Page 116 of A Trial of Fate

I was so surprised by his answer that I lost focus, tumbling again onto the deck. I remembered every agonizing second of my time in that prison—the pain of each slice of my flesh, the twisted amusement of Blade, who healed and tortured me. The shined-out eyes of my captors didn’t hold a single ounce of remorse about what was being done to me.

But most of all, I remembered the pull of death… It promised no more pain, no more suffering, an end to everything I was forced to endure. But then, I remembered a different melody that called out to me. It pulled me back into my body, urging me to keep fighting and begging me not to give up. It was a promise that this would not be my end. That there was something better for me—that there wasmore.

“You can heal wounds?” I asked, already knowing the answer.

“Some, yes. But not like your magic.” His voice was heavy like he was fighting some kind of internal struggle to retain his composure and keep him from revealing the whole truth to me.

“You healed me. It was your magic I felt that brought me back from death’s door. It drained you. Even after a month, it still…” I couldn’t believe how much he had given to help save me. “When you offered yourself to the queen—”

“Yes.”

“Why?” The entire ship disappeared from my conscious mind—all that remained was me and Daxton. We were locked into each other’s gaze, unable to break away as the invisible tension between us continued to build.

“There’s a reason,” he whispered with a breathy voice that I could barely hear.

“Care to enlighten me if I earn another minute on the balance platform?”

Dax walked over to me, reached down to grasp my right hand, and pulled me upright so our bodies were pressed together. “Soon.”

“Soon?” I asked.

He nodded as he moved to reposition the balance platform. “Again. We need to continue your training. I admit I enjoyed our playful banter, but it is time to refocus our efforts. I won’t be responsible for poor instruction when it concerns your success in the trials.”

Our training session continued for the next three hours. Dax increased the difficulty each time I managed to balance on the platform for more than three-minute increments. He had me balance on one foot and then the other. Closing my eyes, and then eyes closed again with only the right, then the left foot down. I didn’t know perfecting my balance would be so taxing. The smaller muscles in my ankles, feet, and legs were screaming for relief. Near the end of our training, I didn’t know how much longer I could stand on the deck, let alone his makeshift platform.

“Good, now stand on the deck and hold a high plank. We need to strengthen your core muscles so your balance improves.”

“What?” I asked, slouching over my aching ankles and shaking legs.

“Come on. I’ll join you.” Daxton lowered himself onto the deck and placed his hands under his shoulders, readying to push up into a high plank position. I groaned in displeasure but inevitably joined him.

“Good. And up,” Daxton commanded, pushing upward in one smooth motion.

I lifted myself off the deck and focused all my dwindlingenergy on tightening my stomach, remaining steady in a plank position. The ship’s casual rocking added a degree of difficulty, just like the balance platform, but I didn’t let my disdain show. I looked up in front of me to see Dax looking relaxed and easygoing while my arms and legs were beginning to shake.

How long is he going to last?

The seconds, seemed like hours. I couldn’t control my convulsing body any longer and collapsed onto the deck. I glanced up at Dax, who continued to hold his plank. “Okay, you won,” I grunted. “You don’t need to show off anymore…”

His deep chuckle vibrated along the boards of the ship. “This is only my warm-up, Spitfire. While you study with Cas, I will be doing my own training.”

“Warm-up? Right …”

Castor joined us with rolls of parchment tucked under his arm. “He can hold that for a solid five minutes, without ever trembling, Sky.”

“Five minutes! Yep, I’m out.” That was impressive, and a part of me was beginning to wonder what Daxton couldn’t do.

“Go study, Spitfire. I’ll see you both later.”

Castor reached to pull me to standing while Daxton remained where he was on the planks under my feet.

“All right, see you later then, Dax.”

“Lucky for you, our lessons will only be an hour,” Castor added.

“That’s it?” I asked Castor as I followed him toward the cabins located in the stern of the ship.

“That’s how long I anticipate being able to stomach your insistent questions,” Castor answered with humor in his tone. But a big part of me also knew he was dead serious. I would have to filter them or maybe even write them down and ask Dax later.

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