He lowered his chin slightly. “But let’s keep practicing. My gut tells me you’ll need this skill at top performance.”
“I’m with you.”
He took up his place once more.
She repeated the process, just as he’d instructed. Each time she focused on the growing patch of debris, especially the center in whatever way it had changed with each firing. Within fifteen minutes, she’d dug out a small crater with rocks and dirt forming a hill behind. The more she fired, the better she felt. Honing this skill, as bizarre as it was, felt as natural to her as breathing.
She was surprised on all counts. She’d thought she would hate the process and that it would always feel foreign to her.
Instead, she knew the killing power for what it was, a part of her witchness in Five Bridges.
She spent the next hour sharpening her focus until she could lift her arm and release a deadly stream straight for her target.
“You’ve got this.” Braden’s deep voice flowed over her.
He was right. “It’s amazing. Thank you.”
Once more, he moved to stand in front of her. “I don’t know if together we can do this, but I’m wondering if we could form a telepathic relay.”
“Say what?”
“I’ve trained my wolves to work in pairs during battle. The goal is to hit each other’s targets because sometimes, that’s the only way to survive a situation. Say a wolf confronts an enemy, in close quarters, but can’t gain the upper hand. Through telepathy, he can contact his partner who can then come in and resolve the deadly situation.”
“I get it. So, how would you and I do this? What do you have in mind?”
“Given your phenomenal power grid, I’d also like to see if you require a direct line to the target.”
“You mean, can my killing power move around corners? And through your vision?”
“Something like that. You game?”
She smiled. “You keep asking me that. What the hell do you think?”
He narrowed his gaze at her. “Are you sure you’re not part wolf?”
“No, but I always liked dogs.”
He laughed outright. “Not the same thing.” He took up his training position again, right behind her. She wasn’t sure why his instincts told him to stick close, but she was feeling it as well, the need to be near him. “I’m going to connect with you telepathically now. Ready?”
“Sure.”
She had thought he would speak to her. Instead she felt his mind move right up next to hers, or at least that was the only way she could describe the sensation.
She actually craned her neck to look back at him. He merely smiled. He’d surprised her and he was enjoying it.
Fine. You’re a powerful wolf.
He chuckled in response.I am.
That’s when she realized he was using his wolf more than his humanity to align his mind with hers.You’re not in my head, exactly. More like parked next door.
That would sum it up.
She turned back around and forced herself to take three deep breaths.
Very good. You’re more relaxed now. What I’m going to do is create a very specific image of something on the ground. That’s where I’ll want your power to go. Right now, I want you to locate the object if you can, then describe it to me. You’ll need to open yourself, however, to my mind. By the way, I rarely engage in this kind of connection.
So, you trust me, Braden?
