Page 50 of Rising Reign

Hera sent him a wan smile. “Magic isn’t always showy.”

“It’s more fun when it is,” Puck muttered.

Hera crossed to me and extended the small bowl. “You may want to hold your nose when you drink this. It’ll go down easier.”

I grimaced as I took in the greenish sludge. Before anyone could warn me off, I gulped it down and then almost threw up on the gym floor.

Bending over, I gagged but managed not to lose the contents of my stomach. Locke hurried over and helped me straighten. “Here, drink this. It’ll cleanse the taste.”

I chugged the pink drink he handed me. The taste of strawberries played over my tongue, washing away the worst of whatever I’d drunk before. I took a few steadying breaths. “Okay. I’m okay.”

Brix looked at me with worried eyes. “How do you feel? Any different?”

I took stock of my body. I felt nothing but a faint tingling in my muscles, but that could’ve simply been from trying to keep from upchucking. Next, I took in my shields. I felt it then, an increase in pressure building against them.

Fear.

Hope.

Worry.

Anxiety.

There were more, but those were the overwhelming ones. The ones that pushed against me, demanding that I take them on, take them in.

“I feel…more,” I whispered.

Hera smiled. “Good.”

Rhys clapped his hands together. “Now, we can begin. First, we need someone for Wren to work on.” He scanned the room, his gaze settling on Brix. “You. Your darkness will be a good challenge.”

Brix instantly started shaking his head and backed up. “I can’t. I can’t cause her any more pain.”

Rhys’s mouth hardened into a thin line. “We need someone who will challenge her.”

“Don’t make him do it,” I snapped at Rhys. I turned to Brix. “It’s okay. You don’t have to.” I wasn’t about to put him through more than he’d already gone through just because I needed a guinea pig.

“I’ll do it.” It was the voice I least expected. Deep, with an underlying hint of anger I hadn’t picked up on before. Ender stepped forward, moving closer to me, something he rarely did. “I’ve got plenty of darkness for the little kitten to practice on.”

I swallowed hard, my mouth suddenly feeling like cotton balls had been stuffed inside. My wolf howled her acceptance of this partner because she wanted to be closer to him. She wanted to mark, bite. Claim.

Rhys’s lips twitched. “This is going to be so much fun.”

A medicine ball hurtled toward Rhys’s head. He turned, catching it at the last possible second, and scowled at Puck. “I’m trying to help.”

“You’re finding joy in Wren’s struggles,” he snarled. “You keep being an ass, and I’ll keep throwing things at you. Next time, it’ll be something sharper.”

“Enough,” Ender clipped. “Tell us what we need to do.”

Rhys gave Puck one last glare before turning to me. “Wren, tell me how your gift usually works.”

I had the sudden urge to bolt from the room. I was so used to hiding my gift from the world that sharing it felt like standing stark-naked in front of all of them and pointing out all my weaknesses. I forced myself to steel my spine and straighten my shoulders. We all started somewhere.

“I can feel heightened emotions from a distance, but I feel them strongest when I have skin-to-skin contact. It’s easiest for me to heal that way, as well.”

“All right. We’ll start there,” Rhys instructed. “And build in distance with time.”

Ender’s gaze locked on me as he moved closer. In three long strides, he was directly in front of me. The scents of cinnamon and cloves wove around me, pulling me in. My wolf pressed against my skin, wanting out, wanting the mate who hadn’t claimed her yet.