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Faye shifted her shoulder. “Have you trained anyone before?” Faye thought being thrown in a pool to learn to swim was traumatic. This was worse.
He gave her a feral grin. “Many, and they didn’t whine as much as you.”
“Did you teach Sadi?” Faye turned as Damian circled her.
“My kitten deals in an entirely different kind of warfare.”
Whatever that meant. Faye sighed, “Do I get a weapon?”
He tossed her his knife and called an identical one. “Second rule,” Damian lunged forward, arcing his knife at her face.
Faye reacted out of instinct. She gasped, bringing her arms up and stepping back. A wide band of power lashed from her. A sizzling crack filled the courtyard as Damian was hurled across it. His back met the stone wall with a sickening crack, and he dropped to the ground.
“Damian!” Faye rushed forward, stopping when Damian held a hand up at her, getting to his feet.
Rune appeared next to her, looking her over, then Damian. “Are you well?” He asked Faye.
“Yes, Rune, I’m fine. The one thrown across the courtyard,” Damian answered, dusting himself off.
“He just scared me,” Faye said to Rune, then turned to Damian. “Are you okay?”
Damian shook the crystal fragments out of his hair before he glanced at Rune. “She hits a bit hard.” A dark gray light flashed over Damian several times as he strolled back to her. He looked Rune up and down. “You’re in the way, friend.” Damian flattened his hand to the middle of Rune’s chest and pushed.
Rune didn’t budge.
With a sigh, Damian addressed Faye. “Second rule. You need to be desensitized to having weapons swung in your direction. If you are afraid of the blow, you can never counter it. Sometimes you need to take a hit to land one.”
He lunged at her, and Rune caught his wrist with a growl. “This is not training.”
Ignoring Rune, Damian continued, “Third rule. Having a shield doesn’t mean you’re suddenly invulnerable.” He hooked his foot behind Faye’s ankle and shoved her to demonstrate his point.
Faye gracelessly fell on her ass and stared up to find Rune holding Damian by the throat.
The Familiar stood on his toes. “It’s the best way to teach a lesson, Shadow Prince. Your dove is a tiny thing. Any male can pick her up with muscle and temper.” He turned his head, unable to break free of Rune’s grasp. “Now, I don’t mind a hand on my throat if it’s done in the right spirit. But I would ask you to romance me a little.” To Faye, he winked. “He’s not this rough with you, is he?”
Rune thinned his lips as Faye got to her feet.
“Alister is a master swordsman. He wields a sword and controls another two by his will. Do you want your mate to learn here or when your brother and his blades are trying to filet her?”
Rune reluctantly released Damian. “If you injure her, I will repay your kindness.”
“Were you leaving, or did you want to go a few rounds Pure Blood?”
Faye took Rune’s hand in hers. “I’m fine. I threw him across the courtyard. He’s careful, and the weapons are fake.” Faye poked him in the side with her blade.
“I’ll take good care of your dove. Make sure when the queen of our court is tested, her enemies regret the notion.”
Chapter eighty-four
Alisterdismissedeveryattemptof diplomacy they sent. Faye had hoped to resolve this peacefully, but Rune’s brother was set on vengeance. Faye tried to see the situation through his eyes. She didn’t pretend to understand what he’d been through. The depth of his grief. She couldn’t imagine a vacant-eyed Rune or caring for the shadow of the person she loved for eight hundred years.
Faye leaned her hip on Rune’s desk, peering through the intricately designed wrought iron glass. Her mind wandered as she gazed at Hell’s ever-twilight sky. “I think you should formally acknowledge me.”
Rune set his documents down, offering her his undivided attention. “Vsenia, we have been over this.”
They had. The past three weeks had been busy, the days bleeding together. Rune taught her to manipulate shields around herself and others. She could throw arcs and bolts of power. Her most recent lesson— Communicating telepathically.
