Page 114 of Vicious Princess
I ignore the sting.
This pain is nothing compared to the one in my heart.
I can’t fucking believe Daegel lied to me. Kept me in the dark. All the while saying things I wanted to hear and masterfully playing my body like a harp.
“Fuck him,” I mutter, choking on anger.
Settling in again, I lift my bow and strike the tree right in front of me. My bow hums, as if pleased. It’s ready to unleash destruction upon everything around us.
Startled, I lower it and pause before plucking another arrow from my quiver.That was…weird.
I wait for another reaction from the bow, a signal or a feeling. But it’s calm once again. Maybe I imagined it before, too swept up in my own feelings.
Carefully, I choose an arrow and lift the bow, aiming at another tree. I pause before letting go of the arrow, just in case the bow chooses to communicate again.
Nope. Nothing.
So I inhale. Exhale. Let go.
The arrow lands true.
I miss having Daegel to guide me through my training. The last mission before graduation is fast approaching. It may happen any day.
While I’m fully capable of training by myself and honing my skills further, having him there with me…well, it helped get me to where I am today.
“Fucking asshole,” I curse and shoot another arrow. To my bow, I say, “How much longer before you tell me your damn name, huh?”
Silence stretches around me while I stare at the bow in my hand, waiting for it to speak. As if an object could speak.
I must be losing my damn mind.
So far, the bow has communicated with me through subtle cues and feelings. That’s all. I’ll have to figure out its name in some way. It sure as fuck won’t just grow a mouth and start blabbering.
At least, I hope it doesn’t. With the attitude this bow has, I don’t want to hear all it has to say.
I hiss and drop the bow to the grass because it heated up right where I was holding it.
With a scoff, I rub my burning palm on my thigh. “That’s it. I don’t care what your true name is. You’re officially Sassy Bitch.”
When I pick it up, it doesn’t burn me. So I take it as approval for the name I chose.
CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
The next evening, I’m too tired to train after studying at the library. I need at least one night with eight hours of uninterrupted, sweet sleep.
I’d kill for one night in my plush bed back in Wetra. I’d even take the bed in Vasquez’s quarters.Oh, Vasquez.
It feels like it’s been years since I last saw him, since he handed me the package with food and sent me off into the unknown. Maybe if I had agreed to join Kazh, things would have turned out differently between us.
Things would have definitely turned out differently for me and Daegel. There would be no us. If my suspicions are correct about why Vasquez sent me to Kazh’s inn, it would be me and Vasquez.
No point in thinking about what-ifs.
With a sigh, I plop my ass down on the corner of Roman’s bunk and lean forwards to unlace my boots.
“Spirits of the gods, that sigh sounded like you’re a hundred and eighty years old.” Roman looks at me over the top of the book he’s reading. “You alright there, princess?”
“Yeah,” I murmur, removing the first boot and wiggling my toes. It’s such a relief. “I sure as fuck feel tired enough to be that old.”
