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I fire three more times but hit nothing except the back wall. Frustration wells up inside me. Hadria places her hand on my shoulder, voice stern.
"You're tense. Your stance is rigid. Here..."
She moves closer behind me, almost pressing against my back. Hadria's hands grasp my hips, lightly angling them sideways. One hand glides up my forearm, maneuvering my aim, while the other splays across my ribcage. Her touch sends little thrills across my skin, gentle yet commanding.
"Try it now," she murmurs, her lips near my ear.
I'm hyperaware of her body fitted to mine.Focus, I tell myself angrily. Blocking out the distracting sensation of Hadria's hands on me, I stare down the sight, exhaling slowly. When I squeeze the trigger this time, the shot punches through the target's right shoulder.
"Better," Hadria says. "But I want perfection. Again."
The next three shots strike the chest in a cluster. Exhilaration courses through me. I did it!
"I hit it! Did you see?" I cry out joyfully. In my excitement, I start to turn?—
Hadria's hand clamps on my shoulder, holding me in place. "Don't wave around a goddamn loaded gun. Rookie mistake. And yes, I saw. But one decent grouping isn't enough. We're drilling this until you're perfect every time."
Chastened, I reset my stance. Hadria's tone is stern, almost cold. Under her critical eye, I repeat the exercise again and again until my shots consistently hit the kill zones she indicates. My hands are growing sore, but Hadria pushes me relentlessly.
"Again. Faster this time," she orders. "Your life depends on this, Aurora. Hesitate for even a second, and you're dead."
I set my feet and raise the gun again, my arms aching, weariness and frustration simmering inside me. And this time, with ruthless precision, I empty the entire magazine into the target's chest and head in seconds. Putting down the gun, I rip off the earmuffs and glare at Hadria.
"Fast enough for you?"
Hadria arches one eyebrow, surprised by my defiant tone. For a tense moment, we stare at each other. Then, inexplicably, Hadria smiles.
"Not bad."
Her praise catches me off guard. Unsure how to respond, I simply nod my thanks. Hadria steps closer, gray eyes intent on my face. "Where was that when you were shooting at me?"
"I…" How to explain that I was shaking so hard I could barely keep the gun level?
But thankfully, she doesn't seem to expect a response, going on, "You've got potential, Aurora. We'll continue your training tomorrow."
I'm absurdly pleased by her words. Hadria studies me a moment longer, her gaze lingering on my mouth. The air suddenly seems to crackle between us. She sways incrementally closer...
And abruptly, she steps back. "Now off you go."
I stand there for a moment, confused and disappointed, before I realize I've been summarily dismissed. I have to fight the urge to run as I turn away, and manage to keep to a fast walk as I return up the stairs.
For a brief moment down there, I thought…
I thought Hadria was going to kiss me.
CHAPTER 14
Hadria
Much later that night,when dawn is coming close, I'm alone again in the windowless war room, head throbbing as I go over the latest requests from outside entities. Vengeance…murder…blood. That's all that ever seems to surround me.
Those moments with Aurora earlier were self-indulgent.
But I enjoyed them, all the same.
I dig my fingertips into my temples in a futile attempt to relieve the pounding pressure, because there's always more work to be done—planning tomorrow's interruption of my brother's shipments through the docks. Another mosquito intended to bite and irritate, but I want to keep up the pressure. He's gone to ground since I stole his bride, too difficult to catch in the open.
But I don't want him to think for a moment that I've forgotten about him.
