Chapter 20

“Wakey, wakey.”

Sylvie started awake, her bleary eyes slowly focusing on the grinning face of Rosie crouched at her side.

She looked around, expecting Kian, but he was nowhere in sight. A sharp jolt of panic hit when Rosie said, “He left when I got here. Said something about wards around the cabins.”

Sighing with relief, she sat and brushed the foliage from her hair. The ground wasn’t the cleanest bed, and she had no idea how she slept so easily. For once, Sylvie felt refreshed. “What time is it?”

“Exactly nine-o-two. You told me not to wake you before nine, so....”

She paused, blinking innocently, and Sylvie laughed softly. “You’re right. I did say that. Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. Come for breakfast?”

Her stomach rumbled in response, and Rosie chuckled. “C’mon. It’s a picnic by the lake. Take what you want, and I’ll find us somewhere to sit.”

All the instructions made Sylvie’s head spin as she stood and wobbled past the now-dying fire, the red embers crackling softly.

Along the border where forest dirt met lake sediment, a long table stood, covered in an array of breakfast items. A steaming pot filled with what smelled like rolled oats sat in the middle, surrounded by smaller bowls of fruit, while the outer edges had platers with mini sandwiches and assorted meats.

Sylvie grabbed a small paper plate and stacked it with fruits and sandwiches, smiling warmly at the nearby shifters and shuffled over to where Rosie sat.

“You aren’t gonna eat?”

“No. I already ate. Most of us have, but Rowan said not to wake you.”

Sylvie’s face flushed with embarrassment. “You should’ve woken me. I don’t want to stick out as some clueless intruder.”

“You aren’t. And besides, we could never go against a direct order from our Alpha. It’s not in our nature; not good manners either, even for mates. ‘A mated pair should show a unified front,’ is what my mother used to say. No undermining of each other.”

With a rueful smile, she continued. “None of us would judge you anyhow. Except maybe Claudine.” Rosies’s voice lowered conspiratorially. “She always hoped Rowan would choose her to be his partner, and I think it was gonna happen, but Rowan found you and the rest is history, right?”

Jealousy spiked in Sylvie’s heart as she swallowed a grape. “Were they... a couple? Did they- you know-”

“Uh, no, I don’t think they did. But they were close.” Rosie flushed bright red and turned her body away. “Don’t worry about her, though. She wouldn’t do anything. I think.”

Sylvie sighed and sat in silence as she ate. Not another woman to ‘compete’ with. She never wanted to be in this situation anyway, so maybe if she talked to Claudine, she wouldn’t be stuck in another Lazuli situation.

Rosie stood and offered her hand as she finished up, pulling Sylvie to her feet. “Okay, what first? Do you want to do archery or hand-to-hand?”

“Shouldn’t I change first?”

Rosie looked her up and down, sniffing lightly. “You smell nice- a little bit like lake water, but mostly nice.”

Shrugging, Sylvie put her paper plate in the black rubbish bag beside the table and followed Rosie back towards the cabins. “Hand-to-hand combat could be a good start.”

Sylvie hadn’t practised her Muay Thai skills since the Evergreen court and was itching to get back into it. She smiled at Rosie’s excited nod and followed her past the main house down a parallel path that weaved for a few minutes, then opened into a patch of dirt.

Through a line of trees, Sylvie could see another square dirt patch beside it and so on until she couldn’t see any farther. Inside each square, a pair of shifters fought, grappled and prowled around the yard. Their muscular bodies moved gracefully as they met in a flurry of blows and kicks.

“Wow.”

“We’ve always been interested in pushing our bodies to the limits,” Rosie said. “But we became more regimented after the first Vampire attack. We had to. It wasn’t enough to just be strong and venomous to the Vampires; we had to be fast too.”

“Sounds like a lot of work.”

“Mhmm.” Rosie pulled her into a free square and started jogging, moving around in circles and changing her position occasionally. “Copy me.”

Soon enough, Sylvie worked up a sweat, and her heart pumped loudly. It had been a while. A really long while.

Rosie raised her hands beside her face and bounced lightly on her feet. Despite her gentle and unassuming nature, she was a natural fighter.

Sylvie suppressed a smile and mirrored her pose, altering it slightly with a more comfortable stance.

“Good. Do you know any combos?”

“Some.”

Rosie’s brows shot up. She wasn’t expecting that answer. The response created a smidgen of pride in Sylvie. Now she could only hope she lived up to the expectation she had of herself.

“Show me,” Rosie said.

With one last shake of her limbs, Sylvie approached, keeping her stance spread and the weight light on her toes. “Full power?”

Rosie grinned, a twinkle in her eye. “Go on.”

Without warning, Sylvie threw a hard jab to her head, forcing Rosie’s guard to rise and giving Sylvie the opening she hoped for. She rained hits on Rosie’s midsection, only getting in two hits before Rosie leapt out of range and circled, offering a few jabs of her own. Unlike Sylvie, every one of her hits struck true, and pain leapt like fire from every point of contact.

“Fuck, you hit hard.”

“You too,” Rosie said. “Not bad form either.”

A few shifters watched from the sidelines and seemed to share the sentiment. Except for one set of teal eyes that narrowed and stared with a scowl. Probably Claudine. The beautiful strawberry blonde stood with crossed arms and seemed to be muttering quietly to another shifter at her side. Sylvie wondered what kind of shifter she might be, but Rosie recaptured her attention.

“Do you know any groundwork? Grappling?”

“Uh, no. Not really.”

She beamed. “Awesome, let me teach you my favourites. They moved through the motions of a sleeper hold, arm bar and triangle choke, making sure each step of the move was repeated multiple times as Sylvie listed them aloud. By midday, both women were coated in sweat and dirt, their bodies screaming for food and a wash.

The crowd they had gathered around them was rather impressive too. The older shifters nodded approvingly as Sylvie picked up on the grapples and executed them. By the end of the session, she discovered multiple ways to get in and out of each move which she achieved with growing speed and grace. Perhaps the layer of sweat helped her slip free half of the time, but she was enjoying the practice.

“She’s a fast learner.”

“Lunch is ready when you are, Rose.”

“Thanks!” Rosie called after them as they filed away. Sylvie panted on the dirt, using her fingers to scrape the dust from her tear ducts. “I’m gonna need a shower.”

“Jump in the lake. We’ve still got archery to go. And a run.”

Groaning but secretly loving the challenge, Sylvie stood and followed Rosie back to the lake, pointedly avoiding eye contact with Rowan as she spotted him stoking the fire in the midday sun.

His shirtless body glistened with sweat as he chopped thick logs with an axe. The way his tattoos stretched and flexed from his actions were mesmerising, and Sylvie had to wrench her gaze away before running headlong into the lake and diving under the crystalline waters ensuring her feet could still touch the bottom.

The water was much warmer in the daytime, and only then did she remember the incident of the night before and the mysterious Mattias to whom she mouthed off. Surfacing with a hissing exhale, she spun and pushed her hair away from her face, nearly disappearing beneath the surface when she locked eyes with Rowan.

From her distance, she wasn’t sure if he knew she was watching him, but from his unwavering gaze, she assumed he did. With a blink and a tentative steadying on the pebbled lake floor, she leaned her head back and stared at the fluffy cumulous clouds bumbling across the sky.

She hoped the tiger shifter wouldn’t show up again. It seemed Rowan had enough on his plate with the vampires, an unexpected mate and probably a spurned lover. Said ‘lover’, who hadn’t stopped staring at Sylvie since her training session with Rosie. She’d probably have to deal with that soon.

“Hey, Vee. I’ve got you lunch!”

Sylvie tilted upright and blinked over at Rosie. “Are you gonna eat too this time?”

“Yes. Only if you hurry up, though. I’m starving.”

She wadded back to shore, dripping wet when she reached her lunch platter. “I don’t have a towel,” she said sheepishly.

“Here, princess.” Kian appeared from thin air with two towels; one wrapped around her, and the other he lay on the ground for her to sit on.

“Thank-”

He stopped her with a kiss which she melted into and smiled against, her teeth bumping his. “Oops, sorry.”

Rolling his eyes, he squeezed her, forcing a fit of giggles and a few frowns from the nearby shifters. She stifled her joy quickly and detangled herself from him, sitting opposite Rosie, who nibbled on some bread. Kian tucked a wet strand behind her ear and stepped away. “I’ll come back soon. I’ve got one more ward to complete.”

Sylvie nodded, still conscious of the furrowed brows and idle chatter surrounding her.

Rosie tapped her lightly on the leg. “Don’t pay them any mind. They don’t know what to make of it, is all.”

“Of what?”

“As far as I know, the Fates only ever bonded two people at a time. Of course, I was the last shifter born, so I don’t exactly know what it was like around the Division, but these old prudes probably aren’t used to the idea of multiple mates. I mean, even I’m impressed. Three men? I can’t even keep one.” She chuckled and nibbled at her food, eyeing Sylvie questioningly.

Swallowing a mouthful of mysterious but delicious stew, she smiled, exhaling from her nose. “Neither could I before them. Elias and Kian were my bosses until they figured out who I was to them. Rowan knew straight away, though, even if I hated the thought of it. I mean, two was enough.” Sylvie stuttered on the word was, realising the change in her heart. She still hadn’t forgiven him, but she wasn’t as opposed to him anymore.

Rosie chuckled lightly. “Perks of being a shifter is we can scent out our mates, or so I’ve been told. It’s been so long since a true-mated pair existed; Rowan must’ve had a hell of a shock.”

“That makes two of us.”

She could still remember his expression that morning, filled with open hatred and disgust. A lot had changed.

Rosie polished off her plate and flicked Sylvie’s knee. “Ready for round two?”