Moon Tortured (Sky Brooks Series Book 1)

by McKenzie Hunter

  My body ached and I hoped my skin would eventually change from its deep raspberry and blue that covered most of my upper body.

  “Get your ass up now!” Winter commanded angrily.

  I didn’t move, my body refusing to be subjected to further abuse. I needed some time to embrace the defeat. “Fine. I’m done here,” she stated walking away.

  “Wait.” I urged, hobbling to my feet.

  When she turned to face me, I was met with hostile eyes. Charging at me, she pushed me to the ground. She locked both my arms and legs, rendering me immobile. Leaning into me, she sneered. “How does it feel to know that you are this helpless? You’re nothing more than a victim … prey, unable to protect yourself from the things that hunt you. Embrace it; own the powerlessness, because it’s yours to bear. It’s what you are—a perpetual victim. You make me sick,” she hissed inches from my face.

  She released me. As she stood over me, her loathing rushed over her in a wave. Shaking her head slowly, she spoke in a rough voice, “It’s not hard. The only thing you have to do is stop me from kicking your ass. Protect yourself. You’ve shown the ability to perform the techniques with textbook precision, yet you suck at integrating it to defend yourself. I can’t work with this. You are a pitiful excuse for a were-animal. A greater species? Hmm, I think not. ” She headed toward the door.

  If things were as they should be, I would be at home with a significant other or friends enjoying a simple human life. Full moons would be nothing more than a lunar phase and Winter would be gracing the pages of numerous fashion magazines as nothing more than another overpaid and underfed model. If things were as they should be. But they weren’t. Instead, she was here, a constant reminder that I was defenseless in this world. I was part of the greater species that had proven to be anything but great.

  No, things weren’t as they should be, and the reality of it hit me hard. It was a cold rude awakening, slapping me in the face—it angered me.

  “Go ahead and leave, you sadistic, narcissistic bitch!” I snapped, coming to my feet. She stopped abruptly and turned, seemingly less surprised by my outburst than I was. “Nine days you have trained me, which should have been eleven; but you were so disappointed that I didn’t meet your unreasonable expectations that you stood me up two days in a row. Daily you have beaten the hell out of me and not once did I give up, though I assure you I wanted to. You have been unnecessarily cruel and exceeding brutal. I have done everything I could to meet that challenge. I never asked you to treat me with any form of mercy. At some point, you could have pretended to possess some shard of human decency and not gain so much pleasure in bringing me pain. I am not your enemy, but you treat me as such. I asked for your help and you made me wish I hadn’t every moment. I think I have earned some level of patience from you. If you want to give up, fine—do it. But know that it is not my failure, it’s yours.”

  She was now standing inches from me with an indiscernible look on her face. I was so enraged that the fear of her retaliation was the furthest thing from my mind. “I am tired, my body aches, and as disappointed as you may be with me, I assure you it cannot be any more than I am with myself. You think I don’t want to kick your ass? Believe me, I do. You deserve it.” I was fuming at this point, grinding out each word through clenched teeth.

  “Then do it.” She challenged in a brusque voice as she took a step closer to me. We stood nose to nose.

  I took a step back and jabbed which she blocked with little effort but missed the second blow that hit hard against her face. A spin-kick landed hard against her side and she stumbled. When I attempted a sweep, she blocked it, countering with a strike that sent me tumbling to the floor for what seemed like the hundredth time that day. She leaned in, “Know that if you can’t do better than this, I will be the only one walking out of this gym today. I will break you, like I did Gabriella, into little pieces,” she barked angrily in my ear.

  I lay there, once again defeated and hurting. My desire to jump up and give her the beating she deserved didn’t trump the utter feeling of abject failure.

  “That was a wonderful speech you gave. Almost epic. Too bad it’s not like in the movies where you make this dramatic speech that leads the underdog to victory. Here you need to actually have skills to win. You are not the first person I’ve trained, just the slowest to adapt. Sorry but it isn’t my failure. It is all yours. Get. Up. Now.”

  I looked at the door, seriously considering what my chances were of making it before Winter stopped me in the most painful manner possible. Perhaps she was right. I was always going to be prey. Predatory behavior was innate to them. Why was this so hard for me? I was stronger than her, and at some point, I should have dominated her at least once. I gently touched my bruised swollen face.

  “Fine,” she stated in a calm voice. “Don’t get up.” She hit me in the face and then again and again. By the third time, everything was numb and I barely felt her fist smashing into my face. When she went to hit me again, I blocked and countered with a sharp strike into her nose. She looked surprised as she faltered back and covered it. She pulled back blood, smiled and wiped it away. A look swept over her face … respect? But it was gone so quickly, that it could have easily been missed and even misinterpreted.

  I came to my feet and attacked her with everything I had. It ended with her locked in a hold. I had no idea where to go from there. It was intended to dislocate the joint but I wasn’t able to get the hold entirely correct, leaving two advantage points. If I saw them, I knew she had to as well. The only thing holding her in that position was force and my desire not to be pummeled by her again.

  When she broke the hold, we came to our feet almost simultaneously. “See how hard was that? You brought it. That is all I was asking.” I was a better defensive fighter. While I waited for her to attack, I admired my handiwork. Winter had bloodstains from the nosebleed, a black eye and some minor bruising on her arms and face. I am sure I looked a lot worse.

  “Are you ready to give up?” she asked.

  I shook my head.

  “Good. But we are done for now. Go see Jeremy; he’ll give you something that will have those bruises healed in no time. He’s like a mad scientist with all types of questionable concoctions. Don’t question the stuff; just take it,” she admitted before leaving. Once I was sure she was gone, I collapsed back onto the mat.

  I showered instead of going to see Dr. Baker. Someone knocked on the door as I examined the extent of my bruises. I looked as though I had gone through the windshield of a car or worse. My whole body was a giant bruise.

  When I opened the door, Ethan was leaning against it. “How bad does it hurt?” he asked with a frown as he walked in. I cringed as he gently touched the bruises on my face. No matter how gentle the touch, they hurt.

  “I’ve never been hit by a car but I’m willing to bet it feels a lot like this,” I stated, forcing a smile onto my swollen lips.

  “Put this on your face,” Steven suggested, holding up a cold pack as he walked into the room. He stopped for a moment to take in my appearance. He made a soft whistling sound as he held the cold pack against my lips.

  “You should see the other guy,” I muttered through freezing lips.

  “I have seen the other guy, and unless Winter is suffering from internal injuries, then she fared well. Have you gone to see Dr. Baker?” Steven said with a smirk.

  “Not yet.”

  “Make sure you do. I can’t begin to imagine what you are going to look like in the morning.” Steven frowned, looking away from my battered appearance.

  “No matter how good you are, you will never beat Winter. She has to win at all costs and cheats when she begins to lose,” Steven stated, loud enough to be heard outside the room. He must have known she was close.

  “I do not!” Winter retorted from down the hall.

  When she walked into the room, she had a small jar in her hand. Showered and dressed, it didn’t look like we were involved in the same fight. Ethan’s lips twist
ed up into a crooked smile. “Winter, you do cheat,” he taunted. “You changed to animal form the last time we sparred, and that, my dear, is cheating.”

  “Really. I’m a snake, how is that cheating?” she responded with a playful smirk.

  “It wouldn’t be cheating if you went into midform and was just a cute little four inch snake, but when you change to true form and I’m fighting a five-foot venomous snake, then that is cheating. And don’t forget the fact that you poisoned me.”

  She smiled coyly, “It’s still not cheating if the person you’re fighting is over five feet.”

  “You poisoned me!”

  “I was there. I don’t need the recap. It happened six months ago. It’s time to let it go. Besides, you were paralyzed for like what … five minutes. No need to whine about it,” she huffed as she handed him the jar and started to walk out of the room. She reversed back toward us, “I’ll meet you in the gym at noon. You need to convince me it wasn’t a fluke.”

  Once Steven left, Ethan opened the jar and turned his nose at the pungent odor. “Are you sure you want this stuff on you?”

  “Does it work?”

  He shrugged. “I’ve never been bruised to the point I needed it. And if I were, I doubt I would care,” he stated.

  “Look at me. I am willing to try anything,” I admitted, taking another whiff of the cream and frowning.

  I pulled away when he started to lift my shirt. “I can do it,” I informed him taking the jar from his hand.

  He snatched it back, “What about the bruises on your back.” He nudged me around and I pulled up my shirt. “Do you feel better now that you have been Winter’s whipping girl for the past week or so,” he asked.

  “How many fights have you had in your life?”

  “I have no idea.”

  “Technically I haven’t had any. I have been pounced on by Gabriella and Michaela and I killed a human because of my unfair advantage. I’ve been brought into a world that I eagerly await to leave, but until then I don’t like being the victim. When trouble finds me, should I wait around for my knights in furry armor to swoop in and save me?” I asked taking the ointment from him and applying it to my face.

  “I swoop?”

  “Yeah, but it involves a lot of growling, snarling and making your trademark angry face. And I must not forget the eyes, the scariest thing of all.” I tried to grin, but my face hurt too much to make more of an effort.

  He took a seat and I wondered what about me gave him the impression I wanted company. Staring at me for a long moment, he eventually averted his eyes. “You look terrible.”

  “Apparently that’s the general consensus,” I stated, taking a quick look in the mirror. I slathered the cream on so thick that it looked pasty on my skin. I took several aspirins out and swallowed them without water.

  “You know what drives Winter to be as good as she is?” he asked.

  Pure unadulterated bitchiness and a little bit of crazy.

  “She’s a lesser species and a very attractive woman. She thinks that everyone underestimates her because of it. It really pisses her off.”

  “Well, do you?” I asked earnestly.

  “I’ve known Winter for a very long time; I knew what she was capable of then, and I have seen what she is capable of now. Only a fool would underestimate her. There are very few fools in this pack, but quite a few exist in the world. Those who do underestimate her, do so at their peril,” he stated.

  “What drives you to be the way you are?”

  Raising his brow, “Do I interest you?” he asked smugly.

  “Among other things, I find the were-animals quite interesting. Yes, it interests me that you maintain your position among a group where being the most dominate matters. What drives you to do this?”

  “I am not challenged often because I make it known that the challenge for my position is to the death. Most are not willing to wager their life that they will beat me,” he admitted self-assuredly.

  I smiled, although I didn’t find anything amusing about this new discovery. “Like in a game of poker where you raise the ante enough to force the challenger to fold,” I stated.

  “That analogy implies that I am not playing with a winning hand, and that I buy myself out of the situation with the threat of potential death. I am in my position because I earned it, not because I bluffed my way into it,” he stated firmly. “If the penalty was just an ass kicking, then I would be challenged constantly. Every young member who has something to prove would challenge me. Frankly, I would get bored. There isn’t much pleasure in fighting someone whose skills are markedly inferior to yours.”

  “Winter seems to find immense pleasure in fighting me," I pointed out.

  “She thinks you are weak. She finds pleasure in fighting you because she doesn’t like you. A weak ‘greater species’ irks the hell out of her. It’s a testament to her control that she hasn’t tried to kill you,” he admitted.

  That was control Winter was exhibiting when training with me? I didn’t want to see an out-of-control Winter.

  “Do you think Winter will ever challenge you?” I asked.

  “Yes,” he stated decisively. “And when she does, the stakes will still remain the same.”

  “You’ve known her since she was a child?” I asked finding the concept unsettling.

  “I didn’t say it would be easy,” he stated, coming to his feet. “The same will be true of Steven, who I know will eventually challenge me as well,” he admitted in a relaxed tone before he walked out of the room. At that point, I was at a loss to know how to react to him. It was for that very reason I could never be totally at ease with Ethan. Violence and murder didn’t seem to bother him. And whether you were a lover or a childhood acquaintance, if necessary, your life could be claimed at any point.

  No longer bruised and battered, I continued to train with Winter. And she continued to live up to her badge of honor as queen bitch. Either I had become significantly better over the past days or she did make an effort not to leave me looking as though I were a victim of an automobile crash. I liked to believe that her level of disdain was dwindling. But the marked look of contempt and pleasure every time I crashed to the ground was a rude reality check that I would never find favor with her.

  CHAPTER 13

  Josh rested on the sofa, dark shadows formed around his eyes. His five-o’clock shadow had grown to a light beard. He still pulled off that chaotic sexiness without a quiver. It looked as though he hadn’t rested much in the two weeks he was gone. He sat up and smiled when he heard me walk in the room.

  “Long nights?” I asked.

  He nodded slowly as he leaned back against the sofa. Closing his eyes, he rested his arm over them to block out the light.

  “It’s been done,” he stated in a sluggish voice, responding to Ethan’s approaching footsteps. “London believed she disenchanted it but there is really no way of knowing, except to see the gem in action. She wanted me to let you know that this clears her of all debts and we are never to ask her for assistance again. It was pretty bad. She’s a tough girl and a great teacher. Far more knowledgeable than even the level ones I know. Next time something needs to be disenchanted then I will do it.” He moved his arm to look at Ethan whose face shifted to a scowl at the very idea of it.

  “I called Claudia; she’s expecting us at two,” Ethan informed Josh, who straightened up in the sofa at the mention of this woman.

  “You are always one step ahead of me,” Josh stated with a smile. “Skylar, you’re coming with us,” he informed me, stretching.

  Yay, field trip. I didn’t need another one. Each time I went on one, someone either tried to kill me, scare me, or take a bite out of me.

  At one that afternoon, I fidgeted with my sweater while I waited for Ethan outside the retreat, standing next to Josh. It was an unseasonably warm fall day. On days like this, I would ordinarily go for a hike or even a leisurely jog through the nearest trail, appreciating the gentle tones of bronze, orange and
deep reds as the leaves fluttered to the ground when a strong breeze hit. It seemed like a lifetime since I enjoyed such things and perhaps another lifetime before I could do it again.

  Ethan pulled up in a monstrosity of a vehicle, a dark green Hummer. They stopped making them years ago, yet he somehow acquired one. Every time I had seen one in the past, I always wondered what type of person needed such a vehicle in the city. Now I had my answer.

  “Nice ride. I bet you it’s great on gas and a reasonable choice for navigating through the jungles of the interstate and war-torn suburban neighborhoods,” I said, climbing into the passenger side.

  He cast a look of aggravation in my direction. We drove in silence most of the time while Josh lay down in the back. Ethan periodically looked back at him, obviously concerned. Josh wasn’t looking well these days. When he opened his eyes and caught Ethan looking, he gave him a sideways grin. “Just like college. All night partying and class in the morning,” he responded lightly.

  “Yeah, but I was ashamed of your behavior then, but not so much now,” he stated returning the same grin.

  Would it hurt him to just tell his brother he was proud of him? He should have been because Josh was working his magical ass off and not one time did he complain.

  Fifty minutes later, we stopped in front of a large brick building just off the city’s main street. We walked into a palatial art gallery; track lights illuminated the exquisite modern and abstract art that covered the textured white walls. The floors, a bittersweet color made of crackled cement, added to the eclectic decorum. Unique sofas and uniquely styled benches were placed throughout the gallery. I wasn’t sure if they were for lounging or part of the celebrated art.

  The gallery showcased some of the beloved and most sought-after artists that Chicago had to offer. The inimitable flare of creativity pulsed through the large room. I could stay here the rest of the day surrounded by the artists’ interpretations of beauty and creativity if only to appreciate the sculptures placed throughout the vast gallery.