Page 69 of Destined to Fight

She shook his hand with a smile. “Kelly. Not that you didn’t know that by now.”

He let a slight grin show. “Aye, I’ve known who you are longer than everyone else here.”

That caught her off guard. “What do you mean?”

“Oh, I thought Kade told you. He had me follow you after he first saw you across the street from Star Plaza. He needed to know if you were up to something.”

Connor said it all like it was no big deal.

Kelly was about to yell at Kade when his voice came from upstairs. “Dinnae fash, lass. He wasnae sent to gawk at ye. I just needed to make sure ye hadnae been hired by someone to spy on us.”

“So you spied on me?”

He made his way down the staircase, rolling up the sleeves on his crisp button-up burgundy shirt. He wore nice jeans and boots as usual. Damn the man and his ability to make jeans look so sexy.

“Nae, Connor spied on ye.” He saw the look on her face and quickly added, “Aye, it was at my request. I needed to ken if ye were trying to gain information. Ye could have been a plant from someone in the Council or any number of other people.”

While she knew he was telling the truth, she still felt violated.

“Let us eat, then,” Fabian announced, saving everyone from the conversation.

Kelly got up and made her way to the table in the breakfast area. It was large for a breakfast table, easily seating ten people. Okay, maybe it was huge.

Everyone followed her over and sat. Fabian and Asta brought the food to the table, and Kade brought glasses of blood for the vampires.

Fabian was the last to sit, and he placed a box in front of Kelly before he did. It was rectangular and wrapped in red silk ribbon.

“What is this? We’re not really supposed to celebrate Christmas, you know?”

“So quick to adopt our ways, huh? This just happens to be good timing.” He seemed excited to see her open it.

Everyone was looking at her expectantly.

“Go on, Rookie. We don’t have all day.” Ginna prodded her.

She hated being the center of attention, so she opened the box just to get it over with.

As Kelly grasped the smooth ribbon, she had the sense that this was something special. It was a plain black box with a metal clasp on the front that clicked when she opened it.

Chains held the top of the box, stopping it at a 90-degree angle when Kelly opened the lid. Inside, two beautiful karambits were fitted in a black velvet casing encircling each other. The half-moon blades formed somewhat of a yin-yang. The metal of the blades was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen. It looked like wood grain with silver, gray, and rose colors flowing throughout. The handles were made of carbon fiber, contrasting the metal in a strange yet elegant way.

Words failed her as she picked one up. Her index finger fit perfectly in the finger ring, and her hand felt at home as her fingers curled around the perfectly designed grip. She held it the way Fabian had taught her, in a reverse grip, with the blade curving away from her, ready to catch the jugular of an unsuspecting opponent.

What first drew her to these blades was the purely animalistic nature of them. It was like someone had taken an eagle’s talon and turned it into a knife. Different grips held different purposes, but the end result was still the same: destruction.

Fabian brought her from her trance. “The metal is called Mokume Gane. They were forged from silver, white gold, and rose gold. The silver will give you a leg up on shifters and vampires, while gold will help you to fend off demons, should you ever run into them. A warlock infused them with strength to make them nearly indestructible. They are the most well-rounded blades I have ever seen.”

There was pride in his voice as he spoke, and she realized Fabian had gone to extreme lengths to make sure she had the finest weapons money could buy. He had put his heart into these for her.

Kelly got up and went around the table to hug him. Fabian’s eyes went wide, but he seemed appreciative of her gesture.

“Thank you, Guardian. I will treasure these forever.”

She wanted to say more, but she didn’t have the words. Fabian was a simple man, and she knew he understood the depth of her gratitude.

Tears of happiness began to well up in her eyes, and then Ginna spoke.

“Right then, let’s eat. I’m starving! Gotta eat so you can go train with those shiny new toys, Rookie.”

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