Nineteen: A Test
Both Arek and Honovi avoided the mansion for the next several days. Arek, however, met Ennow every other day to check on Inessa's progress. At the end of the week, Ennow reported that Inessa was eating on her own and antsy to get out of the mansion for a while. "The cook made special dishes for her. She's gained back almost half the weight she lost," Ennow added.
Arek thanked her and promptly left. Inessa would come looking for him, he knew it. She always does. What if...what if she knows? He shook his head. No. There wasn't any reason for Inessa to suspect anything. He had no idea how she'd react. He barely knew what to think about it himself.
Right now, he had a problem. He had a strong feeling Inessa would look for him the moment she stepped out the door. What to do? Arek ran his hand over his head. An idea came and he didn't hesitate to accept it.
He found Kusal finishing a conversation with Ahlu and waited until they finished. Ahlu dipped his head as he passed by Arek. For some reason, Arek didn't mind. Ahlu's gesture wasn't out of fear, but a genuine respect. It looked natural coming from him, not like the strict or shaky motions that still came from many of the villagers.
Kusal recognized the look on Arek's face. "What is it?"
"Inessa will be up and about in a few days. Can you take her out of the village?"
"Hold on, did you just ask?" Kusal almost smiled.
Arek ignored the jest.
"Okay," Kusal brushed his thick-skinned boots through the wet leaves on the ground. "Why do you want her gone?"
"I'm just saying for a while. You don't want her back in her room, do you?"
"I don't think anyone does." Kusal said evenly. If he hadn't suddenly felt defensive, he would have realized it was another one of Arek's tricks to get him to agree to something. "How long do you want her gone?"
"As much of the day as you can. I know you have other duties. I just..." Arek's eyes flicked to the forest and back to Kusal. "Teach her how to fight."
"Right." Kusal jabbed his thumb on his chest. "Between the two of us, I'm the fastest shifter. Your words. But you're Alpha, and I prefer not to test out who's the better fighter. If you want her to learn fast, you should be the one teaching her."
"I'm busy."
"Like I'm not."
"Look, is this going to be a big deal for you or not?"
"Why aren't you commanding me to do it like usual?" Kusal shot back.
I'd like you better as a rock. Arek gritted his teeth. "I don't want her to know that I asked you to. That's all I'm going to say about it."
Kusal didn't respond right away. He crouched down, picked up a rock, and began scraping the hardened dirt off it. "I don't like this secrecy. I don't like your request. To top it off, teaching her is the most exhausting thing I've ever done in my life." He dropped the rock. "I'll do it."
"I'm not sure I like where you're coming from."
Kusal stood. He doesn't have a choice. He wouldn't have asked me to do it otherwise. "On one condition: I bring Gina along for the first few sessions."
Gina was the only female werewolf of the Arm. She was also Mirsha's wife. They'd been mates for three years, but since the Conclave forbade the Arm from having mates and close connections with their families, no one knew about Gina and Mirsha until a few months after Arek became Alpha.
Arek was surprised and pleased. So he is taking this seriously.
*****
Inessa crossed her arms in front of her. By more luck than skill, she managed to block Gina's strike. Never in her life did she expect the gangly-looking woman to be fight with such strength and endurance. Even now, Gina was literally pulsing with fresh energy after an hour of hand-to-hand sparing.
Kusal sat on a fallen log watching. He stood up. "Take a side."
Gina stepped back to her beginning position on the opposite side of their imaginary ring. Inessa lowered her arms cautiously. Gina was only acting under Kusal's command to test Inessa, not beat her up. Inessa was embarrassed to think she did so poorly under someone who wasn't even intending to fight her seriously.
"I appreciate you coming out, Gina. I've seen what I've needed to," Kusal said.
"Of course, Beta." Gina replied. Her voice was low and soft. She turned to Inessa. "I'll think you'll improve quickly. Don't forget to keep your thumb out of your fist when you throw a punch."
"I'll keep it in mind," Inessa said, still trying to disguise her heavy breathing. Gina was a master of her own technique. She could hold up her own just as well as any of the Arm. It first puzzled Inessa because of Gina's tall, but slightly lanky build. As they sparred, Inessa realized that Gina used her own figure as a way to stabilize her balance at all times. Her stances were different than what Inessa was used to seeing, but after seeing how well they worked for Gina, she looked forward to copying them.
"Am I to come again tomorrow?" Gina asked.
"No need for that," Kusal said. "Send Mirsha my thanks. I know he had to track down that little pack of rogues himself."
Gina beamed with pride. "Knowing him, he's found the three food thieves already, though he's likely waiting for me to do the final take down."
"Don't let us keep you."
Gina sped away as tawny-brown wolf to join her husband on the other side of the clan. Inessa threw up her hands. "What on earth are you thinking?"
"What?"
Why does he sound so innocent about it? Inessa frowned. She pointed in Gina's direction. "Wasn't that the reason you brought her out? To train me? Why'd you tell her she wasn't needed?"
"She was, but not to train you." Kusal slid off the log. "Her technique is special, yes. It's one of the reasons I wanted you to spar her. But not for you to imitate. Your bodies are different. You can't copy someone else and expect it to work the same for you. You need to listen to your own body as you fight to figure out what works best. The only reason to watch other people's style is to remind you to think outside of the box."
"A box, huh?" Inessa became quiet. A box. A cage. It wasn't until after she had recovered that she realized how close she was to death. She was ashamed, even though she never meant to go that far. She disguised her embarrassment from others by her silence and impatience to improve on anything. In this case, it was fighting.
Kusal's head perked up. With the snow gone, squirrels and birds were scampering and twittering again. The forest was waking from its long, winter slumber. Water trickled downhill. I wonder. "How long has it been since you're fever broke?"
Inessa flushed. "Five days."
"Good enough. Follow me." He started uphill towards the north end of the mountains trailing the east border of the clan.
Guessing there was one last lesson for the day, Inessa followed. Kusal picked up speed. Inessa trampled up through loose rocks and fresh greenery sprouting from the ground. The sound of rushing water filled her ears. The ground beneath them hardened into rocks. She squeezed herself between the two boulders. Using the tight quarters to her advantage, she pushed against one boulder with her legs and the other with hand hands. She shimmied to the top, catching a glance of Kusal before he disappeared behind the rocks above her. "Where are we going?"
"Just do exactly what I do." His voice came down. "Stop worrying!"
What on earth? This was strange. Inessa struggled to get on top of the next tier of rocks. She grazed her hand over the boulder until she found a hold. It was small, but it would have to do. She grunted as she launched her body upwards with her right hand in the crevice. She managed to slap her left arm on top of flat rock. This would've been so much easier if we continued our little chase as wolves. But then, this is probably what the lesson is. The thought took a turn. Did Kusal really think she wasn't used to traveling as a human? She tossed her braid behind her head. That man has a lot to learn.
The rock was flat, filling her with confidence as she walked across. That is, until she heard the roar of a waterfall. Kusal was on the other edge of the boulder, looking down at what lay below. A smile tugged at his mouth. Then, he was gone.
"Kusal!" Inessa ran to the edge and got down on her knees. The fall was well over ten feet wide, gushing from a hole in the mountain she knelt on. She couldn't see the bottom because of the water's mist or hear a splash amidst the fall. She called out his name. Seconds ticked by, feeling like minutes. He should've been up by now! She jumped to her feet and yanked off her long tunic, leaving nothing on but her tight bindings. Any loose clothing would slow her down. As a rogue, she had learned that some wolves never learned to swim. It never occurred to her that Kusal would lack such a simple skill, but then again, he was never called to missions that required him to cross areas like the Kaveri River.
Inessa dove head-first over the fall. The rushing air snapped her vocals shut when she wanted to scream.
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