“Good,” he said. “Of course, that was with me not resisting at al , but stil , you get the point. Now I want you to try to throw me.”
“What?”
“Pick me up and throw me.”
“How? I mean—”
“Just imagine I’m real y light, light as air, and feel that strength flowing through you. Then just pick me up and toss me, like it’s no big deal.”
I found that I wasn’t particularly fond of this exercise. I knew that Bo was trying to teach me things that I would undoubtedly need to know, but I stil didn’t like practicing to fight and hurt people.
Bo must have sensed my hesitation.
“Let’s try this. How about you imagine that Heather is the only thing that’s standing between you and Lil y and you have to move her or Lil y dies.”
My heart stuttered at the thought.
“Bo, that’s not funny.”
His face was straight and sober.
“I wasn’t trying to be funny. Ridley, this is serious. You have to learn how to protect yourself. If something happens to me—”
“Don’t even say that!” I interrupted sharply.
“Ridley, we have to be realistic about al this. Sebastian is not some Average Joe that’s holding a grudge. He’s extremely powerful and extremely deadly. He obviously thinks he knows something that we don’t, and we have to acknowledge the fact that he just might. I want to know that if something happens you can get away and, if you can’t, that you can defend yourself.”
“Bo, if that—”
“Just humor me. Please. Just for a little while.”
There was something in his voice that gave me pause, something that said this was very important to him, important yet painful, and that I was only exacerbating matters.
“Okay,” I agreed after a couple more seconds of consideration. “I’l try.”
“Alright, so give it your best shot.”
Halfheartedly, I approached Bo and grabbed him by his upper arms. When I bent my knees and lifted as if to throw him, I found that it was like trying to move a boulder or a hundred-foot tree—impossible.
“I can’t.”
“Yes, you can.”
“But you’re resisting.”
“Yes, but only a little. You should be able to move me easily. Now try again, but focus, Ridley. Focus.”
Taking a step back, I looked at Bo. I reminded myself that I was a vampire now. Strong by nature, strong by wil . I also reminded myself that Bo was very resilient, very difficult to hurt, just like I was now. He just wanted to know that I could do it. He was worried and the least I could do was put his mind at ease. I felt like there was so little I could do to help him, I was wil ing to latch onto this with both hands. Plus, showing him that I could do it would probably eliminate the need for any more of these exercises.
Sucking in a quick breath through my pursed lips, I stepped into Bo and brought my hands to his muscular arms in one smooth motion. Then, with al the strength I knew I possessed, I pitched him high into the air. The loud snap of breaking branches pierced the night air, Bo’s body taking out several tree limbs as he passed.
I couldn’t help but smile. Although I would never want to hurt Bo, under control ed circumstances throwing him around like a ragdol was somehow very satisfying. I felt like a super woman final y coming into her powers.
My sensitive ears picked up on the tiniest disturbance in the acoustics to my left, but by the time it registered, it was too late. Arms like steel bands wrapped around me from behind and then I was being carried away.
CHAPTER FIVE
Before any real alarm could set in (past the initial shock of being grabbed, that is), a honeysuckle scent teased my nose and I knew immediately who held me. I had no doubts the bold Irishman would think a prank like this was funny, but I had no intention of letting Lucius have the last laugh.
As he quickly made off with me, weaving between trees, I let my body go completely limp. As I suspected he would, Lucius came to a rapid stop and loosed his hold on me. His mistake, however, was in shifting my body to the ground to see if I was alright. The last thing I saw in his worried green eyes was surprise when I jumped up and planted both feet right in the center of his chest and kicked off. I pushed out through my legs as if I was kicking at a train.
Even without seeing Lucius soaring through the air, I knew that I had tapped into my new strength. I felt it in my legs, in my gut. I felt that power surge through me and flow from me like a concussion grenade, flattening and devastating everything in its path.
I’d caught Lucius off guard by my impromptu attack. I heard the air leave his lungs in a whoosh as I sent him flying backward to land hard against the thick trunk of a huge maple tree.
Of course he was fine. He landed on his feet and was standing in front of the tree smiling at me within a fraction of a second. I heard a chuckle at my back and I couldn’t help but grin.
“She’s a quick learner, huh, Lucius?”
Lucius snorted. “I’l say. You surprised the shite outta me, lass.”
“And what do you think you did to me?”
“Wel , I thought at first to play with young Bo, but as it turns out, you’ve seen some changes since our last meeting.
Looks like I ended up on the receiving end of that.” Lucius turned his attention to Bo, who’d come to stand at my side.
“This one’s got claws, doesn’t she?”
The light of pride shone in Bo’s smile. “Yes, she does.”
I felt as if I was beaming like the noonday sun over his appreciation.
“So, to what do I owe this pleasure? Might you have been in search of me?”
“As a matter of fact we were,” Bo admitted.
“Wel then, let’s go back to the cabin for a drink, shal we?”
Lucius led us back to his deceptively smal home in the woods. He moved quickly and graceful y, his dark red ponytail barely even bobbing as he ran.
Once there, he led us through the smal interior to a door I’d been through on several occasions. Descending the long, narrow staircase on the other side of the door was like going down the rabbit hole and emerging in another world, in another time.
Beneath the unassuming surface floor of the cabin was an opulent hideaway that looked more like an English drawing room than a basement, which is technical y what it was. I suppose people in need of a luxurious fal -out shelter would be jealous.
Bo and I took a seat on one of the couches that faced the fireplace as Lucius puttered around behind us, appearing a few seconds later with two glasses fil ed with thick red liquid.