Blood Warrior (13 page)

When a knock sounded at my door, I knew who it was, so I just told them to come in. Nelly and Jackson entered the room, and I pasted a smile on my face.

Nelly was wearing a jade, cap-sleeved dress that hung down just past her knees.

Her light-brown hair was pulled back into a loose bun and her hazel eyes looked bright and beautiful with the color of the dress. Jackson was wearing almost all black; black dress shirt, black dress pants and a silver tie. His reddish-brown hair was combed back neatly. I had never seen Jack in anything other than his flannel shirts and jeans. My smile turned genuine now.

They looked amazing.

“Hey guys, you look great. What’s up?”

Nelly smiled that beautiful smile of hers, and said, “Why aren’t you getting ready?”

A ceremony was being held for me today for my victory in the fight with Daniel.

Apparently, it was some big honor because not many people were accepted into the Brocken school. I was now an official student at Two Rivers’ Academy for Warriors. Yay.

I shrugged. “I’ve got another hour. I was just about to hop in the shower.”

“Need help?” Jackson asked, with a mischievous smile on his face.

I laughed. Jack could always manage to make me smile. “I think I’ll be okay, but thanks… I guess.”

He smiled and held out a box he’d been holding. “We got something for you.” I took it and shot a suspicious glance at Nelly. She just smiled.

“What is it?” I asked.

She shrugged, “Open it.”

I eyed her warily. “Okay, but if it’s another mystical weapon, I’m not sure that I want it.”

“Well, that depends on your definition of ‘weapon,’” said Jackson.

I pulled the top off of the box and pushed aside the tissue paper inside. Gasping, I asked, “Where did you guys get this?”

It was a black dress. Well, a really, really nice black dress. Pulling it out of the box and holding it up, I saw that there was a silver, glitter-like material subtly mixed in with the black, making it shimmer when it hit the light. It looked like it would stop just above my knees and had thin straps that crossed in the back. It was the nicest piece of clothing I’d ever had.

“We had some money left over,” Nelly smiled. “So we went exploring this morning and found a dress shop. You like?”

Her smile was contagious. “I love,” I said. “Thank you.”

I got up and gave them both a hug, then frowned as a thought came to mind.

Nelly knew what I was thinking and stepped outside the door, returning with another smaller box.

“Come on, sis,” she said, “I wouldn’t forget something that important.” I opened the box and found a pair of black, high-heels inside. I smiled at both of them, my mood suddenly much lighter. There’s nothing like new clothes and shoes to make a girl happy.

“Now go shower, I still have to do your hair and make-up,” Nelly said, pushing me toward the bathroom.

“Yeah,” Jack agreed. “If I’m going to be your escort, you have to look your best.” I shook my head and laughed. When I got out of the shower, Nelly blow-dried my hair and set it into loose curls that hung down my back. She applied mascara and a little bronzer and handed me some lip gloss. When I was finished, I didn’t recognize the girl staring back at me in the mirror. I looked great.

I smiled and was happy when I saw it reach my eyes. The silver on my arm matched perfectly with the silver in my dress, and for the first time since it had appeared, I recognized how beautiful the design really was. I felt like a princess.

Nelly and I opened up the bathroom door and stepped back into the room.

Jackson stood up from my bed, and I smiled when his jaw nearly hit the floor. The black looked good against my tan skin and the dress fit me perfectly, hugging my body in a way that showed how in shape I really was. I sent a silent thank you to my Mother for making me train so hard. I was all muscle and curves, somehow managing to look strong and feminine at the same time.

I laughed at Jackson’s expression. “Think I look good enough to have the honor of being escorted by Jackson Kane?”

A smile lit up his handsome face and he gave an extravagant bow. “Yes, mam,” he said, with his soft country accent. “And the honor is all mine.” We left the dorm and began heading toward the Council building, where the ceremony was being held. I tried not to let thoughts of the last time I was here ruin my mood. I just wanted to enjoy being with my loved ones and being dressed up.

“Lex,” Nelly said, when we were about halfway to our destination. I leaned forward so that I could see around Jack, who had his arm looped through mine. She sounded nervous about something.

“Hmm?”

“I have to tell you something,” she continued.

I pulled Jackson to a stop and turned so I could look at her. Then, someone called her name and I whipped around to see who it was.

“Nelly!”

My heart sank as I saw who was jogging toward us. I felt like laughing, since that was my usual reaction to tense situations. Daniel was striding toward us with a big smile on his face. Now that we weren’t facing each other in the Arena of Tears- that was the name I’d made up for it- I got to see how handsome he really was, even though his face was still marred with black and blue and red. He was wearing a jade-green shirt, black pants and a black tie. His eyes were so light a brown that they almost looked yellow and his brown hair was tousled in a way that made him look boyishly cute.

And he was looking at my sister like she’d hung the stars and the moon.

When he reached us, he gave Nelly a shy kiss on the forehead and Jackson one of those secret-code handshakes. I just stood there staring. It was obvious what was happening, but I couldn’t seem to wrap my mind around it. No way was the guy who I’d beat the crap out of dating my sister. No. Way.

Daniel turned to me and smiled sincerely. I’m not sure what my face looked like, though I would assume shocked would just about cover it, but he laughed and held out his hand.

“Alexa,” he said, giving a small bow. I was mortified. “I don’t believe we’ve been properly introduced. I’m Daniel Benson.”

I wasn’t trying to be rude, but I couldn’t seem to process what was going on.

After a small nudge from Jackson, I reached up and shook his hand.

“I’m sorry,” I said, slowly, nothing else seemed appropriate, “about uh…” Daniel waved a hand and finished for me. “Kicking my ass?” he laughed, and it made him look even cuter. “Don’t be. It’s the nature of the beast. You did what you were supposed to do. We all go through it. And now you’re one of us. Besides… you were pretty amazing. I’ve never seen anyone move so fast.”

I balked, but as I stood there, I realized maybe he was right. I still felt terrible about what I’d done. We all knew that I could have stopped the fight when he hit the ground and didn’t get up, and I still would have won. That’s what it was, plain and simple. The reason I’d been so miserable for the last week. I could have stopped the fight. I could have and I didn’t.

But if Daniel could forgive me, maybe I could forgive me too. “It’s nice to meet you, Daniel,” I said, even though it sounded stupid. I darted my eyes between him and Nelly.

“Will you be joining us?”

He nodded and gave a shy look. “If that’s okay.”

I began laughing uncontrollably as I took in the four of us. Not unreasonably, they stared at me as if I’d lost my mind.

“You gonna share the joke with the rest of us, darling?” drawled Jackson.

I had to take a few deep breaths before I was able to stop laughing long enough to tell them what was on my mind. Finally, I forced out, “Whose idea was it to have us match our dates?”

Jackson flushed a little. “Mine, why?”

Nelly caught on before anyone else and she burst out into laughter too. The guys just stood there looking at us like we were crazy. Between laughs, Nelly said, “We look like we’re going to prom.”

We all laughed until we reach our destination, and I was in a great mood by the time we made it to the Council building. But I sobered up quickly when I saw what was waiting there for us.

The inside had been decorated with what seemed like thousands of white lilies.

Small tables had been set up along the walls of the foyer and held vases with the flowers.

Banners of suns that matched my tattoo hung from the walls, and through the glass ceiling, I could see thousands of stars lighting the night sky. However, that’s not what caught my attention; the people did.

There had to be at least three hundred people standing in the foyer and more stood on the stairs and balcony. When we entered, they all stopped and stared, and then, as if on cue, they rushed forward and surrounded us.

Every person I met wanted to shake my hand and gawk at my tattoo. They were dressed in some of the most elaborate clothing I had ever seen. Some wore ball gowns and tuxedos. Others wore cocktail dresses and tailored suits. One man, in a bright blue suit, approached me and when he smiled, his incisors grew into fangs and his crystal blue eyes flashed with desire. It was creepy. Apparently, Jackson didn’t like it either, because I felt him stiffen beside me.

I leaned over to Daniel and whispered in his ear. “Is there always this many people for this kind of thing?”

He shook his head, looking as nervous as I felt. “No, I mean, there’s always some people, but never like this. I guess they just all wanted to see the Warrior. Everyone has been talking about you since the fight.”

“Oh, wonderful,” I muttered.

He gave me a sympathetic smile just before we were mobbed by another group of people. I
really
hate crowds. Glancing all around me, I wondered if it was too late to escape.

To my immense relief, someone came to our rescue. Scar and a few other men wearing all black with embroidered silver suns on the shoulders, parted the crowd and approached me and my companions. When people saw them coming, they just stepped out of the way. I guess that’s what Kayden meant when he’d said people would be scared of you everywhere you go. I’m not sure if it was the black uniforms or if they just knew all of their warriors, but everyone kept a healthy distance from Scar and his men.

“His men” included Kayden.

As soon as I saw him, I averted my eyes. I didn’t like the way my heart always seemed to beat out of my chest and how my hands grew sweaty, whenever he got near me. I also didn’t want to admit that I might have a little crush on him. If you can call non-stop, Kayden-filled thoughts a crush. It didn’t matter. I knew he didn’t feel the same way about me. In fact, I was a little pissed off that he had been avoiding me since the night in the infirmary. I pointedly ignored him; lest my eyes betray me.

Scar reached us first, and I couldn’t help but smile when I saw him. He smiled back and gave a formal bow. I didn’t know if I should bow too and I felt awkward at his gesture.

I wished people would stop doing that. What was this- Japan?

“Hey, S-Gavin,” I said, catching myself before I said something rude.

The smile he gave me did wonders for his usually serious face. “Thought you could use some help getting through the crowd,” he said. “I’ve never seen anything like this.” He looked me up and down. “You look beautiful tonight, Warrior, and you do as well Miss Nelliana.”

“Thank you,” Nelly and I replied in unison.

He nodded. “I hope you’re ready, if you think this is a lot of people, wait to you see the ceremony room.”

I’m not sure what my face looked like, but Scar let out a deep rumble of laugh.

Then he and his men turned and started marching up the stairs with Jackson, Nelly, Daniel and I following as closely as we could. Two of his men, one being Kayden- not that I was paying attention- waited for us to pass and then brought up the rear of our group. Just like before, people tripped over themselves to get out of the way.

I couldn’t help myself, so I snuck a glance over my shoulder at Kayden, pretending to scan the room. He was staring straight ahead with an inscrutable look on his face.

I couldn’t be sure, but I thought that I saw a little anger behind his eyes. I turned my head and kept my chin high as we walked. What did
he
have to be mad about?

I decided that I would think about it later, because we had just entered the ceremony room. Scar had been right; there had to be a thousand people packed into the large room. I clutched Jackson’s arm, and he gave me a reassuring smile.

“Don’t be nervous, darling,” he whispered. “You’ve faced much more intimidating things. You’ll be fine.”

I smiled up at him. “You always know what to say to make me feel better, Jack.” He gave me that adorable, mischievous smile of his. “I know how to do a lot of things that would make you feel better.”

I raised an eyebrow and laughed. “Watch it, wolfy, I’m pretty sure I could kick your ass.”

He considered this. “Yeah, pretty sure you could.”

We were ushered to the front of the room and given seats in the first row of chairs. All of the other seats in the room were filled and people were even standing in the back.

In front of us was a large stage with stairs on both sides leading up to it. Scar gave my shoulder a light squeeze and then went to take up a position near the wall, where other men with the same all-black ensembles were standing. I guessed warriors worked security for events like this.

A few minutes later, a short, chubby man entered the stage from somewhere beyond the enormous red curtain that hung along the back of it. His appearance struck me as odd for some reason, but it seemed to be just beyond my mind’s grasp. He approached the podium and cleared his throat into the microphone. The crowd grew silent, and he began speaking.

“Her majesty, Queen Camillia Anne Monteleone,” he said, in a regal tone.

Everyone in the audience rose to their feet, a heartbeat later, I followed suit.

Not surprisingly, the woman from my Council meeting entered the stage and walked gracefully over to the podium. The short man gave a small bow and stepped quickly out of her way.

“Please, be seated, my people,” she said.

After everyone was seated, the Queen began her speech. I think she said something about tradition and honor, but I couldn’t be sure, my attention was directed elsewhere. I scanned the room and saw that Kayden was standing by the wall near us. He looked over at me, as if he could feel me watching him. We met eyes for the briefest of moments before he jerked his gaze away, staring straight ahead once again.