Page 80 of The King's Weapon

When she reached her room, she swung the door shut behind her, threw herself across the bed, and screamed into a pillow.

When the rage still hadn't subsided, she tossed the pillow aside. She needed an outlet. She needed to sweat out everything she had learned over the past two weeks. She needed to let her mind go numb and let her body take control.

She walked over to the closet and scanned the clothes, looking for anything that would allow her more movement and wouldn't be an annoyance. As she searched, she thought through her options. The easiest and simplest option would be to go for a run, but she despised running unless there was a purpose to it. Without an objective, it felt aimless and never-ending.

However, it was better than being here and feeling like a caged animal. Anything was better than this. And it was her only option.

Finding a pair of simple black pants, she threw them on. They hugged her thighs and were skin tight, but the material had enough stretch that she could easily move around in them. She paired them with a plain white blouse, tucking the front of the button-up into the band of her pants and allowing it to billow over. Then after rifling through her closet and pushing past the outerwear, she found a pair of black boots. She slipped them on, then wiggled her toes in them, checking the fit. They were similar to the ones she had worn at home, but stiffer, not broken in yet.

As she finished tying the laces, someone knocked on her door and Kallie sighed. When she opened the door, she found Dani waiting on the other side with her curls tied back by a ribbon.

"Oh, good. You changed. No need to wait then. Let's go." Dani turned on her heels and began walking away.

Kallie stared after her, unmoving. "I'm sorry, but where are we going exactly?"

Dani looked over her shoulder. "To blow off some steam." A wicked smile split across her face, a fire shining beneath her dark brown eyes daring Kallie to follow. And Kallie could not help but hope a rematch of their earlier fight was in her future.

* * *

Kallie faced Dani,both of them panting, sweat dripping from their faces. Dani had brought her to the training grounds on the far side of the property. It was surrounded by thick trees which allotted some privacy. The palace was acres away, and the others were far away deep inside the palace walls.

"You weren't kidding about sweating it all out, huh?" Kallie said, trying to regain her breath.

Dani laughed, but it came out wheezy. When she regained her breath, she said, "I never joke about training. It's all or nothing."

"I can see that." Kallie reached down to her toes, stretching out her hamstrings and lower back. "So I know what I needed to work out, but what about you?"

Dani groaned. "Kallie. Comeon.That was the whole point of this. To avoid talking about our problems." Dani grabbed her flask of water and took a large gulp, one hand braced on her hip.

"I suppose. But at some point you have to talk about it, right?" She wiped off a droplet of sweat from her forehead and headed to the fresh grass that surrounded the outskirts of the training ground.

Dani followed, then they both sat down. They stretched their legs out in front of them and leaned back against their palms, heads tipped up to the sun.

After a moment had passed, Dani said, "All right. I'll tell you if you promise to tell me."

Kallie closed her eyes. She didn't know much about Dani, but her sister-in-law gave off the impression that Kallie could trust her. She nodded in agreement. "You first though."

Dani smirked. "See, I don't know why Fynn thinks he's so special that he can hear people's thoughts."

Kallie chuckled. She turned her head toward the sun, thankful the clouds dulled the sun's heat and kept it from pouring down on her sweat-coated skin.

"Fynn and I got into an argument, which of course, isn't necessarily new for us. We've always been hot and cold. It's one of the reasons I love him. But. . ." Dani hesitated.

"But he's a stubborn ass who should stop reading other people's thoughts without permission?" Kallie suggested.

Dani sighed heavily in response. "We disagree on a lot of things, especially when it comes to politics. And. . ." Dani was sugarcoating her words as if she was hesitant to give too many details.

Kallie couldn't blame her. Kallie was as much of a stranger to Dani as Dani was to her. And Kallie had yet to be upfront about her inner thoughts.

After a moment, Dani continued, "And he always has to make these elaborate plans, which I appreciate, but sometimes you just need to use your instincts. You know? There's a reason why I'm the youngest general in our military. I was born for this. While Esmeray—who I love dearly of course—raised Fynn to be a politician and to be a man of the people, my parents raised me to be the best hunter, the best strategist. Still Fynn second guesses me. And it's . . . exhausting." Dani released her hair from the ribbon and shook it.

"That's one thing I can understand: the constant need to prove yourself to the men around you," Kallie said and glanced over at Dani. "If you don't mind me asking, why did you marry him then?"

A small smile grew on her face as she flipped her hair to the other side of her head. "Because despite all of the arguments and the disputes, I know that at the end of the day, he's the one I want watching my back. He's my best friend, the other half of my soul. And you only find a love that infuriates you to the core but also makes you burn for the other just as passionately once in a lifetime."

Kallie looked at the clouds. The white bundles glided across the sky as if they had all of eternity to float there. But what they didn't know was that somewhere down their path laid their doom. Something out of their control that would destroy them before they even knew what was happening. Love was a fool’s pursuit.

"All right. Your turn."

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