Page 15 of Demon’s Reign

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Calm down, a voice in the back of my head whispered. I gulped, wiping my sweaty palms on my skirt. I would find a way past my revulsion—I had to. After a moment more of silence, Cassie sat down with a thump beside me, glaring at the head of the table.

Lilitha finally continued. “You may not be the heir, Cassandra, but you have my blood running through your veins. When you do bear a child, they will have just as much of a chance to become my heir as your sister’s, if not more.” Her eyes flicked appreciatively to Alex. He blushed, his eyes glued to the table while his mother’s brows furrowed and a low growl escaped Cassie’s throat.

I grabbed one of her clenched fists from under the table. “Not right now.” The empress had already been pushed quite far. I didn’t want my sister to further invoke her wrath. Cassie exhaled, and Lilitha flashed a triumphant grin.

“Now, drink up, dear daughters. It’s an acquired taste, so you’d better get used to it.”

I released Cassie’s hand, and steeling myself for the worst, snatched up the cup and downed its contents in one gulp. The bitter liquid burned my mouth, scorching my throat. The taste was worse than the smell, like something rotting.

Gagging on the aftertaste, my stomach lurched.Oh no.

Bile rose in my throat, and I lunged from my chair, bolting for the door, but it was too late. Unfortunately, I didn’t make it before being violently sick in one of the empress' perfectly manicured potted plants.

6

Weapon of Choice

Iwasreadytopunch something. After desecrating my mother’s coveted decorations, she’d forced me to re-drink the teathree more times—each ending in the exact same result. I shuddered at the memory, the vile taste still lingering even though I’d thoroughly scrubbed my mouth out.

“Kaleah, focus!” Ari’s voice brought me back to the middle of the training room where I stood on a raised wooden platform. She and Cassie watched from the sidelines beside one of the large blackwood pillars. Ryker remained a ways off, arms crossed, staring at me.

Why’d the empress have to invite him? To show him how incompetent I was? At least he hadn’t been around to witness my earlier humiliation. I tore my gaze away as an elderly man crossed the stage toward me, his white hair braided in a rope down his back, a matching goatee on his chin; Master Yuma, a retired captain of the Emperial army.

“Princess.” The man clasped his hands before him, bending at the waist.

“It’s an honor, Master Yuma,” I said, bowing in turn. I popped back up, bouncing on the balls of my feet. “What will I be learning today? How to use a sword? Throw knives maybe? Ooh, what about those chained stick things? Those look pretty neat.”

Master Yuma cleared his throat, his dark eyes staring as his lips pursed into a hard line. “According to the empress' wishes, there are to be no weapons.”

“Wait, what?” How the heck was I supposed to defend myself or protect my sister if I couldn’t use a weapon?

A smile added lines to Master Yuma’s face. “You do not need a weapon when you can become one.” I cocked an eyebrow, interest piqued.

Master Yuma clasped his hands behind his back and began walking in slow circles around me. “Even if I had years to teach you, weapons would be the last things you’d learn to wield. A weapon is useless if its bearer doesn’t have a solid foundation. Stance, grip, energy, form. These are only a few of the things you must master before a weapon would do you any good. Besides, you need not know how to fight per se, but to defend, and that is what we will be working on this next month.” My shoulders slumped. Though defense would be helpful, what I needed were actual fighting skills.

Master Yuma shot forward with a speed I never would have thought possible for his age and gave me a robust shove. With a sharp gasp, I toppled over onto my backside to the sound of Cassie’s laughter from the sidelines.Ouch.

I looked up wide eyed at the old man standing over me. “What was that for?”

His smile returned. “Thatis the lesson you will master before we move on.”

“What lesson?” I muttered, starting to rise. With a sharp sweep of his leg, Master Yuma sent me back to the floor.

Oof. My lungs emptied of all air as my back hit the floor. Cassie’s mirth died as I glared up at my tormentor.

“Get up,” he challenged.

Okay, old man, I’m ready this time. Inhaling deeply, I jerked upright and away, but before I could blink, he was behind me, tripping my feet out from under me again.

“What’s the point of this?” I fumed, sitting up and dusting off my tunic.

“What do you think the point is?” he asked, his voice grating on my nerves.

“To prove how fast you are—”

“No.” He shot forward so quickly I blinked, and his face was a hair’s breadth from mine. “This is to prove how slowyouare. The whole purpose of this training, and everything we will work on during our time together, is aboutyou,Princess. It has nothing to do with me.”

I gulped, his dark eyes boring into mine. For being so old, he wasn’t the least bit helpless and, quite frankly, he was a bit terrifying.


Tags: J.R. White Paranormal