My head slammed into the concrete and I gasped for air, seeing stars for a moment.
Breathe. Breathe! You have to breathe!
I couldn't, though. I couldn't seem to concentrate long enough to breathe.
My eyes snapped open as I shoved the pain to the side. No time to simmer in it, a fist was flying towards my face.
I rolled to the right, hoping that my attacker would keep going and end up punching the ground, but I saw that he corrected himself before that could happen.
Ah, well, it did one good to have hopes and dreams, right?
Get up! Stay down and you die, Nina.
Right. Heeding my own words, I pulled my legs up into the air and threw my weight forward, landing steadily on my feet. I crouched low, backing up a few paces so that I could get all five wolves in my vision.
It might not be fair to have five on one, but to their credit, they didn't swarm me. That might have been because there wasn't enough physical space to have more than three people around me at once, but I was thankful for the brief respite.
Ah, fuck it. I charged at them, dropping to the ground at the last minute. I braced my weight on my arms and swung my leg in a wide arc, spinning my body with the momentum. The three of them crashed to the ground as I took their legs out from under them.
A hand grasped my hair again, yanking me away from the wolves I'd brought to the ground.
Fuck, this whole business of not keeping them in my vision was really screwing me over.
You have other methods of keeping track of them. I reminded myself.
Right!
Immediately, I spread my awareness throughout the courtyard, my magic snaking out like tendrils and wrapping around each individual. Now I was locked onto their biorhythms and could keep track of them even if I had my eyes closed.
But I was still on the ground and it was only a matter of seconds before someone slammed a fist into my face.
Instead of waiting for it to happen, I rolled my weight backwards, bringing my legs up and keeping my knees locked tight—my feet connected with the head of whoever was attacking me.
The grip on my hair loosened and I jumped to my feet.
I felt the heartbeats of three of the wolves coming at me from behind and waited until they were close before darting sharply to the right. They ran past me, stumbling the last few steps when they realized that they weren't going to connect with me.
Instead of following them, I raced for the other two wolves, leaping into the air as I closed distance with one of them.
I spread my arms wide to help with my balance, and snapped one leg forward. The satisfying crunch of bone greeted my ears as my foot connected with a nose.
The poor wolf collapsed to the ground, howling and clutching at his face.
He didn't do so well with pain.
I landed in a crouch in front of him and threw my arm out to the left towards the other wolf. I visualized his blood turning to ice inside of him, freezing his muscles and preventing him from moving.
It wasn't a spell that lay in any of the grimoires Conall had provided for me, it was one that I had adapted on my own after I had learned how to lock onto biorhythms. Thus, it didn't need a chant and afforded me the ability to keep breathing without wasting my air on a spell.
The wolf's eyes bulged as he tried to move, but he was powerless against my spell.
This was why they were so afraid of me.
A small part of me felt guilty for using my blood magic on him, but this was what Conall wanted from me.
He was watching, I knew he was—I had long since perfected the art of locking onto his biorhythm. I felt him wherever he went in the castle so long as he didn't go too far away. He was standing in the doorway of the courtyard right now, watching the fight as it was happening.
He hadn't watched one of my fights since the first one when I'd broken my arm.
I had to get this right. If he was watching, I had to make him proud.
Two of the wolves were down now, although I doubted the one whose nose I'd broken would stay down for long, so I performed the same spell on him. He didn't seem inclined to fight it, although he let loose a snarl as the cold crept over him.
I'm sorry. I sent the thought out into the world, though none of us possessed the power of telepathy. Maybe karma would come in handy one day and realize that I didn't want to hurt any of these people.
I was only doing as I was told.
With the two wolves immobilized I whirled to face the remaining three.
They were staring at me with anxious eyes, darting from me to the two behind me and back again. They hadn't expected me to use my blood magic, probably. I had only used it once in a fight before, and the reaction...well, it hadn't been pleasant.
Everyone had avoided me for days after. The training fights that had followed had been particularly brutal.
I'd stayed away from blood magic after that, but Conall was watching. He would expect me to use my magic in a fight against vampires, so I had to use it on the wolves I trained with, otherwise I would never learn to fight with magic.
I couldn't risk learning how to use my magic while in an actual fight to the death. It had to be done now.
Apprehension was etched into the faces of the wolves. One of them snarled at me, but he made no move to attack.
They didn't want to get near me now.
Finish the fight. Be done with it.
I didn't need them near me to do that.
Throwing both hands forward, I visualized the threads that snaked from me to the three wolves, already wrapped around them. I sent the tendrils racing up their heads, visualized it wrapping around them, and began to chant under my breath.
I felt rather than saw them move, their panic palpable in the air. They knew I was using my magic on them, and instinct told them to kill me to stop me from doing it.
That was how it had always been with blood mages; we'd had no allies amongst any race. All of them feared our capabilities, even the other magic users. No one wanted to get near a blood mage.
Without waiting for them to get the upper hand—I couldn't give it to them—I finished the chant.
Cries of pain erupted from the wolves and my eyes snapped open to watch them fall to the ground, clutching their temples.
I'd performed this spell once before. It had been the first spell I'd successfully completed, which was why I'd felt fairly certain that I'd be able to pull it off in a combat scenario. I was bursting their blood vessels, but the natural healing of the werewolves ensured that they regrew before true damage was done to them.
Still, it basically produced a debilitating magical migraine. I kept up the spell, narrowing my eyes as I watched them thrash about on the ground.
There was a sensation of euphoria rushing through me that I had learned always came with the use of my magic. It was a part of me, something I was designed to use.
Just as exercise brings an endorphin rush, magic had its rewards for me—though much the same as exercise, too much of it would leave me feeling fatigued. I had tested my limits on several spells in the library on my own, and was learning the signs that the fatigue point was approaching.
I wasn't anywhere near it right now.
"Submit!" I shouted at the werewolves. It was the only way I could release them. If they conceded the fight and named me the victor, then it would all be over, and I could stop keeping two spells going at once.
"I submit!" The three of them cried as one.
At once, I dropped both of the spells I'd been keeping up. I hadn't bothered getting cries of submission from the first two; they wouldn't have been able to speak.
Now, I turned to them, one eyebrow raised.
"I submit," one of them said, a soft and bitter note in his voice. The other echoed him a moment later.
Euphoria crashed through me, wave after wave. I was panting from the physical exertion of the fight and the use of magic, but I had won!
In the rush of getting two spells going
and keeping them active, I had dropped my connection to Conall.
Now, I turned to the doorway, expecting to see him impressed or proud, or some sort of positive look on his face.
But he wasn't there. He didn't stay to see the end.
Disappointment stole my victory from me.
Anger quickly replaced it.
Chapter 12
Nina
I stormed from the courtyard, not bothering to help the werewolves up. It was bad form, I knew that, but I didn't care at that moment. I wanted to know why the hell Conall hadn't stayed to see the end of my fight.
I had used magic especially because I'd thought he would be there to see it. I had risked the ire of the other werewolves, the small peace that had brokered between me and them, and he hadn't even been there.
How dare he!
The mansion was large and his office was on the second floor. I took the steps two at a time, my strong muscles carrying me with ease now. I was no longer the starving waif I had been when he had found me—I was a woman to be reckoned with.
I reached his office a moment later and threw open the door, stomping inside and kicking it shut.
He looked up at me, his expression unreadable although it looked a little like he was bored. Well, I would fix that quickly—he was going to get a piece of my mind.
"Nina, how can I help you?" He asked as he shifted a few papers across his desk, clearly looking for something far more important than me.
This only built the rage inside of me. I stalked closer to his desk, my fists landing on my hips.
"I won the fight," I said. "I used blood magic and I won the fight."
He arched an eyebrow—unimpressed. "Good," he said.
"Good? I've been working my ass off over here, staying up all night learning spells from the grimoires and waking up early to spar with the wolves. I haven't had a single break, haven't had a good night’s sleep in ages, and all you have to say is 'good’?"
"What do you want from me, Nina? A pat on the back? That is not the way I run things here. You are doing as you are expected, no more and no less."
It aggravated me that he didn't see what I was doing as more than just good enough. I was working my fingers to the bone trying to impress him, and he didn't see me.
God, I just wanted him to see me and congratulate me on my win. All I was doing was for him. I didn't expect it to pay back the life debt that I owed him—there was only one way to do that, and he was a formidable warrior. I didn't see him ever needing me to save his ass in a fight. But I did expect him to be the tiniest bit happy about me putting my all into my training.
I could just as easily have been a spoiled brat. He didn't know the first thing about me when he'd rescued me from the cages; how could he? He didn't know what he was getting. For all I knew, he'd just grabbed the first blood mage he'd come across.
He'd never told me his reasons for saving me from the cells, other than that he wanted me to train as a hunter with his werewolves. I knew there was a tactical advantage to having a blood mage on your team, but I felt like there was more he wasn't telling me.
With Conall, I suspected, there was always more waiting under the surface.
But there was no way to dig into that surface. He didn't give me any openings, and I didn't spend enough time with him to learn any of his quirks. I was sure that, just like anyone else, he showed emotion in his own ways. If I could just spend some time with him, then I would be able to figure those things out.
Fat lot of good wishing for that did me. I might as well wish for it to snow in hell. He'd been nice enough to me the first night I was here, but he'd avoided me ever since the training session in the library when I'd given him the migraine.
It was as if he was punishing me for it, but I'd only done as I was told.
I had to give him credit though, he didn't look even a little bit afraid of me. Not like the other wolves. They were all afraid of me. They liked to cover it up with big bravado and bluster, but it was lying under the surface and very much visible.
What was I saying? I seemed to have lost some of my steam. I took in a deep breath and lifted my chin.
"You know, a word of encouragement does a lot in terms of motivation and morale," I said. I wasn't yelling at him anymore, but trying to appeal to his logical side.
"I find that the benefit of being fed and given shelter does enough in the way of motivation for my people."
I swallowed. There it was, the threat he never directly said but one that I was terrified of.
If I didn't perform, he was going to kick me out of here and it would only be a matter of time before I ended up back with the vampires.
A shudder ran down my spine. No, I couldn't think about that. If I thought about going back to the vampires, I wouldn't be able to get anything done.
My motivation would always be to impress Conall and make sure he didn't regret bringing me here. I preferred not to think about the fact that he could send me away at any minute if he wished to. That threat might work for others, but not for me.
For me, it would immobilize me.
"So, you don't care at all that I won against five of your wolves? That has to be a little bit impressive."
He sighed, looking up at me from beneath thick lashes. "You did good, kid."
Exuberance filled me. It wasn't much, but it was a compliment. I'd take it. I lived for scraps with him.
"Now, there is something that I wanted to talk to you about."
My heart jumped into my throat. He wanted to talk to me? Why hadn't he waited for the fight to end and then called me over to him? The man made no sense at all.
But that was okay. I would take what I got from him.
"You've done well with your training, as was expected. Now that you have reached a certain level, it's time for your first assignment."
My eyes went wide. He was going to send me out on a hunt?
Immediately, I wanted to protest that I wasn't ready. Fighting werewolves that didn't want to kill me was a hell of a lot different from going up against a vampire that wanted to rip my throat out with its teeth.
I didn't think I could do it, but I knew that talking back was not an option with Conall. I didn't want him to think I was weak, and besides—he was basically King here. No one talked back to him.
"If you think I'm ready, then I relish the opportunity to prove myself," I said with a deep breath.
"You may not be aware, but in our world, everyone competes for a kill. I do not give assignments to just one person, but to everyone, and the first one to take out the mark is compensated for the successful completion of the kill."
Fantastic. I was going up against wolves that were much more accustomed to tracking and killing vampires. How the hell was I supposed to pull this off? Whatever, there was no point in arguing. This was clearly the way it had always been and would always be—I just had to go with the flow.
"I'll do it," I said.
"One more thing," he said as I started to turn and leave. I arched an eyebrow, curious as to what could possibly be left to say. "If you fail, you will have to leave the family. No more resources will be wasted on someone who cannot hold their own."
I swallowed hard. Okay. So the stakes were high on this one. I was going up against wolves that knew how to do this a hell of a lot better than I did, and if I failed I was going to lose everything I had.
Who said the wolves played fair?
Chapter 13
Nina
With shaking hands, I pulled on the thigh harness I'd been given to hold my weapons. It had several sheaths around the waist for daggers, and could hold a stake on either thigh. I pulled on my boots and laced them up to the knee—you may not think it's very practical, but knee-high boots offer more ankle stability than regular boots.
I would need it. I wasn't as fast or as agile as the wolves, and if I was going to hold my own, then I needed every advantage I could get.
Before I left the room, I checked myself in the mirror one
last time. My dark brown hair was swept back into a high ponytail to keep it from flying into my face and distracting me. I wore a plain black long-sleeve shirt, made of breathable fabric, and soft leather pants designed to protect from most falls but also to afford maximum flexibility.
A red scarf was tied around one of my wrists—my own little flair. No one would know what it meant, but to me it was a little rebellion against the wolves. A sign of what I was. They didn't want to accept me, and I wanted to embrace my differences. Even if most of the time I cursed them.
The lower half of my face was hidden by a mask. This wasn't something the other wolves wore, it was something Conall had specifically instructed me to wear. He didn't want the vampires to recognize me if it could be helped, then they'd know that they were going up against a blood mage.
They might try to capture me.
I appreciated the thought—he didn't want me captured because he didn't want to have to break me out again, but I found a different sort of reassurance from the mask. If the vampires thought I was just another hunter, then they would be satisfied with killing me instead of catching me.
I would rather be dead than go back to the dungeon.
Satisfied with my appearance, I left my room and made my way down to the lower level where the weapon room was. Wolves were already in it and stocking up—no one spared a look at me. There was a cold sort of tension in the room, and I knew that it was because I had used my blood magic earlier in the day.
If I hadn't, if I had won the fight fair and square, then they might be bantering with me like they were with their friends.
"Fifty bucks says I get to the mark before you."
"No way in hell, son. I've whipped your ass fifty times already. But if you want to lose your cash, that's on you."
"I want in on that action," another wolf said. "I can beat the both of you with one arm tied behind my back."
I longed for one of them to acknowledge me, so that I could feel like a part of things. All I wanted in life was to belong somewhere, and things had seemed like they were headed in that direction for a minute here. But then I'd gone and ruined everything by using my magic, all to get Conall's attention.
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