As we approached the training room, I realized Slate and Gray would be in there. “Hold on. Just need to check something really fast,” I called out. If I could just catch a glimpse of her and see her progress for myself, I was sure it would serve as a temporary fix to my chaotic inner state.
Chapter 28
Slate
“I’m supposed to walk and balance on that?” Gray asked, looking fifteen feet above the ground at the four by sixteen wooden beam in a different section of the training room.
“You’ll eventually be fighting with weapons up there, but for now, let’s just get you balancing on it. You’ll need to be able to win three out of five sparring matches on it to be eligible for the Assassins Guild,” I explained to the princess. “Since we’re all trying to keep our existence hidden from humans, you’ll find yourself fighting in weird situations like this more often than you may think.”
Gray’s face paled, crestfallen with discouragement in light of the new information. “He was never going to tell me I was to become an Assassin, was he? He wants me to fail.”
I mulled over her theory. Given what I knew of her history with the king, it would make that plausible, but she also wasn’t aware of his grand plans. Chrome and I didn’t know his motive for keeping her in the dark, but surely, he had a reason that onlyserved him. “Perhaps. But either way, now you’ll be prepared. He’ll wish he never underestimated you.”
Gray shook her head. “My father will never admit that. I’m the last person he’ll ever have respect for. To him, I’m just his adopted little bitch. A mistake.”
Gently, I grabbed the princess’s shoulders, making her meet my eyes. “The last thing you are is a mistake. You are a fucking queen. Remember what I said?” I searched her cloudy gaze, her self-doubt creeping back in from its warring depths. “Make ‘em bow.”
The princess lifted her chin in determination, not breaking my hard gaze. At last, she nodded.
“You’ve got this,” I assured her. “You’re not alone anymore.”
“Thank you, Slate,” she whispered, releasing a shaky breath.
“No need to thank me. You’ll see I’ve been right all along.” I gave her shoulders a light squeeze, a gentle smile tugging the corners. Her scent of vanilla and lavender was like a dopamine hit, taking me higher than the beam above us.
Gray and I stood transfixed as the air buzzed between us, drawing me closer to her lips. Her warm breath skated across my face, her eyes alight with lust. It took every bit of strength I possessed to back away, a cold wind chilling my veins at the separation. I sucked in a deep, cleansing breath.
“Come on. Let’s get up there,” I said, jutting my chin toward the beam.
Gray crossed her arms, hugging herself. I wondered if she felt the same cold I did. Guilt seeped into her features as she lowered her chin and closed her eyes. After a few moments, she wiped her expression and cleared her throat, replacing it with a mask. “Yeah, let’s go.”
I guided her to the stairs leading to the top. The wooden platform was wide enough for only the two of us. One wrong step and one of us would fall over the edge to the hard floor below.No sparring mats cushioned the floor beneath us. Not that they would help much with the pain, anyway. At least we healed.
“I’ll go first,” I said, stepping onto the thin beam with ease. To become a Warrior, sparring up here with and without weapons was mandatory. Where the Assassins in training had to win three out of five, the Warriors in training had to win seven out of ten. Magic was used, too, which meant we’d need to start training Gray on hers soon. Not that I would be any help in that department.
I remembered the first time I walked across this beam and nearly broke every bone in my spine from the drop. I wouldn’t let Gray fall, but I needed her to see what she was up against.
After making it halfway across the beam, I spun around to face her. Gray stared at the piece of wood as if it were inlaid with mines, her brows pinched together, and lips pursed in concentration. Her fingers dug into her palms from a tightly closed fist. “Your turn, Princess.”
With pointed toes, Gray touched the edge of the beam. Slowly, she pressed her weight onto the wood inch by inch until she stood flat-footed on the board.
I bit my lip to hide the smile that fought to escape. At this pace, we were going to be here for hours. “Let’s go for the other foot now, shall we?” I teased with a smirk.
The princess cut me with an icy glare. “Do not,” she said between her teeth, “rush me.”
I chuckled but tossed my hands up in surrender. “Just worried about the time. We don’t have all day, Princess.”
“Fine. I’ll just plunge to my death, then. How does that sound to you?” she retorted, frowning at me.
Fuck, even her mad face was adorable.
“By all means, take your time, then. I can’t have a dead princess on my hands.” I instantly regretted the words the moment they spewed from my mouth, remembering the day Ifound her unconscious and near death in the stairwell. “You know—” I tried to amend, “by having you go splat on the training room floor.”
A hardness washed over her features from top to bottom.
I raised my brows at the swift change in her mood and appraised her as she stepped onto the beam with both feet like a gymnast, as if she hadn’t just been tiptoeing onto it at a snail’s pace moments before. Gone was her fear. In its place was a determination that lit her up, giving her icy façade a hot surface.
Gray wobbled, arms flying out to her sides. Her expression took on the look of “oh shit” before she regained her footing.
