Page 266 of Blood & Betrayals

I nod and focus, wanting to be good at this. My goal is to be successful and powerful, to be feared.

Max slows his hit, and I’m able to block it better this time. I pay attention to how my body moves, the way my feet move, the effect of his blade against mine. All the while, I adjust to take the least amount of impact, forcing it back onto him.

“Good,” Max says, resetting again. “With the sai, you can even trap the sword and disarm me.” Max puts his sword down and wraps his hands around my wrists with a surprising amount of gentleness. He guides my hands into a position, crossing the blades of my sai. “By linking them together, you might disarm an opponent. We’ll try now.” He releases my wrists and picks up his sword again. His strike is slow, but when the sai meet his blade, I’m not able to disarm him.

“Shit.” I drop my arms. “I don’t think I’m holding them right.”

Max shakes his head. “The movement was right. You’re just lacking confidence. Maybe I should piss you off so you try harder.”

“Gods, you’re such an ass,” I say, glaring at him.

The dichotomy of Max is so fucking frustrating to me. He can be so kind and the biggest asshole in the same sentence.

Max smirks, getting into position again. “An ass you think about naked.”

My mouth drops open, and I gape at him.

Max lunges without warning, going full speed. My instincts snap me into action, and I manage to block. My blades slam against his, and the impact reverberates down my arms, making them ache. Max nods and swings the sword again, not giving me time to recoup.

A grunt escapes me as I twist my hand, slamming my sai into his blade.

“You are fighting your instincts even now,” Max grunts as he continues to beat relentlessly at me.

The second the words leave his lips, I feel the resistance there like a blockade inside me. I can feel the way I’m rejecting my powers. I have spent so long pushing that side of me down that I now block them as easily as I breathe.

Max snaps his sword against mine, pulling me from my thoughts.

I delve deeper into myself, searching for the smallest gaps I may have left while building this wall. The deeper I go without success, the more frustrated I get and the sloppier my defense becomes. I can feel myself slipping. My footwork isn’t as precise, and neither are my blocks, but I can’t stop. I keep battering at that self-made barrier, trying to free the very thing I have subjugated my entire life.

“Stop fighting yourself.” Max jabs the hilt of his sword into my stomach, and I hit the ground hard, gasping for the air he knocked out of my lungs.

My bones rattle from the impact, and my ears ring a little.

Max appears above me, lifting his sword high before bringing it down in a shining arc, aiming for my head. My body groans in protest as I will it to move again. At the last moment, I roll away to safety, and suddenly, I snap back into the training.

Max pants. “Good job.” He offers me his hand and pulls me up before returning to his stance. He launches at me, and this time, I’m ready for it. No longer distracted by that stupid, impenetrable wall, I deflect his hit and get in a hit of my own, pushing Max back.

He winces slightly, and I grin, lifting my arms over my head and shaking my hips in celebration.

Max rolls his eyes. “Don’t get too cocky. I know you’re still not tapping into your power.”

I cross my arms over my chest. “Go on, praise me. You know you want to.”

“No,” Max says, glaring at me.

I lift my chin and quirk a brow, my stare a challenge.

“Does that work for golden boy?”

I flip him off.

Max returns the gesture. “Go ice.”

I salute him for real this time and put the sai back in their box before leaving the gym with a clearer mind.

101

Summer

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