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He turned away. “That was a long, long time ago.”

It couldn’t have been that long ago. Elias looked like he could only be in his mid-twenties. But I didn’t dare pry for more information.

“Thank you for telling me,” I half-smiled. Elias only nodded. “Now to answer your question, growing up with Horus as my shadow is as dreadful as you could imagine.”

The corner of Elias’s mouth tilted upward. “Yes, I imagine it wasn’tfun.”

“Now I need you to show me some of your moves so I can kick his ass next time,” I laughed.

Elias let out a small laugh of his own, which made my smile widen. “Maybe when we’ve made a good enough distance from him first,” he said.

He was right, and with that, we picked up our things and kept moving.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Two more days came and went quickly. Horus’s time limit had passed, which meant my father likely knew where I was last seen. Would he head there himself, or continue to send battalions of soldiers after me? Would Horus work twice as hard to track me, or would he take his time, knowing I left on my own volition?

On top of those lingering thoughts, I also wanted to ask Elias more about his family. Was it his parents who were killed? His siblings? A wife and children? I couldn’t bring myself to ask him anymore about it, as much as I wanted to know.

It had rained here and there over the last two days, but nothing compared to the torrential downpour of the other night. Still, we hoped the new rain would wash away our fresh tracks.

As we traveled, I did my best to maintain casual conversation, although the inner turmoil about my feelings for him was eating mealive. My biggest fear was of what would happen once we reached our destination. This was only a business deal, after all. Once we reached Zolmara, I would pay him the rest of his gold pieces, and that was the end of our bargain. Should I confess my feelings to him then, only to see if he would stay? But if he didn’t, I couldn’t imagine the heartbreak I would have to face. Maybe I wouldn’t confess anything after all, only to save myself from the devastation.

I shook the thought away as I followed Elias through the dense forest. “So what’s the first fighting move you’re going to teach me?” I asked him as we ducked under a low branch.

Elias stopped walking and turned to me. “You have been asking me about fighting lessons for the last two days,” he said with a hint of reluctance.

I stopped as well and folded my arms to my chest. “Well so far you’ve taught me zero things. Maybe I’m just excited.” Or maybe I wanted to take my mind off of other things.

“You’re injured,” he said matter-of-factly.

“My arm is healing nicely. It doesn’t even hurt that bad anymore.” That was a lie.

His brows pinched together. “Your father, the King, could be at our tail and you want to start fighting lessons now?”

“There’s no better time,” I countered. “If he’s relying on Horus to find us again, I want to be prepared. I want to be able to fight him off.”

Elias gave a look of contemplation before slowly setting his pack to the ground. “Alright,” he began. “Hit me.”

I was taken aback. “I didn’t meannow, now,” I said.

“Hit me,” he repeated, unwavering.

I gave him an incredulous look before relenting. I set down my pack just as he had done, then rolled my shoulders back before getting into position. I took a step back with my right foot, grounding myselfto the earth, then lifted my closed fists in front of my face. As quick as I could, thinking he wasn’t ready, I forced my right arm towards his chest, expecting to make contact with his firm muscles. Instead, he shifted to his left, avoiding the punch entirely, then grabbed my uninjured wrist, sending energy waves down my arm. I stifled a gasp.

“Good,” he said. “Now escape my grasp.”

“Good?” I bellowed. “I didn’t even hit you.”

“It’s not about the hit yet,” he replied, his grip still tight on my wrist. “It’s about the power of your movement, and your stance. Both are good. It’s also about expecting your opponent’s next move. Now, escape my hold on you,” he repeated.

Through gritted teeth, I attempted to pull my wrist from his grasp with a twisting motion, but he held firm. I tried again, putting my whole body into it, but Elias only used that to his advantage. He pulled me in as I tried to twist, forcing my back into his chest. His breath was in my ear, causing a shiver to go up my spine.

He let go, then took a step back. “Again,” he barked.

I faced him and narrowed my eyes in determination. I went in for another jab, this time towards his stomach. Again, he avoided the blow by shifting to the side with animal-like speed. He grabbed my wrist again, and I instantly tried pulling myself from his grasp. But instead of escaping, he pulled me into his chest with more force than before. I looked up, our faces only inches from each other. I felt a bead of sweat form on my brow.

He smiled a malicious, enticing smile. “Again,” he taunted. It seemed he was getting a real kick out of this.