Seven hours of lessons in Remus’ study were interrupted only by meals and the occasional phone call that Remus or Rory couldn’t ignore.
It had taken a few hours, but eventually Ella’s secrets came out to the newcomers. Remus ran Cordray through his lessons before they moved on to Ella, which was what helped loosen her tongue. No matter what Ella had to deal with, it was nothing to the stigma that came from being a Lethal. Besides which, Remus had prodded Cordray to reveal his closely-guarded secret to lessen Ella’s anxiety that she was the only strange one.
“You’re so powerful that not even two pills were muting your Lethal abilities?” Ella gaped at him, having lost her timid demeanor a few hours back. Cordray was easy to get along with, and a little less intimidating to talk to than the royals she was constantly surrounded by in the study. “Isn’t that a little dangerous?”
“I’m trying not to let myself be dangerous. That’s why I’m here.”
“Did Malaura know? Is that why she took you?
Cordray sat on the leather couch, shoving the blissfully peaceful Henry to the side. “No. Malaura knew she couldn’t get her hands on Rory, since she was so closely guarded. So she stole me, knowing that Rory and I were in love, and if I was gone, Rory would be stuck in her sleep, and Malaura would win.”
“I read about that. You uncovered a band of Lethals she was gathering.”
Cordray bobbed his head, a haunted look crossing his features. “Months and months of torture. See, most Lethals don’t actually kill much of the time. Sure, they can make you think you’re drowning, slow your heart or whatever, and sometimes that kills you, but none of them are trained to make their Pulse last for more than a few seconds, so they don’t often finish the kill. Still, their gift makes them capable of murder, so they’re all lumped into one category. My Pulse is different.”
Remus raised his finger in warning. “No, Cordray. You’re different. With hardly any training, you were able to kill many of your captors, as well as Malaura herself. That’s nothing to downplay.”
Cordray shot Remus a withering look. “It’s nothing to brag about.”
Remus pressed his hands to his desk that he was leaning back on and hoisted himself up to sit on the polished wood. Though his body language was boyish, Remus still looked like the only adult in the room. He addressed Ella, who was trying to keep her opinions about it all to herself and just be a polite listener. “You see, Ella, people can learn skills under duress that they wouldn’t be able to master with years of study. Cordray was able to kill his captors, but he also stumbled upon a unique ability no one knew was possible. Perhaps if he’d had me as a tutor growing up, I would have limited him by my knowledge, and he’d have never figured out that he can cast his Pulse.”
Ella’s eyes widened. “You can cast your Pulse, Cord?”
Cordray’s brows furrowed that Remus had divulged his secret. “I thought we were keeping that quiet.”
“We are. She’s a mouse, Cordray. Plus, she’s signed a confidentiality clause. Your secrets are safe with her. More than that, they’re important to her.” Remus turned to Ella, his expression that of a patient tutor. “One of Cordray’s closely-guarded secrets is that he learned he can cast his Pulse. The king’s known about Cordray for months now, almost a year. He’s never been taken in for a formal testing. He’s never been experimented on, or coaxed into using his unique gifts for the government. He works with me once a week. We’re trying to get his magic under control so he doesn’t need additional pills to ensure Rory’s safety. We’re also working towards him being able to control his casting, so he doesn’t accidentally electrocute someone without meaning to. Casting one’s Pulse is something no one thought to train anyone to do.” His eyes narrowed in on her. “Do you know anyone else who can do something like that—push Pulse magic out from themselves without the use of touch?”
Ella froze, knowing that this was the moment Remus had been building up to. It was no coincidence that Cordray had been brought in to be tutored while she was staying at Remus’ home. She didn’t know what to say. So many people knew her secret now. To add two more to that list felt like a gross invasion. Still, she went out on a limb and decided to trust Remus, if for no other reason than that he fed her, and the reason for divulging her secrets seemed to be for camaraderie. “You brought Cordray here to show me that I’m not the only one.”
Cord’s head whipped toward Ella, his mouth falling open in shock. He stood, rubbing his gloves together and then crossing his arms over his chest, squaring his gait to hers. “You’re a Lethal?”
Ella shook her head perhaps too rapidly, and then stopped, wondering if it was offensive to so adamantly make it clear that she wasn’t like him. “I don’t have a traditional Pulse,” Ella admitted, feeling oddly lighter at releasing herself from the lie that her Pulse was Kindness.
Remus pressed his hands together under his chin. “That’s true. What Ella has is a mutation. She can send out her abilities, just like you, Cord. But she can’t use her Pulse by touching, like everyone else can.”
Rory and Cordray both gaped at Ella, as if seeing a giraffe with three heads.
Henry giggled drunkenly from his place on the couch. “You should see your faces! Duh.” He imitated their flabbergast, and then gave in to the laughter he’d gifted himself. Then he went back to studying the ceiling, which had kept him utterly fascinated for hours.
Remus smirked at Henry before coming back to the matter at-hand. “Ella, Cordray’s gifts are far more controversial than yours. No one knows that he can send his Pulse out, except for the king and the people in this room. King Hubert’s done absolutely nothing to harm or exploit Cordray, and no one on the council knows, except for Rory’s father and mother, and myself, of course.” He lowered his urgency to soothe her nerves, holding his hands out as if she were a wild animal in danger of spooking and running. “You’re safe here.”
Ella banded her arms around her stomach, worry scraping at her insides. Though she wanted to run from all of this and deny every shred of it, part of her understood that this was her one chance to learn with someone who was in a similar predicament as she, and she couldn’t justify passing that up. Ella bobbed her head in a tight, jerky motion, but refused to speak. Not bolting for the exit was a grand feat, and she wasn’t certain she was capable of much more.
Remus Johnstone was the greatest tutor in Avondale, and one of the reasons for the accolade was that he knew when to push his pupils, and when to back off. He didn’t let up, though Ella’s obvious fight or flight was peaking as she kept glancing at the exit. “Ella, you now know more about Cordray than most people in his life. Before Henry brought you to me, I thought Cord must be the only one of his kind – to be able to cast his Pulse as he did. How lonely and scary it is to have to keep such a large secret. I’d like to tutor the two of you together, with Rory and Henry learning alongside you both to see if casting one’s Pulse can be taught.” Remus straightened, though his tone was still low and nonthreatening. “But you have to be willing to open up about your gift. I’ll not be brave for you. That’s something you’ll need to choose for yourself.”
Ella was just frustrated enough to respond with a glare. He’d pushed her to this point, so to act as if any of it had been her choice to expose was laughable. Still, this final decision was for her to make, and she knew she was in too deep to back out now. She pinched her side, hugging herself as she lowered her chin to the ground, her voice coming out barely above a whisper. “If it’s my Pulse that I’m casting, then my ability is Listening. And Seeing, I guess.” When they only looked more confused, Ella shifted from side to side, wishing she didn’t have to be brave. She wished she could run to her father and hide away from all the things that threatened her sanity. There so many things she wished for in that moment, but she sucked in her lower lip and pressed on, choosing courage over running into the shadows. “I can hear through walls. Sometimes through whole buildings and down streets. I can see through walls, too.”