Blaz didn’t look up, his fingers still flying over the keyboard. “Got it, boss.”
Confident they’d be bringing in a few newbies in the near future, Kaj left him to work and made his way to the training center. His phone buzzed as he stepped into the space. A quick glance told him the trainees had arrived. He shot a note to Obsidian to let him know, then headed to the rear entrance that would eliminate the need for entry via either residence, essentially reducing risk to those who lived on the premises. It wasn’t exactly easy to get to considering it wound through the mountain, but it would suffice.
Kaj could hear the sound of vehicle doors opening, closing, footsteps on pavement. He waited inside, legs spread wide, arms crossed over his chest.
A few seconds later, the exterior door swung open, Huracan leading the pack, stepping through the doors first, and offering a quick nod before moving toward him. All seven trainees had black hoods over their heads, each one with their hand on the shoulder of the one in front as they shuffled forward.
“You may remove the hood,” Kaj announced when they’d all stopped. “Then line up, side by side.”
He watched as they each discarded the face covering before lining up shoulder to shoulder.
Kaj considered each one, recalling the information Mirakel had provided when they’d gone through the selection process. Five males and two females, ranging in age from twenty-six to twenty-nine. In vampire years, they were considered young. But that was what Kaj wanted. Impressionable and moldable worked better when it came to building the ranks of their future warriors. They still had a ton to learn, more so from experiences than books, and learn they would. He’d been surprised to find the females listed but not at all disappointed. Having a daughter of his own, Kaj fully supported females having the ability to fight for what they believed in and to be prepared to protect themselves and others.
“Welcome,” he said gruffly.
No one spoke.
Good. They’d obviously listened to instructions.
“As you know, the first seven days you’re here are your trial period. Should we deem you incompetent to complete this program, you’ll be sent home to your parents so you can endeavor to do something else with your lives. The fastest way to be kicked out of here is to disrespect anyone you come in contact with. That means one another. I will not tolerate bickering between you. This is not a contest. We’re not here to determine who’s faster, stronger, smarter. You wouldn’t be here if we didn’t think you were capable. Now it’s your turn to prove yourself.”
Of course, Kaj wasn’t naive enough to believe they wouldn’t have altercations. He’d simply wanted to put it out there in the hopes they might opt to keep the peace simply because he’d deemed it necessary. However, he would not kick them out for acting like … the young they still were. To a degree, anyway.
Kaj paced down the line, looking from one face to another.
“At some point in the near future, we’ll be receiving twenty additional trainees. Angels. If any of you have a problem with that, I want you to step forward.”
No one moved.
Good for them.
“This is not meant to be fun for you. You will be working your asses off every night. I expect you to give one hundred fifty percent. If anyone’s unable to do that, I want you to step forward.”
Still no movement.
So far, so good.
Just to ensure they were listening, Kaj said, “If you know who I am, I want you to step forward.”
All seven took one step forward.
The rear doors opened and Mirakel stepped inside, then dumped seven duffel bags onto the floor.
“Tonight you’ll spend your time getting settled in and familiar with the facility. The first thing you’ll notice is that it’s not complete. That’s intentional.” He smirked. “We’re leaving the hard work to you. Consider it a character-building exercise. And because you will be living here, we’ll leave it to you to determine how to go about doing that. Tomorrow evening, when I return, I will expect to find an outline of steps you’ll be taking in order to accomplish your tasks. In the meantime … well, I suggest you get down to business. Congratulations, and remember, you will earn your right to remain here. This is not a privilege. Don’t ever forget that.”
After nodding to Huracan, Kaj glanced at all seven once more before turning and strolling out.
He was interested to see which of them broke first. Because he had no doubt, at least one of them would. Within the first forty-eight hours.
Acadia wasn’t sure what had gotten intoher, but from the moment her eyes had opened, she had felt the need to do something.
Sure, she had a bit more time on her hands right now because she was purposely avoiding thefiestreigh, shirking her duties to feed them. She was, however, continuing to feed Kaj, and as he had promised, he was feeding more often than was usual. Most males fed once a day to maintain their strength, but they didn’t require much because of the frequency. That wasn’t the case with Kaj. He was seeking her out twice daily and drinking longer than was usual.
Not that her body couldn’t handle it. He was, of course, returning the favor, and his energy was far more potent than any she’d taken in quite some time. Not since Obsidian had she felt that sort of power flow through her.
And while she was getting plenty of face time with Kaj, Acadia didn’t want their only interaction to be sexual in nature or even about feeding. Couples did more than spend their time in bed, and if they were going to pursue this, it was important they did something outside of the bedroom.
Which was why she had asked theheurospto prepare lunch for the two of them and then requested one get a message to Kaj. Now she was in the fourth-floor attic awaiting his arrival. Initially she’d thought to have the windows opened to bring the outside in, but due to the low temperatures, she had forgone that idea. Instead, she’d had the ceilings decorated with white lights, which she thought to mimic stars, and their meal would be consumed on the blanket on the floor.
