Page 67 of Bound By Roses

“Losing your weapon in battle is not the end of it,” I shout to the crowd, as if this were a planned lesson for them. And, in a way, it is. Not a single one of them is ready to face Lunae’s forces on land, but I can make them ready—if they’ll let me. “So longas you’re quicker than your opponent—or smarter—you can buy time.”

That earns me a few snickers from the crowd and a growl from Erwyn. “You wouldn’t say that if we were in the water.”

“I absolutely would not. But we’re not in the water, are we? And we won’t be in the water when we bring the fight to Lunae.”

Snickers morph into mutters of approval. I should probably thank Erwyn for this. Without this match, my demonstration might not have won over the sirens, and a small part of me wonders if he knew that.

I can’t dwell on the thought because he’s moving for me again. This has gone on long enough, so I kick up my foot and the sword I’d dropped launches out of the sand and into my ready hand. I palm it with ease as Erwyn’s eyes go wide. He’d forgotten where the weapon landed and has no one to blame but himself.

He could pull back his attack, but he commits. I’m almost surprised, but it’s not enough to throw me off. My sword clashes with Erwyn’s and I throw my weight into it. His left foot slips again, exaggerated by the force of my blow. His eyes flick down, and when they do, I snatch the dagger I’d tucked into my belt and drag it across the back of Erwyn’s hand.

He eyes the shallow scratch and for a moment I think he might object to my use of a second weapon, but then he sheathes his own blade and offers the very same hand I’d cut. I take it in mine.

“I still think you are a prick,” he says as we shake.

“You sound just like my father.” He was a sore loser, too.

His grip on my hand tightens, and he pulls me in closer so that he can speak directly into my ear. “If I was your father, I would have treated you better.”

When he releases me, I’m left shaken. What the fuck does that mean? Until this moment, I’ve been convinced the man hated me. And perhaps he does, but that was something elseentirely. Even if he truly cared for my mother, I’m still the son of the man she’d chosen.

I don’t have time to dwell on the thought because suddenly I’m swarmed by the crowd of sirens. Only this time, they aren’t fighting to get their chance to hit me. They’re laughing. Someone compliments my victory and another asks when I’ll be giving another lesson.

Because that’s what this was to them. And perhaps Erwyn, too.

I give them half answers as I weave through them to where Abby waits. She shakes her head before wrapping her arms around my waist. I want to hug her back, but I’m still very much covered in blood.

“Are you okay?” she asks, pulling away from me.

“Not even a scratch.”

She slaps my arm, landing the blow directly on one of the deeper cuts.

“Ow,” I say with a laugh, rubbing a hand over the spot. “I meant during the fight.”

She laughs too, and it’s a beautiful sound. This is how things are supposed to be, and suddenly I need to hold her. She doesn’t object as I pull her against me, and when she stands up on her toes, I press my lips against hers.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

ABBY

Ibreak our kiss all too soon when I become aware of all the eyes on us. “It seems they’re eager for some instruction,” I say, flushing under the weight of those stares. This is the first time these eyes have held anything other than contempt for Quinn, and pride swells in my chest. He deserves to be accepted. After all, he’s one of them.

“We can start tomorrow.” When I take a step back, his face falls. “Is this too much? Are we not okay?”

I give him what I hope is a reassuring smile. “No, it’s not that. I’m just supposed to be meeting Teagan for a lesson of my own.” I’m actually not sure if I am, but we’ve been meeting around this time every day and the only days we haven’t met were when I was away from the city.

The smile must have worked because he relaxes with an expelled of breath. “Then you better not keep her waiting. Have fun.”

I glance behind him to the crowd of waiting sirens. “You too. Try not to bleed out any more than you already are.”

“They won’t even touch me.” He kisses my cheek and then jogs back to his new fans. Some of Quinn’s people have joinednow too, but they don’t seem to be protecting him. They seem just as eager to learn from him, even if they likely have before. Quinn was trained to lead an army against Lunae. Most of that army was destroyed when he was cursed and he went on a killing spree, but with the people of Marein, he’ll soon have his army again.

We’re actually doing this. We’re going to bring the fight to Lunae. I’m going to get my sister out of there and give her a real chance to find herself without Imelda’s overbearing thumb pressing down on her.

I watch Quinn for a while, too distracted by him to move for the water in search of Teagan. He’s totally in his element like this. It’s as if he was not only raised for it, he was born for it. He may not have wanted to be king, but it’s impossible to look at him now and not believe that he was born to lead. Born to teach.

I wish it was as clear what my place in this world is.

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