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His arm shifts, barely noticeable, but I catch the movement. Then he’s in motion, coming at me. Instead of head on, he changes course. The air stirs the fine, loose strands of my hair. In the space of two heartbeats, Cassius is nearly upon me.
It’s a move he’s only used once before. Attacking from behind. I sense him reaching for me, as clearly as if I’m watching from the sidelines. In my mind’s eye, I see how everything will play out.
And then I act.
This time, I don’t look for him, nor do I sidestep as he has forced me to practice until I could do it without thought.
I bring the staff into the defensive position to my front, then drop into a low crouch as I pivot. I kick out one foot for balance and feign going for an obvious strike.
Cassius corrects in the other direction to avoid it. I flick my wrist and catch his ankle enough to slow him. He recovers, but not quick enough. I release my grip on the staff and tackle him as I pull the practice dagger from where I hid it inside my boot.
He lands hard on his back with me crouching over him—a position that wouldn’t usually give me an advantage with his strength and speed.
Cassius reaches out to dislodge me and turn the tables, only to stop short when he realizes it’s the dull edge of the dagger pressing lightly against his neck.
We remain like this for several long moments. Our chests rising and falling with our labored breaths are the only sound in the room. I think we are both surprised that I have won.
“Well, aren’t you clever?” His voice is low, but there is pride there, too. “I may have gloated too soon. It seems I underestimated how formidable you really are.”
Gently, he guides my wrist away. Satisfaction fills my chest briefly as I let him up. A shadow passes over his face as he moves to sit. There and gone so fast, I might have dismissed it any other time. This is not the first time I have seen that look, though he tries to hide it. It’s not displeasure, but something I can’t read.
It’s hard to be sure. I am positive he is keeping something from me.
On his feet, he faces me, beaming. However, now I can see the cracks in the edges of a careful mask. “Well done, Clara. This will be our last lesson.”
I frown. “Why? I don’t understand.”
“You have known these techniques for a while, but now you finally learned how to use them to win.” Cassius squeezes my shoulder. “I will see you back at our quarters later. Della stopped by shortly after you ran out this evening. She was disappointed to find you were already gone.”
He returns the practice weapons back to their rightful place.
I start to ask if something is bothering him, but I’m not sure what to say that won’t be ridiculous. Without proof beyond catching a few odd looks would sound like an overactive imagination trying to create problems where there are none.
Before I can think of something, he continues. I stifle the urge to interrogate him. If something really was wrong, he would tell me.
Wouldn’t he?
“I hope she doesn’t make a habit of inviting herself over. Because the next thing you know, she’ll be moving in and evicting me.” Cassius turns to me, dusting his hands off. He must see something on my face. Even though his carefree grin remains in place, there’s a tightness around his eyes. “If you will excuse me, I must feed.”
Cassius dips his head in a bow, then he strides out the door.
For a moment, I stay put, too stunned by his abrupt departure to move.
Demons and saints…that manisup to something. The way he filled every small silence with idle chatter, then ran off as if demons were chasing him, only fuels my suspicions.
I jog after Cassius, catching up to him as he steps into the main corridor. Even without looking back, it’s obvious he knows I’m there. His pace is intentionally fast enough to keep me from catching up enough for us to walk side-by-side without drawing unwanted attention.
“Cassius,” I say, pitched low enough to avoid drawing attention to us but loud enough that I know he hears. “Will youpleasewait for a moment?”
At first, I don’t think he will. Another couple of steps and he stops to face me. “Oh, Clara. Forgive me, I was lost in thought.”
And demons thrive in sunlight,I think irritably.
When I reach him, Cassius loops my arm through his and starts walking again. We don’t speak as a small group of gentry, made up of lesser vampires, passes us. Three pale humans, their heads down and hands clasped at their backs, trail behind them.
I wait until we’re alone and tug him to a stop. “Something is bothering you. I can tell.”
“Only that I have nothing left to teach you.”
