The words hit me like a sledgehammer. Not allowed? Who'd given her that order? Ravel?
I'd seen this tactic before—powerful men isolating their targets, swearing them to secrecy, using their position to manipulate.
"Did he make you do something you didn't want to?" I asked, keeping my voice low but sounding menacing even to my own ears.
Her eyes widened. "How can you even suggest that? Of course not."
Codric cleared his throat. "And the plot thickens."
"This isn't a joke, Codric," I snapped.
Shovia reached across the table and touched Kailin's hand. "You know you can tell us anything, right? If something happened that shouldn't have or that made you uncomfortable?—"
I knew what Shovia was implying. Ravel might not have forced Kailin to do anything, but he could have used his position to coerce her or even just to tempt her. The power imbalance was stark; he was a senior commander, and she was a new cadet.
"Nothing has happened." Kailin squeezed Shovia’s fingers. "It was classified Dragon Force business that I'm not allowed to talk about. Why are you so quick to assume the worst about Commander Ravel?”
Because we weren’t as naive as she was. Kailin might have been so awestruck by the commander that she hadn’t even realized what he’d been doing.
"What kind of Dragon Force business can you be privy to before your first day of classes has officially begun?" I said, the skepticism dripping from my voice. "Allow me to be blunt. Is Commander Ravel using his position to pressure you into doing something you don't want to do?"
Her eyes narrowed in anger. "If you mean that he’s forcing me to open my eyes when I’m terrified, then the answer is yes. What you are implying is offensive."
She was acting overly defensive. If nothing had happened, she wouldn’t have responded so brusquely.
I sighed, “Things like that happen all the time, Kailin. It’s not your fault.” I recalled the numerous instances I’d witnessed in court. “People in power, especially men, sometimes abuse their position. It’s not uncommon for the victims of unwanted advances to blame themselves, thinking that they have somehow encouraged it.”
She shook her head. "That's not what this is, and I can't believe you would think that of him or of me, for that matter. Do you really think I'd allow myself to be manipulated like that?"
"Maybe you weren't aware of his intentions. He's older, more experienced. I didn't mean to imply that…"
"Yes, you did." Kailin stood abruptly, nearly knocking over her water glass. "Perhaps things are rotten in Eluria, but no self-respecting Elucian would act the way you implied. Commander Ravel would never abuse his position to take advantage of me or anyone else. My brother has nothing but praise and admiration for him. Not everyone operates the way people in your world do, Alar. You're not in Eluria anymore."
Her words stung because there was truth in them. The Elurian court was rife with manipulation and power plays. I'dgrown up witnessing them, even participating in them, but never in the way I suspected Ravel had done.
Kailin wouldn’t be so defensive if nothing had happened.
"I'm just concerned…"
"Well, don't be. I’m not as naive as you think I am, and I can take care of myself. Lack of personal experience doesn’t mean ignorance." She pushed her untouched leftovers away. "We're going to be late for class."
Without waiting for a response, she turned and walked away.
"Smooth." Codric winced. "Very smooth."
"What was I supposed to think?" I cast him a glare. "She gets called away by a commander, returns looking troubled, and tells us she's not allowed to talk about what happened. It's suspicious."
"It is," Shovia conceded, "but clearly, Kailin doesn't see it that way. If Ravel is playing games, he's doing it subtly and cloaking them in Dragon Force business. Although to be fair, Kailin is too smart to fall for that."
That was true, but what if she had enjoyed his subtle flirting on some level? Any woman would be flattered by a man like him paying attention to her. Perhaps my accusations were aggravating her not because they were offensive to Commander Ravel but because she felt guilty for enjoying the attention he was lavishing on her?
"I should talk to Kailin." I pushed to my feet, collected both of our plates, and put them in the bin designated for dirty dishes.
Morek followed me out and put a hand on my arm. "Give her time to cool off. We'll catch up to her in a moment."
I forced myself to slow down, and as we headed toward the classroom in a more measured pace, I took several deep breaths and replayed what had happened in my head.
Was I overreacting?
