Chapter 5

Night Garden

 

I was placed by Professor Belle in an empty classroom, not bothering to mention that I could see them out in the hall discussing me.  I reached into my bag, grabbing out a random text book and immersed myself in reading it.  I must have exhausted my resources for the day because I dozed off, only to be jerked awake as the door opened.

Marion, the two fighting instructors, and JP came into the room, looking somber.  I didn't take this as a good sign, but Marion her best to give me a cordial smile.  I appreciated it, even if it didn't quite touch her eyes.  They all took positions standing in front of the classroom, leaning on various things here and there, but no one made a move to sit with me. 

I could hear my father's voice in my head, 'Body language says what the mind doesn't want to.'

I stood up as well, I wasn't sure if I was obeying some unspoken command, but I wanted them to know we were equals.  Leaning carefully on the edge of the shelf next to the windows, I eyes them warily.

"We would like to discuss with you what happened out there," Marion said in a gentle tone.  I eyed JP who was carefully keeping his eyes from mine.

"Do you have questions?" I asked, getting sarcastic and defense off the bat.

"How about what you did to West and Mave?  I want you to know that was not an acceptable form of magic to use.  We never use pain like that as a deterrent."  Marion's voice held a hint of hesitation, almost fear as she spoke with me.

"I didn't use pain as a deterrent, I used it as motivation." I clarified.  She shook her head.

"It was unacceptable, it was..." she continued searching for the right word.

"You want to say unnatural but it wasn't.  You told me to treat it as real, not to use excessive force, and to make it educational.  I did all of that."  All four of them looked at me like I was crazy.

"You made them cut themselves!" JP shouted looking like he wanted to strangle me for not understanding.

"I gave their bodies a reminder of what would happen if they kept attacking me.  I healed those cuts before they were even made, you can ask them how much it hurt.  But even if their mind didn’t register it, their bodies did, and in the end they backed away from me, and it was long enough to subdue them."  It was one of my first lessons by Remy, and I could really scare them if I wanted to and tell them what I wanted to do in the assessment.

"Let's just agree to disagree on that one, but you should know in the future it will not be acceptable behavior.  You cannot attack another student like that or I will have no choice but to expel you."  Marion said it in a firm but kind voice.

"What I want to know is how she knew where they were," Professor King asked, almost ignoring Marion and her warning.

"I saw them," I said shrugging, debating the merits of being truthful at the moment.  I detested lying but I wasn't sure I wanted to tell them everything either. 

"They were completely hidden, and you were focused on me," Professor King stated.

"You mean I was restraining you effectively, so you're curious how I kept holding you immobile while going on the offensive with the boys," I summed up, and he gave me a very angry nod that I got it right.

"What did you do to me anyways, I couldn't get a lock on your spell," he said.

"Oh it wasn't a spell, I was using your own magic against you.  I made your mind think I was placing a spell on you but in reality I just shut down your nervous system.  One the other count, I could see Mave and West and once I knew where they were I could use my spells on them to keep them away."  I could see all of them looking at me, a combination of awe and horror on their faces.

"What about what you did to me?" Professor Belle asked me, an excitement obvious on her face.  Finally, someone seemed to want to learn something.

"I had a hard time getting a good lock on you, your defenses are strong, but in the end I got in.  You drop some of your shields when you send out your own spells.  I just had to time it right," I said shrugging.  To my surprise she looked at me without anger but with curiosity.

"I honestly don't quite know what to do with you, if you will allow me I want to ask you a personal question."  I nodded, agreeing for Marion to continue.

"I don't think it was possible for you in your...community but did anyone come out and determine what you differentiated in?" Marion asked, exchanging a quick but nervous glance to JP.  I don't know why if she spoke to him, she would still ask that question.  Did she want to see if I was honest, or to see if I knew?

"I don't like questions where I don't know what the right answer is.  Why don't you just tell me what you think and we can go from there.  I have always been honest with the governance about what I experienced, I have answered all their questions.  I see no reason why I shouldn't here as well," I said extending a hand, wondering if she was smart enough to ask the right questions.

"I don't think you differentiated, and I think your potential is uncertain."

"You mean limitless, perhaps dangerous, it’s okay you can say it to me.  I'm not like the rest of them out there, I can take it," I told her, meeting her eyes.

"Yes, I think without the proper training you could be very dangerous.  I also think you don't differentiate because Remy didn't allow you to."  I could hear the two professors behind her suck in a deep breath, I thought these people knew what kind of person he was.  They shouldn't be surprised anymore.

"He sure did try," I told them a smile of defiance on my face, he never did understand that it didn't work.

"Okay, how about this, what does your magic look like?" she asked cautiously.  It was a deeply personal question, and it took some balls to ask it, especially of me. 

"It feels like a night garden.  Those fragile and bright plants that grow in the shadows of the moon, that thrive in the dark like those that thrive in the sun.  It takes much more effort to get them to bloom, but once they do it's unparalleled with its daytime sisters.  It feels like that."  I saw Professor Belle and JP take a few steps back from me.

“You are drawn to the moon?” Marion asked, guessing wrong.

“No, I make them grow in the dark.”  I waited for it to sink in, my metaphor wasn’t direct but they were smart enough to catch on.

"She's a source," JP said, with a deep exhale of breath like he didn't quite believe it.

"Took you long enough," I told him giving him a sarcastic thumbs up, knowing it had to have been driving him crazy the whole time he knew me.

"There is no such thing," Professor King said, but his eyes stayed fixed on me anyhow.

"Some call it root, some source, the ones in my community called me a soul mage.  I'd like to think I'm more original than that, but essentially yes." 

Marion was the first one to break a long silence in the room, "What are you the strongest in controlling?"

"That should be obvious, but it's the mind," I said as I showed them.  Each one dropped to the floor, and I carefully cushioned their falls with a little air pocket.  I should have warned them, but then they wouldn't have let me, and I wanted to show them what I was capable of.  Each face was stone white, and Professor King had to put his head down, presumable so he wouldn't pass out.  I used the air pockets to place each of them in a seat near where I was standing, purposefully placing them lower than me.

"That's just a parlor trick too. You should be thankful I chose your fondest memory to replay, instead of placing you within a hell you cannot imagine.  I don't like being accused or punished for something you forced me into in the first place.  I told you all I didn't want to be tested, that I didn't wish to endure an assessment.  You chose to think I'm something that I am not, but I am every bit his daughter.  I just chose a different path for myself."  Each person was staring at me, and it was then I saw Professor King make a move to disable me.  I held up my hand to stop him.

"I mean you and this school no harm, Marion offered me a place here and I accepted.  I will give you an opportunity to discuss if you want to continue with me.  I just wanted you to know what I was capable of, what Remy ensured I was capable of.  If you want to back out and cut your losses then I understand, and I won't take offense.  I'm hard to handle, but I can also teach you as much as you can teach me.  I'll head to my last class, you know where to find me," I said as I slung my bag over my shoulder and left the room.

 

 

***

 

Checking my schedule I noted I had a spell writing class, it was clear across the campus and since the bell had rung during my talk with the professors I had a feeling I would miss most of it.  I hesitated in the grassy space that made up the quad, deciding to just park in under one of the trees and let the rest of the day play itself out without me.  I fished my iPod out of my bag, picking a playlist at random and sitting with my back against the trunk, enjoying the peace that came being outside and finally alone.

A while later, I felt a shadow cross my face, and I squinted up against the sun to discern who it was.  It was West, I noticed his hair looked redder out here and it complemented his skin tone nicely.

"Your hair looks nice in the sun," I told him when it became clear he wasn't speaking to me.

"You didn't tell me you were a mind mage as well."  His tone held a hint of anger but I was expecting it.

"I'm not," I told him honestly.

"What do you call what you did in there then?" he asked me the anger seeping further into his tone as he flung his arm out towards the school gym.

"I call that a lesson in mental shields.  You should practice, though if it makes you feel better, I had a harder time getting into yours than either of the professors."  I moved my bag for him to sit down, I was getting a headache trying to talk with him standing in the sun above me.

"I don't want to sit with you, I want to let you know that if you try that s**t with me again, we are going to have problems.  I told you before I don't want you in my head."  I nodded my understanding.  It was a perfectly reasonable, if not a little dramatic, reaction to what happened.

"Don't overreact West, it was an exercise.  You were trying to get into mine as well, don't get sour because I was more successful."  I thought I saw the hint of a smile, but I couldn't quite catch his face.  The shadows were playing over his features and the sun was wrecking some havoc on my bad eye.

"They are going to kick you out you know, there is no way Marion is going to let you stay here,” West said as he began to lower himself down.  Contrary to what he vowed earlier, he placed his bag near mine and he sat down in the space I had created for him.

"Well that's up to them, but they would be idiots to let me slip out of their hands.  Right now I think they are arguing the benefits of not having to deal with me, against the possibility I am too dangerous to let loose.  If they would get over their notions of who I am they might learn something.  Isn't that what school is for?"  I asked it rhetorically, knowing the answer already.

"The students are here to learn, not the professors.  That's probably why their panties are in a twist."  I realized he was looking at me now, and I at him, locking in some kind of stare that made me both excited and wary.

"Learning is a process, not a means to an end, but a continual line that never fades.  If you get off that line you've lost the game already," I said parroting one of the few decent things my father ever said to me.

"You are strange," West said.

"Yes, I've heard that before."  I gave him a smile back.  "I like Mave and Logan, they are kind but honest and they seem to have an open mind for this community.  Have you all been friends for long?"  I pinched the spot where my eyebrow should be, the eye itself was having a hard time out here with all the sunshine, and it was starting to throb.  I saw West rustle around in his bag as he spoke.

"Since we were babies really.  Both of their parents work for the governance as well, not as high up as my own, but close enough for our families to be friends.  They are two of the best people I've ever met."  He handed me a pair of sunglasses that he had dug out of his bag, and I smiled, it felt almost odd on my face.  I couldn't remember the last time I really smiled at someone.  I sighed as I put them on, and I reached out to him, placing my hand on his own as it rested on his leg.  He jumped at my touch.

"What are you doing?" he asked looking confused.

"I was just trying to thank you, didn't you feel it?"

"We don't do that kind of thing Brienne, it feels strange."  He rubbed his hand with his other, like he was trying to scrub away what I had done.

"No one projects to each other?" I asked curiously.

"No, it's more of an intimate occurrence.  Mated couples can do it with each other but even then it's rare, not everyone can accomplish it successfully so we don't bother much in trying.  You can do it with anyone?" he asked, a mixture of awe and horror on his face.  I nodded feeling suddenly self-conscious.

"I grew up doing it when I wanted to convey how I was feeling.  Sometimes words aren't sufficient, and I have to admit I'm not so good with them.  I only wanted to share it with you."  West looked at me, hesitation in his eyes.  He reached out to touch my hand and I closed my eyes to send him what I had tried before.  I heard him suck in a breath as I sent out wave after wave of myself, perhaps I shared a bit too much because I felt him yank his hand away from mine, and jump up to standing.

"I'm sorry sometimes I send out too much," I said as I tilted my head up to look at him.  I found Mave, Logan, and Raquel, along with another girl I didn't recognize, standing and looking in between West and me.  Their expressions could only be categorized as aghast.

"Come on guys, let’s go back to the house," West said as he grabbed Raquel by the wrist and led her away without a word to me.  I furrowed my brows not understanding his sudden behavior.  Mave and Logan gave me a small smile and a wave then took off in the same direction.

"West!" I called out when I realized his sunglasses were still on my face.  He waved them on ahead and turned to wait for me to come up.

"Here," I said placing the glasses in his hand.  "What was that all about, did I do something wrong?"  He shook his head, keeping his face low as he clenched the glasses in his hand tightly. 

"It was very...intense, you are very intense," he said as he turned to look behind him, everyone else had in fact not kept moving on, but were staring at us from across the grass.

"Sometimes life demands of us intensity," I told him cupping his jaw, turning him to look at me.  He smiled cryptically, and then slid the sunglasses on his own face.  As he turned to walk away he then abruptly stopped.  I was about to ask if something was wrong when I heard it, like a faint whisper.

'I'm having some people over later, around six.  Will you come?'  He was getting better already with it, and I smiled thinking he had some real raw power in his magic.

'Where?' I asked.  He took a deep breath in and then showed me a picture of the house, then a shot of the street sign.  'Very good West. I'll be there.'  He continued on and I was left standing there, wondering what in the hell I had just agreed to.

I had decided to go back to the apartment for a little while, not wanting to show up to West's house still in my school uniform.  The outfit I had packed for my game later was a little different and I thought it wouldn't really go over well at his party.  I was hoping someone would be able to take me there later, if not I would have to walk.

I hadn't counted on JP and Veronica being there, and when I saw his bike and her car in the parking lot I groaned.  Having one dead parent and one absentee parent should have exempted me from lectures, but still I felt one coming.  Sure enough, they were both waiting for me on the couch when I walked in.  I looked down and noticed my bags were packed and sitting on the ground in front of Veronica, who couldn't have looked more pleased about today's events.  Curiously, I felt a stab of something hot and sharp in my side when I looked at JP.  I expected this from her but not him, after everything I guess we were right back to the beginning. 

"Have a seat," Veronica said pointing towards the loveseat.  I didn't want to, but dragging out his whole business wouldn't be much fun either.  I saw her elbow JP right in the ribs and he shook himself off enough to start talking.  I had the absurd picture of them rehearsing this speech before I got here.

"Marion has decided to put you on suspension for two weeks, but she will allow you to return after, provided you follow the rules from here on forward.  It's a very generous offer Brienne, you should take advantage of what she is offering."  I nodded at him, not trusting myself to speak kindly in response to his patronizing tone.  In truth I did nothing wrong, but if they were willing to take a chance on me I could manage to swallow some of this back.

"JP tells me you assaulted the professors," Veronica said with a stern face.

"I demonstrated what they asked, perhaps I went a bit overboard but I didn't assault them."  I could speak nice to JP but his little girlfriend was another story.

"It was scary, and it came across as an attack."  JP looked like it hurt for him to say that to me, and I had to consider if he was right or not.  Veronica decided to jump on the bandwagon, stopping my thoughts.

"It was an assault, whether or not it was the mind or the body, it makes no difference.  You cannot use that kind of magic here.  The one condition I made when you came to live here was that you would never be violent or use what that...what that monster taught you against someone."

"Oh he didn't teach me that, it's all me on that one.  He did teach me how to breech mental shields which does help me get in, but the power is all mine."  I felt proud about it, but by the looks on their faces I shouldn't be.

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" she shrieked.  I could mention some things that would make her want to run from me if she ever saw me again, but I kept my mouth shut.  I knew where this was heading and I just wanted to get it over with.

"It doesn't matter, I no longer feel safe here, and JP has agreed to ask you to find somewhere else to live.  Surely you have saved enough money hustling to get a place of your own, if not we can loan you some money to get you on your feet."  I felt the stabbing pain again, and the strength of it almost took my breath away. 

I just looked down to the bags and nodded my head, making a move to get up.  I felt a hand on my arm, I knew it was JP's but I didn't think I could bear to look at him.  Logically I knew it was only temporary here, but for him to allow her to be the one to cast me out told me something about where I stood with him.  Without Marion asking him to reach out and take me in, it became suddenly very clear that he would never have done it on his own.

I covered his hand with my own, and just as I had done earlier with West I sent out what I was feeling to him only this time it was pure pain.  I knew it was a low blow, perhaps even unnecessary considering I felt my tears splashing on my lap as I sat here.  I'm sure he could feel how hurt I was just by looking at my face but I wanted more.  He gasped as I sent all the hurt and betrayal I was feeling to seep into him. 

She moved to stop me and I immobilized Veronica with my mind, it was laughable how easy it was to slip in to her head and hold her still.  Her eyes rounded as the panic set in, and I nodded to her acknowledging I knew how it felt.  It was one of my father's favorite ways of getting my attention.

"I wanted you know how easy it is for me to have done you harm, yet not once have I ever been anything but courteous to you.  I told you once before I mean you no harm, and I always keep my word.  You have what you want, and you better be damn appreciative of it."  I released her, noticing how pale her face was.  Jp put his arm around her, but oddly didn't scold or glare at me for doing it.

"Thank you for allowing me this opportunity JP, for coming back for me that night.  I will always consider you a friend but it saddens me to know that you are not everything I once thought you were."  I rose and lifted my chin, snapping my fingers and placing my bags by the door.  I took a deep breath in and walked to the door, my feet felt like they weighed three times as they would normally. 

I had always considered JP to be someone that he clearly wasn't, the idealism that I felt for him when he was undercover with us had melted away over time, like a sad snowman left out in the sun.  It didn't make him a bad person, but it also didn't make him someone I could ever consider giving myself to.  I had my hand on the doorknob when I felt his hand on my shoulder again.  I turned and found him holding out a key to me, and I assumed he wanted my spare key. 

"No keep it, for emergencies" he said as I rummaged in my bag for my own.  "This is for you, I can't just let you go without giving you it.  I've been fixing it up for you anyways."  I saw the key, it was the key to his motorcycle and my jaw hit the floor.  I loved that bike, and he knew it.

"I can't take this," I said pushing his hand away, even if my eyes never left the gleaming metal. 

"You will, it was a condition I made with Veronica.  I had the title transferred the other day, I was going to give it to you for your birthday."  I stared at him not knowing what to say.  I just nodded at the ground, feeling the tears running hot tracks down my face.

"Thanks," I said as I reached up and gave him a hug and a brief kiss on his stubbly cheek.  I didn't turn around, I just walked right out the door.  I found the black bike at the back where I had seen it when I came in, brand new helmet hanging from one of the handlebars.  I opened the hull on the back to put my bags in and noticed a new leather jacket was placed in it along with a note.  I put the note in my bag, not wanting to read it at the moment. Throwing the jacket across my shoulders, I put the helmet on and rode off, feeling the thrill of the bike and the loss of JP like dueling banjo's trying to pluck my heart in two.

***

 

I rode around for a good hour, enjoying the feel of the bike.  It was the same one he had taught me to ride on so long ago, and it was like welcoming a piece of me that was lost being so far from what I knew as home.  I stopped to get some dinner earlier, eating alone at the diner counter and trying to convince myself that going to West's little party wouldn't be a bad idea.  My control was carefully constructed, and I always felt that I had a good lock on my emotions, but today’s events had me rattled.  I decided to chance it, there was something about West that intrigued me, and after what happened with JP I could use a good distraction.

I pulled up to address West had showed me, noticing the long private drive that followed from the mailbox.  The trees kept the location of the house out of view, so I kicked the bike into gear and headed down hoping it was the right place.  I had gone almost a quarter mile when I finally saw the house.  It was clear at this point that West lived in much more of a mansion than a mere house.  It had a main portion, and two wings on either side.  Complete with circular lawn, and flowing fountain, it was like something out of a dream.

I could feel everyone's eyes on me, openly staring as I approached the front.  Some were all congregating and talking on the front pathway, some were still getting out of their cars, but everyone was focused on me.  I noticed West and his crew were standing by the front door, talking and laughing about something.  I took a deep breath and then stopped the bike, cutting the engine and dismounting with what I hoped looked like some amount of grace.  Pulling off my helmet I heard the collective gasp that escaped everyone.  Trying to ignored them best I could, I put my helmet under my arm, and slung my bag over my shoulder as I walked up to where West and his group were standing.

"What are you doing here?" Raquel asked me, looking horrified. 

"I invited her," West said much to her dismay.  Mave and Logan were still staring slack jawed from me to the bike.

"Do you have somewhere I can change?" I asked West, wanting desperately to get out of this uniform after the long ride.  He shrugged off Raquel, whispering something in her ear, and then led me into the house.  I flicked my fingers and my other bag appeared over my left arm, wincing when I realized what I did.

"Oh s**t, I'm sorry.  Can I do that here or do you have human staff?" I asked looking around.  To my relief he laughed.

"No it's fine, we have no humans on payroll here.  If people look strange at you it's because it's unusual for all of us to see.  We are always taught to conceal ourselves from such an early age we don't use our magic as much as you."  We started walking towards one of the wings and I was overcome with how grand everything was here.

"It's a beautiful house," I told him as we started up the stairs.

"It's been in my family for a very long time.  My mother takes great pride in it, it was where she was raised as well."  It did have a sort of old world charm to it, a good melding to the old and the new, the modern and the antique living in a good harmony.

"Are your parents here?" I asked realizing I couldn't imagine them being okay with him throwing a party on the first day of school.

"Oh no, they spend the whole school year living on the governance complex.  You should see that house, it makes this one look like a shanty."  He laughed, but I didn't quite get what was so funny.

"They just leave you here?" I asked confused.

"My older brother lives here as well.  My parents are one of those couples that are still in love with each other.  My mom stayed here with us when we were younger, but once we got older she started spending more time with dad when he worked at the complex. She hated being away from him, and he from her, so they worked it out like this.  They come home for the summers, and on holidays, so surprisingly I see them quite often."  I could tell he loved his parents, but I still thought it was sad they weren't here with him.  He seemed to be unaffected, and I was curious about his brother.

"That's sweet," I said trying not to let my own melancholy seep into my voice.

"This is my room," he said as he opened his door. 

"This isn't a room, it’s an apartment," I said raising an eyebrow as I took the whole room in.  I could see a door that led to what I presumed was a large bathroom, a huge living room area with a TV that looked fake it was so large, and another door that led to a bedroom.  I could see a very large and impeccably neat bed through the door way.

"It's not that big, you should see where Mave lives.  He has a whole wing to himself, it's like his own private house.  Logan moved in there last year. It’s a mess but they have the best parties."  I turned to him, finding his smile infectious.

"This room is bigger than the trailer I grew up in," I told him honestly.  I saw his jaw tick for a second but it was gone in an instant, his usual cocky swagger in its place.

"The bathroom is off to the left, I'll wait out here."  He walked over and turned on the TV, sports center playing loud in the surround sound.  "Oh and you might want to put on a swimsuit, I've got a big hot tub and no matter what kind of night it is, everyone ends up in it."  He laughed like he was remembering a funny story.

"I don't own one," I told him shrugging. 

"What do you mean?"

"The governance home didn't exactly have a private pool, once I aged out I've been...traveling."  I shrugged not wanting to tell him I've been basically homeless.

"You've been traveling, alone?"  I didn't want to get into all this just now but he didn't seem like he was prying, just curious.  I had the irrational urge to tell him everything, and I didn't like it.

"Basically.  Once I aged out I left for New York, upstate, a girl that aged out before me lives there now.  She got me into some games and got me on my feet."  And then she paid the price for it, I thought to myself with a shudder.

"Games?" he asked looking more interested now.

"Oh um poker," I said trying to steer the conversation otherwise.

"You any good?"  He lifted an eyebrow assessing my face.

"I have a game tonight, you could come."  I didn't have any clue why on earth I said it, I tried as hard as possible to keep that part of my life separate from everyone. But here I was inviting spectators.  "It's not that interesting really, but tonight could be big.  I've had to sit in on months of games just to get invited."

"Something tells me that nothing about you is uninteresting.  As for the game, it depends on what's happening here."  It wasn’t exactly the response I was hoping for but I let it go, I shouldn't get used to depending on people again.  It never ended well for me.  I turned to the bathroom to get changed.

I dug around in my bag for something casual to wear, I would change into my poker clothes for the game but for now I wanted something that would allow me to blend in as much as possible.  I chose a pair of cut off shorts, a small tank, and a light sweater over top.  I looked at my hair, with the odd shaped scar that ran through my natural hair line, I had a hard time wearing it down because it looked uneven.  I shook it out, flipping the part over to the good side and then did one long braid down the right side.  It was the only non-ponytail or bun style I could manage.

"Thanks for letting me use your room," I said as I left the bathroom to find West, Mave, and Logan all sprawled out on the couches in his living room area.  I gave them all nervous smiles and thankfully I didn't see Raquel anywhere in sight.

"You can leave the bags in here, Brienne," West said gesturing around like he didn't care where.

"I'd rather not," I told him warily.  He looked at me, a curious expression on his face.  "This is all I have, so if your girlfriend comes up here and destroys my things, tonight isn't going to go well for you."  To my surprise they all laughed but West waved off my concern.

"She's not allowed in my room, it's off limits to the girls up here."  I tilted my head, feeling like it was an insult.

"If you have a spare suit I can show you just how much of a girl I really am."  I defiantly held my chin up daring them to push me further.  It had been one hell of a day and I wasn't sure I could keep my cool much longer.   Logan blushed something fierce but the other two just kept laughing.

"I didn't mean it like that, it's a compliment I don't group you in with them.  When they get to be too much we come up here," he explained with a shrug.

"If she bothers you that much why are you wasting your time on her?" I asked as I sat down on the couch opposite him.

"We've been with each other for a long time."  I noticed his friends were staring between him and I, adjusting their heads as each of us talked.

"Oh well then that makes sense, and you all say I'm the strange one." 

"It's complicated," he said sounding a bit put off he was explaining himself to me.

"Complicated can be exciting and challenging, or predictable and tedious.  I would bet she is the latter, so is she that good in bed?"  At the same moment whatever Mave was drinking got sprayed out of his mouth all over the coffee table.  I heard him sputtering and coughing as Logan patted his back.  West was smiling at me cryptically, as hesitant question filling his eyes.

"I thought you grew up in seclusion?" he asked.  "Yet, you seem to know so much."  I didn't quite understand where he was going with things, and I wasn't sure I liked it.

"I grew up in a community that was different, secluded, secretive, and complicated.   But you can put a cat in a barn, in a field, or in a house, and it will hunt the mice all the same.  I lived in the same trailer with my father my entire life, you know the stories about how much he liked his women.  Let's just say I've seen it all and I can spot them a mile away."  I let the rest hang in the air, I knew it would kill the mood but I wasn't going to pretend I was some sheltered moron.  West kept staring at me, and then all of a sudden he waved off Mave and Logan.

"We will be right down," he told their stunned faces.  They eventually gathered themselves enough to cautiously leave, closing the door behind them.  I was guessing I was in for a lecture.

"I'm sorry sometimes I overstep.  I've been told I use my honesty inappropriately and it makes people uncomfortable."  He looked surprised I said it, but I didn't want him to think I was being confrontational.

"I know, I just...you can't talk like that about them or about her.  Don't you know who her father is?" he asked me, the sudden realization that I was missing something had my palms sweating a little.

"She's Nicolai's daughter," he said obviously trying to lead me there on my own.

"I've been a little out of the loop here West," I said.  He came over and sat down next to me.

"Nicolai is the elected ruler of the governance, Raquel is the daughter of the chairman."