Would this always be a fear in her life? Worrying about going out in public, who wanted her dead, then there was the fact she would have to experience eternity watching her loved ones die. Normal. She just wanted a normal life.
“Okay, girls, this is what I have learned in my nearly one thousand years here on this earth. You can never think negatively. When you do, you stir up bad energy, and that energy attracts evil. Always be positive.” No matter what the situation was, Earadessa always had a way of making everyone feel better.
“I say we finish eating and discuss activities later,” Sabastian said as he smiled at Earadessa. He was already working on his second plate of food. Apparently being an older vampire doesn’t affect the appetite.
Tanya watched him and Earadessa. The way they looked at one another, their eyes seeming to convey so many messages, she could only imagine what they must be saying telepathically.
A man shouted, “Hey” at the table next to them and Tanya gasped, choking on the rib she’d just taken a bite of. Coughing dislodged the piece of meat. Her heartrate accelerated. Unsure of who he was, she glanced at Dannika. Her cousin smiled and shook her head. He wasn’t a vampire.
At the sound of laughter from the opposite direction, she turned. A group of men made their way to the man’s table and fist bumped one another. They were all loud and obnoxious but her heartbeat returned to normal at the realization they were just regular human men out to have dinner and talk football.
Amid bringing her fork to her mouth, Tanya suddenly remembered her vision. “Dessa?”
Tearing her eyes away from her beloved, Earadessa focused on Tanya. “What is it, sweetie?”
“My vision. I can’t get it out of my head.” Tanya set her fork down, no longer hungry. The upcoming fight between them and their enemy troubled her. “How are we supposed to win against them when we can’t even do a proper sidekick?”
“Not to worry.” Earadessa reached across the table to take Tanya’s hand. “Bas and I will teach you girls defensive moves. We will not leave you vulnerable. Before the fight, you will know how to properly defend yourselves.”
There were some hoots and hollers from the football fanatics before they finished their meal. After dinner, everyone loaded up in the SUV, and Sabastian drove across town to a fitness club. “Come on.” He opened his door. “We’ll start our practice today.”
Today? Directly following the buffet they’d just eaten? Did the man not know anything about food and exercise? All that greasy food was bound to make an appearance if Tanya so much as walked on a treadmill.
“Today?” Makinzee voiced the same question running through her own mind. “We just ate a buttload of food.”
“Yes, right now,” Sabastian called over his shoulder, not bothering to look at her.
They followed him inside, and Tanya was shocked at how empty the place was. Aren’t there fitness junkies in Oklahoma City eager to get their fitness on? The only person she could see was an employee in uniform.
Sabastian greeted the man, thanked him for his kindness, and then handed the man a large envelope. When the employee opened it to peek inside, Tanya guessed it was full of money.
Noticing Tanya’s puzzled expression, Earadessa explained. “He called in advance and asked if we could rent the gym for the evening.”
“Ah,” was all Tanya could say. It definitely explained why the place was so void of fitness gurus. Now if she could just find a hole and disappear.
Earadessa showed them to the girl’s locker room. Sitting on a bench were five workout leggings, five tank tops, and five sets of running shoes. Oh goddess, these are not the outfits set out for some mild walking. These are outfits for extensive workouts.
The first thing Sabastian had planned for them was running on the treadmill. It wasn’t too bad, at first anyway. He allowed them to start off at a speed walk or jog, whichever they felt comfortable doing. For Tanya, it was speed walking.
About every fifty to sixty seconds he would crank it up a few notches. It wasn’t long before they were at a full run. Tanya did okay for the first thirty minutes. Then the guy had the nerve to come over and crank it up more and set her incline at the highest.
The occasional jog around the neighborhood was about as athletic as Tanya got, so this was pure torture. Spots floated in her field of vision, and bile rose in her throat. She was pretty sure she was on the verge of passing out — or dying.
Gripping the handlebars on the sides, Tanya prayed for relief before she bent over and vomited every bit of food she’d just consumed. Just when the food threatened to make an appearance, Sabastian approached her machine and turned it down to a slow jog. Thank the goddess. She was sure she would not have survived another second at such a high pace.
Sweat drenched her clothes, and her hair clung to her face. How long had they been on this blasted treadmill anyway? Five hours, six? She glanced at the clock on the wall, forty-five minutes. Turning the pace down to a walk, Sabastian beamed at her. “You’ve done well. As soon as your heartrate comes down, you’re free to shut it off.”
Oh, her heartrate was more than ready. Stepping onto the sides of the treadmill, she hit the off button. The moment her feet hit the floor she nearly fell over. Her legs had turned to jelly, and standing upright was dang near impossible.
Earadessa grabbed her under the arm to help her into a chair. “Here, drink this.” She shoved a bag of blood into Tanya’s hand then placed a towel on her lap.
Chapter Forty-Five
The burn in Tanya’s legs made her sick to her stomach. Emptying the first bag of blood, Earadessa shoved a second one into her hands. In no time, she emptied the bag and tossed it in the trash. Closing her eyes, she leaned back against the wall.
“Don’t get comfortable, or you’ll lose all motivation.” Sabastian motioned for them to get up and follow him.
Seriously, did the man not see that she was exhausted and in excruciating pain? Standing up was not going to be easy. Motivation? Oh, hell no. She was ready to go home not continue with this torture.
Makinzee forced her head up from the floor where she lay. “Oh no. I’ve worked more just now than I have in all my years put together.”
“Yeah, I lost my motivation the moment we arrived,” Regina declared.
Earadessa stood and clapped her hands. “Focus, ladies. Remember, we have a fight approaching, and we need to be prepared.”
That got their attention. Each of them stood on wobbly legs and followed her and Sabastian to the weight room. Tanya gawked at the dumbbells and barbells. She’d never touched either before in her life. If it hadn’t been for Sabastian telling them what they were she wouldn’t have known.
Their workout consisted of squats, weighted squats, lunges, bent-over rows, dumbbell flies, and other exercises she didn’t know the names of. It was definitely more reps than any person should ever be allowed to endure.
The longest Tanya had ever worked out was thirty minutes, max, and that wasn’t very often, maybe twice a year when she felt like giving dieting a go. How long had they been in the gym? Hours? She was so ready to go home and crash.
Finally, Earadessa came in with more towels and bags of blood. “Okay, ladies, what you have done today should be a daily routine.”
If Tanya had to endure this crap everyday she wouldn’t have to worry about Damion’s minions killing her, she’d die at the hands of those she considered family.
“Excuse me, a daily what?” Makinzee was so out of breath her words were barely audible.
“Let me put it to you like this.” Stepping up to his beloved’s side, Sabastian said, “In your new life, it’s you or them. Get tough or get KO’d.”
“KO’d?” Tanya felt dumb for having to ask for the meaning.
Sabastian shrugged his shoulders as he turned away from them. “Killed off.”
Oh.
That wasn’t at all what she expected to hear, though she should have considering their current state of affairs. “So, what defensive moves are we supposed to be practicing?” Regardless that she was ready to get back to their room, she was anxious. Not anxious as in ready for it but as in scared out of her wits.
“Tanya,” Makinzee whined.
“What, Makinzee? We have a battle ahead of us, and none of us are prepared for it.” Turning back to Sabastian, Tanya noticed him eyeing her and Makinzee. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that strengthening your body isn’t useful. I just don’t see how it will help me to block a punch to the face.” That was the thing, Tanya didn’t see the need to concentrate on getting physically fit, she needed to work on self-defense.
“Follow me, and we’ll get started on the good stuff.” Sabastian, with his back still to them, began walking out of the weight room.
They followed him down a long hallway and up a set of stairs. Tanya’s muscles screamed in agony with every step she took. At the top of the staircase was an enormous room. It looked like it was a room used to teach cardio classes. There were those large white balls on one side of the room. On the other side were stepping blocks, the ones you see those perky instructors step on with such energy during aerobics.
To make matters worse, all four walls of this room were nothing but mirrors. Great, not only could Tanya see how ridiculous she looked but so could everyone else.
Sabastian stood at the front of the room. “I’m going to go over some basic moves with you. As long as you put your body weight into it, anything you do will overpower any opponent. It’s not size or strength that matters, its technique.”
Earadessa stood at his side. “When you throw a punch, make sure you keep your thumb tucked in just like this.” She illustrated making a proper fist. “If you fail to do this you will most likely find yourself with a broken thumb and overtaken by your attacker.”
Tanya followed Earadessa’s instructions. Though she did everything right, she felt like a fool. Maybe that was her introvert talking.
Sabastian gave them a moment to practice before speaking. “Okay, now look up here.” When all eyes were on him, he gave them their next instruction. “When you swing your fist, I want you to pivot your body and throw your weight into the punch.” He and Earadessa faced each other.
“You will face the enemy like this, with your dominant side slightly to the back. If you are left handed then you will place your right foot just enough in front so that when you throw your punch your body will twist, allowing your weight to be the driving force.” Earadessa slowly threw a punch at Sabastian so the five of them could see how to move their bodies.
The two of them demonstrated the stance several times, slowly so the girls could mimic their moves. Tanya hated practicing in front of the others. Fear of what they thought of her gripped her and she constantly looked in the mirrors to see who was judging her.
“Okay.” Sabastian pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it on the floor. “You girls just practice this one stance for a few minutes. When I feel that you’ve mastered it, then we’ll move on to the next.”
Sabastian walked around the room, examining them up close. When he stood near Tanya, she wanted to bolt from the room. She knew how ridiculous she looked. Having him watching was like being thrown in the lion’s den.
“Muy bien.” Earadessa clapped and smiled at them. “You’re doing excellent. You five are very fast learners.”
Once again, she and Sabastian faced one another.
“Once you punch, immediately bring your dominant foot up. You will want to kick as hard as possible. Again, keep in mind that your weight is the key.” Earadessa got in her stance, punching Sabastian. In the same instant, she brought her foot up and kicked him square in the face. Since this was for demonstration, her kick was measured and slow.
That looked easy enough. Surely Tanya could pull that off.
“Your punch will stun your attacker momentarily, giving you the chance to kick. This kick will provide you with the prime opportunity to grab the back of their head and bring it down as you bring your knee up.” Sabastian posed for attack as Earadessa demonstrated the moves.
“I can’t stress this enough,” Earadessa said. “You have to give it your all. This will knock the wind out of them, giving you the chance to swipe their feet out from under them. Once they are down, continuously kick them until they are unconscious or until you have help.”
“Alright, pick your partner.” Sabastian pointed at them. “It’s time to spar.”
Of course, Tanya teamed up with Dannika. Makinzee chose Regina, leaving Serienna with Earadessa. They practiced this routine for thirty minutes, rotating positions every five minutes. When their time was up, Sabastian handed out the towels and blood bags. “Good. This was an excellent first practice.”
Earadessa wiped her sweaty face. “Now always remember, this is self-defense. Never feel bad for protecting yourself. In this life, it’s you or them. If, by some chance, you get knocked down, don’t give up. You just find your opportunity and start from the beginning of what you’ve learned here today.”
“Yes.” Sabastian smiled with approval. “Your next lesson will be on seeing without the use of your eyes.”
How was he going to teach them to see without their eyes? “But how is that even possible, Sabastian?” Tanya didn’t understand, a person needed eyeballs to see. Seeing with them was just unnatural. Then again, so were vampires.
Even as questions swirled in her mind, she remembered a movie she’d once seen where the main character could do just that. He was a martial artist and had trained himself to picture what he heard. By listening to his surroundings, he could mentally see his opponent and the approaching attacks. Was this what Sabastian meant?
“It’s actually very simple and with the way you girls are learning, it won’t take you long to master it. We’ll practice again in the morning.” Sabastian left the room in search of the manager to thank him once again for renting out the gym.
Chapter Forty-Six
The conversation on their way back to the hotel was a debate on whether they should see a movie or venture out for the concert. Tanya sat in the backseat quietly, listening to the argument between Regina and Serienna.
Serienna was all for seeing a movie. So was Tanya, the newest Beauty and the Beast was out. Of course, Regina wanted nothing other than the concert. Their back and forth argument continued until Tanya began to feel a slight thumping in the back of her skull.
Earadessa turned in her seat to say something to them when she caught Tanya’s agonized gaze. Raising a hand, she whistled loud enough to bring the two to a halt. Her voice never displayed any anger, but it was made perfectly clear that they were behaving like little children and needed to stop the bickering. “Enough. The decision has already been made. We’re going to the concert. It’s been too long since I’ve been to one, and I’m looking forward to it.”
Sabastian turned into the hotel parking lot, and Dannika began shaking uncontrollably. “Stop. We have to leave.” Opening her eyes in horror, she said. “Now.”
Earadessa whipped her head around toward Tanya. “Did you see anything?”
Tanya shook her head. She hadn’t had any visions since leaving Earadessa’s house. This was a total surprise to her as well.
“Okay, they probably aren’t here to kill us then.” Earadessa turned her gaze back to Dannika. “Can you hear what they’re thinking?”
“No, that’s what’s so scary.” She was still shaking, and now tears were seeping from her eyes. “I can sense them, but that’s it. They feel dark, but I can’t tell whether they have evil intentions.”
Sabastian’s eyes roamed over the entire parking area. Pulling the SUV to an isolated section at the very end next to the road, he parked. His eyes kept skimming the premises, looking for anyt
hing unfamiliar or out of place.
“Dess, if I say run, then you drive. Don’t even look for me. I’m going to check this out.” He got out and mouthed I love you to her as she scooted into the driver’s seat.
They watched him walk away from their vehicle, both hands balled into fists. His steps were slow and measured, his eyes constantly scanning his surroundings. As he neared the front entrance he froze.
“Why did he stop?” Serienna sounded like she was on the verge of crying.
“Because, Serienna, they’re not in the front.” Earadessa’s voice was soft, soothing, but her grip on the steering wheel was so tight her knuckles turned white.
Tanya looked out the window toward Sabastian. He lifted his head, smelling the air around him and then turned and began walking, slowly, to the back of the hotel. Staying away from the shadows so they could see him, he approached their possible enemy.
Anticipation was high as they sat in the enclosure of the vehicle, watching and waiting. Tanya’s heart thumped in her ears, and her palms grew sweaty.
“Dessa, can you tell what’s going on?” By this time, Serienna’s breathing had accelerated to the point Tanya feared she may faint. “Is it bad? Please, tell me that he’ll be okay.”
Tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Finally, Earadessa breathed a sigh of relief, and Tanya was able to relax a little. Tapping her fingernails on the steering wheel, Earadessa told them what they’d been waiting to hear. “There were only two of them. Don’t worry, they had no ill intentions.”
Placing her hand on her forehead, Dannika let out a long breath and leaned back in her seat. “I don’t understand. Why did I feel darkness if they weren’t here to kill us?”
“You felt the darkness in them because they are our enemy.” Earadessa glanced into the rearview mirror. “They claim to be tired of being Damion’s puppets.” She paused as she listened to Sabastian’s conversation telepathically.
Princesses of the Night (Royal Blood Book 1) Page 16
