Page 57 of Enchanted Shadows
“One would think,” I argued as I slowed to run next to her, “that last night should prove to you why I push you as hard as I do. So that you are ready to deal with the pricks of the realm.”
“Insulted you can run—andtalk,” Elsie huffed at my back as I passed her.
The obstacle course was long gone, and we were nearing the last chunk of the first session of training. I was pushing team strategy time hard, knowing that the upcoming final maze trial was the last one which would determine if they could make it or not. They’d go in groups of three, and if they couldn’t get through it, then all three were out.
It was supposed to test a person’s teamwork skills in addition to individual. As well as the women were doing lately on the challenges I put them through using each of their strengths, I wasn’t terribly worried for it.
By tradition, Team One got to be in charge of making the mazea little harder than just random dead ends. Though I had trained more than half of Team One at this point, I still selfishly wanted these women to make a statement.
So our asses were running. Merely passing the maze wasn’t enough for me. Not with everything else going on.
“Tomorrow is rest day,” I reminded them. “So move it!”
I heard Pippa the Pepper mutter, “This is what we get for group hugging him.”
I grinned as I pulled up to Molly and Zara.
Zara groaned.
“Wanna race?” I asked her.
“I do not wish,” she began, “to be either humbled, nor embarrassed.”
“Is this where I give you both a pep talk—about how your mind is the most important aspect to physical strength?”
“No,” Molly panted. “This is where you run along ahead. Leave us to our misery.”
I picked up speed to do exactly that, tossing over my shoulder, “Greatness can never be deterred for long.”
Vivian and Jessina were in a sprint to the finish. I let them beat me today, in no rush to beat them just to shove their noses in it.
They were high fiving by the time I crossed the finish line.
“Feeling tired today, old man?” Jessina jested.
“A little,” I admitted. “Was up late taking out the trash.”
Both girls laughed.
It was Jessina’s turn to try to land a good blow on me in sparring, so I headed to grab some water.
As the other women were finishing up their run, they all gathered around to watch Jessina and me before they’d break apart and fight against one another. The daily routine of trying to hit me had become a bit of a crowd pleaser. So much so we sparred twice a day now. And they all cheered for one another, never me.
Which was damn rude, but it was what it was.
Jessina put a foot forward to walk over to where I waited, but Zara grabbed her arm, pulled her back, and whispered something to her. Jessina nodded and then walked over.
I squinted at Zara. She was jaded by life in such a way that made her keenly observant.
She gave me a cocky little shrug that did nothing but solidify my suspicions.
“Shall we?” I asked Jessina.
“We shall!” She didn’t look scared or nervous, she sounded rather excited.
She began a series of moves we’d been teaching the women. How to kick out at the ground, how to distract with an attack to one side of the body, just to quickly move to the other, trying to catch the person off balance.
Two minutes in, I was impressed with everything Jessina was throwing at me. These women were not the women who had shown up here a few months ago. None of them had been able to come at me like this when we started.
