Unstoppable Liv Beaufont Boxed Set

by Sarah Noffke

  Adler was in the middle of one of his dumb lectures when Liv stepped into the light.

  “Mr. Ludwig, your excuses are of no concern to the Council,” he stated, his attention distracted by Liv taking her spot between Stefan and Decar, who, as usual, wasn’t present.

  The relief that flooded Clark’s face was palpable. He actually cracked a smile, but it vanished when Liv made the tiniest of gestures with her hand.

  “As I was saying,” Adler continued, looking completely thrown off by Liv’s sudden appearance. Many of the councilors exchanged whispers, glancing at her curiously.

  Adler cleared his throat. “As I was saying,” he repeated, but shook his head. “Actually, Ms. Beaufont, do you want to tell the Council what you’re doing here? You’re supposed to be meeting with Queen Visa.”

  “Yes, I understand that,” Liv said, pushing her hood down and shaking out her long hair.

  Adler lowered his chin. “Have you come to ask for a different case? Mr. Beaufont hasn’t been successful at getting you removed from the case, if that was your hope.”

  Liv smiled inside. “Get a different case? Oh heck, naw.”

  Bianca grimaced at her causal language. “It’s understandable to be scared of Queen Visa, but unfortunately there are no new resources we can provide you for the case. We’ve already voted and decided on the matter.”

  “Scared of Queen Visa?” Liv asked. “She invited me to have an afternoon massage with her. Hopefully, she doesn’t get my number, or she’ll probably never stop texting me.”

  “Wait, you met Queen Visa?” Bianca leaned forward, her tall, pale forehead wrinkling.

  “For sure, and that is one hot woman,” Liv replied.

  Adler let out an annoyed sigh. “Ms. Beaufont, the Council doesn’t have time for your games. If you’re not going to take this case, you’ll be removed as Warrior, and the Beaufont family replaced in the House of Seven.”

  Liv turned and looked at Stefan, who appeared to be hiding an expression of amusement. “Playing a game? I didn’t think that was allowed here. I thought the rule book specifically said no fun could be had in the Chamber of the Tree.”

  If he had been trying to hide his expression before, it was close to slipping to the surface now.

  “Ms. Beaufont, this behavior will absolutely not be tolerated!” Adler yelled, making the crow on the far end of the bench squawk and take off, flying up to the rafters. Liv sort of hoped the white tiger would eat that pesky bird, but he wasn’t in sight. She remembered that they were part of the balance of the chamber, although she wasn’t sure entirely how.

  Seemingly disarmed for a moment by the crow’s disappearance, Adler took a calming breath and closed his eyes. When he opened them, he didn’t appear much less hostile than he had moments prior. “Ms. Beaufont,” he began, his tone brimming with frustration. “You’ve been asked to amend the agreement with Queen Visa. Under no circumstances are you to return here until that’s been done.”

  “Right, I totally get it,” she said casually.

  “Very good, then,” he said, obviously restraining his anger.

  “Totally great,” she fired back.

  He blinked at her, his eyes narrowing. “You’ve been dismissed.”

  Liv didn’t budge.

  Adler tried again to return his attention to Stefan, but Liv’s continued presence was too much for him. To Liv’s relief, Clark was doing an excellent job of covering the laughter she was certain he wanted to burst into.

  “Ms. Beaufont, why are you still standing there when you’ve been assigned your case and dismissed?” Adler asked, each of his words careful like he might explode with anger at any moment.

  Liv slapped her forehead. “Oops, I’m such a ditz. Totally slipped my mind. I’m done with that case.”

  Adler’s eyes rolled up in his head. “Councilors, I call for a formal disciplinary action for Ms. Beaufont.”

  “Discipline?” Liv asked. “That’s what I get for risking my life and successfully completing the death mission you assigned me?”

  Adler’s nostrils flared, but it was Lorenzo who spoke next. “You were successful in the Kingdom of the Fae? You got Queen Visa to agree to the amendments?”

  Liv laughed. “Agree? She thought it was her idea.” She pulled the ancient scroll from her robes, earning her gasps from everyone on the bench save Clark and Haro.

  Adler snapped his hand impatiently, making the scroll fly out of Liv’s hand and soar through the air, landing in his long fingers. Impatiently he unrolled the scroll, his eyes darting over the words.

  “What does it say? She really got the queen to agree?” Bianca asked, leaning over to read.

  Adler’s fingers tightened on the parchment in his hand, lowering it slightly to look over it at Liv. “How did you do this?”

  “You did ask me to get her to agree to minimize the fae’s seduction of mortals, right?” Liv asked.

  “You know full well that was the case you were assigned,” Adler answered.

  “Is there a reason that you appear so angry that I’ve done what you asked?” Liv questioned.

  “I think,” Raina cut in, “that Councilor Sinclair is simply surprised that you completed the case so quickly.” She was smiling with unbridled relief, as was Hester next to her. Clark had also finally let his elation shine.

  “How were you able to get Queen Visa to agree?” Lorenzo asked.

  “It involved clocking a fae and wearing way too much makeup,” Liv answered.

  Haro laughed at this, his usual serious expression cracking. “It is generally the unconventional methods that work in these situations.”

  Liv nodded, studying the magician. Maybe Akio was right, and his brother did have faith in her. She’d have to question the other Warrior on that later since he wasn’t in the Chamber.

  Adler chewed his thumbnail, his eyes continuously running over the scroll in front of him as if he couldn’t believe it was real.

  “Anyway, I’m ready for my next case,” Liv said, reaching into her pocket and retrieving the codex to which notes on cases were sent by the Council.

  Bianca looked up and down the bench. “Case? Do we have another case lined up for Olivia?”

  “I do believe you know that I prefer to go by Liv, but it’s cute that you keep using the wrong name,” Liv said, feeling brand-new confidence. At least three of the councilors hadn’t expected her to return alive, and her presence in front of them was throwing them off.

  “We actually don’t have anything for Ms. Beaufont at the moment,” Adler said, continuing to study the scroll. “We… Well, we expected it to take you a little longer to finalize the agreement with Queen Visa.”

  You expected me to be murdered, Liv thought proudly to herself.

  “I think Warrior Beaufont has earned a day or two off,” Hester said, smiling. “And when you return rested and refreshed, we will have a new case ready for you to tackle.”

  Liv nodded, grateful to have her support, especially with Adler, Bianca, and Lorenzo giving her less-than-accepting looks. “Okay, sure thing. I’ll brush up on my Warrior skills in the meantime.”

  She turned, noticing the white tiger at her back. How long had he been there, standing so close to her? He tilted his head to the side, regarding her with a mystified expression, like he too was surprised she’d survived the Kingdom of the Fae.

  “Oh, and Ms. Beaufont?” Adler called as Liv strode toward the exit.

  She turned, holding her chin high. “Yes?”

  “I do hope that you displayed a new level of diplomacy while interacting with Queen Visa,” Adler stated. “That would be best for long-term relations.”

  Liv decided against sharing that she had complimented the queen’s ass. “Yes, no worries. As I mentioned before, Queen Visa was quite taken with me.”

  And she’ll stay that way until she realizes the vial of blood she holds isn’t mine.

  Chapter Twenty

  Walking into the training studio brought back memori
es Liv couldn’t deal with just then. Her mother used to bring her up to these rooms, encouraging her to train. When Liv hadn’t shown a lot of interest in learning combat magic, her mother had never pressured her, saying there would be time later for such things.

  “Your job right now is to be a kid,” Guinevere Beaufont would say to her daughter, her beautiful blonde hair up in a messy bun on her head.

  “But will you get in trouble with the other Royals if you don’t train me?” Liv would ask, having overheard conversations between her father and mother at night when she should have been asleep. It hadn’t gone unnoticed by the Sinclairs and others in the House of Seven that the Beaufonts didn’t abide by the same rigorous training practices as the other families.

  Her mother simply smiled, her blue eyes sparkling. “Whose job is it to worry, Olivia?”

  “Yours,” Liv answered, reciting what her parents had told her a hundred times since she was old enough to fret.

  “And what’s your job?” Guinevere asked her.

  “To be a kid,” Liv replied.

  “That’s right,” her mother answered. “There will be time for your training. You can never recapture the freedom of your youth.”

  In truth, her mother had probably never thought that Liv would need the training. It was unlikely that she’d become a Warrior. Guinevere was the strongest Warrior the House had seen in a century, and if anything happened to her, Ian would take over. He was incredible, driven from a young age. No one expected that something would happen to them both, making Liv the Beaufont Warrior for the House of Seven.

  She stood in the middle of the training studio, feeling the surreal aspect of this all. It kept hitting her, sometimes making it hard to breathe.

  I’m a Warrior. The one for the Beaufont family, she thought, turning to face the mirror, suddenly feeling very much alone. I’m all we have left. That doesn’t quite feel like enough, but it will have to be.

  “I see you survived Queen Visa,” Akio said from the entrance.

  Liv had known he was there moments prior to him materializing. Maybe it was being back in the studio that made her more aware of her surroundings. Maybe it was because she realized that more than ever her combat skills were going to need improvement if she was going to survive. She’d been studying the book Mysterious Creatures every night, training with Rory on the side, and working on her combat skills on her own. But it wasn’t enough. She needed Akio’s help if she was going to improve radically.

  The Council wasn’t going to let up on her, not after the stunt she’d pulled as she revealed her success with the Kingdom of the Fae. But she couldn’t help herself. Adler had deserved to learn the truth in a way that put humiliation and surprise on his face. Also, Liv was making her fair share of enemies and would need to know how to defend herself. That was why she was there.

  “Against some of the Council’s better wishes, yes, I survived,” Liv answered, nodding to Akio as he swept into the room. He was wearing the decorative kimono he often sported, his sword strapped to his hip.

  His brown eyes smiled even though his face remained placid. “I’m glad to see you return, Liv. I can’t say that I didn’t worry about your safety. It seems you are full of surprises.”

  “I’m tactless. That’s all,” she replied.

  Akio looked around the studio, searching for something. “You said you had a weapon you’d chosen?”

  Liv withdrew Bellator from the sheath across her back, delighting in the way it felt in her hands. She hadn’t spent much time with the sword yet, but looked forward to getting acquainted; bonding with it in a way that would create loyalty between them. That was how Rory had explained it, anyway.

  “Where did you get that?” Akio asked, his eyes widening as he stumbled back slightly.

  Liv drew in a breath. “I found it,” she lied.

  His eyes darted between the sword and her face. “Don’t tell me. It would be better that way.”

  “I found it, seriously,” she continued, remembering what Rory had said. No one could ever know that he’d made it for her.

  Akio nodded. “Yes, ‘found it.’ That’s fine. What is it called?”

  Liv hesitated, her eyes running over the smooth hilt and the blue gems adorning it. “It’s called Bellator.”

  Akio did smile then, wrinkles forming around his eyes. “Appropriately named.”

  “Why? What does Bellator mean?” Liv asked.

  Akio’s head tilted to the side. “You don’t know?”

  Liv shook her head.

  Akio reached out, hesitating when his fingers were close to the sword. “May I?”

  Liv relinquished the sword to him, missing it as soon as it was out of her grasp. His eyes filled with delight when he wrapped his hands around the hilt. He sliced it through the air, its blade making a sharp whizzing sound. He spun around, swinging Bellator with a grace Liv had rarely seen. It looked more like a dance than anything else—a deadly one. When he’d spun back in her direction, he straightened, holding the sword horizontally and presenting it to her.

  “I’ve never held a giant-made sword,” Akio stated.

  Liv pretended to look surprised. “Giant-made? Well, I’ll be.”

  The glint in his eyes betrayed the expression he was trying to suppress. “And Bellator simply means ‘Warrior.’”

  Liv’s mouth fell open. That cunning giant, she thought.

  Akio pointed to the sword in her hands, an impressed expression on his face. “I don’t know where you ‘found’ this, but if you hone your skills, you and Bellator will be a formidable force.”

  “Goodwill,” Liv supplied.

  “Excuse me?” Akio asked as if he hadn’t heard her.

  “I picked it up at the Goodwill in WeHo,” she explained. “You can find all sorts of treasures there.”

  “Indeed,” he said with a wink.

  “Where did you learn to fight?” Akio asked after their third sparring bout.

  “I didn’t, really,” Liv answered. “I always declined the lessons when they were offered.”

  He shook his head, leaning on his sword, which was thinner than hers and made in the style of the magicians. “It doesn’t matter if you were taught or not. Growing up, someone always teaches us how to fight, and usually informally. It’s in the passion or integrity or lack thereof that they pass along. I sense a unique boldness in you, Liv, and it comes out when you spar.”

  Where would that come from, Liv wondered. She didn’t know. Her mother was brave and her father opinionated, which was an obviously deadly combination she’d inherited from them.

  “I guess my parents taught me how to fight,” she stated, holding Bellator but unable to look Akio directly in the eyes.

  That was probably why he leaned in to get her attention. “Then focus on them. It is our greatest teachers we must hold in our hearts when we fight. Combat is demoralizing. It’s scary facing adversaries. We rarely persevere for self-preservation alone. However, when we remember the ones who made us who we are? Well, we become unstoppable.”

  Liv had trouble swallowing for a moment, as if her throat had been cut. She managed a nod. “Do we go again?”

  Akio sheathed his weapon, nodding at her. “Yes, but I’m going to try to disarm you this time.”

  “Without a sword?” she asked.

  He offered her a sideways smile. “Yes. I think I’ll be okay, and your enemy will rarely tell you what they are about to do, so consider yourself at an advantage.”

  Liv bowed when he did, then straightened. She was ready when Akio darted forward, coming at her like a bull released from a pen. His hands were around her waist. She swung Bellator above her head but suddenly felt disoriented. The other Warrior moved faster than she could follow, like a phantom. She blinked, wondering where he’d disappeared to. Shaking, she spun around, but he was already at her back again, his arms constricting her. Grunting, she tried to overpower him but knew it was useless almost from the start. Bellator clanged to the ground from the pressu
re of his grip.

  Liv stumbled back, shaking her head. “How did you do that? How do you move so fast?”

  “It’s a perk of not holding a weapon,” Akio admitted. “We gain and we lose when we hold a weapon. They make us deadly, but often slow us down. Never forget that wielding a weapon isn’t always the right approach. It depends on the battle.”

  “Will you teach me how to move like that?” Liv asked.

  Akio nodded. “Yes, but first let me teach you how to hold your sword.” He picked up Bellator and extended it to her. “This time, don’t think of yourself as carrying this sword. Rather, believe it is an extension of you. When you swing Bellator, see it as part of you.”

  She didn’t want to tell him that sounded like hippie crap, but that was exactly what it seemed like to her. However, she’d never seen anyone move like Akio Takahashi. He was fluid like water and unrivaled in his agility. The way he moved was almost unbelievable. This wasn’t a competitor she wanted to go head to head with.

  “Okay,” Liv agreed, taking Bellator. “An extension of my arm.”

  “Once you conquer that idea, you’ll unlock any benefits that sword can offer you.”

  “How do you know it will?” Liv asked.

  He gave her a skeptical glare. “A sword like this, that was seemingly made for you, has many ways to aid its bearer. However, you have to prove yourself worthy of the power it would lend you. It’s important to remember that a Warrior and her sword should be partners in battle. Currently, you’re acting like you’re in charge, and it is your tool.”

  Liv worked to cover the tension his words had unearthed. “I found the sword,” she lied.

  He nodded. “At the Goodwill. I remember.” He bowed again, signaling the start of another sparring match.

  This time she didn’t react to his first attempts to pin her. Instead, she allowed Bellator to lead her like they were a couple on the dance floor. Again Akio disappeared behind, but instead of swinging around, she felt the sword urge her backward. She threw herself in that direction, knowing that Akio was there. Slamming into him, she took him by surprise, knocking him to the ground. Swinging Bellator over her head, she brought it down, stopping inches from his face.