed at Devon. “He’s still trying to prove himself and he’s one of the best recruits we’ve had in years.”

  Rae smiled automatically, because Jennifer and Devon were smiling. She felt nothing to smile about, but she needed to appear normal.

  “How about we take today off? I have a feeling something will come up tomorrow and an early night might be a good idea.” Jennifer pulled her cell phone out of her back pocket as it rang, checking the caller ID. “I need to take this. Devon, can you make sure Rae gets back to her dorm?”

  “S-Sure.” Devon stuttered. Rae stiffened immediately. I don’t need an escort. I definitely don’t need him.

  Jennifer moved away from them and through the doors to the offices faster than any normal human being could move. Rae stood staring even after the doors had closed behind her. She just could not believe she had been stranded with Devon.

  “Did you drive here?” Devon asked.

  “I jogged. I haven’t bought a car yet.”

  “Of course.” He slowly began walking to the exit doors, waiting for Rae to follow beside him. “Do you want to walk back or drive back to Guilder?”

  Her phone vibrated inside her pocket, reminding her of Luke. “We should probably drive.”

  “Okay.”

  They walked out of the building and to his car in the parking garage in silence. She grudgingly admitted to herself that she missed this. She had always liked that Devon didn’t try to force the conversation or make small talk. He always did know how to make me feel comfortable. The anger and hurt churning in her gut started to subside a little. She took a few deep breaths as they settled in and he started the car. Rae leaned her head back and hoped for a quiet and quick ride back to the school so she could hurry up and be alone. She had a lot to process. He turned left out of the driveway instead of right, which would lead them back to Guilder. “Want to just go for a bit of a drive?”

  Rae wanted to argue, but Molly immediately came to mind. If she went back to the school now, Molly would be on her in seconds. So, she nodded, leaned back against the comfortable seat and stared out the window. He knew her, and she appreciated it at the moment.

  He drove through the countryside and when he pulled the car into a closed gated driveway to turn back around, he spoke quietly. “Are you worried?”

  Rae watched him from her peripheral vision. She wished he would pull the car over and wrap his arms around her, just as she wished she could scream at him and have a cathartic, loud fight. Both urges were wishful thinking. As much as she wanted him to hurt the way he had hurt her, she lacked the energy and focus required to wage war with him at the moment. There was too much else going on, too many fires that needed to be put out or managed. “About Kraigan? Should I be?” She had to wonder if he knew something that she didn’t.

  “I think the moment he’s free he’s going to go after you.”

  “I don’t think so. I took his tatù.” She couldn’t be sure, but pretending to believe it had to count for something.

  “Even more of a reason he’ll want to.” Devon focused on the road as he went around a tight bend. “I’ve asked to be on your detail. To act as a bodyguard.”

  “What?!” Rae had not meant to yell the word. It just slipped out.

  “Don’t worry. Carter refused. He said it would only make you more of a target.” He glanced at her before turning back to the road. “He also mentioned that you didn’t need help; that you could hold your own.”

  Rae turned the full force of her stare on him. Is that doubt I hear in his voice? Is he seriously doubting me? “What do you think?”

  It took a moment before he replied. “He’s probably right. I just…”

  “Don’t. Please don’t.” She knew she was about to ruin any chance of them getting back together. However, Devon had pissed her off, broken her heart and done her a favor all at the same time. She had needed to find herself, to come to terms with her family history and her past in order to proceed into the future. She was finally starting to accomplish something in that regard, but she was back to feeling like there was no one in her world that she could trust completely; and having Devon acting like he cared and wanting to protect her was both pointless and painful. “I’m okay. Carter’s right, I can handle whatever Kraigan wants. Let me do this on my own.” She paused a slight moment and, in a sense, pushed the knife though his heart. “I don’t need you.”

  The car slowed slightly as Devon’s foot lifted off the gas. He accelerated suddenly, as if he had had enough of her company and couldn’t get back to Guilder fast enough.

  Rae felt the same. The car grew stuffy and she wanted out. When Devon pulled into a parking space, Rae unlocked her door and jumped out before the car was even in park. “Thanks for the ride,” she called out as she ran toward Aumbry House. She blamed the tear sliding down her cheek on the wind pushing into her eyes as she raced along the sidewalk.

  She slowed her pace inside Aumbry and pulled the phone out of her pocket. Luke had sent a text with the address for some dessert café in town. She replied that she would be there in half an hour. A non-tatù boy could be just the right distraction – at least for a couple of hours. Tonight, while lying in her bed, she could try to figure out what to do about Kraigan.

  Right now, she needed ice cream.

  Chapter 18

  A Walk in the Park

  Rae dialed Julian’s number. It took three tries before he finally picked up. His excuse was that he had been drawing. Julian sounded uncomfortable when she asked to borrow his car. Rae chalked it up to his poor estimation of her driving skills. He grudgingly met her outside of Aumbry and just tossed her the keys before apologizing, saying he wanted to get back to his drawing. He refused to look her in the eye.

  Rae watched him jog away, puzzling over his behavior. He hadn’t asked about the meeting with Carter. By his awkwardness she figured he knew. Strange that he hadn’t said anything about it. He usually had a positive word of advice to make her feel better.

  She shrugged and headed to his car, right now she had ice cream to consume and a normal life to pretend she had. She carefully drove the fast car downtown. She slowly pulled into a double parking space. She wasn’t taking any chances. She bought two parking meter vouchers, hoping it would prevent any ticket from appearing behind the windshield wiper.

  Luke stood outside the shops leaning against the old brick. He waved when she saw him. In his other hand he held a leash to a very patient sitting yellow lab.

  Rae grinned. “Your dog?”

  The dog’s tail swept the sidewalk and she gave a short bark as Rae approached. Luke held his hand in a loose fist in front of the dog’s head. “Quiet, Sandy.” The dog immediately obeyed but her tail did not stop wagging.

  Rae bent down so Sandy could smell her hand. She patted Sandy’s head. “Good, girl.” Sandy’s wet nose tickled her forearm. She straightened. “How old is she?”

  Luke haphazardly tied the leash to the bike rack
beside the shop. “She’s three.” He used his hand again, this time held flat to the ground and then sideways in front of Sandy. The dog sat again and stayed put. Luke turned and opened the door for Rae. When she hesitated, he chuckled. “Sandy’s fine. She won’t move till we get back. There’s a dog park a block from here. She can run while we eat our ice cream cones.”

  Rae followed him inside and peered out the window several times while they waited in line and ordered. Sandy sat perfectly still, only her tail wagging when people walked by. “She’s very good.”

  Luke smiled. “I trained her myself. My father runs a kennel, breeding and training dogs.”

  “Neat! You grew up with dogs then?”

  Luke paid for their cones and chatted as they walked out of the dessert café. “All my life. I can’t imagine not having them around. I’m in a bachelor flat at the moment, but Sandy doesn’t mind. It’s got a decent sized backyard.” He picked up Sandy’s leash and tucked the one end loosely inside his pocket. Sandy followed perfectly at his left side, not a step ahead of Luke.

  Rae watched in awe. “When I’m done with school, I’d love to get a dog.”

  “If you do, I’ll help you train it.”

  “That would be cool.” Something occurred to Rae. She had never told Luke where she went to school. But hadn’t he offered to pick her up at Guilder earlier? The thought stopped her in her tracks.

  “What’s up?” He licked his cone to stop a dribble of ice cream from running down his hand.

  Molly’s tatù flared up inside Rae, ready to protect at all cost. Rae felt her eyebrows press together as she clenched her jaw tight. She inhaled and forced herself to exhale slowly. “I never told you where I went to school.” She grabbed his wrist and wrenched his arm over, his ice cream dropping to the sidewalk beside Sandy.

  The dog never noticed the food, but the hair raised along her spine let Rae know Sandy had noticed what Rae had done to her master. A low growl rumbled in the dog’s chest.