Page 127 of Night's Reckoning
She took a deep breath. “Just focus on drawing your amnis in. Can you feel it? Like a second skin. Focus on drawing that close to you. Make it snug. It’ll keep your skin from hurting so much too.”
He nodded and focused on drawing his wild amnis back to himself. It felt like trying to grab a handful of water. Every time he drew it close, it dissolved and re-formed in a new way.
“You’ll get it,” Beatrice said. “It’ll get easier every night. After the first month or so, you won’t even think about it.”
“Is that how long it took you?”
“Yeah.” She narrowed her eyes. “I think so.”
“Your eyes didn’t change.”
“Nope.” She brushed her thumb over his cheekbone again. “But yours did. There are rules, Ben, just like in human biology, but there are probably more exceptions than there are rules. I always assumed Tenzin’s eyes had changed, so maybe it’s something about Zhang’s blood.” Her mouth fixed in that line again. “How has Zhang been?”
“Good,” Ben said. “I guess. I mean, I’m still getting to know him. I don’t know much about him, because it’s not like Tenzin was ever chatty about her sire. Do you know much about him?”
She took a long time to answer, which told Ben that yes, she knew things about Zhang, and they weren’t good.
“I can’t tell you who he is now,” Beatrice said carefully. “I only know some of Tenzin’s history with him. But that was a long time ago, and it’s not my story to tell.”
“To me he seems… fair.”
“Fair is good.”
Ben looked down at their joined hands. “He wants to take me to a place in the middle of nowhere. Somewhere in Mongolia, I think.”
“Mongolia?” Beatrice took another deep breath.
“Yeah.”
“For how long?”
“A year at least, he said.”
“So just for training?”
“I think so?” He lifted his shoulders. “B, I really have no idea.”
“We should talk to Gio.”
“About what?” Ben felt defeated. “He’s my sire now. He can make me go wherever he wants.”
“Is that why you’re so angry?”
Ben swallowed the burn in his throat. “I’m not angry.”
“You are furious.” Beatrice smiled. “I can see it in your beautiful eyes.”
I don’t want beautiful eyes. I wantmyeyes.
“I’m not furious,” he said carefully.
“Not even at Tenzin?” Her voice was odd. “Because I am.”
“You’re furious at Tenzin?”
“And grateful at the same time.” She wiped her eyes. “I’m sorry, Ben.”
He put his arm around her shoulders. “You’re such a crier.”
