Chapter 14

An arm was wrapped around her. Not only was it an arm, but it also belonged to someone unfamiliar. Amaya attempted to pull away, but the man's grip tightened. His leg was draped over her, his hard body pressed into her back. Immediately, her breathing became shorter. Who was this man, and why did he think he could make her feel like this? She reached down, grabbing the hand that was curled around her stomach. Pilling it off, she took a deep breath. It smelled of Kris, and this man that was lying next to her. She knew that this had been the first time the man had visited this room, but she did not know why they were there now.

Memories rushed back to her. Sounds of chaos pounded in her ears, the scent of blood overpowered her nose, and the air pulsed with magic. She had known at that moment that there was an outside force controlling the lion woman. To Amaya, that was as bad as murder. If the lion had killed the man, the fault would have been placed on the magic wielder, and it would have been Amaya's job to hunt that person down. Thinking back to the fight, she finally placed the man's scent. He had been the one to intervene when no one else had.

She may have admired him for that little fact, but that still did not condone his touching. Easing herself into a sitting position, she froze when she heard the change in his breathing patterns. "You're awake."

A hand grabbed her shoulder and pulled her down once more. "Don't sit up too soon. I don't know what happened to you, but I don't want you passing out again."

Amaya smiled towards him. "It is part of my gift. I chose to experience their pain, take some of it inside of me so that their forced shift wouldn't hurt as bad."

"You take their pain?" the man asked with awe in his voice.

Amaya nodded. "Yes, it is the only way."

"The only way?"

"To keep them alive," she mumbled before thrusting her hand out in his direction. "I am Amaya."

"Blake," he replied while gripping her hand. Filling his hand in hers, she knew that this man was not a fighter. He had smooth hands, while lifelong fighters, like herself, had callused ones.

"If you couldn't fight, why did you jump into the middle of it?"

She felt the way he froze. "How did you know I couldn't fight?"

Letting out a sigh, she contemplated the best way to explain it to him. "You're hands. A man who has fought with his hands has hardened skin. Yours is smooth."

"My hand," he mumbled, adjusting his grip in order to run his thumb along her palm. "And from your palm, I can tell that you are the opposite of me. Tell me, Amaya, what has life dealt to you? Why do you fight so hard, and for what?"

The question struck close to her heart. She fought for herself. She fought to prove that she could do anything that any other shifter could do. That was before though. That was when she had something to prove. Now, she fought because it was her duty. She had to protect her people, and if that meant fighting, she would do it.

"Why are you here?" she asked, avoiding his question.

She heard the smile in his voice as he answered. "I honestly have no idea. Now that I am here, though, I think Ally sent me to learn some things."

"That sounds about right. If you wanted to be trained in fighting, there is nowhere better to go than here."

He dropped her hand, and the coldness immediately licked at her. What was this? She had never felt cold before. She was a snow leopard; she could handle below zero temperatures, but without his grip, she felt chilled. She did not have to feel like that for long though, as he lay next to her and wrapped his arms around her once more.

"I hope you don't mind, but I am still a little weak."

"And you have to hold me when you're weak?" she asked while raising an eyebrow.

He let out a chuckle. "You remind me of Zeke when you do that."

"How is he?" she questioned, hearing her mentors name.

"Do you really have to ask that? Zeke will always be okay. Even if he were dying, he would find a way to hop back from the brink and throw commands out to everyone."

"So, it's true that he's happy?"

Blake nodded against her shoulder. "He enjoys looking after Ally, and as soon as she has the children, he will be even happier."

"How far along is she?"

"Almost two months," Blake told her with a laugh. "Time flies, but I hope to be home before she pops."

"You would like to see them?"

"Very much so," he replied with another nod against her shoulder. "They are bound to me just like she is."

Warning signs went off in Amaya's mind. The rumors were not true. Just because you were bond mated to someone, didn't mean that you were in love with that person. Still, she could not keep herself from asking, "Do you love her?"

"Yes," he replied, crushing her hopes, "but as I would love a sister."

The hope she had felt diminish, rose again. He did not love her as he should a mate, and he was telling the truth, she could feel it in the air. "Is it day out?"

"I don't know," Blake mumbled, "why?"

"Well, if you wanted to be trained in fighting, I wanted to know what part of the day you wish to practice, night or day."

"Either is fine. Can you tell me who will be teaching me?"

Amaya nodded. "The enforcer has the right to choose your teacher, but I have a feeling the enforcer will want to train you."

"Why do you think that?" Blake asked with a yawn.

She covered her mouth as a yawn of her own escaped her lips. "Because I am the enforcer and I already know that I want to train you personally."

"Count me in," Blake mumbled into her neck. Soon, his breathing evened out, signaling that he was asleep. She went to move his arm once more, but found that she did not want to. She wanted to stay here, and cuddle up into the warmth beside her.

She let her eyelids drift down, and for once, she wondered what life would be like if she were normal. Would the queen's second in command consider her a potential mate if Amaya were better, if she were a regular shifter? She shook her head, dismissing the crazed thoughts. This was neither the time nor the place to start a relationship. Letting out another yawn, she let the darkness take over.

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