A Girl Named Calamity (Alyria 1)

It took only seconds to remember that he had just told me he only saved me from rape because it would have ruined the quiet atmosphere. That helped to calm my rapid heart rate. Did he think women were that easy? And then I thought about the women at the tavern. And realized it would be that easy for him.

He smiled. “Easier than that.”

I glared at him. “Stay out of my head.”

The damn inconvenience of him reading my thoughts had me trying not to think of anything while we continued down the trail. It gave me a headache, and I was relieved when he started talking so I could focus on something else.

Little did I know it would be worse . . .

“You want to volunteer as bait this time?” he asked.

“What?” A cold sweat covered my skin as I processed what he was saying.

“I’m giving you a chance to do this willingly, so take it.”

“More Untouchables?” I asked.

He nodded.

“What am I supposed to do?” I didn’t believe I could do this after what had just happened to me.

“All you have to do is pretend to be walking down the path while I hide behind those rocks.” He pointed to an area that I didn’t even look at, nervousness clouding my thoughts.

“How many?”

“Sev

en,” he said, unconcerned.

I blanched. “Seven? Can you even kill that many?”

“Why don’t you just worry about standing on the path and looking pretty?”

“Yea, I’d be pretty until they touch me, and then I won’t be so pretty anymore, will I? I’ll be dead!”

“They won’t touch you,” he said while he got off his horse.

“No, I won’t do it.” How could he even expect me to do this? Blood still clung to my skin from the last time I had been bait.

“If you do this, I’ll teach you how to fight. As well as you could, anyway,” he said while he gave my body a pitiful glance.

“You already agreed to teach me!” I said, feeling cheated.

“I never said I would teach you.”

“But you didn’t say you wouldn’t, and then you taught me how to throw a knife. What kind of message do you think that sends me?”

“Shut up and get off the horse.”

I shook my head. “No, I’m not doing this. It’s so easy for you to risk my life, isn’t it?”

“You want an honest answer to that question?” he drawled.

I clenched my teeth. I hated how he couldn’t even pretend that he cared. It made me want to scream. “I’m not doing it.”

His gaze bored into mine. “You will do this, or I will make you.”

“I’ll scream that there is a Titan behind that rock,” I threatened, my blood boiling.