Page 76 of King of Inferno

I give a sigh. “You were lucky to have your siblings around.”

“Having them has its advantages.” He shrugs.

“Are you saying you would prefer to be on your own?”

“Not what I said, baby girl. If a single pillar is weak, it destroys the entire structure. We’ve had to master ourselves to be an asset to each other.”

I wrinkle my nose and look up at him. Is he calling me a weak link? My heart begins to break.

I’m trying. I’m doing my best to get stronger. I would never want to hold the others back.

“Taylor, have you noticed that I train you outside of your sessions with your sisters?”

“Yeah, I’ve been meaning to ask you about that. Why did I get the mate hell-bent on torturing me? It’s because I’m the smallest, right?”

I can hear the sadness in my own voice. I’ve thought about this a lot, but I didn’t want to ask because I’m afraid of the answer. Bradan is the last person I want to hear telling me he doesn’t believe in me because of my size.

“No, it’s not because you’re the smallest or because I don’t believe in your potential. If I leave you to only train with them, you will become dependent on them. You won’t see the fire within. Do you know why they place blinders on horses?”

“So they can keep them focused on the path ahead?”

“Yes, horses will get spooked and can become extremely distracted. However, Belgian horses are unique. One Belgian horse can pull up to eight thousand pounds alone. You would think that would mean two can pull sixteen thousand pounds together, right?”

“Yeah, that would make logical sense.”

“But that’s not the case. When they work together, they pull twice that.”

“Okay, so wouldn’t it make sense for me to work with my sisters?”

“Not if your blinders aren’t working. When you train with your sisters, you’re always comparing yourself to them, looking at your size and what they are able to do. Baby, I need to get you to the point where you can see your potential alone. Where you’re hauling that eight thousand on your own back with confidence in who you are.

“Then, when it comes to a time that you need to work with your sisters, you all become an unstoppable force. My brothers and I respect each other and the gifts we individually have. A motherfucker would be crazy to take any of us on. However, we’ve spent time perfecting who and what we are.

“Take one on alone; you’ll be sorry. Allow us to work together; you won’t have a chance to regret it because you won’t even see what’s coming. You’re doing what we all need from you for now.

“Don’t worry about Knox. We’ll handle that. Center your attention on your training and getting stronger. Focus on graduating so your old man can stand in the crowd cheering like a proud human.”

“You want to come to my graduation?” I gasp.

“Who the fuck is going to keep me from going? You earned that degree. I’m proud to be able to watch you finish.”

“I love you so much,” I choke out.

“I love you too, my little mate. Come on, let’s go get something to eat.”

Chaos Is Set

His Grace has gone somewhere he didn’t want me to follow tonight, leaving me behind at the cathedral. I don’t know how long he will be gone, but I’m happy for the reprieve. It feels good to be able to stretch my legs.

It took some effort, but I was able to gain enough control of my body to move about on my own. Most of the brothers are out doing the bishop’s bidding, so I’ve taken the time to walk the grounds behind the cathedral. My thoughts and reflections have led me to the small cemetery out back.

“You have all come here at your time,” I murmur to the gravestones.

Life has a natural order. This is what I’ve always believed. This is why I followed the bishop in the first place. My love was taken from me before her time. Darkness was involved.

Nariah had been one of my kind. When I found her broken body drained of power, I was devastated. The bishop appeared that same night.

I was too distraught to ask why or where he came from. His promises of a world where things like my loss would never happen and talk of the immortality we once had that was stolen because of a queen who was spared and never had to know our pain or fate drew me into the cause.

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