Page 46 of Wicked Thieves
That sparked an idea in her.
Rather than leave the common room, Anelize chose to stay while the children seemed to create a game of disrupting her every chance they got.
They had tested her patience at times, although by the end of the night, she’d managed to listen and follow Luca’s heartbeat—a quick pitter-pat rhythm—wherever he went. So long as he stayed within a close enough range, she was able to track him down, the limit evidently being the corridor that led to the orphans’ rooms on the third floor.
It was far more than she’d been able to do days ago.
When Idris and Adan finally returned to the tavern onenight, they were welcomed by a relieved Zara and Henry, whisking them away to get dinner. She couldn’t help but notice that Aeric hadn’t come with them and her hope of hearing if he’d seen Enid again wilted.
“Well, look who it is, my favorite protégé,” Idris drawled when he pushed past the door to the kitchen, holding a roll of bread and a tankard in one hand.
Behind him, the door opened once more to reveal Adan. There were dark circles under his eyes again, making his face appear more severe than usual. His eyes narrowed in on her bandaged hand almost instantly. Anelize resisted the urge to tuck it behind her back. She hadn’t had the chance to ask Zara to heal her yet. And with her curse taking a toll on her after she tended to the rebels who were brought to her throughout the week, Anelize hadn’t wanted to disturb her with such a trivial matter.
“Are you ready for your life-altering lesson?”
“More than anything,” Anelize responded.
“Great. Give me a moment and we’ll get started.” Idris turned to join the other Vedrans at the bar, earning claps on the back as they spotted him. It was easy to like Idris. He carried a calm to himself that was reassuring, his easy manner of speaking wasn’t full of snide remarks and insults making his company much preferable compared to his brother who kept glaring at her.
Instead of looking at him, she glanced to the door that had yet to open.
“He will be here,” Adan said, snapping her attention to him. “That is what you are wondering, is it not? Where Aeric is.”
“I wasn’t.” That was a lie, and they both knew it. Raisingher head, she made to stride right past him, but she was abruptly yanked by the back of the collar of her dress. Out of instinct, she closed her hand into a fist and spun. Adan’s hand easily caught it before it could connect with the side of his face, eyeing her flatly before looking to the bandage covering the cuts she’d made earlier today.
“I see you learned something from our lesson.” He released her when she pulled her hand away, and then, with an irritated sigh, said, “Come on.”
“Where?”
“Where—to train. Why else do you think I’m here?” Adan scoffed, making his way toward the back door across the common room that led into the stables.
“I assumed it was because you enjoyed my company so much the last time. Don’t tell me you actually missed tormenting me?” Anelize crossed her arms, refusing to do as he ordered. If he thought, he could command her however he wished he was sorely mistaken. “Idris is going to train me. We’ve come to an agreement already, therefore yourservicesare no longer required.”
“As much as I love my brother dearly…” He chuckled darkly as he turned to face her, resting his forearm on the doorframe. “Teaching is not his strong suit. He’d much sooner find ways to drink you under the table than discuss conjuring with you. Besides, it’s as you said—I missed tormenting you. Now if you’re done sulking, let’s get your next lesson started.”
Anelize casted a solemn look over toward Idris, who was perfectly content to drink and converse away with the other men gathered around.
Sighing in resignation, she reluctantly followed Adan. “All right then, what are you going to teach me today?”
The smirk he threw over his shoulder at her was purely wicked. “Target practice.”
When the words “target practice” came to mind, one would not immediately assume thattheywould be proclaimed the target.
Standing in the center of the makeshift circle of the stables, Adan had her do the same as last time. Closing her eyes and conjuring her power, she found his heart amongst the surrounding sounds of life throughout the tavern.
“Your task should be simple enough if you’ve been practicing like a good little pupil.” She heard Adan’s voice somewhere in the room and gritted her teeth. “Don’t break concentration. Find me in the dark before I’ve managed to strike you.”
When he pressed two fingers against her spine, she startled, once again not having sensed his presence. The anticipation of his moves only served to give her more apprehension. Her concentration lasted all of a handful of minutes before he struck out and gave her a none too gentle clap on the back of her head.
“Where am I?” he asked tauntingly, his voice an echo in the darkness where she struggled to keep pace with the bright flurry of his heart. Drifting before disappearing and reappearing paces away to her right.
A shiver ran down her spine when he suddenly whispered into her ear,“Find me.I know you’re dying to prove me wrong. Isn’t that why you’ve been practicing?”
This time, a foot hooked around her ankle and sent hersprawling forward. “You are a slithering, venomous snake of a man,” she hissed as her palms hit the ground, stopping her fall.
“At least I can strike. You can hardly move fast enough through the grass before being caught in the act.” Adan remarked, looking down his nose at her. If he weren’t always scowling, she would have thought him somewhat handsome. That is, if she didn’t find him utterly detestable. His smugness only made her want to beat that face into the ground.
“I hope one day someone doesn’t decide to cut out that tongue because then how would you survive without hearing the sound of your own voice?” she said begrudgingly as he reached out a hand and pulled her to her feet in one quick tug. The only act of kindness she would be receiving from him, she was sure.
