Surely I hadn’t done all that. Surely?—
The door suddenly opened and I tensed, expecting Alexander, but it was just Lily.
“Mistress!” She beamed. “You’re awake!”
I cleared my throat.
“Alexander,” I said, my voice cracked and raspy “Where’s Alexander?”
Lily’s smile fell, and my blood ran cold.
“He’s leading the Nightshade troops in the war against the Bloodfrost Pack.”
CHAPTER 10
ELEANOR
During a serious fight, there was rarely time to consider technique.
That’s why I circled right into West’s trap, the rays of sunlight momentarily rendering me blind.
That’s when he struck. Hitting me across my midsection, West moved like lightning, disarming me in a sliver of a second.
I grunted from the force of his blow and took a full step back.
West really wasn’t pulling any punches today.
That was fine, because neither was I.
I shifted, quickly taking advantage of his proximity to knee him in his side. West took the hit with a barely-there hiss of surprise and then spun, grabbing me in a chokehold.
Darkness hovered at the edges of my vision, but I didn’t give in just yet. I sucked in a deep breath and slammed my head back with all the strength I had, headbutting West in the nose.
West let out a soft curse and his hold on me eased slightly. That was all I needed to flip him onto his back, straddling him so my claws were at his throat, forcing his surrender. But West’s silver dagger was already poised right over my heart.
A tie.
My first today. West had beaten me the other four times we’d gone at each other.
We were at war, and this was the best I could do?
Letting out a sigh of frustration, I retracted my claws. West’s dagger vanished almost as quickly as it had appeared, an almost-proud smile on his face.
“That was amazing!” Seraphina cried, clapping hard, her eyes bright with excitement.
“How did you get so good in just two months?”
“You don’t need to flatter me, Seraphina,” I said, but I was smiling.
It felt good to have her unwavering encouragement, even if we both knew that despite my improvement, I’d never beat West in these past two months.
I stood and stretched, feeling the familiar burn in my body that usually followed a fight. Tomorrow was when the cramps would kick in if I didn’t stretch properly before bed.
Seraphina was at my side in seconds, a grin tugging at her cheeks.
“I don’t need to flatter you.” She smiled, slinging her arm across my shoulder. “I’m your favorite sister-in-law, after all.”
Considering that she was the only sister-in-law I was on speaking terms with, she had a point.