Katrina, The Beginning (12 page)

“But now I must change; did
Sarah put out my things?”

“Yes, and soap and water to
wash up. She didn’t think you’d have time for a bath,” Letta
said.

“I’ll go clean up and
change, then.”

They all looked like
scolded puppies.

“All right, come and help
me get ready and I’ll tell you all about my hunting
trip.”

Placated, the girls
followed me into my room asking questions about Quinn, and if we
kissed again, and then about Quinn’s brothers. I answered while
they got my boots off and then while I combed out my hair and put
up the sides with fresh flowers. They helped me on with my training
leggings and matching vest over a white shirt and high leather
boots. We were all wearing similar outfits and agreed the four of
us were going to dazzle the Voss brothers.

Thomas and Quinn were
waiting for us. The girls’ Watchers still on duty, would be our
guard, but with so many Watchers at the gathering we weren’t
worried about safety. Although Thomas greeted us all, he kept his
eyes squarely on El as she smiled shyly back at him.

“Shall we?” Quinn gestured
for us to take the lead.

We walked to the training
compound, making small talk and laughing among ourselves. When we
arrived, we could see a large fire had been built on one side of
the compound. The fire was surrounded by low wooden stools, with a
table heavily laden with refreshments close by. There were many
people milling around and others standing in small groups making
conversation. I could see Gerhardt surrounded by a group of adoring
young ladies. It was hard to miss Sven, so tall, his long blond
hair flowing in the breeze. He was animatedly speaking to a
gathering of Watchers and other young men, no doubt relating heroic
battles and great conquests. Most of the families seemed to be
represented, and all seemed to be having a fine time.

“There you are,” Simon
called. “Come, get something to eat and drink.”

At hearing their brother
call out, the other Voss brothers came to greet us—except Gunter,
who was on duty guarding Father.

“Nice to see you ladies
again,” Avery stood.

“You four put all the other
girls to shame,” Gregor added.

The girls blushed and
thanked them, accepted the offer of wine and food, and we all
carried our full plates over to the fire for some story-telling.
One of the elder Watchers, a Norseman named Thorn, began an oral
history about the origins of the Watchers.

“It all began when the
first vampires came into existence, when the race was unable to
tolerate the direct rays of the sun, and needed someone they could
trust to keep them safe during those dangerous daylight hours. In
those early days, the vampires used their powers and intimidation
to keep the Watchers loyal, but as the centuries passed there
developed mutual respect and the bonds of friendship between us, so
now the Watchers are regarded family and in turn, consider it an
honor to serve.”

We all clapped and toasted,
cheering, “Hear, hear!”

We challenged the boys to
play some games - horseshoes, darts, and archery. I’m proud to say
we held our own. I noticed Arletta taking an interest in Avery.
Rosa was so stunning, she was equally sharing time with the other
three Voss brothers as well as several young vampires, including
Demitrie Devorak.

Eleanor and Thomas were off
by themselves in cozy conversation. We all had a wonderful time,
staying late into the night, singing folk songs and listening to
some who played instruments or were willing to entertain us with a
native dance. Then people started to slowly head back to their
quarters, as did we. Quinn and I were hand in hand, as were El and
Thomas. Letta and Rosa had Avery, Simon, Gregor and Cedrik
surrounding them. Quinn and I stopped and let the others pass us,
so we could say goodnight alone.

“It’s been such a wonderful
day, hasn’t it Quinn?”

“Yes, but anytime we can be
together is wonderful,” he brushed my cheek with his hand. We
leaned into each other then, his breath was so warm and sweet. The
kiss started softly, then deepened with an urgent passion. I felt
as if I couldn’t get close enough to him; Quinn responded by
holding me tighter. As he lifted me off the ground, I heard myself
moan softly and felt him quiver slightly. We broke the kiss and he
slowly lowered me to the ground. We stood looking into each other’s
eyes, our unspoken desire was clear to both of us.

“I love you,” he
whispered.

I hugged him, “I love you
too.”

We walked up the stairs,
the boys were coming back toward us, and down the hall we could see
Thomas kissing Eleanor.

“We’ll wait outside,”
Gregor said, as he passed Quinn. Quinn nodded and wished me a good
sleep and sweet dreams. I waited, my hand on the door latch, as
Thomas finalized his goodnight to Eleanor, I drew her into the
common room.

“It’s always the shy ones,
isn’t it Letta?” Rosa laughed. “Well, tell us El, is he a good
kisser?”

“I wouldn’t have anyone to
compare him to, but I thought the kiss was heavenly,” she sighed,
closing her eyes as if to remember each second.

“How about you two? Any
interest in anyone?” I asked, curious now in who they might
choose.

“Well, Avery is handsome,”
Letta contemplated the brothers, “but I haven’t made up my mind
yet. How about you, Rosa?”

“I’m having so much fun
with all of them, to choose just one seems, well, selfish.” She
pretended to be completely serious, then looked at all our shocked
faces and started to laugh.

We discussed the party for
another hour, and then once we were no longer able to keep the
conversation going or our eyes open, one by one we our goodnights
and drifted to our rooms.

I put on my nightgown,
slipped under the down comforter, and sank into the feather
bed.

As I fell asleep, I tried
to imagine what it would be like to make love to Quinn.

CHAPTER SIX

I woke up early and dressed
in riding gear, my sword, as always, strapped to my waist. Sarah in
the common room was just putting out some fruit, porridge, nuts,
hearty bread, pastry, and jams.

“I didn’t think you’d be up
quite yet, but I fixed breakfast just in case,” she said as she
finished.

“I’m glad you did. I’m
starving, even though I hunted yesterday” I shrugged as I took a
large bite of pastry.

“I’m going to take Nulla
out for a ride this morning. I saw her last night. She’s all healed
and now needs the exercise.”

I finished my pastry by
licking my fingers clean.

“Mmm, I really enjoyed
that. Thank you, Sarah. I’ll be back later.”

As I opened the door to the
hallway I found Simon guarding the door this morning. He turned and
cheerfully greeted me.

“How are the girls? Did
they have a good time last night?”

“If you’re trying to find
out if any of them fancy you, I have no news; but yes, we all had a
fine time last night. I hope we can do it again soon.”

“I do too. Gunter said
training with the girls begins tomorrow, and the girls’ fathers
want to make sure their daughters are serious about this
training.”

“I assure you they are.
Father also pledged to help each of us find, hone, and perfect our
special gifts.”

As we approached the
stable, Quinn led out the horses. Nulla immediately let out a
whinny when she spotted me. I broke into a run, so I could reach
her sooner.

“Oh, how I’ve missed you,”
I told Nulla as I rubbed her forehead and patted her neck. She
nuzzled me with her nose; and I lifted it up and gave her a kiss,
the soft whiskered velvet tickling my lips.

“Look what I brought you,”
I offered her the apple I pulled out of my pocket, which she
hastily gobbled down.

Simon was to accompany us
as my Watcher, but as Quinn helped me into the saddle, even though
I didn’t need it, he took the opportunity to whisper to me, “Simon
had agreed to give us some privacy”. Then with a motion to Simon to
mount up, they both swung into their saddles and we trotted off
towards the training grounds to warm up and try some spear and
arrow skills

“I bet you’re rusty,” Quinn
grinned, obviously baiting me.

“Would you like to make a
small wager then?”

“Fine with me. How about a
kiss for every time I win and a kiss for every time you
win?”

“You drive a hard bargain,
but I accept,” I said seriously, then not being able to hold it in,
burst out laughing. I patted Nulla’s neck before urging her into a
slow canter. Quinn threw me a quick smile as he also quickened his
pace and shortly we were at the training grounds.

The training instructors
reset targets and laid out arms each morning at dawn for those who
wanted to practice, and already there were several men taking the
line for shooting, including Demitrie, Hun Lee, and
Chan.

“May we join you?” I asked
of Demitrie.

“Of course, Katrina…Quinn.
We welcome the competition. We’ve set up both stationary and moving
targets. The far line is for spears, and this closer one is for bow
and arrow.”

“Let’s try spears first.
It’s been a while, so don’t expect too much.” I looked at Quinn and
gave him a wink. We continued over to the far line and waited
behind Chan.

“Hun Lee, that was great
work!” I applauded. He bowed his head in thanks, as we watched Chan
take his turn. First up was a stationary target, the spear to be
released no closer than ten yards away. Point zones and bull’s eyes
were painted on each target. He hit the bull’s eye easily from
fifteen yards at a canter. The next was a swinging target shaped
like a man, with more points for a head shot than a body shot, and
you had to be careful not to be knocked from your horse by the
rotating arms. Chan grabbed a spear from the ground in between the
targets and spurred his horse forward. He got within twenty feet
and with a shorter but much harder shoulder-turn throw, hit the
dummy square in the chest. The third and last target was a
simulation of an enemy on horseback coming straight on. Two men
pushed the target from the rear, with one man guiding the wheels,
using a long handle from the side. This time Chan waited until the
last minute and rammed the spear into the midsection of the
target.

“These
men are going to be tough to beat,”
I thought, but I was
determined to prove myself. I was next, and adrenaline was already
pumping through my veins.

“Great job Chan,” I said,
as he trotted his horse back.

“Thank you,” he patted his
horse’s neck.

I walked Nulla up to the
spears imbedded in the ground, pulled one out, and held it at eye
level, it’s point toward the target, so I could judge its
straightness and balance. Then I closed my eyes and turned my
senses to the wind, which I judged to be slightly into my face
coming left to right.

“Very well, Nulla, let’s
show these boys what we’re made of.”

She reared slightly as if
to let me know she understood, and then steadied down in
preparation for the task. After one more bounce of the spear in my
hand, I nudged Nulla with my heel, and we bolted off at a dead
run.

“She’s going too fast,” I
heard.

Then I heard Quinn laugh,
“Just watch, Demitrie.”

I crouched down over
Nulla’s shoulders, then leaned to the right and from twenty-five
yards, hurled the spear with all my might. Into the middle of the
target it went with a thud. I circled the target and raced back to
the line and grabbed the last spear in row, before launching Nulla
at the next target. My heart was pounding, but then my senses
seemed to slow the action, making it feel like a slow, graceful
ballet. Every fiber of my being was in tune with the spear in my
hand. At ten yards I let it fly and hit the dummy right in the
throat. Again I circled back to the line. As I thundered by, I
picked a final spear, stood in the stirrups and threw. A second
later the spear hit the moving target in the chest, surprising the
men who had just started pushing it toward me. As I drew level to
the target, I pulled my sword and slashed the grain-filled enemy
across the throat, spilling its contents out onto the ground. I
pulled Nulla to sliding stop and gave her a reward pat on the
neck.

“Good girl Nulla. I think
they got the general idea; we’re good,” I patted her again. We were
both breathing hard as I walked her back to the start.

Hun Lee clapped and
shouted, “Unbelievable, Katrina.”

“Too bad you’re so rusty,”
Demitrie quipped.

“True. True. Think what you
could do if you practiced,” Chan laughed.

“Well, I give up,” Quinn
said, managing to keep a straight face. “I’m not going after that.
You win, Katrina, and I’ll pay up on my bet with you
later.”

I gave a mock bow of my
head. “I accept your surrender. Well, I think Nulla and I are
warmed up. Shall we go for a ride in the woods or by the river?” I
turned Nulla towards the gate.