Dracian Legacy (31 page)

“Don’t get involved.” Dimitri threatened Dean, raising his arm without taking his eyes off me.

Dean let out a menacing growl. The blue fire simmered down to just the tips of his fingers. This wasn’t the first time I found myself in this situation. The first several training sessions, all hell broke loose as Dean attacked whoever was responsible for my pain. Although he was good at masking his skills, I had a nagging suspicion he could feel my emotions at a cellular level. Kinda like my pain was his pain, my joy was his joy.

He knew this was just practice, but while I lay there helplessly, his bond wouldn’t allow him to stand by and watch. I could tell from the look on his face and his bulging biceps and forearms, he was trying hard to control his rage.

“Stop wasting my time, princess. You need to take this shit seriously before you get us all killed. Or worse, get yourself killed.” Dimitri eased up, pulling me up to my feet.

“I’m trying to get my shit together,” I yelled back, making myself sound tougher than I really felt.

Truthfully, Dimitri scared the bejesus out of me and that was one of the reasons I wanted him to train me. I mean, if I was prophesied to start the great war and all, might as well start facing my fears head-on. He also never held back and I
wanted
his dominance to induce fear. I knew he wouldn’t dampen my training because he worried about
hurting me.
But sometimes it was too much.

“It’s not like I’ve been training my whole damn life to play the part.” Anger surged through me, making its way to the surface. “Do you think this is easy for me? To be the weakest link? I hate that I’m just a big letdown. I fear the day one of you will lose your life defending me because I’m so damn weak.” I poked him in the chest. “So don’t you
frigging
tell me I’m not taking this shit seriously.”

I turned around and stomped out of the training center. As soon as I got in the bathroom, I let all my frustration and anger out through my tears. I didn’t realize until then that what I said in there… those were my true fears. Their anxiety, hope… their very lives rested on whether or not I succeeded. They strongly believed I was something I was not. And that responsibility terrified me.

The bathroom door creaked open. I tilted my head up and saw Trinity leaning against the wall. Her arms were crossed under her chest and she stared back at me with ferocity.

I wiped my tears with my thumbs. “If you’re here to mock me, don’t let the door hit your ass on the way out.”

“No.” Her eyes softened as she looked down at her feet, straightening her body. “I understand,” she said. “My whole life I’ve been working hard to prove myself to everyone, including my father. He always wanted a son.” I could hear the hurt… rejection in her voice.

That was the last thing I expected out of her.

“I don’t need your pity. Wipe that expression off your face, princess.” There was a hidden smile in her voice. “We need a leader, a warrior that can set us free, keep us out of the clutches of that monster who will enslave us all. So don’t let the little things get you.
We
all need you.”

“I’m not built for this, Trinity. I’m not who you all believe I am.”

“It’s not fair, but you’re defined by your enemies, and hell, they believe you’re the one. So it doesn’t matter who you are. It only matters that you accept your role and play the part in the grand plan that was created for all of us. We all need to play our part.”

She pushed off the wall and walked out of the bathroom without another word, leaving me to my thoughts.

No, I make my own choices. I choose my own path. I’m not a puppet in some grand scheme. She’s wrong.

“Angel, you okay?”
Axel’s voice cut in.

“Yeah, just give me a minute.”

I washed my face with cold water and looked at myself in the mirror. I could tell my body changed over the last few weeks—toned arms, abs, and legs. My jaw was more rigid from loss of the stubborn baby fat I carried all my life. I had always been fit, but with more of a runner’s body—packed with lean muscle. Now, I saw a fighter, strong and determined.

When I walked out, Axel was waiting for me. He wrapped me in his arms and kissed my temple. I sighed. No matter how miserable I was, his touch had a way of soothing me.

“You’re doing amazing, angel. You know that, right?” He lifted my chin with his finger. When I didn’t respond, he continued looking deep into my eyes. “Dimitri’s the type of person that takes his trainee’s failures as his own. I’m not making excuses for his behavior, but I want you to understand where he’s coming from. He gets frustrated because he wants you to be successful.”

“Sometimes it’s hard to be told I suck over and over again. You know?” I hugged him, burying my face into his chest. “I’m really trying, Axel. I am. Even though I don’t believe it, I’m still trying my best to be what everyone wants me to be.”

He kissed my forehead. “Ah, angel, I wish you wouldn’t try to be someone you aren’t.”

“But everyone expects it. I don’t want to disappoint anyone.”

He pushed me away enough so I could look into his bright blue eyes. They spoke everything but disappointment.

“That’s impossible. You’re strongest when you’re you, Ren.” He looked at me thoughtfully. “The greatest success always follows epic failure. We’ve all failed, disappointing someone in our lives, but we rise above it because we learn from those mistakes. Don’t get too worked up about it, okay?”

“Wait, are you telling me
you’re
actually capable of disappointing someone?” I asked, smiling.

“I’m only human… and I’m most afraid to fail you.”

“That, my dear Alexander, is impossible.” I gave him an airbrush kiss, standing on my tippy toes. “And I’ve already determined you’re anything but human.”

“Yeah?” His eyes grew dangerously dark, but his tone was teasing.

He gently pushed me against the wall, hands placed on either side of my shoulders, successfully boxing me in with his body. He looked at me with a crooked smile and leaned down, pressing his lips to mine. When he kissed me like that, slowly and flirtatiously and tenderly, nothing else existed. His lips alone caused me to burn deep inside, yearning for more.

“Princess.”

Axel growled and buried his face into my neck before pulling away, panting. I giggled, glancing over his shoulder to find Dimitri looking at us.

“Can we talk?” he asked.

“No,” Axel said the same time I said, “Yes.”

“Fine. I’ll see you soon,” Axel said, looking at me with creased brows. “Remember where we left off,” he whispered with an unquestionable promise into my ear, and my cheeks burned.

He gave me a quick peck on my forehead and walked toward the training center. I stepped toward Dimitri, who rubbed his hand across the back of his neck.

“I shouldn’t have been such an ass,” he said.

Dimitri was actually
trying
to apologize.

He never apologized.

Like. Never. Ever.

I smiled. “Dim, are you actually apologizing?”

“Well, don’t get used to it, princess.” He looked at me lazily, smiling back. Then all traces of that smile disappeared. “You’re doing tremendous for someone raised human.”

“Holy cow.” My hand went to my chest. “I must’ve died and gone to heaven. I get an apology
and
a compliment.”

“Yeah, well, this is a once in a life incident.” He held out his hand. “Friends?”

I squeezed his fingers. “Only if you promise to continue being an ass during training.”

“Well, I can’t promise that.” I’d grown used to seeing that mischievous grin on his face. “I’ll be an ass regardless of the time and place.”

“Deal.” I used my grip on his hand to pull him into a hug. “Thank you.”

“So, you ready to get back?”

“I can’t,” I said. He gave me an annoyed look and I rolled my eyes. “I have a life beyond training.” I elbowed his gut as we walked into the training center.

“And here I thought you were an incredibly boring person.”

“Ha! Ha! Very funny
Dim
-wit.”

“Princess,” he said, like an insult.

“I see you’re both alive,” Tyler shouted across the training center. Then he turned to Dean and Marcus and said, “Easiest hundred bucks I ever made.”

“What the hell, Pernell?” Dean growled. “You just cost me fifty bucks.”

“And me,” Marcus added.

I shook my head, reaching for my duffle bag, and pulled out my flip-flops.

“Everything okay?” Axel asked, pulling me into his arms.

I sighed into his chest. “Now the world’s perfect again.”

“Kill me now.” Dean gritted his teeth. “You guys are disgusting.”

“Let me walk you out.” Axel kissed my forehead, ignoring Dean’s disgruntled attitude. “And that wasn’t a request.”

We exited the building hand-in-hand. I shivered in the cold December weather.

“You know, if you learn to control your elemental magic, you could make the air warmer around you.”

I instantly felt warmer, and I eyed Axel suspiciously. I had learned since I awakened I somewhat had control over the earth element, mostly communicating with plants. But I was told with the proper training, I’d be able to do a lot more than just talk to plants.

“Hmm… I’d like to have as much normalcy as possible, like shivering in the cold, getting yelled at for not cleaning my room or leaving the patio door open.”

“You’re so irresistible when you speak human.” He leaned down and gave me a lingering kiss that made my heart thump faster. I heard a honk in the background and he growled.

“What does everyone have against us kissing?”
he asked in my mind.

I smiled against his lips.

“Here’s my ride.” I walked down the steps and turned to him. “Do I need a babysitter all the time?”

He traced my cheek with the back of his hand like I was a delicate crystal that could shatter if mishandled.

“It’s for your safety until you know how to control your magic.”

He cleared his throat and walked me to Cassie’s car.

“Cassie.” He nodded politely. “So what’re you girls up to today?”

“Bouquets and floral arrangements.”

“And studying for my finals,” I added. “I still need to take care of guest reservations. Weddings are so frustrating.” I turned to Axel and the next words left my mouth before I could stop them. “Promise me we’ll have a very simple, small wedding?” I slapped my hand over my mouth in utter mortification at what I suggested. Heat filled my cheeks and my throat dried up. “Um…”

Is there an undo button somewhere?

Axel chuckled as he took my face in both hands. His eyes were brighter than normal.

“Your wish is my command,
Meus Aeterus
.” He kissed me slowly, pulling me under his spell once again.

“How about you lovebirds make out later?” Cassie said, tugging on my jacket.

I bit my lip, trying to hide my embarrassment.

“Never get in the way of a bride, unless you have a death wish,” Axel said, standing by the door, waiting for me to slide in. “Right now, I love my life way too much to get murdered by Bridezilla.”

“I heard that, Knight.” It would’ve sounded threatening if she wasn’t smiling so brightly.

CHAPTER THIRTY

“How did finals go?” I asked Pey as I pulled the fifth maid-of-honor dress over my head.

“Argh… I think I failed. Without hope.”

“Me too.” We high-fived, chuckling. “Zip me up.”

I turned to face the mirror and pulled the dress higher over my chest. “I guess there’s no way to hide these babies.”

“Oh, stop being such a whiner and flaunt those assets.”

Ever since I recovered from the Proxy incident, not only had my magic grown, but my body changed. Everything became more feminine and curvy. My skin was flawless and soft, my hair shined without any extra effort, and I even noticed I didn’t sweat as much during my training sessions. But the most important and noticeable change of all was that my chest grew a whole cup size. I was too embarrassed to ask Cassie if it was normal to experience these changes. And I’d rather throw myself at Cookie Monster’s mercy, dressed in a double chocolate chip cookie costume before I talked to Axel about my body.

“Oooo.” Pey squealed, holding a gorgeous pair of pink, strappy five-inch heels and wiggling her eyebrows. Once the heels were on my feet, she said. “Axel’s going to trip.”

“On what?”

“Picking guys off you. Especially… Dean.” She winked at me. I ignored her last comment. “You’re kidding me, right? Or are you really that dumb?” She rolled her eyes. “That boy has it bad for you. He looks at you with those ridiculous worshiping eyes reserved exclusively for you.”

It was now my turn to roll my eyes. If only she knew…

“Help me get out of this dress.”

“Seriously, Ren. That boy is head-over-heels in love with you.”

“Whatever. Even if what you’re saying is true, it doesn’t matter. I love Axel.”

“I know, but you and Dean would be totally hot.”

We bundled our purchases and walked to the cashier.

“Remember that first kiss? You can’t fake that kinda stuff.”