Elemental

Chapter 29

As the weeks passed, Christine's anger toward Raquel started to fade. There was too much at stake to start questioning her loyalties. What Raquel had done was awful but she had saved her from that fire. The only thing that she could be faulted for was making a bad judgment call. Raquel had made a mistake that cost Christine's father his life. Christine was more than familiar with having blood on her hands. Faulting Raquel for that would make her a hypocrite and she didn't have time for that. Her anger should be directed at those who deserved it more.

That's at least what Christine was trying to feel. But, every time she saw Raquel, she saw her father's eyes and heard his screams. She wanted to forgive her but she was finding it difficult and hoped that it would just take more time. She needed to trust Raquel which was easier said than done.

Christine had started training again which included working with Raquel. It was a good way to get out her anger towards her but after a while, Raquel started to get frustrated. Christine reared back to punch her when Raquel swiped her legs out from under her. Christine crashed to the ground and Raquel put her foot on her throat, not hard enough to choke her but the threat was clear.

"I understand you're upset but you're being sloppy," Raquel hissed. "We're not training so you can take out your anger. We're here to make you a better fighter."

Christine struggled and pushed against her leg to no avail. "You understand nothing," she growled before lighting Raquel's pants on fire.

Raquel jumped back and dropped to the ground, rolling until the flames went out. Christine got to her feet and glared down at her. "You killed my father. You can't just expect me to forget about that."

Raquel got up. "Of course not. But you've got to trust that I've got your best interests at heart. I always have. And right now, you've got to learn to fight without feeling. If you let your emotions get the better of you, then you'll die."

"Then maybe it's best I train with someone else."

Raquel's jaw clenched but she nodded. "Fine. If you'll make more progress that way, so be it. You'll train with Erik from now on." Then she turned around and left toward the hideout.

****

That night, Damien and Christine headed toward Raquel's cabin for a briefing. Damien didn't tell anyone about Christine trying to run away and their relationship stayed mostly the same. Damien was happier than usual and more affectionate with hugs and handholds. They didn't hold hands in front of other people because Christine was uncomfortable with public displays of affection but he didn't seem to mind. She felt happier herself too, because of Damien and also to the fact that she was starting to get back into a normal routine that included training which she had missed. She had never really spent much time with Erik, so training with him was going to be interesting.

Damien and Christine walked into the cabin and she was surprised to see Isaiah, Oliver, and Ned there as well. Ned rarely came to meetings like this and Oliver wasn't even a part of the organization. Raquel only invited others if they had something to contribute and inviting a potential spy to their meeting seemed like an awful idea.

Isaiah grinned and stood up when he saw them. "Hey, guys!"