Chapter Thirty
I t took me a solid twenty minutes to realize the training room was behind a red curtain in the main room where the purification ceremony took place. Pulling it back revealed a wide, spacious room with black floor mats scattered about. Workout machines such as treadmills, rowing machines, and ellipticals occupied a small portion of one area. Across from that, a mirror stretched on one of the walls, with weights of different pounds and styles sitting on shelves.
The warmth of the training room slapped me in the face, and I immediately hoped this part had air conditioning.
Josh was nowhere in sight, so I began a simple warm-up, getting my muscles ready for whatever tortuous routine he had in store. I started with a simple standing shoulder stretch, along with my triceps and biceps, then I worked on my torso. As I sat in the middle of the matted floor, about to stretch out my legs, the sound of a man awkwardly clearing his throat interrupted my flow. I twisted just enough to see Josh standing with a bag slung over his shoulder, and he wore an unreadable expression. Dressed from head to toe in workout gear, it took every ounce of mental strength not to let my mind wander to inappropriate thoughts of him.
Because wearing a tank top, exposing those well-toned arms, was enough to send me into cardiac arrest.
“What’s in the bag?” I asked, trying to break the one-sided sexual tension.
“Wooden daggers.” He dropped the bag, creating a loud thud on the mat. Josh then untied the giant knot on top, letting it flop open to expose different sizes and colors inside. “Pick your poison.” He seemed off, slightly guarded as he stepped back, giving me more than enough space to pick from the sack.
I let my hand graze over a few different ones, feeling the rough edges to the soft tips and selecting a black dagger with a crooked tip. Pieces were chipped off from excessive use, threatening to give splinters if not careful.
“Excellent. Now, show me how you would hold it in combat,” he requested.
Was he serious? I fiddled around with the dagger, trying to hold it properly in my hand, unsure whether to point it toward my enemies or away. “You do know I have zero experience with this, right?”
“I’m well aware of your lack of experience. I just needed a good laugh before we began.” Josh smirked with amusement. His change in demeanor gave me whiplash.
I scowled. “Ha. Are you going to teach me something, or should I ask a well-experienced Saint? Perhaps Cillian?
He nearly choked. “You don’t want him for company.”
“Why? I bet he’s fun to be around. Why don’t you spar with him?” I teased.
“Cillian could break my neck using only two fingers. No thanks.”
I shrugged, repositioning myself on the mat, but my balance was off. I guess that wasn’t on the list of Blessed perks. “Is there really a point to all this?” I waved the dagger around like a baton.
He frowned, clearly not amused, and said, “Here, let me show you.” Josh grabbed a dagger from the bag, a skinny, brown, wooden one with a crooked tip. “You can hold it the natural way.” He kept the dagger pointing up, his hand grasped firmly on the handle. “Or this way.” Josh effortlessly twirled the handle, facing the blade toward him. “I prefer the tip to the back. You’re more comfortable and faster at striking and don’t want to stab yourself. It’s like carrying a pair of scissors around.”
“What if I stabbed someone behind me?”
“Don’t swing your arm back; keep it firmly at your side. It’s about control.”
I mimicked the movement, the dagger fumbling as I tried to adjust it until it matched Josh’s. “Like this?”
“Yes. Raise your arm so the handle is near your chin.”
Simultaneously, we lifted our daggers so the handles leveled with our chins, ready for battle.
“At all times, you should have this prepared. In this fighting stance,” Josh advised.
“Why the dagger?” I asked.
“The dagger is the signature weapon for a Scarlet. It’s sleek and lightweight. It’s also the weapon that was designed for the first.”
Juniper. I remembered her name from my first lesson with Father Benedict. She was the first to be blessed by the Lord and the first to slay a demon fallen from heaven to protect the vulnerable ones. She had become the anchor to our Order and the foundation of our powers. But none of the lessons had indicated that a dagger was the first. Then again, the records before could have been documented better after her journey to the convent, so I was interested to find out how he knew such valuable information.
“How do you know it was a dagger?” I questioned.
“Didn’t Father Benedict teach you the history yet?”
“We’re not that far.”
“Oh, that’s right. Thatcher made you start from scratch.”
I flipped the wooden dagger in my hand. “Yeah, before her tyrant of words about Grams.”
“Jealousy is the best form of flattery.”
“Except I have no idea why she loathed her so much.”
“A mystery not even I can help you solve.”
He grabbed a few more daggers from the bag and then went to the other end of the room and tapped his foot on the concrete. The floor separated, and up rose four dummies with bullseyes painted on their rubber chests. “You’re going to throw the dagger. You cannot leave until it hits the center.” For demonstration, Josh rejoined me on the other end, only to roll full body on the floor, throwing the dagger the minute he cleared his move. It soared through the air, landing perfectly dead center, the dummy swaying from being impaled.
My eyes bulged. Holy shit.
“Your turn,” he announced, moving off the mat.
Rolling my shoulders, I practiced the stance, not risking an injury by copying his maneuver. I cocked my arm back, about to release, when he tsked loudly with disapproval behind me.
“You’re doing it wrong,” said Josh.
I dug a shoe in the mat, frustrated. “Sorry, I don’t have years of experience like some people.”
“I cannot fault you for that, but I can fault you for not paying attention the first time,” he commented.
I gave him a dirty look. “You’re a shitty trainer.”
“Is that your defense? It takes some time to master your skills, regardless of the strength you were blessed with.” Josh trekked off the mat, wholly annoyed with my bratty attitude.
I stood there with my arms crossed, the wooden dagger draped over one, watching him take out another weapon, only this time the dagger was real.
“This,” he held it in front of my face, the shiny metal reflecting from the lights above, “will be given to you to train with once I see improvement.”
I rolled my eyes. “That could take months.”
Josh laughed and said, “Chop, chop!” clapping his hands for dramatic effect.
I shoved him playfully back off the mat, returned to the center, and waited for my next round of instructions.
“Do it again,” he ordered.
“The stance?” I asked.
Josh nodded once, pointing with the real dagger to proceed as he leaned against the marble pillar. Awkwardly, I tried my best to get the fighting stance in a quick and steady motion, failing each time because the dagger would fall or I’d somehow manage to scuff the mat with my sneakers too hard and trip over myself. I thought being Blessed gave me the advantage of fighting better, and my mind went to Grams, wondering if she had just as hard a time as I did. I bet she had early training. I bet her parents didn’t lie to her and prepared her for what was to come. I got the shitty end of the stick. Literally.
After some time, and Josh’s loud remarks of how I moved, I prepared once more, arm cocked, and sent the wooden dagger straight to the bullseye, stunned that it landed just a few spaces over from the center.
Pride swelled in my chest for myself. “Not half bad, right?”
He smiled, and it touched his eyes, the first genuine smile he’d given me since move-in day. “Not bad, indeed.”
I made my way over to remove the dagger, pulling it out of the rubber dummy. Touching the hole where the dagger pierced it, I thought of Emilia and her scary guardian, Cillian. “Can I ask you a question?”
He gestured for me to continue.
“Why didn’t anyone tell me there were more Scarlets and Saints?”
Josh took a sip from a black sports water bottle. “As you stated, you knew nothing of this world, especially its history. Once our training is complete here, we are allowed to join the fleet or become an Ace.”
“Where would you go?”
“Where my Scarlet goes.”
The word my shouldn’t have given me a weird stomach flip, but of course, how it sounded coming from him did just that, and more.
“That doesn’t sound fair to you. We didn’t sign a contract where you’re my personal bodyguard for life.” I cracked my knuckles, lining up my shot.
“Guardians are bonded to their Scarlets for life.”
For life? Shaking my head, I positioned myself toward the dummy, cocked my arm back, and threw, just an inch off from where I needed to land. “How were they able to come on school grounds, dressed like—”
“Like warriors of the night? After your ceremony, you’ll receive a blessed stone, which is able to hide you from nonmembers when trying to sneak around.” Josh removed a silver chain from his neck, dangling an amethyst stone from his fingers. It shimmered in the light as it swayed.
God, I truly knew nothing about this world.
Clasping it back around his neck, he threw a few more wooden daggers at my feet, some sharper than others. “Again.”
For about an hour, and that hour felt like eternity, I perfected my stance, only to miss the bullseye by a fraction. Frustration rumbled in my chest every time I threw the stupid, fake weapon, groaning. “I can’t do this.”
“Yes, you can.”
I threw my hands in the air. “Clearly, I can’t. Are you not paying attention?”
Josh joined me on the mat, but only to turn my body by my waist, his hands gentle with the movement. “Pick a dagger.” Releasing his hold, Josh gave me two to choose from. I picked the weird brownish one with the crooked tip, stroking the smooth pommel.
“Get your stance ready,” he commanded, the light in his eyes darkening.
Readying myself for the hundredth time, Josh slid his hands down my arms, cocking the dagger back with me. His breath tickled my neck, his body flush against my back. “Breathe in as you aim and release that breath when you throw. On the count of three?”
Our movements mirrored one another as I inhaled deeply, feeling his chest rise against my back. Completely in sync, we exhaled as the dagger soared through the air, landing perfectly on the bullseye.
We stood, pressed against one another for what seemed like a while, his hands closing over mine. Breathing heavily, I looked over my shoulder, his lips only inches from my own. Our breaths mingled, his eyes downcast, heating my body from the inside out. Those curls fanned his forehead, and I resisted the urge to run my fingers through them. But when my eyes landed on that little silver hoop in his ear, I risked such an action and tapped it gently with my finger, watching it move back and forth.
“Better?” he breathed; his eyes dilated on the last syllable.
“Much,” I responded breathlessly.
Voices could be heard over our stare, breaking its intensity. We pulled apart, readjusting ourselves as Baron and Chloe strolled in, dressed in similar attire. Soon after, Kal, Anna, Zoey, and Asher joined. The girls hopped on the treadmill, while Asher and Baron spotted one another over by the weights. Kal hesitated by the dummies, his eyes searching between Josh and me. I wasn’t quite sure what he was looking for, but he trailed off, preparing himself in front of a rowing machine.
Josh’s lips were inches from my ear, the sensation sending waves of chills throughout my body. “Tonight, wear black.”
Understanding what he meant, I watched him gather the wooden daggers we’d used, his back to me. The way his muscles moved, veins protruding as he gripped each dagger, made my toes curl.
After cleaning our spot, a loud ring went off, coming from inside Josh’s pocket.
He answered on the second ring. “Hey, Nickie.”
With my heart in my throat, he waved goodbye, sauntering off past the red curtains, speaking animatedly to Nickie on the other end.
Chloe nudged my shoulder. “It won’t last.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” But even as I denied it, it sounded fake, leaving an awful taste on my tongue. Because I’d be damned to openly admit how he’d curled his irresistible vine around my heart.