A Kingdom of Blood and Betrayal (Stars and Shadows #2)(23)

“Change out of that ridiculous dress. You can’t train for shit in that. I’ll wait for you in the hall.”

Train. “I told Evren that I wasn’t interested in training with you.”

“Well.” She looked back at me, and I could see something in her eyes that both scared me and fueled me at the same time. “I’m not sure if you’re aware or not, but your mate isn’t here.” She simply shrugged her shoulders. “And I’ll be damned if I allow you to just mope around in this room for any time longer. Now get dressed.”

She didn’t wait for my response. She simply stepped back and closed the door behind her to give me privacy.

I stood there for a long moment, staring at the door where she had just been, and I could feel my anger rising. My anger with her, with Evren, with everything.

I moved to my bed and jerked my dress over my head and kicked the useless slippers from my feet. I pulled on the black leather trousers Thalia had brought, and they fit me as if they had been made for me. I pulled my old boots from the small trunk at the end of my bed before sitting down and pulling them on.

Already, I felt better. I felt some sense of power fueling me.

I tucked my dagger into my boot before pulling the black shirt over my head and tucking it into my trousers. It was a bit loose, and the neckline fell at the top of my breasts.

But it was so much more me than the dress I had just torn off.

I stood and moved to the door even though a part of me wanted to refuse her. A much bigger part of me wanted to know about Thalia. I wanted to know what she had been through, who she was to Evren, and if it took training with her to learn these things, then I would do it.

Because deep down I knew I wouldn’t survive this world if I didn’t learn to control my magic. I wouldn’t survive at Evren’s side or if I left.

As soon as I pushed through the door, Thalia looked me over once before she started walking down the hall. She was silent as I followed her, only the sound of our footsteps and my rushed breathing meeting us.

“Where will we be training?” I pulled my hair over my shoulder as I followed her and quickly tried to twist it into a plait.

“The back courtyard,” she answered without ever looking at me. “We’ll have plenty of space out there.”

“Okay.” We passed by the open doors to the kitchens, and I nodded at one of the cooks who watched us as we went by. “And what are we going to be training exactly?”

“How to make you not weak.” Thalia stopped and held the door open for me, and I narrowed my eyes.

“I’m not weak,” I practically growled the words, and that drew a smile to her lips.

“Prove it.” She motioned for me to go outside, and I lifted my chin as I did so.

The courtyard was a large, open space that was surrounded by flowers of every color. The flowers grew wild, far less manicured than the fae kingdom would ever allow, and I smiled at the vines that were creeping up the edges of the castle and coating it with their yellow buds.

It was breathtaking.

“Go ahead and set your weapon to the side.”

I spun around and faced Thalia, who was rolling up her sleeves. She wasn’t paying one bit of attention to the flowers, hers was completely focused on me.

“What weapon?”

She cocked her brow at me, but I knew she wasn’t a fool. “The one hiding in your boot. You won’t need it today. We’ll work with daggers another day.”

I hesitated as my heart rate spiked. I didn’t want to drop my dagger. It was right where it belonged, and I hated the fear that hounded me at the thought of not having it at my side.

“Drop it, princess.”

“Don’t call me that.” I crossed my arms and Thalia grinned.

“Why not? Isn’t that what your mate calls you? What did Gavril call you? His precious? His love? How many pet names did you have in the fae kingdom?”

My anger rose inside me, and I could feel my power rising with it. “Gavril referred to me as the Starblessed.”

“Of course, he did.” She shook her head as a small, harsh laugh fell from her lips. “I would expect nothing less from the asshole.”

“I take it you don’t like Gavril?” I watched her carefully. I knew in my gut that what Evren told me about her was true, but part of me needed to hear it from her.

“I’ll be the one to kill him.” She looked at me, and I could see the truth pouring out of her. “I will allow Evren to do whatever it is he needs to do to ensure the safety of our kingdom, but once that is done, it will be my blade that ends Gavril’s rule.”

The anxiety coursing through me loosened at her words. She hated him as much as I did, far more than I ever could, and that made me trust this girl more than anything else could.

“Okay.” I nodded and pulled my dagger from my boot with trembling fingers. I set it down carefully to the side, and she watched my every move.

“What would you like for me to call you?”

“Adara.” I straightened and ran my sweating hands down the trousers she had given me.

“Okay, Adara.” She bowed her head gently. “How did you learn to use that dagger?”

“Trial and error.” The words slipped past my lips, and Thalia laughed. “It belonged to my father, and after I learned what the Achlys family did to him, that they killed him, I promised myself that I would learn to use it, to hold it.”