I grumbled a slew of curse words as she reached the door. There was nothing I hated more than being told to stay in bed. “Fine, but if anything changes in the realm, or if Sheffield is found, you are to come here with news immediately.”
Asterie nodded. “Of course.”
I waited for the soothing effects of the bluebell tea to take hold as they usually did and for my mind to quiet. No such luck struck me though, and I let the drink go cold in my hands.
Tea would not bring me clarity under these circumstances.
Chapter 34
Krait
With the appropriate tonics, Sybilla appeared less and less tired each day, and she refused to allow us to hold off training any longer. She’d only been recovering for a week, but she’d strong-armed me into taking her to the amphitheater.
The Star-wielder and my old bounty hunter visited nearly every day, bringing word from the Corridors. There’d been no movement of troops, but it was clear that Bringham and Mattock were unwavering in their refusal to cooperate.
So be it.
Their actions seemed to give Sybilla a newfound tenacity toward our training.
So there we were—back in the pit. This time, she insisted it be me that she dueled with.
She’d cracked through my mental shields and disarmed me twice already but was growing fatigued. I could tell by the way her chest rose and fell without reprieve, by the way her hand found her throat when we rested between maneuvers.
Her combat skills still left much to be desired. As soon as a weapon graced her hands, she could no longer disarm me. It seemed she couldn’t master the art of fighting with her bodyandher mind.
The sun rose over the amphitheater. The echoing sound of the wood-on-wood of our swords carried through the empty domed space.
“Stop me,” I grunted as I swung the hollow wooden sword at her shoulder again.
She didn’t block. “Ouch! You ass!” She glared. “This is foolish. I’ll have a dozen bruises.”
She was absolutely useless with a sword.
“Again. Stop me. You don’t only have that sword to use, Sybilla. You can disarm mewhilemoving.”
I swung, and she jumped back out of the way. “Prick,” she gasped out. “Just give me a bow and then you’ll see what I can do with moving objects.”
Loose curls stuck to her temples, and the rest of her hair was piled on her head with that blue ribbon. She gripped the wooden sword with two hands and charged.
I smirked because the memory of her with an arrow pointed at my head, on that palace wall in Luz, did something wicked to the blood flow in my groin. “I remember,” I said and blocked, which caused her chest to slam into mine with a strained growl. “But you’re still shit with a sword.”
“Well, I was never trained with a sword.”Clunk.She winced against the vibration of the wood clashing.
“We’re making excuses now?” I asked.Block.
This time, when I swung, the hollow wood hit her hip. She yelped, and my resolve broke at the sound. I dropped the wooden sword to my side for a moment.
She’d finally agreed to see our healer. They could fix a common bruise—she’d be fine. But every time she failed to stop me, it heightened my anxiety.
If she couldn’t stop a wooden sword—what would happen if she faced a steel one?
“You can’t stop me, can you?” I instigated before lifting and pointing my sword between her eyes.
“I can.” She grabbed the wooden blade of my sword and pushed it away. “These swords are made for children. Swing a real one at me, and Ican.I just heard you thinking it.”
“No,” I shot back.
“C’mon, Krait, this is ridiculous,” Sybilla huffed. Elsedora strolled into the ring, flipping one of her throwing daggers in her hand.Sources, she had a way of sneaking up when you least expected her.
