Shay whistled, staring at the lacework of deep gashes Connor had left on the practice target in the few seconds he’d been near it.

I coughed. “Ninja.”

Shay looked my way, sparing me a thin smile.

“Show-off.” Ethan laughed. “Couldn’t you tell it was already dead?” He held up the bolts he’d just pulled free of the dummy.

“You two aren’t the ones who are supposed to be showing off,” Adne said.

“What’s this?” Ethan asked.

“Shay needs practice.” Adne swirled the whip so that it coiled and uncoiled like a metallic serpent.

Shay scratched the back of his neck, looking a bit uneasy. “Maybe we shouldn’t.”

“Aw, come on,” Connor said. “I’m sure you’ll be fine. And I’m dying to blow off steam before we do this crazy business in a few hours.”

“It’s a thought.” Shay rolled his shoulders back. “I’m kinda edgy too.”

Ethan laughed. “Don’t worry. I’ll be the referee and make sure these two don’t play dirty.”

“You’re no fun at all,” Connor said, swapping the kataras for his usual swords.

“Are we ready?” Adne asked.

“Always.” Connor grinned.

Shay nodded, eyeing the two Searchers who’d slowly begun to circle him. I could see the veins in his throat pop up, beginning to throb as they neared him. Adne’s whips reached him first, flying low, striking at his ankles. Shay dodged the blow as easily as if he were skipping rope. But as he landed again, Connor came at him, his sword blades no longer moving in a casual dance but whirling with such speed I could barely see where one blade ended and the other began.

I started to move forward, my instincts screaming to throw myself between the gleaming steel and Shay. My body tried to follow the call for blood. I felt like I was suffocating, pushing down the weight of the wolf that was desperate to claw its way out of the human prison that held it back. But I couldn’t interfere. Shay needed this. It was time for the Scion to fight on his own. I just hadn’t anticipated how hard it would be for me to let him go. Backing against a wall to put more distance between myself and the fight, I jumped forward when the spikes of a hanging mace pressed against the skin of my back.

Shay’s eyes locked on Connor. Their swords met, the clang of blade on blade bouncing off the walls and ceiling. As the two young men focused on each other, Adne stalked Shay from behind. The whips flew toward his unprotected back. I gasped as Shay suddenly forced Connor’s blades down while launching his own body into the air, flipping over Adne and landing just behind her. Connor shouted, crashing to the floor as he barely escaped catching the sharp points of Adne’s whips on his chest. Shay grabbed Adne around the waist, drawing her back and resting theblade of one sword against her throat.

“Yield?”

Her face was frozen in a mask of shock. She swallowed, nodding carefully so as not to press her neck against the sword.

“Holy shit.” Connor was laughing as he rolled back onto his feet. “I get it now. The Scion is chosen because he has eyes in the back of his head. If you just shave that mop off, we’ll see them, right?”

Adne was breathing hard as Shay lowered his sword, smiling when she craned her neck to gaze at him.

“How did you do that?” she asked.

The same question was ringing in my own mind. I’d never seen anything like what Shay had just done. I was stunned. My hand pressed into my chest as I tried to catch my breath, fingertips vibrating with my racing heartbeat.

He shrugged. “I’m not sure. I just knew you were coming. I could feel you behind me.”

Ethan remained silent, but he and Connor exchanged a glance.

“Okay,” Connor said, raising his swords. “First round to you. Two out of three?”

“Adne?” Shay asked.

“You won’t pull that move on me twice,” she said, playfully shoving him back to free herself.

“Let’s see.” Shay grinned.

I couldn’t take any more. Watching the ferocity of the fight, listening to the easy banter between them, all of it made me feel like an outsider. Neither needed nor wanted. Their strength, fluidity, and laughter were all barbs digging into me. It was as though none of what had been revealed in the kitchen mattered. My mother was dead, my pack forsaken, and they’d already moved on. I would grieve alone.

As sadness dragged my mood into a tar pit of self-pity, I thought of Ansel. How much worse must all of this be for him? Guilt grabbed hold of me, reminding me that I wasn’t the only one who’d lost a loved one. Naomi, our mother, had been ripped away from us, but that wasn’t all Ansel had lost. His wolf had been taken from him and destroyed. I could grieve, but I was still whole. Still a Guardian. There would be no return for him.

No one noticed when I turned away, sidling toward the door, as Connor hurled himself at Shay, startling him into dropping one sword.

“Hey!”

“You think you get a warning after that last match?” Connor barked. “Adne, take him down!”

“With pleasure.” She laughed, entering the fray.

Shay ducked, rolling along the floor to avoid Adne’s swift kick. “Not happening!”

The ringing of steel on steel trailed after me as I slipped from the room.

SEVENTEEN

A SPEAR OF YELLOW light cut through the hallway from a room at the top of a stairwell I’d discovered when trailing Ansel’s scent, the door open just a crack. I quietly pushed the door back, peering inside.