Unfortunately for the Shadows, Emma’s humble abode was not above sea water as Adelaide’s had been, and Emma’s power over the elements were not as strong as Adelaide’s, so she was unable to magic a solution. As such, they were forced to find a place in the nearby docks for Drew and Kelia to stay until it came to dusk.
Luckily, the inn Christopher and Wendy had stayed at was still up—albeit not running—so Drew picked a boat, and he and Kelia boarded it.
Two whole days passed before Drew finally came to her and asked if she was ready to train. He said something about waiting for the rain the stop, to get Emma’s potion to fully go through Kelia’s body and get rid of the Siren poison, and because he wanted to ensure he did it right.
Kelia was not certain what the latter meant, but she didn’t question him, even though she wanted to. Getting a response like that was better than none at all, so she pressed her lips together and tried not to allow her mind to get frantic about being cooped up on a boat all day with nothing to do.
“Darling,” Drew said. “I must warn you, you are not going to like this.”
“I’m ready,” Kelia said.
Drew looked like he wanted to argue with her, but he kept his mouth shut.
Smart man.
“What you must know about being a Shadow is that any abilities you had as a human—speed, physical strength—are all enhanced. However, you have new weaknesses that will kill you if you are not careful. The stunt you pulled a few days ago with swinging around and kicking Jennifer into the earth was reckless.”
“But effective,” Kelia argued.
“But still reckless,” Drew snapped, placing his hands on his hips. He positioned himself at the bow of the ship. Kelia’s back was to the cabin they shared, facing Drew. “I’m not going to train you if you think this is a joke. Life and death is nothing to laugh at. Especially not your life.”
Kelia pressed her lips together to keep from making a remark that would be offensive and unkind. She tried to remind herself that Drew was only acting this way because he was worried about her. Perhaps he even had a point. She had been reckless. If something had gone wrong, Kelia might currently be nothing more than ash.
“You’re right,” she said instead of arguing. “I’m sorry.”
His brow lifted, but only slightly. She hoped that meant he accepted her apology.
Daniella and Emma came to visit and update them on the island. Drew had them searching for any hint of where his crew might be, if there were any threats they should be aware of, and any word of the Sirens. Not that Drew expected to find such pertinent information regarding sea witches from anyone on the island, but Emma had curious ways of discovering such things. If anyone could find out, it would be her.
Wendy, on the other hand, refused to set foot on any of the boats. Not that Kelia blamed her. One of these boats was where she lost the love of her life. On one of the evenings when they met on land, Wendy hadn’t said much of anything outside of muttering how she should have stayed with Adelaide and how she could not believe Drew and Kelia were here.
“I want you to know,” she continued, “that I do appreciate everything you are doing for me, training me.”
“It’s not because I want to,” he snapped. He faced the water, his eyebrows hanging low over his eyes.
Kelia took in a deep breath, trying to control her anger. Being a Shadow caused everything inside of her to react quicker, more so than just her actions.
“The things you will face, should you live as long as I have, will not be something you can prepare for,” Drew said. “That beast we saw in the badlands—that was something I’ve never seen before. As long as you know how to control yourself, as long as you can control your mind and your body, you will have the upper hand in all things, whether it is a small minded human who wants to stake you or the Queen of Shadows who wants to inflict nothing but pain.”
The wind howled, and Kelia turned, expecting to see Wendy. Instead, she was met with nothing, save for the view of the shore. The dark clouds were still far off, giving the island a reprieve from the storms that had assaulted the crew on and off for the past few months. There was still that chill in the air, but as long Kelia bounced on both of her feet, as long as she tensed her body and kept active, it was easy to ignore.
Kelia didn’t take it personally. If anything, now that Kelia understood what it was like to love so fiercely, she wished she could talk to Wendy, to offer what little support she needed.
There was no word on anything. Emma didn’t seem to like it. The sun was high, but there was still a cool, bitter wind that kept the island from getting too hot.
“Keep in mind, you are no longer human,” Drew said, coming around so he was just behind Kelia. He leaned forward so the tip of his chin grazed her skin on her shoulder. She swallowed, trying to moisten her throat, but it did no good. “Which means you must react quicker than usual—because you can. This is why humans die and Shadows don’t. We are faster. So if I…”
Suddenly, one arm crossed her breasts and hugged her back tightly into his chest while the other produced a dagger and placed it against her throat.
His lips brushed against the column of her neck. “You’re dead.”
Kelia could smell the rich, heavy scent of her blood. Drew had managed to nick her in the process of teaching her a lesson.
Drew dropped the dagger so it clattered to the floor. Kelia heard him take one step back, then another.
“I, I’m sorry,” he said. His voice sounded almost slurred. “I had to—”
“It’s okay.” Kelia turned to look at him, but his eyes were on his hands. None of her blood was on his fingers, and yet he wiped his hands on his tunic as though it was. “Drew, I’m not hurt. I’ll heal, won’t I?"
He nodded.
Kelia reached up to wipe the blood away. It was only a couple of drops. She was just about to bury her finger in the material of her pants in order to get rid of it completely when Drew snatched her wrist.
“Don’t.”
The word was low and sent a chill through her body. It was the same voice he used when they were in the bedroom, commanding her to remove her clothing or to touch him a certain way or to vocalize her pleasure louder. It caused a thrill to hit her pelvis with unexpected accuracy, and she had to squeeze the muscles inside to try to keep her thoughts pure.
All of that determination went out the window the minute Drew brought her finger up and slid out his tongue until the two met.
She stilled under his touch. Her eyes went wide as Drew slowly sucked the tip of her index finger into his mouth and flicked his tongue against the pad of her finger.
Kelia closed her eyes and let out a small whimper. How she missed him. How she missed this. Why had they not embraced? Would it be different now? Did he still want to be with her intimately now that she was a Shadow?
He suddenly ripped himself away from her and put a good distance between them. For being on the deck of such a small ship, she suddenly felt like she had the ability to breathe, like she had access to an infinite amount of air when there had been none before.
“Don’t do that,” he snapped. “Don’t make sounds like that when we are in the middle of training.”
Kelia opened her mouth. How could he blame her for the sounds coming out of her mouth when he was able to touch her like that?
“I think this would be a good time to stop—”
“Drew,” Kelia said quickly, moving toward him. “We didn’t even start.”
He stepped back. “No, Kelia,” he said, his voice curt. “I don’t think you understand the gravity of the situation, especially if we are to lure water beasts to us. You cannot allow yourself to be distracted.”
“Don’t do that. You wouldn’t distract me that way during a fight, and there’s no one else who could
. You’re being ridiculous.”
As she stepped forward to close the distance between them, Drew tensed, his hands balling into fists. His eyes narrowed, and his fangs pressed out of his mouth. He looked at her like she was his enemy, like she was someone he hated and needed to rid the world of.
She never wanted to see that look on his face again.
Without warning, he ran to the right then cut across to the left before he jumped into the air and attacked her.
Kelia didn’t have time to dodge the attack. She crashed to the floor. The wooden deck groaned beneath her weight. She let out a grunt. Drew popped up on his feet, place a boot on her throat, and snarled.
“You are too slow.” He stepped back and turned. “Again.”
“I don’t understand what you—”
Drew whirled around and ran directly for her. Again, he gathered her in his arms and threw her. She knew the action was controlled. He could have tossed her through the railing of the ship and into the icy-cold water. Instead, she hit the railing and, instead of going through the wood, it was enough to stop her momentum.
Pain shot through her back, though at least it subsided more quickly than it would have when she was human.
“Fight me,” he demanded, stepping toward her. He looked more beast than man. He had never been tall, but he was stocky, his body coiled with muscle. When he lifted his arms in the sun, he looked as though he could do serious harm. For some strange reason, that anger was directed at her. “Fight me as though your life depends on it, because it will.”
His voice boomed like thunder, and Kelia flinched. What was he doing? All she wanted was to be trained, to know how to use her body as well as she knew how to use her blades. He seemed angry with her, as though she had done something to upset him.
“Fight me!” he roared again.
Her own frustration with him surged, and she ran to him with inhuman speed. She didn’t think she had ever run this quickly in her lifetime. In such a short distance, she knew hitting Drew would result in damage. Whether that was against her person or his had yet to be seen.
He stood stone still, as though he was waiting for her.
That should have been enough for her to question him. She should have known.
Just as she should have hit him, Drew stepped out of the way, as though he was taking a leisurely stroll and wanted to step around a puddle. Instead of hitting Drew and stopping her energy, she continued through. It was too late for her to stop. She hit the cabin and split the flimsy wall open, landing in a heap of wood inside the small room.
Kelia groaned. Her body screamed in pain, but she clenched her teeth until it passed. She did not want to give Drew the satisfaction of knowing he hurt her.
In all honesty, there was no reason why Kelia’s pride should be wounded. He had one hundred years on her. Even when she was a student in the Society, they learned about Drew Knight and what a terror he was. His wicked ways and wicked deeds followed him like an evil shadow. Before she knew him, she was afraid of Drew Knight. He could manipulate, seduce, and kill anyone he wanted to. His powers were second only to the Queen.
And yet, even now, Kelia was upset she could not beat him. She could not even affect him. Did he still not care for her?
Not that Kelia was questioning his treatment of her. Training had to be hard, she knew. What Kelia was most concerned about was that Drew seemed indifferent. Cold. She could break her back, and it seemed as though Drew would not care if it happened.
Kelia picked herself up and dusted off.
“Again,” she said, her voice raw.
“I think you’ve had enough.”
There it was: that dismissing tone, as though he didn’t take her seriously. As though he was wasting his time training her because she was a helpless cause not even worth the effort.
She would show him.
Anger burned through her body. She did not give Drew any time to contemplate if she would listen to him or not.
She ran to him, trying to get as much speed as she could muster. Her teeth clenched. Her fingers tightened into fists. Her fingernails would leave cuts in her palms.
She didn’t care. None of it mattered.
She would get Drew on his back, her boot on his throat, no matter what she had to do.
This time, Drew didn’t move. But instead of her momentum being enough to push him back, she hit him like she might hit a boulder. He was firm, muscled, and strong.
Kelia bounced back and landed on the deck. She grunted, her pride more wounded than she was.
Drew took one step, and then another.
“You’re bloody stubborn,” he said and placed his boot on her throat to emphasize his point. “But I should expect that from you by now. You need to learn that your life can end in ash. It’s done. If you can’t beat me, you think you can beat something else? You know me intimately. You should know my weakness.”
“And what’s that?” she snapped, looking up at him.
He removed his boot from her throat, and behind his indifferent demeanor, she could see the sadness in his eyes.
“You.”
Drew reached down for Kelia and pulled her up. She grunted as she stood, but she kept her mouth closed, as though she didn’t want to reveal the true nature of her wounds.
Drew looked away, guilt seeping through his form. He hated this. He hated every goddamn second of it.
He did not want to hurt her. He didn’t want to force lessons on her in order to scare her into learning them so she would not act daftly again.
And yet, he could not stop.
