Not just any people. Kids.
Teens to be more exact.
They are dressed in workout gear and paired off in groups of two or three.
“Why the hell aren’t they in class?” I snap, throwing the door of the car open and stepping out.
“Ava…” Vas calls, but I slam the door on him before he can finish his sentence. “Wait.”
Fucker gets out of the car.
I survey the scene before me with a fearful trepidation I have never experienced before.
Pain zings across my chest, heart lurching as I imagine the innocent faces of the children before me dying in a war they have no right being a part of.
The students are focused, our sudden halt not even registering on their radar as they dutifully perform maneuver after maneuver. Roman, their instructor, calls them out. Some of them I recognize as ones Kiernan and Seamus drilled into me when they first taught me to defend myself. The longer I watch, the more complex and dangerous the moves become.
“What are you thinking?” I hiss at Vas when he comes to stand beside me.
“They’re training,” he says, pointing at the obvious. “We’re readying them for war.”
“They’re children.”
Vas shakes his head sadly. “They haven’t been children for a very long time, Ava. You should know that.”
He is right.
I do know that. Most of them grew up just like me and Matthias. There is no doubt in my mind that some of them endured much worse.
“They need to focus on their grades and graduating,” I reprimand harshly. “Not being forced to learn how to fight in a war they don’t belong in.”
Vas chuckles mirthlessly. “You still have so much to learn.” His voice is tinted with sadness, and I can hear the disappointment dripping from his tone. “These are the top students about to graduate. They all exceed expectations in every aspect of learning and training.”
“They still shouldn’t be forced to be out here learning to kill people.”
“None of them were forced.”
Eyes wide, I turn to him in surprise before shifting my gaze back to the students.
“They all volunteered to defend their leader, their home and avenge Matthias’s death,” Maksim comes up behind me, his voice filled with a deep pride as he overlooks the courtyard. “We never force our students into anything. Hell, this was their idea.”
“Why?”
“Many of them owe their lives to Matthias,” Maksim informs me. “They want to repay a debt in the best way they know how.”
Tears grip the edges of my lash line. I dash them away before anyone can see. “They could die.”
“If it wasn’t for Matthias and the Bratva, they would be dead already,” Vas points out logically. “This place is their second chance. Their second life. You need to accept and honor their dedication and, as it may be one day, their sacrifice.”
But I don’t want anyone to sacrifice anything for me. I never have and never will. If it comes down to it, I am more than happy to be the one to sacrifice my life for them. These students who carved their bravery and survival onto my soul.
“I can’t do it!”
The sudden shrill proclamation catches my attention, and my eyes follow the sound back to a small brunette who faces off against a giant Roman.
“You can,” Roman growls. “You aren’t trying, Amika. You’re holding back. You’re hiding.”
“Cowers, more like,” her partner, a boy I recognize by the name of Vadim, sneers disgustingly.
