“So what now?” I asked as I glanced around the room at all my fellow changelings throwing their hands and legs against the punching bags. They were trying, I’d give them that, but they looked about as skilled as I was. Which was to say, not very skilled at all. Their punches were wild. Their kicks awkward and messy. But they were trying. They were learning. Our instructors were finally teaching us how tofight.
Rourke’s lips twisted into a strange smile, and he patted the punching bag that dangled from the gymnasium ceiling. “You’re finally going to get what you’ve been asking for, Norah. If the Autumn fae come back, I want you all to be ready for them. We’re not going to allow them to pick you off one by one. Ready to learn how to fight like afae?”
A grin lit up my face. “Oh, hellyes.”
“Good.” His golden eyes dropped to my chest. “Now, take off yournecklace.”
Frowning, I reached up to curl my fingers around the pendant I’d worn every single minute of every single day. It was the only thing keeping me anchored to who I’d been before. “My mom gave methis.”
“It’s very pretty. However, it can be a serious liability when youfight.”
I hesitated. My mother had given me this necklace in a moment of desperation. She’d been afraid for me, and I’d been afraid for her. She’d asked me to wear it always, so wear it I had. Taking it off felt like a betrayal, even though I was certain she’d understand if she were here now, as difficult as it might be for her to wrap her head around the whole changeling fae thing. How would she feel if she knew I wasn’t truly her daughter? My heart hurt just thinking about it and remembering how stuck she was with that horribleman.
“I don’t think you understand what this necklace means to me,” I finally said. “My mother...it’s all she could give me when I ran from that horrible monster shemarried.”
His golden eyes flickered. “I do understand. We watched you from afar for months. You can wear the necklace at any other time, but when you’re training and fighting? It needs to come off, and I think your mother would agree. The enemy could use it to chokeyou.”
To choke me.So, maybe he had a goodpoint.
“Right, okay.” With a heavy sigh, I reached up and undid the clasp on the necklace for the first time since I’d arrived at the Academy. Immediately, it felt as if a massive load had been taken off my shoulders. I felt lighter, which was strange. The necklace wasn’t particularlyheavy.
“Good.” He nodded. “Now, show me your bestpunch.”
I bent my knees and narrowed my eyes, zeroing all my focus in on the punching bag before me. I imagined that it was the face off all my enemies. My step-father who had emotionally abused me for years. The Redcap who had turned Bree into the tortured beast. Redmond, who had attacked my new home. They all formed one massive target on the bag, the sole focus of the anger and sadness that had been growing withinme.
I pulled back my fist andpunched.
The blow landed with a loud crack, and the bag jerked against its chains as the force of my fist lurched it sideways. I’d hit it so hard that it managed to swing up and hit the ceiling. The whole room went deathly silent as every single recruit turned myway.
Liam met my eyes from across the room, and his eyes sparkled with pride and approval. Kael rubbed his jaw, and Finn let out a lowchuckle.
“Well, that was certainly interesting,” Rourke murmured from besideme.
“I guess I’m a little bit pissed off?” I said, hiking the end of my statement into a question. How the hell had I been able to do that? I’d been the worst first-year recruit of the bunch. I’d expected my punch to land me flat on my ass, not to almost take the punching bag off itschains.
“Good going, darling,” Liam said with a wink. “Keep itup.”
The recruits slowly returned to their own training while Rourke steadied the whirling punching bag. His expression had become strange and intense as he kept flicking his golden eyes my way. It took him a long, long while to steady the punching bag, and I had a sneaking suspicion he was trying to bide histime.
Finally, I propped my hands on my fists and gave him a look. “You’re stalling. What’s wrong? Aren’t you happy I’m actually able to dosomething?”
“I’m more pleased than you can imagine,” he simplysaid.
“Then, what’s theproblem?”
“How would you feel about attempting to shoot the bow and arrowagain?”
I blinked. “Are you kidding me? I’m more likely to end up shooting you than hitting the actualtarget.”
“We’ll see,” he said, his face a blank slate. “You clearly have your punch down pat. Why don’t we attempt to ramp your training up anothernotch?”
“I mean, if you really think it’s a goodidea...”
“I do,” he said, before I could finish thethought.
We didn’t go outside for this one. No one said why, though I had a sneaking suspicion everyone thought we would be attacked the second we stepped outside the walls of the Academy. Instead, Rourke rustled up a target to set up inside the library, while the others continued their training in thegymnasium.
He handed me the bow and arrow without comment, but I couldn’t help but note that he did take ten large steps away from me. This whole thing had been his idea, but he was clearly still worried I might take out hiseye.
