Page 33 of Tipped in Frost and Blood
“Who’d you get?” Cassie asked.
“I can’t tell you that,” I said coyly. “That ruins the fun of it.”
She rolled her eyes and started toward Thalia. “Thalia.”
Cassie leaned in, cupping her hands over her mouth as she whispered something in Thalia’s ear, and for a brief moment, Thalia’s eyes flickered to me before a smile crept across her face.
Cassie pulled away, and my brows furrowed as she whispered. “Do you think you could do that?”
Thalia nodded. “I think I can manage that. It’s the right time of year.”
Cassie’s eyes lit up.
Barrett huffed a laugh as he unfolded his, pulling my attention from Cassie and Thalia, and I cocked an eyebrow. He shook his head. “You’ll find out on Solstice.”
17
CASSIE
My grip slipped, and I yelped as I slid down the face of the mountainside before my fingers wedged into a small crack in the rocks. I groaned at the bite of the stone scraping against my knees and forearms as I slid to a stop.
“Cas!” Damien cried out from the ledge above where he and other recruits had gathered.
“I’m okay!” I gasped as I dangled, my shoulders burning from the climb, my fingers—nearly my entire body—slippery with mud.
Fuck!
My heart raced as I reached for another edge of rock jutting from the stone face, simultaneously finding a place for my boot to help support my weight.
Don’t look down. Don’t fucking look down!
I lifted my gaze to the last five feet separating me from the top. I still hadn’t found the strength to reach the top of the rock wall—this particular obstacle thwarting me the past three times we’d practiced this course—and the distance seemed to taunt me once more.
My teeth ground together as I pulled myself up, reaching for the next piece of rock I could fit my fingers into. I could do this. Iwoulddo this. There was only one more obstacle beyond this, and then I’d have beaten this course, despite the odds.
It had been nearly two weeks since I’d first taken a shot at this course. My stamina had improved since I’d started my training, and while I was still struggling to keep up with the others, the pace I’d set for myself didn’t seem to aggravate my heart. There were times where I had to stop, my limits keeping me from pushing myself as hard as I’d like, but hope had risen in my chest with each day.
I was getting stronger. Faster.
This was my fourth attempt, and I refused to let myself fall short again, even if I was completing it far slower than the other recruits.
I grunted as my shoulders protested under my weight, my fingers burning from the scrape of rock. My gaze shot to the ledge, growing closer and closer, until—
“Shit,” I panted, my eyes darting over the remaining gap of space. This was always where I got stuck. My arms were too short to reach the next ledge, and I’d been too tired to hold myself in my last attempt. My mind flew to that first time, when I’d fallen.
There was nothing like a hard fall to make you hesitate, but I refused to let it defeat me.
You’re human. These training courses were designed for immortals whose bodies are built differently from yours. You can’t approach it like they do. You have to get creative.
Damien’s words flitted through my mind. I ground my teeth, stretching my hand out, but my fingers fell short, and I cursed under my breath. There was no other way. If I lingered anymore my grip would slip and this would be another failed attempt.
“Come on, Cas!” Zephyr called from Damien’s side, and I steeled my nerves, drowning out the fear, and kicked off. The world went quiet, my heart faltering as I reached out, gravity threatening to tear me down. I grunted as my fingers wedged into the crevice amidst the rocks.
Shit, shit!
My arm buckled under my weight, and I desperately threw my free hand out for the ledge before me, barely catching the stony surface. I cried out in relief before pulling myself up, my body fighting me every inch until I was throwing my leg over the edge onto solid ground. I collapsed on the pathway, my hands and arms trembling as I panted.
The recruits broke into a chorus of cheers and shouts as I tried to find the will to get up.
