BRIDGER (38 page)

Closing my eyes, I let the image of Memaw fill my mind.
 
Moments later I felt the shift take place and stalked forward, ignoring the murmurings coming from where the rest of the committee was sitting.
 
My muscles focused completely on the fight and on what Memaw had taught me over the past few weeks.
 
I analyzed the way she was standing. If I vaulted myself on the rock three feet to the right of me with this spear, I would come down right behind her.
 
If I caught her by surprise with this, I may be able to cut her Achilles’ heels, incapacitating her from the rest of the fight. Painful? Yes.
 
Deadly? No. I liked the option of having Memaw alive.
 
No matter what, she would never be immortal to me.
 
It was just impossible to look at her in that light. She would always be the hobbling old grandma in my mind, even if she didn’t have to put on that façade any longer.

Feigning left, Memaw countered.
 
She had bitten perfectly.
 
I moved with a blinding speed I had never realized my body was capable of.
 
My spear landed perfectly between the two rocks I had spied.
 
Spinning in the air, I became less than a blur and landed perfectly behind her, sweeping the spear at her ankles.

Instead of connecting with her, she launched herself into the air at the last second possible.
 
She back flipped and landed behind me as though we were moving in perfect synchronization.
 
She threw her arm around my neck, choking me and sweeping my feet out.
 
As I fell, I tucked into a ball and rolled forward.
 
Whipping back around to face her again, all that was there was the other side of the pit.

Behind me, there was a feral snarl.
 
Spinning around again, I caught a brief glimpse of Memaw rushing forward.
 
Jumping, there was a moment where I had hurdled her attack like an Olympic runner. At the end of it, she caught my feet and swung me like a rag doll.
 
Letting go, she sent me soaring across the pit.
 
I crashed into the wall, rocks flying in all directions.
 
There were stars in front of my eyes and there was blood coming from somewhere.
 
Attempting to take a quick inventory of myself, I was already out of time.
 
Memaw’s spear was flying on a direct path for my head.

Instinctively, I lifted my hands and closed my eyes.
 
Instead of shielding myself from the inevitable collision, though, my hands reacted on their own. Suddenly there was a flash of light that pierced my closed eyes. Opening them up, the spear had stopped mid-flight.
 
It was now floating harmlessly six inches from my face. Memaw had never taught me this.
 
The cheers from the remainder of the committee sprung me into action again, as I realized Memaw no longer had a weapon.
 
Springing back up, I spun the two spears as though they were merely pencils, cart wheeling back to the center of the arena.

Memaw smiled appreciatively as I reached her.
 
Instead of attempting to run to the weapon pile again, she put one hand behind her back and procured her bow.
 
This was not good.
 
She winked and prepared six arrows at once.
 
She looked away to Reuben momentarily, which caused me to do the same.
 
Bad idea. Reuben nodded and I realized he had given her the okay to use me as a human pincushion.
 
I ran toward her, launching one of the spears into the air and holding the other one under the crook of my arm, ready to use it if needed.

Memaw let go of the arrows at the same time I made my move.
 
Pulling out the spare weapon, I whipped it through the air.
 
The dull thuds of arrows finding their mark filled the air, but I couldn’t find any damage done to myself.
 
Then there was a scream that sounded like Memaw at the same moment.

Looking down, the wooden spear had caught all the arrows along the shaft.
 
Somehow I had thwarted each of Memaw’s seasoned attacks so far.
 
For the slightest moment, a smug grin found its way onto my face.
 
Then there was another scream, which brought me back to reality.

Finding the source of the agonizing wails, Memaw was pinned to the ground.
 
The spear I had fended off her arrows somehow, but she hadn’t been so successful in deflecting the one I had sent at her.
 
Somehow, I had thrown it with such precision and force to knock her back, the spear lodging itself in her collarbone and then digging into the ground.
 
Blood was soaking into her white shirt she wore, quickly turning the entire shirt crimson.

I ran forward, frightened and disgusted with myself.
 
How had this happened?
 
I didn’t know where to place my hands on Memaw; everywhere seemed to cause her to scream out in pain worse than the worm blade.

Roslin was by my side within seconds.
 
“Emily, where are you hit?”

She gasped in pain. “Brachial artery, I think.
 
You need to put pressure on it or I’m going to bleed out.
 
I don’t want to be here until next week.
 
Heal it now.”

Roslin put her hands on either side of the shaft in Memaw’s shoulder.
 
“Em, I’m sorry. There’s no way to heal you until we get this out. We can’t do that here.
 
We’re gonna have to take you to the infirmary. Reuben! Get over here!”

I reeled, collapsing to my knees.
 
“Memaw, I’m so sorry.
 
I’m so, so sorry.”
 

Within minutes I was going to be a blubbering mess.

Roslin saw it coming.
 
“Antony, take Ashlyn back to the meeting room.
 
We’ll be there shortly.”

Antony came forward, clearly unnerved by the display I had put on.
 
I clutched at Memaw, who winced in pain.
 
“Ashlyn, it’ll be okay.
 
Go with Antony.”

Antony picked me up by my elbow.
 
Whispering in my ear, he urged me to move.
 
“If you go now, we can avoid Rebecca and Reuben.
 
Come on,” he begged.

That made me move. I stood up mechanically, not really thinking about moving any further.
 
Antony was practically dragging me away from Memaw.

“Will she be okay?” I asked between choked sobs.

“Yes, she’ll be fine. Here,” Antony swept me up into his arms.
 
It was reminiscent of when Tess had run me away from the brawl between Jamie and I in the same manner.
 
“We need to get in the room before Rebecca and Reuben.
 
You need to get yourself together.
 
Showing weakness will only get you in trouble.
 
If you want to help Emily, you need to calm down.”

I focused on breathing normally.
 
By the time we got into the room and he dropped me in the guest chair, I was barely hiccupping.
 
He sat down in his seat across the room. He eyed me, waiting on another round of hysterics.
 
Still in Memaw’s form, I felt a weird sensation as her natural calm came through.
 
It was strange.
 
It was as if I had a glimpse into her mind.
 
I didn’t like it; it felt like an intrusion into her space.
 
Closing my eyes, I shifted back to normal.

When the shift was complete, Rebecca was right in front of me, not six inches away from my face.
 
“You shift quite naturally.
 
How long have you known?”

She didn’t seem the least bit aware of the emotional wreck I had become from impaling my own grandmother.
 
This was frustrating, but I bit back the vile things I wanted to say to her.
 
Answering direct questions would cause the least harm.
 
“Since a week or so after Christmas.”

“Marvelous.
 
That’s not even four months.
 
You’re exceptional.
 
Tess can’t do any of what you’ve just displayed.
 
And your fighting skills…” she trailed off, clearly enamored.

Reuben picked up where she left off, coming in from the hidden door behind Rebecca’s chair.
 
“Her fighting skills supersede her teacher’s.”

“Clearly.
 
Emily has done a wonderful job teaching her, but I do believe this is a natural talent as well,” finished Rebecca.
 
“I think we have ourselves another assassin.
 
Do you think she’s able to learn our other trades as well?”

“I’m sure she is,” Antony said, rising from his seat.
 
“But I hardly think this is time to test her like a guinea pig.
 
She just injured her grandmother quite gravely.
 
I would imagine Ashlyn would like to be with her.”

I was eternally grateful to Antony in that moment for chiming in.
 
Rebecca pulled her face away from mine, looking back at him instead.
 
“Of course.
 
But first, I’d like to find one thing out.”

Antony hissed, disgusted at whatever he knew was coming.
 
“Emily isn’t going to be okay with you playing with theories without her consent.
 
Ashlyn
is
her family, after all.”

Reuben waved a hand dismissively in Antony’s direction. “I can fix it, if need be.
 
Go ahead, Rebecca.”

Rebecca nodded toward Reuben appreciatively, smiling.
 
“Thank you, love.”
 

Turning back toward me, she extended her hand.
 
“Would you be ever so kind, Ashlyn, and allow us to do a simple test?
 
I’m morbidly curious.”

Understanding there wasn’t an option to decline, I nodded. There was no way to know what was going to happen by agreeing, but I hoped it wasn’t anything too gruesome.
 
I put my hand in hers, allowing her to then turn mine over, palm facing up.

“I apologize in advance,” she said, her expression on her face being anything but sorry.
 
“This may hurt a bit.”

Feeling a flash of pain, I looked down at my wrist.
 
Blood was pouring out freely where she had serrated the artery.
 
I swayed in the seat, shock numbing my ability to speak.

Antony was beside me in a flash, yelling at Rebecca.
 
“What are you thinking?
 
She’s a MORTAL, for the love of Adaire!”

Rebecca was unfazed by his tirade.
 
Slinking forward, her eyes were hungry.
 
“Don’t worry, little one.
 
Reuben will be able to put you back together.
 
Probably.”
 

She smiled, then took the blade she had used on my wrist and put it against my neck.
 
“Let’s see how truthful Emily has been with us.”

THIRTY

I woke up in an enormous waterbed, covered in a down quilt. Everything in the room was ivory in color.
 
This had to be heaven.
 
I must be dead.

Someone squeezed my hand and I looked over.
 
It was Memaw, which was confusing.
 
If Memaw was immortal, why was she in heaven?
 
Had there been so much damage from the attack that I managed to kill an immortal?
 
Man, I was a genetic atomic bomb.

“Ashlyn, how are you feeling?”

“Okay, I suppose,” I pondered this for a moment, but then freaked out.
 
“Oh, crap!
 
Who’s going to tell mom that we’re dead?”

“If only it was that easy to get rid of Emily,” Antony joked from somewhere.
 
He hadn’t been injured, so how did he get here?
 
Had Rebecca turned on him after killing me?