Mortal Obligation (23 page)

“Duck!” Paden hollered. Bryce grabbed Ree's arm and dragged her to the ground. Her breath whooshed out of her lungs, but she didn't have time to catch it before she was back on her feet and being dragged down the path. Paden pointed toward a tree that was overturned. The giant root ball was taller than any of them. Ree was pushed behind Bryce and Juliette while Paden took point.

There was the sound of rushing air, and Paden was gone. She heard a loud snap, and then Roland and Paden flashed into the clearing. Fists and feet flew with matched speed as they fought. Roland wore a look of interest as he darted in and out of Paden’s reach. Paden, on the other hand, wore a serious expression; his face sported a thin line of blood from a cut that must have already healed itself. Roland got the upper hand and knocked Paden onto the ground with a swift roundhouse to the head. Paden brushed sand out of his eyes and started to push himself up to stand but seemed a little confused.

Ree could see that he wasn't moving fast enough and knew Roland was about to pounce. Without thinking, she thrust her awareness into the earth, and the ground shook. Roland stumbled for just a moment, but regained his feet quickly. Paden managed to stand and turn, but nothing was going to stop Roland at that point. The Dark One was entirely too fast. Caught in the battle waging in front of her, she forgot that it was just a lesson and threw everything she had into the earth. She made a fist and lifted her hand into the air. Energy surged through her and she flung it around Paden. Roland slammed into the shield and snarled, his fangs extended and his eyes angry. Paden smiled over his shoulder at Ree and then said something under his breath to Roland. The Dark One replied just as quietly so that Ree couldn’t hear him, but from Paden’s tense jaw muscles she was pretty sure it must have upset him. Once it was obvious the test was over, Juliette and Bryce relaxed their guard and stepped away from Ree.

Roland stepped away from the shield and retracted his canines. He bowed to her, his cocky grin back in place. “Well played, my Lady Alastriana.”

“Why thank you, Roland.” She bowed her head regally.

Paden snorted loudly and then shook his head to get the dirt out of his hair.

“How did we do?” Juliette asked.

Ree didn't need to hear Roland’s answer. They had lost two of their group during this charade, and that wasn't acceptable.

They ran the gauntlet twice more that morning. The second time, Sophie joined them and pointed out things they could do differently. She taught Ree how to shift the earth in a way that would not affect their group. She also taught her how to cause sink holes and areas where the earth thrust up out of the ground. That last one was tricky because of how quickly the Dark Ones moved and how slow she was as a mortal. It still upset her that she was the one holding everyone up.

After a hearty lunch, she went with the others to work on martial art forms, and to learn the basics on self-defense. Because of how strong the others were, Roland refused to let them work with Ree. He didn't think they truly understood their strength yet and might accidently hurt her. Considering Paden snapped the metal ballpoint pen he was playing with in half, Ree couldn’t help but agree.

The others worked on the forms that Roland had taught them the night before while he tried to catch her up.

“Feet shoulder width apart,” he instructed. “Fists in front of each hip.”

She followed his instructions to the letter, not wanting them to take back the agreement to let her train. Roland didn't seem too upset when she followed them to the work-out room. He also seemed very amused by Paden's discomfort. Ree really wished they would get along. She didn't know a lot about Roland, but she sensed good in him. And he was working very hard to make sure they knew what they were doing. Paden’s hostility really made no sense to her. If she didn't know any better she would think he was jealous of the time Roland was spending with her. But she did know better. Paden had crushed any hope she had about his feelings toward her. She was Tristan's little sister and that was all.

Lost in her thoughts she didn't hear something Roland said, and turned in his direction just as he was leaning closer. They bumped foreheads as he was leaned down to get her attention.

“Ouch,” she said, rubbing her head. “Sorry, Roland.”

“Where did you go, little Ree? Because you weren't here with me,” he said and touched his forehead ruefully.

“Sorry, sometimes my mind goes off on tangents,” she said sheepishly.

“Hm. Well, let’s try to focus so no one gets hurt.” He smiled at her so she knew he wasn't mad.

He went about showing her each step in the kata, repositioning her legs and arms when they weren't quite right. She tried not to notice how much her heart jumped when he touched her, but it was hard to ignore. She still didn't know if the others could hear her heartbeat, but there was also the fact that they could sense things about her. The last thing she wanted to go through was a lecture about being attracted to a Dark One. She didn't need anyone to tell her she was crazy; she already knew.

Roland moved to correct Weylin's arm movements, and Juliette looked over at Ree and mouthed the word, “Hot.” Ree raised her eyebrow at Jules and smiled. Well, it didn't look like Juliette would be lecturing her.  Melanie, on the other hand was frowning in her direction. She wasn't unfriendly to Roland, but she also didn't seem happy when he was giving her one-on-one attention. Ree could understand her being conflicted about him. Dark Ones had killed her father, and tried to hunt her and her mother down. That was really serious stuff, and Mel had a right to be distrustful around Roland. Of course, that was true for all of them. Roland was a different issue though; there was so much emotion alive in him.

Paden worked on a punching bag, his arms and legs moving so fast she could barely see more than a blur. He had stripped down to a white wife-beater and his sweatpants hung low on his hips. His brows were pulled together, his mouth tense, and his hair was a sweaty mess. She realized she was staring when Melanie cleared her throat and Juliette chuckled. Ree turned red and quickly faced back to the mirror in front of her and resumed practicing the movements Roland had taught her.

The more she moved through the kata, the more it made sense. Block with left arm, step with right foot, and so on. Cold fingers slipped from behind her around the arm she had raised in front of her face, and she tried to not jump.

“Stiffen your arm, it has to be strong when you block.” Roland led her through the next step, his body behind hers as she stepped to the left and pivoted. “Tilt your hips a little more. Swing this arm down hard.”

Ree’s heart fluttered in her chest as she became aware of the heat from his body on hers, but she tried to focus on what he was saying. She did as he told her and could feel the difference in the moves. There was now power in the movements instead of the halfhearted steps she was doing beforehand. He moved away from her to watch, and she worked through the kata several more times. By the time she had finished the kata four times, the others had begun sparring and she couldn't concentrate on anything but them. They had broken into groups and were moving so fast Ree was straining to keep up with who was winning the various matches. Every once in a while one of them would laugh or grunt. The air in front of her swished as one of them ran past, and she stepped back, surprised. She turned to follow the direction of air flow and was shocked to see Jules doing a backflip off of the wall.

Bryce was next to her in a second, and flipped her over his shoulder. She landed with a thud, but scissor-kicked her legs and was standing instantly. She knelt and punched him in the gut, which caused him to double over. Ree was shocked when Jules laughed at him and threw a knee toward his head. He knocked it away and threw her to the mat, where he pinned her.

“I told you to not take it easy on me.” Jules laughed. Bryce growled at her and started to get up but she pulled him back down, distracting him with a kiss. Ree looked away, not wanting to intrude on their moment.

“Get a room, guys,” Paden said from behind her. Ree snorted before turning to smile at him. His eyes were relaxed and a grin slowly spread across his face.

“You'd think kissing the same person would get old,” Ree joked.

“Not if it's the right person.” His eyes were serious, even though he was still smiling. She looked away from him, not wanting to think about what that might mean. Roland was nowhere to be seen, and the clock on the wall said she had been working out for several hours. She still needed to work with Sophie tonight, and that was going to be exhausting.

“Where did Roland go?” she asked while grabbing a towel to wipe off her face.

“I think he said something about finding Sophie. Why?” Suspicion laced Paden’s voice and rankled along her skin. Ree shrugged and laid the towel over her shoulder.

“I just noticed he was gone. Want to grab some food before my next practice session?” She nodded toward the door, trying not to notice that Jules and Bryce were still wrapped around each other. Weylin and Melanie were working on the other side of the room, so it left Paden with nothing to do.

“Sure.” He grabbed a towel and followed her out of the room.

They moved through the giant house and headed for the kitchen. Paden grabbed her shoulder as they neared the office and motioned for her to be quiet. She raised her eyebrows in question, but he just tilted his head toward the open door. She got as close as possible, careful to be silent. She had to concentrate at first to be able to hear, but then she realized it was just Roland and Sophie talking. She gave Paden an annoyed look and started to walk into the room, but he motioned for her to stay where she was and listen.

“It has been almost two weeks,” Sophie said quietly. Ree cocked her head to try and hear better.

“I can wait a little longer,” Roland said.

Ree heard someone moving, and Sophie's voice seemed to get closer.

“We can't take that chance. I can see the hunger in your eyes, and you need to be in peak form at all times.”

“And where does that leave you?” Roland was angry, his frustration washed out of the room in waves.

Ree shifted further away from the door and bumped into Paden’s chest. He put a hand on her waist to steady her and to keep her from moving again. She looked up, and there was a dark look twisting his features.

“I’ll be fine. You have to enroll at school with her on Monday. She can't be alone, especially with the Half Bloods running around. You need to feed,” Sophie said.

Ree shook her head in irritation. Not only did she have five Guardians attuned to her emotions, she was going to be shadowed by Roland? She would never be able to fly under the radar with him tagging along. She would be lucky if the other girls in the school didn’t lynch her for simply knowing him. People would never understand why someone like Roland would be spending time with her, a lowly art nerd.  It was strange enough that the others treated her like a normal person. Everyone else seemed to think that she was damaged goods.

“Ah, school. That should be fun,” Roland sighed.

“Stop whining. You know why it has to be you. I look too old to do it.”

“Yes, lucky me. Stuck at nineteen for eternity.” A deep sigh seeped from him. “But I agree. She can’t go to school alone. Even with the others, she needs more security.”