The King swings his sword at me unexpectedly, and reactionary I raise mine to block. The weight of his strike causes my entire body to rattle, and I almost lose my grip on my hilt. I’m holding the hilt with both hands now, steadying myself. I prepare for another blow against my sword, but instead the King sweeps his sword hard and low, striking me on the side of my left knee. The unexpected hit causes me to cry out in pain and I collapse.
King Corvin tosses his sword away, disgust written all over his face. “You’re too noble. If you don’t learn to fight dirty, you won’t fight at all. Am I understood?”
“Yes, sir,” I manage to choke out, still dizzy from the pain.
The King says nothing else as he exits the training center, leaving me crumpled in a heap on the ground.
When the sun at last starts to seep into the training center, I brace one hand on the ground as I try to stand. My left knee gives out and I inhale sharply.
“Cal? Is that you? What are you doing on the ground? And why are youhere so early?” Rafe is walking towards me, stifling a yawn.
I grimace, trying to stand on my opposite leg now. Rafe must see the pain on my face because he quickens his pace and rushes over.
“Are you okay? What happened?”
I shake my head. “I’m fine,” I grumble. “Just tweaked it while practicing drills this morning.”
Lying unfortunately came easy to me, no matter how much doing so caused my stomach to churn. But Rafe already had a strained relationship with the King, and telling him the truth would only worsen that. Besides, if the King dealt his blows to me it meant that he stayed away from Rafe or Ginna, which was a good enough reason for me to continue to lie.
Rafe wraps one of my arms around his shoulders and takes most of my weight, leading me to a bench by the wall. Although he’s a year younger than me, he’s already a couple inches taller and has started gaining muscle in his lithe form.
“One day your stubbornness is going to get you killed, Cal. Take a break, for once. Not even the Hunters train all day.”
I roll my eyes at Rafe as he sits me on the bench. He rolls my breeches up past my knee to inspect the damage. As Rafe’s fingers gingerly cup my knee, my heartbeat echoes in my ears, but this time it’s not in fear. It’s a sensation that’s become more pronounced since spending more time with Rafe, one that I’ve been questioning, but any lingering thoughts dissolve as I stare at my injury. My kneecap has swollen to almost double the size, and I can see a dark bruise forming.
“This looks like more than a pulled muscle.” Rafe furrows his brows towards me questioningly.
Rafe has enough problems without me adding to them, but he’s as protective of me as I am over him. I know he won’t buy my lie, but I also know him well enough that he won’t press me further.
“I’m fine, Rafe,” I bellow, swatting his hands away. “Help me stand up.”
He looks at me warily. “You need to sit this one out. Stay off your feet today.”
I scoff and stare Rafe down. There’s no way in hell I’m missing my first training opportunity with other Hunters and soldiers. Rafe knows that, too, based on the fact that he’s helping me to my feet against his better judgment.
I carefully bend and extend my knee back and forth, testing out the movement. I should be able to manage if I favor my right and put all the weight on that leg today. I’ll deal with the aftermath later.
People start clamoring in as dawn approaches. “Are you going to beokay?” Rafe asks, releasing his hold on me.
“Absolutely.” I flash him a grin. “Doesn’t even hurt.”
Rafe shakes his head. “You’re a terrible liar, I hope you know.” He tries to maintain a serious expression, but a smile is tugging at the corner of his lips.
“I know. That’s why we’re such good friends.”
Chapter 13
Callum
As usual, we are some of the last people to leave Hole-in-a-Wall. Nick joined us for the last round, and it was nice seeing everyone together again. It must have been almost a year since Ginna, Hanson, and I hung together outside of a Hunt.
We leave Nick to close up, and the four of us start the walk back to the castle. The sun is long gone, and we use the bright moonlight to guide our path back. I walk leisurely besides Elia, watching her as she takes in all the shops and houses, her eyes darting over everything and anything that she can. I often overlook the peaceful beauty of Ashven, but seeing it through Elia’s eyes reminds me of my own fondness of the town and of the kingdom.
“Thank you, for tonight,” I whisper to her softly.
Elia turns to me, those rainbow eyes even more stunning in the gleam of the moon. “I didn’t do anything. It was your idea.”
“We haven’t done that in a while - Ginna, Hanson, and I, I mean - and it reminded me of why we should.” I swallow, my hands spasming as I clasp them tightly behind my back. “Plus, you made the time better.”
