“Are you sure?” I asked. “No offense, but he doesn’t have magic, so how is he going to help me?”
Jade nodded. “Yes. We can do this for hours, days, months, but you have to learn where your own strength lies. Everyone has their own weakness, and you need to figure out yours.”
“Besides, we have to get to a meeting with the witches.” Nora pulled herself up.
Jade walked closer, placing her hands on my shoulders. “You’ve got this.”
Both girls wished me luck before leaving me alone with Westley. He offered me a smile. “So, should we see what you got?”
I swallowed, nervous. “Okay, but just know I’m tired. I’ve just spent two hours trying.”
Westley showed me some simple ways to stretch and move. He explained that we first needed to learn where my body was lacking strength and start working on it. I had weak shoulders but strong legs. We learned I could punch, but my entire body shook with each hit. I was sweating profusely within 20 minutes.
I leaned on my legs, panting for air. “Jesus. Are you trying to kill me?”
Westley chuckled as he stood rewrapping his left hand. “You’re doing really well, Ella. You’re a natural.”
I stared at him for a moment, taking in how relaxed he looked. I sank at the nickname, finding I liked it the more heused it. I looked away. “So, out of the four of you guys, who was the weakest?”
Westley laughed. “Oh, that was me.”
My eyebrows went up at this. “Really?”
“Why do you look surprised by that?”
“Because I can’t imagine any of you guys weak. And if anyone, I would have figured maybe Asher or Kaleb.”
Westley laughed even harder now. “Well, you’d be wrong. Kaleb and Brandon grew up together, and they are pretty close in strength. Asher is actually pretty scary when you train with him. He’s the one you would think would be weak, but he’s not. I, on the other hand, worked my ass off to get here.”
I stared at him, trying to see it. I couldn’t. I couldn’t imagine Westley as anything but what he was. I saw the muscles and the strength that he had. I knew he had to have worked to get where he was, but I couldn’t picture that part.
“Why are you staring at me?”
“Because I can’t picture it,” I admitted. “I can’t picture you weak.”
He nodded. “Well, I wasn’t always like this. I didn’t have a care in the world, or a thing that I was working toward, until I found the guys.”
I blinked at his words. “What do you mean?”
“I was a lone wolf. I didn’t have a pack or really believe in one. I had a lot of anger and frustration. When I was forced to work with Brandon, I was honestly thinking of quitting because I didn’t like the thought of being told what to do.”
I shook my head. “That can’t be true. Don’t you have family? Siblings?”
Westley shook his head. “No. My folks left me at the fire station when I was three days old. I was never adopted, mostly because I was angry all the time. I joined the force straight out of high school, thinking I would find something. I found solitude, and I liked it. I worked hard, did my cases, and built up my life. And then I was put with Brandon and found what it felt like to have actual family.”
“Wow,” I said, a little surprised. “I wouldn’t have thought that.”
“Oh? What did you think?”
“That you grew up with parents who loved you and pushed you to be where you are. Maybe a sister that drove you a little nuts, which is where your soft side comes into play. A little more like Brandon and Kaleb’s life.”
He shook his head. “No. I didn’t know what a sister was until I met Jade. The soft side comes from all the cases we’ve worked on. The many women and children who have lost family, housing, and lives. There was a little girl… Abby.”
He paused, his eyes glazing over. “She was three. She was one of the first cases that we all worked on together. She was an orphan, and we were assigned to protect her. She had witnessed a hybrid murder, and Brandon was tasked with questioning her. I just remember seeing how small she was, how scared she was. She had a teddy bear she was clinging to, afraid to speak. None of them could get through to her, so Brandon asked me to help.”
“And?”
“We didn’t talk at first. I just brought in a bag of chips and sat there with her. I thought about all my time wishing to be adopted. After twenty minutes, she asked me if I had ever found a home. I didn’t know how she knew, but she knew that I was an orphan like her.” He rubbed his hands together. “I was temptedto adopt her myself. I felt that tug deep in my chest, wishing her nothing but good things. A week later, I arrived at the house where she was staying. The front door was broken, and the guard watching the house was unconscious.”
