by Shana Vernon
Papa never mentioned names to me when he spoke about the Guild, so I couldn’t even confirm the information Master Abbott was relaying to the suited man.
“If you are certain he can’t be turned, get rid of him and make it quick,” suit man said impassively.
“I will increase my efforts and keep working on him for now. If it proves fruitless, I will dispose of him.”
The suited man nodded and straightened his tie. “I want to meet with my daughter before leaving.”
“Yes, of course,” Master Abbott agreed and waved his hand over my shoulder. “Mr. Greer, please escort Mr. Anders to the initiates’ quarters so he can see his daughter. Nephew, come with me, I want to discuss what you discovered today from the new initiates.”
I squashed myself as flat against the wall as possible as Cade passed by me, beads of sweat trickling down my neck.
Quinn led Mr. Anders back down the other way to the initiates’ quarters and I focused my attention on the two men still standing a foot away from me.
“Let’s go to my quarters,” Master Abbott said as he led the way to a staircase at the end of the hall.
I followed them up three flights of stairs to a much more comfortable looking level, where plush carpets decorated the floors and warm lights lined the walls. I tuned in to their muttered conversation as they walked down the hallway.
“Do any of the new initiates look promising?” Master Abbott inquired.
“A few of them have manifested strong abilities,” He went on to explain Ekon’s shifting and Hailey’s phasing. “Something strange did happen while I was checking their fighting skills though,” he continued and his gray eyes narrowed in confusion.
“Yes,” Master Abbott encouraged.
“During the first pairing, I had Lenna Bishop against Brielle Sutton, and it seemed like Lenna was only going on the defensive. It appeared as if she was holding back from showing her true skill level, so I switched it up and partnered her with one of the stronger male fighters. He had been giving her a hard time, so I thought she might want to get back at him. She still tried to hold back, but since he was much more advanced than Brielle, she was forced to show more skill than before.
“He was pushing her harder and harder until she landed a roundhouse to his head and his gift manifested. She flew backward and smashed into the pavement, crushing half her bones,” he said, peering at his uncle.
“The first part isn’t entirely unusual. Many new initiates are hesitant to outright hurt another person before they are forced into a corner. It seems like Ms. Bishop might be one of those. Try to see if you can stomp that out of her, because she won’t be any use as an assassin if she isn’t willing to make the first move. She is the only initiate to come without an invitation, so don’t underestimate her.”
That seemed to surprise Cade, and I quickened my steps to hear them more clearly.
“Do we know anything about her past?” he said.
Master Abbott raised his eyebrows and gave him a look. “I had Sanders do a thorough background check before the official initiation. They didn’t find anything all that unique for someone looking to enter the Guild. She bounced around from one foster family to the next her entire childhood and entered the Guild at the first opportunity for her age.”
It was a good thing that Papa had worked so tirelessly on my cover story over the last ten years. I was a wallflower to the outside world, but in reality, I was more like a ghost. Invisible to everyone. Papa had hacked into the social security database to submit my alias as a foster child and even made me social media accounts with random photos of food and animals. Nothing that anyone would deem suspicious.
Cade’s lips pulled down into a frown. “That would have been me if not for you, Uncle.”
Master Abbott waved his hand dismissively, “You are family, Cade. Your father would have done the same if the tables were turned.”
They reached a door and Master Abbott took out a key and slipped it into the lock. I didn’t have a watch on me, but I knew it must have been at least fifteen or twenty minutes since I’d turned invisible. I could already start to feel the strain on my energy and I knew I wouldn’t be able to keep it up and stay inside for however long their conversation lasted. Once the door closed, I wouldn’t be able to open it. Most people would notice if their doors suddenly started opening and closing of their own accord.
I watched them disappear through the doorway and turned back to the staircase to head downstairs. Halfway down, the man who Master Abbott had instructed to do my background check entered through one of the other levels and began walking up the stairs in my direction.
What was his name? Sanders.
With only a few steps before we passed each other, the coolness from my invisibility vanished and I popped back into view without any warning. The man jumped back, his eyes widening before withdrawing a blade from the sheath on his waist.
We both paused and anticipated each other’s movements.
“I know you. You’re that foster girl. How did you do that?” he asked, his tone suspicious.
“I manifested my gift,” I replied, my eyes roaming over his body, looking for additional weapons. I saw a long blade across his back and a gun strapped to his thigh.
Thankfully, he hadn’t instinctively drawn his gun, otherwise it would have been harder to incapacitate him.
“What do you think you are doing in this area? Initiates aren’t allowed here,” his baritone voice cut through the space between us.
“I had a meeting with Master Abbott,” I said, not caring that he would have been able to find out that was a lie, since there was no way I could let him live now. He’d seen my invisibility and had caught me sneaking around. I just really hoped this guy wasn’t one of the good ones Papa had told me about.
He looked me up and down, undressing me with his eyes before grinning. “Well, maybe we can come to some kind of understanding and I won’t look too closely into that obvious lie you just told.”
Yuck. I’m literally covered in blood. How does he find me attractive right now?
I straightened my back, suddenly determined I was making the right decision, jumped down the stairs and kicked the blade out of his hand. He tumbled down the steps and lay sprawled on the landing, clutching his leg, which sat at an awkward angle.
“You bitch!” he spat. “I’m going to fucking kill you.”
I clambered to pick up his dropped blade as he pulled out his gun, pointing it to my heart. I knew without a doubt that he wouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger. There was no way I could have thrown the knife before the bullet would have hit its mark.
Inside my mind, I could hear Papa scrutinizing each mistake I had made with agonizing detail, reminding me to think strategically and telling me that nobody in the real world would hold their punches.
I couldn’t breathe. This could not be the end for me. I was not going to die alone in this staircase because of such an amateur mistake. I wasn’t ready to die yet; this couldn’t be my time. I still needed to rescue Papa and help him take down Master Abbott, but it seemed like the world had another plan for me. Adrenaline pumped through my veins as I looked death in the face and a warmth spread throughout my body. I instinctively raised my hands and a concussive glowing force erupted from them and slammed into him, pushing him into the wall.
I knelt and scooped up the knife that I had inadvertently dropped, and slowly walked toward his crumpled figure on the floor. He was barely breathing, his chest moving up and down sluggishly. His eyes met mine and they silently pleaded with me not to do it as I raised the knife and brought it down, penetrating his heart. I waited while his limp hand fell to the cold, hard tile and the light left his eyes.
I straightened up and glanced around, looking for cameras. From what I had noticed from the Guild, they didn’t believe in over-policing their members. The question now was what to do with the body. I could probably just leave him there and take the knife with me, so I pulled the blade back out of hi
s chest and wiped it on his clothes, careful not to leave fingerprints.
I looked down at myself and grimaced. Luckily, the fresh blood from Sanders was hidden by what had begun to congeal on my body from my spat with Ryder.
Once I was satisfied that he held no evidence I was there, I descended down the stairs and slipped back out to the main level. Sweat beaded my brow as I made my way back to the initiates’ quarters, praying nobody would see me with the knife before I could hide it.
Stupid plan, but what other choice did I have?
I scurried through the hallways, almost to the door when I heard a familiar voice calling my name.
“Ms. Bishop.”
I panicked and twirled around to see Cade approaching me. I felt the cooling sensation move down my arm and risked a glance at the knife in my hand, which had become invisible.
Well, that hasn’t happened before. The initiation must have evolved my existing abilities. I fought to find my voice.
“Just Lenna,” I said lamely.
“How are you feeling?” He ignored my comment and gestured to my bloodstained, ripped clothing. “Were you able to heal all of your wounds?”
“Yup, I’m fit as a fiddle.” Did I seriously just say that? Since when was I not able to speak like a normal person?
He grinned slightly before cooling his features. “I’m glad to hear it, you need to be in top shape for tomorrow. You missed the rest of the exercises today, so I will need to finish testing you in the morning before you begin your regular classes.”
The dried blood all over my skin had started to itch and it made it difficult to concentrate on anything.
“Alright, well I’m going to go get cleaned up and head to sleep,” I said, backing up to the door just as it swung open.
“Oh my fucking god, Lenna! Are you okay? We were so worried.” I spun around to meet Sofia’s concerned expression. She snapped her wrist band a few times.
“Yeah, I feel way better than I look, trust me. This is all dried blood; my injuries are totally healed.”
She pulled me into the room and I glanced over my shoulder to see that Cade had disappeared from sight. I slipped my hand behind my back in case the knife popped back into view without my knowledge.
A second later, I was whisked into a strong embrace, but put down quickly. “Ugh, Lenna. You’re still covered in blood,” Ekon exclaimed, his smile firmly planted on his face.
“What? All out of one-liners already, Ekon?” I asked, slightly uncomfortable with all of the touching, though not necessarily in a bad way.
He laughed, “I got momentarily blindsided by your mess.” He pushed me toward the showers. “Now go get cleaned up while I’ll think of more.”
I moaned, “God yes, I need a shower.” Sofia handed me a towel and I grabbed a pair of pajamas off my bed, making sure to subtly place the knife in my safe before locking it. She grabbed her own pajamas and her strawberry shampoo, and walked with me to the bathroom while everyone assessed me from their beds.
Axel inclined his head at me when I passed him and Ryder even had the decency to look sheepish when he met my eye.
He stepped in front of me, blocking the bathroom and I cocked an eyebrow at him.
“Listen, Lenna. I’m really sorry about today. Master Locke spoke to me about what happened and apparently I manifested energy manipulation. Basically, I absorb energy that comes into contact with me and I can release it back. Obviously, I didn’t intend for it to happen to you like that.”
I squeezed Sofia’s hand so she would understand to let me handle it myself.
“Didn’t you though?” I said, not even bothering to hide my annoyance.
“What? Of course not. I might give you a hard time, but I wouldn’t try to outright kill you.”
“I really don't care, Ryder. I almost died. I hope you step on a lego,” I said as I moved around him and stepped out the door with Sofia snickering away at my heels.
CHAPTER SEVEN
My dreams were interrupted when an extremely cold, wet sensation washed over my body without warning. I leapt to my feet when I realized that I was covered in freezing water, chips of ice sliding down my hair.
“What the hell?” I yelled, my teeth chattering uncontrollably. I blinked repeatedly as I tried to get the sleep out of my eyes so I could see more clearly. A hulking figure stood before me and Cade’s face swam into view as my eyes adjusted to the light of a new day.
“I think hell would be a bit warmer, don’t you think?” he said, chuckling as he stood there, arms crossed, a newly-empty bucket discarded on the floor next to his boots. He was clad in a tight black muscle shirt and pants. A quick glance around the room showed that everyone else was still asleep, though a few people were stirring from all my racket.
“Why did you do that?” I whisper-screamed, goosebumps covering my bare legs. It was swelteringly hot during the night and I must have managed to kick off my pajama pants in my sleep.
How awkward.
His gaze flickered down my naked legs for a moment before returning to meet my narrowed eyes. I hastily snatched the blanket off the bed and wrapped it around myself, trying to keep some of my dignity intact.
“You’re late. I told you last night that we’re having one-on-one training today to test your skills, since you missed out yesterday.” He gestured to my blanket. “You need to always be prepared for any situation, which includes the way you dress.”
Keeping the blanket clutched around my middle, I took a clean jumpsuit from my stack of clothes and stood up. “Can I get some privacy please?” I hissed.
He rolled his eyes and turned around. “There is a bathroom for a reason, Ms. Bishop.”
“Can you just call me Lenna? We’re basically the same age. You sound like an old man,” I said in exasperation. He didn’t reply and I couldn’t see his expression with his back turned to me.
I hurried to switch out my pajamas with a clean jumpsuit and fresh underwear, slipping my feet into socks and boots. I grabbed my toothbrush and toothpaste and walked around Cade toward the bathroom.
“You have two minutes, Lenna,” came his gravelly voice from behind me as I pushed through the doorway.
I smirked when I heard my name, then shuddered when I realized that I liked hearing him use it. Bishop was an alias, but Lenna was my real name. It made it feel more personal.
Bad Lenna.
Being personal was only going to end up with me dead, and my father continuing to be tortured.
Once I fixed my bedhead and brushed my teeth, I made my way back to Cade, who was now joined by Quinn. The latter smiled warmly at me as I approached them.
“Does he do that nonsense to you, too?” I asked, letting some irritation trickle into my voice. Quinn looked at me questioningly, but Cade cut me off before I could explain.
“If you can’t handle a little cold water, you aren’t going to last very long here.”
“Cold water? What are you talking about?” Quinn asked. “Did you pour cold water on her?”
I scowled at Cade and replied, “No, he dowsed me in ice water. Literal pieces of ice all over my body while I was asleep.”
Quinn’s eyes widened and then he chuckled.
“Damn dude, that’s harsh.”
“I’m sure she won’t be late again,” Cade said as he proceeded through the door, clearly expecting us to follow.
I shot silent daggers at his back while we trailed after him.
Quinn touched my hand and calming energy flowed through my veins. All my indignation dissipated immediately. I looked down at our joined hands and peered into Quinn’s emerald eyes.
“Are you doing that to me? Is that how your gift works?” I asked in awe, my voice barely more than a whisper. Cade whipped around and checked out our joined hands and his eyes narrowed.
“Quinn, would it kill you to be a little professional?” Cade growled. He barely made any noise as he walked down the hallways, leading us to wherever they would be training me.
“Don’t mind him, love. I would say he gets better after he drinks his coffee, but that would be a lie,” Quinn said with a wink.
I gave him a quick smile and we followed Cade in silence. We walked through the eerily quiet hallways, my hands awkwardly swinging by my sides as I watched Cade out of the corner of my eye. I couldn't help but notice and appreciate the way his muscles corded down his back, his pants just tight enough to show his form. I shook my head to clear the thoughts and regain my focus.
Cade led us to a high-ceilinged room I hadn't been to yet. Mats covered the floor on one half of the room while the other half was full of gym equipment. The wall to my right was lined with every size weight imaginable, and the left wall was filled with different sized handholds all the way to the top. It looked like a rock-climbing wall – there were even ropes that were attached to the ceiling that fell to the mats below.
“We’re going to start with checking your fitness level. I’m assuming from your physique that you exercise regularly, so this part should be simple for you,” Cade said, his eyes roaming over my body as he spoke. I hated how much I liked the heat in his eyes as he examined me.
Cade walked to the side of the room and began taking notes, while Quinn instructed me to start with running laps around the building and then put me through different exercises.
I didn’t bother holding back since I wasn’t stronger than someone who exercised a lot, seeing as that wasn’t one of my abilities.
Still wish I had super-strength.
“So, Quinn, how did you end up here?” I asked, curious about the green-eyed empath and wanting to know more about him. He put down the weights he was using for our routine and sat back on his feet, facing me.
“I’m sure Ekon has told you by now that we went to school together, right?” he asked, his arms resting on his knees.
I wondered if he had a calm nature because of his ability as an empath, or if the empath abilities manifested because of his calm nature?
I inclined my head and he continued. “The school we went to is a bit like a preparatory school for the Guild. Not necessarily this location, but the Guild has been recruiting from them for years. We aren’t taught anything to do with assassinations, but our gym classes are more along the lines of martial arts and fitness instead of sports.”
