Witchling (Curse of Kin) (14 page)

I pulled back and balled my hand into a fist by my side. He continued to polish the swords, not looking at me as I walked around to face him. “I want to apologize for my outburst. I know that you are only trying to help, and I have a quick temper. You have to realize this is all new to me and some of it, actually all of it, scares the hell out of me. You, apparently, have grown up with all this stuff. You have to give me time to get my head around what is going on and get used to it.”

Bones gazed at me with dark eyes. I tried to keep my mind blank and calm waiting for him to respond. I honestly didn’t really care if he accepted my apology or not. I was doing it for Jasper.

“I understand, Nera, better than you think.” He put down the sword and gave me his full attention. “Even though I grew up using my powers, I can understand why it may be overwhelming for you. I have watched you grow, and I am used to your spirited ways. You will come to accept your powers, and with them, you will accept me and my constant presence as well.” He watched me with a contented smile on his face.

Bones’s glance shifted to the house. I followed his eyes and saw Jasper coming toward us with another longsword in his hands. He held it out to me. I heard Bones’s sharp intake of breath when I accepted it. He watched me carefully while I tested its weight and balance.

“That longsword was made for Pria. It fits you well,” Bones said.

“It does have a good feel to it.” I held it out in front of my body. “Was it ever used in battle?”

“You can tell that yourself. Concentrate on the sword as a whole and feel it deep inside your mind. You will be able to sense the energy and get a picture in your head of what the sword has seen.” Bones dropped the polishing cloth to the table, giving me a challenging lift of his chin.

I looked at him skeptically and raised my eyebrows.

“Try it,” he said. “Stand still, feel the sword in your hands, and let your mind go blank.”

I concentrated, letting the energy from the sword meld with my own. I slowly closed my eyes and relaxed as the images from previous battles started to run through my mind. I could feel Bones come closer to me, and as the sword struck flesh for the first time, he was ready when I opened my eyes, the shock racing through my veins.

With one hand on my shoulder and the other over both of mine, he stopped me from throwing the sword to the ground. I shivered, the carnage too horrible to continue to watch.

“No. I don’t want this. I don’t need to see it.” I trembled, my stomach roiling at the blood that had covered the blade that now hung loosely in my hand.

“Stop for a minute. Do you really think that Jasper gave you this sword just to play with? Use your imagination. This is to be your sword.” Bones held me tight in the comfort of his arms. “Go back and look again. It won’t hurt you, I am here with you.”

I gave him a wary look. This was moving way too fast for me.

“I will protect you. You just have to relax and look, that’s all. The sword demands it. Nothing can hurt you,” Bones said.

“Why do I have to? Haven’t we done enough already? I’m not ready for anymore weird stuff!” I pleaded.

I had never been so frightened. Did the thought of blood scare me? The idea of magic was just starting to settle with me, but the idea of slicing someone open with a sword was something I couldn’t bear to think on.

I closed my eyes and pouted. It only took a few seconds before I was there again. I knew that Bones was with me, holding me steady while I looked. Jasper and his son Rogan were fighting side by side, drawing their longswords through their enemy’s ranks. Caleb was off to one side with soldiers backing him as he fought and cut them down from behind. I watched Pria fighting, holding her own as her sword sliced through the air at their enemies. She was only seventeen, but she could fight with as much force as her brothers. Beside her was a familiar figure. Suddenly I saw what had frightened me again. I watched while Bones was struck down with a vicious blow to his shoulder. The blood poured out of his wounded body, and Jasper hurried to his aid, Pria right behind him, guarding their backs.

I made myself snap out of it and opened my eyes to see him directly in front of me, staring silently. An intense dizziness overwhelmed me; I knew the blood had drained from my face. A thin film of sweat covered my top lip. I felt slightly wild, and I tried to control my breathing but my mouth wouldn’t form the words. The longsword dropped to the ground beside me.

Before Bones could say anything, I grabbed at the collar of his shirt and ripped the soft cotton until his shoulder was bare and exposed. A thick ugly scar ran from the side of his neck, to halfway down his left arm.

He hadn’t moved a muscle, nor spoken a single word. His gaze had not left mine.

“Why did I have to see that?” I was shaking. My throat closed, and in my mind I saw him hurt again and again.

“It was not his doing, Nera.” Jasper came over to me and laid his arm around my shoulders.

“I don’t understand.”

“The sword belongs to you now,” said Jasper. “I think Pria knew who would take over for her. It was she who first saw it would be you who would continue the fight.” Jasper had told me of her ability to see the future. It scared me to think that she knew what was in store for me.

“But why did I have to see Bones getting hurt? What good could that possibly do but scare the hell out of me?” My heart raced madly, my panic once again coming to the surface.

Bones and Jasper shared a glance. I felt invisible, so intent where they on each other and whatever was passing between them.

Finally Jasper spoke. “I think that it was shown to you as a warning. Bones is your protector now, but I feel that you will be watching his back also as time goes on—forging a partnership with a strong bond. He survived that battle and many more besides, but that may not always be the case, girl dear.”

“But that actually happened?” I was still looking at Bones shoulder, my gaze locked onto his bare skin.

“Yes, it did. And I survived it thanks to Lady Leona’s healing powers. Now moving on, Nera, it is said that a dog picks his or her own master, just as Hugo chose you. This longsword is special. It was Pria’s, only hers. No one else could pick it up and hold it for more than a few seconds. The feeling that it gave out was distasteful to others. Now it is yours and you must learn to weld it as easily as you saw her do. Once again, the teaching falls to me.”

Finally composed, I stared at him, trying to keep my face blank. “Why do I even need to know this? Can’t I just zap anything that gets in my way?”

“We cannot predict what battles will come this way,” Jasper said. “It is written that you will be the master of many skills. The longsword is just one of them, as is the magic. And don’t forget it is part of the god’s culture for a reason. Besides, it will be fun to learn.”

The small smile he gave me was a challenge. I totally ignored the comment about learning and honed in on one thing. One that he knew I would not refuse, because he knew I was hooked after just a few lessons.

“Let’s try this out then, shall we?” I challenged Bones. I moved over to the clear area of the garden and smiled encouragingly at him.

He gazed between me to Jasper before he pulled the ruined shirt over his head and picked up his sword, and I swear, almost swaggered over to where I was waiting.
Breathe, just breathe.
I had to concentrate on the task ahead, not the half-naked god in front of me.

“I promise to go easy on you, Nera.”

“Don’t bother, Bones. Remember, I have to learn this.” I was careful to keep my mind blank. “I will hardly get better if you don’t push me.”

Besides that, I hated being pandered to just for being a girl. I had always been and always would be more of a tomboy than a fluffy female. I joked with Brie that she got all my girly genes.

I placed my feet as I had been shown and held my sword, point up toward Bones. He let me cut first and easily blocked my move. We circled each other, cutting and blocking, picking up speed as we went. My confidence was building each time I managed to block his attack and I thanked god I was quick on my feet.

I was smiling, taunting him when he struck with a blow that left me stunned. My cockiness had come back to bite me. I stood shocked at the force that rippled through my body down to my toes. My teeth felt like they had come loose, and my ears were ringing. I could hear laughter coming from both sides of me. When I felt solid enough on my feet, I glanced around to see both men beside themselves at my predicament.

“Oh, girl dear.” Jasper was almost doubled over laughing. “If only you could see your face.”

“Sorry, Nera, but you did say don’t hold back.”

“No, that’s right, I did.” My ears were coming right and I could feel that I wasn’t shaking so much anymore. “That was unbelievable, Bones. I didn’t know that a sword could pack so much of a punch. The power behind the blade is incredible. No wonder they did so much damage in the middle ages. Makes you wonder why they even bothered to invent the gun with this being so deadly!”

“You must remember that you need to be much closer to your opponent to cause damage,” Bones said. “Want to keep going?”

“What do you think?” I gripped my sword, ready again.

Jasper sat back and watched while Bones and I battled hard. After what seemed like a long five minutes, the sweat was running down my face and I felt my energy flagging. When Bones signaled to stop, I didn’t argue with him. I flopped down on the grass, the sword by my side and I let my body relax.

“You are certainly picking it up.” Bones squatted beside me, a light sheen of sweat covering his pale chest. “I hope that you will ask me to practice any time that you have available. It is important that it becomes second nature to you.”

“Well, the way I feel right now, that shouldn’t be too hard. I love it. The power that I get when I pick up the sword is addictive stuff.”

“The sport itself is reason enough, but I also think that it has a lot to do with the weapon you are using too.” He indicted the sword lying beside me on the grass.

“Whatever the reason, I love it. I hate to leave like this, but I think it is time I went and apologized to Mom and Dad for my outburst this morning.”

“You had every reason to, girl dear, but I’m sure your parents would be only too pleased to see that you have weathered the episode and come out the other side the usual Nera that we all know and love.” Jasper reached down and grabbed my hand. Pulling me to my feet, he held me close in a tight hug.

It’s not a wonder I love this man.

He always made me feel better. I looked over to Bones and resisted the urge to give him one too. We were a very touchy-feely family, but something kept me from treating him the same way, especially looking like he did shirtless. Instead, I smiled and thanked him for the day.

I whistled to Hugo and took the path home, toward my stressed-out parents.

Mom was in the garden when I arrived. I walked into her arms, words were not necessary between us. I breathed in the smell of her familiar perfume and refused to let the stress of the morning return. It had been dealt with, and I was free of the pain, if not the humiliation. It was time to move on.

Over dinner, Dad tried to talk me into having another day off school, but the more I thought about it, the more determined I was that Connor was not going to scare me off.

“If I don’t stand up for myself now, I’m scared it will just be harder when I do go back. I’d rather go to school tomorrow.”

***

I did my normal prebreakfast run in the morning, my nerves a little on edge as I thought about the day ahead. Mom calmly wished me well, and I left to catch the bus.

I stood in the drizzle, waiting for the bus to arrive. When it pulled up, I took a deep breath and climbed the steps. I headed down to the back of the bus where I usually sat.. Connor’s seat was noticeably empty. His friends sneered at me when I walked past.

“Fecking tease,” Rory, one of the lads mumbled.

I cast him a deathly cold stare, focusing on his needling voice. His face started to turn red. He grabbed at his throat as tears ran down his face. I stood there, my head tilted to one side, my focus entirely on his throat. When the bus lurched forward onto the road again my attention wavered. I raised my eyebrow at him, smiled, and continued to the back of the bus.

Brie grabbed me and pulled me down between her and Sully.

“What did you do to him, Nera?”

I could hear Rory coughing hard. “Nothing.”

“You did, I could see it on your face,” Sully said matter-of-factly.

“He couldn’t breathe, Nera!” Brie whispered vehemently.

I looked at both of them and gazed up to the front of the bus to where Connor’s friends were smacking Rory on the back. A couple turned back toward me, their expressions a mix of fear and disgust. I could hear the words their thoughts directed at me:
witch, evil, cursed, fecking tease, get her again, slag.

I screwed up my eyes and rubbed my hands over my ears. How could anybody deal with this? It hurt my head so bad I thought my eyes would bleed. I tried to recall what Bones said about cutting it out and tried to clear my mind. Mom’s meditation music came to mind. I imagined the peaceful water fall and the bubbling water tinkling over the rocks, until the noises stopped.