Daughter of Darkness

Chapter 10

Though he originally balked at the idea, after talking it through with him, Sebastian agreed it was probably the best course of action I could take. The council can't deny my right to join the new recruits, so I'll have a place to stay. Not to mention that if any issues arise, I'll be surrounded by able-bodied soldiers. It will only be temporary anyways, just until I can communicate with Willow and convince the council to let me stay with her.

"Are there any other women here?" I ask, trying to not sound nervous. Though we've always had a queen as a ruler, the allowance of women into the army was fairly recent. Most of the older townsfolk back home scoffed at the idea and I've personally never put much thought into it. I just always assumed I'd be looking after Willow my whole life. 

"We have one other here, as part of the royal guard." Sebastian glanced at me sideways. "I hear that they received a whole group of young women in the new recruits at Nordell. Apparently their father's showed up, trying to drag them home and they offered up a deal; if a single one of them lost in a bout against the men recruits, they'd return home." He smiles faintly. "It turns out, they'd been practicing secretly for months in the forest near their town. The fathers had to return home without their daughters or their dignity."

Well then. I square my shoulders, suddenly not feeling so nervous. Sebastian grins like he can read my thoughts.

I know this is a good idea but as Sebastian calls for the boys' attention to introduce me, uncertainty floods me. Not because I don't believe I can do it. No, I know I can learn to fight and hold my own against the other recruits. What worries me is living and training with a couple dozen young men. Back home, none of the boys wanted anything to do with me. I don't want to feel nervous but I can't ignore the fact that I'm walking into the unknown in so many ways.

I take a deep breath and steel myself as the group looks at the captain and I curiously. I can do this. For Willow, I can do this. If I can face a necromancer and his demonic hounds, I can handle this.

"Listen up," Sebastian demands. "This is Talia Kinsley. Due to special circumstances, she will be joining a little late as a new recruit." Mutters break out among the boys and I see Hale give Sebastian a confused look, making me wonder what was said last night after I passed out. 

"Unfortunately," the captain continues, "I have to address the fact that she the only woman in a group of men. You will treat her with the respect of a fellow recruit and if I see or hear anything that falls below my expectations, you will be severely punished." He lets the silence stretch as he scans the crowd, face stony.

I fight to keep my face unconcerned. I'd be a fool to not appreciate him addressing my worries and I know that showing fear will be opening myself up to unwanted attention. Fear would attract men who want to hurt, like a hound to blood.

He dismisses the recruits, who pretend to go back to training while watching us out of the corner of their eye.

Hale disconnects from the group, and as he walks over, I fight some warring emotions. Part of me wants to be embarrassed about last night, basically being carried around and half delusional with fear. Part of me also wants to hold my head up high and meet his gaze, to be proud of the things I had done. I choose the later.

"Not a lady indeed," he says by way of hello, amusement making his eyes crinkle in the corners. The fact that I don't turn red from embarrassment speaks volumes of the sheer force of my will. 

Sebastian steps in to save me from thinking of a witty retort. "Hale, since you and Talia are already acquainted, I thought you could show her the ropes and take her through how we do things. I have some news I need to deliver,"a sly glance my way, "but I'll be back later to see how you're settling in."

I watch him go, unable to stop a smile at the thought of the councils' reaction to the news that I actually won't be taking their fancy carriage home. When I turn, Hale is watching me.

"I suppose I should probably introduce myself. Hale Rennick, fellow recruit." He sticks out his hand and I shake it firmly. "It appears you have connections in high places, coming from the castle." Though he doesn't phrase it as a question, I know exactly what he's asking. Sebastian had stressed that secrecy was of the highest importance, as no one could know about Willow or my connection to her, in order to introduce her as a part of the Navarre family and new queen later. But Hale has seen me with the captain, not initially introduced as a recruit. He might have even helped get me to my room in the castle last night. He's clearly curious at best, suspicious at worst.

"You could say that," I say carefully, then hesitate, trying to think of a lie that will explain how I know the captain. Before I get the chance, I see the amusement in his eyes fade, replaced with something colder. Either he's very good at reading people or was expecting me to be dishonest. Then again, I've never been a good liar, the truth always showing itself on my face.

"While I appreciate you helping out last night, I don't trust people that I don't know, especially one's with something to hide. You seem harmless enough so normally I wouldn't bother. But-" he glances in the direction Sebastian went. "You're involving the captain which means if it becomes a problem, it's my business." The smile he gives me all sharp edges. "I just thought I'd give you fair warning. Consider it a welcoming gift."

Wonderful. Five minutes into this and I've already got someone breathing down my neck. I'm not sure if it's arrogance or an overwhelming sense of loyalty to his friend and captain that make him feel the need to intimidate me, but he's going to learn that it will take more than that to make me crack. I care about my sister significantly more than I care about making friends.

"I suppose I should've expected pathetic attempts at intimidation from Lumor's finest muscle." Condescension drips from my words. "I just don't know if I find it more sad that this is how you welcome a stranger, or that you think this is an acceptable way to treat someone who saved your ass."

He lets out a bark of humorless laughter, green eyes sparking. "Looks like I can add conceited to your list of admirable qualities. If you think your contribution last night was anything spectacular, you're in for a rude awakening when you get into a real fight. Most opponents won't give you the chance to sneak up behind them. And you won't always have someone else around to finish the job for you."

If looks could kill, Hale and I would have murdered each other by now. And to think that I thought he was charming, not to mention nice to look at. A mistake I wouldn't make again.

"Actually Hale," a new voice chimes in. "As someone whose life I'm pretty sure she did save, I have to disagree; it was pretty spectacular from my point of view. Especially the part where my head didn't get bitten off by nightmare hounds."

The voice belongs to a tall, blonde boy that I recognize as the one who had been cornered against the tree the night before.

"Talia Kinsley, meet Gareth Hollins," Hale all but spits, still trying to vaporize me with his angry gaze.

I recognize the name. "Ah, the sword wielding tooth picker."

"Wow Hale, five minutes alone with a lady and you choose to talk about me. I don't know whether to be flattered or... well actually, I'm just flattered." He takes my hand, bending over and kissing the back of it with a loud smack. "Sweet lady, please allow me to rescue from this brute and bring you over to the company of more civilized men."

A muscle in Hale's jaw twitches."Just show her around, will you?" He bites out before stomping off like a petulant child. I resist the urge to stick my tongue out at his retreating back.

"I'll give you a heads up now,"Gareth mock whispers. "One of the few joys you'll find here is riling him up."

I don't respond, watching as Hale grabs a sword from a rack and attacks a dummy, methodically slicing it with a speed and precision that make my breath catch. I can't help but think that he is someone I would hate to add to my already long list of enemies here.