“Dakota, I feel much better,” Anastasia assured him as she took her stance across from him.
“I don’t know, feels like it’s too soon.” The worried look on his face had her grinning.
“It’s not, I promise.” She laughed and charged. Anastasia hit him like a cannonball, and they both fell to the ground. She flipped around him and had him pinned in seconds. “See? Not too soon,” she gloated when he tapped out.
“Yeah, yeah. I was going easy on you.”
“People keep saying that, and yet I just don’t see it.” She laughed in reference to Tony’s comment days before.
They took their stances again and this time she stood her ground as he took a step towards her. When he got close enough she threw a punch. He blocked and knocked her to the ground.
She laughed. “I see you’ve been training with Tony.”
He grinned at her. “Maybe a little. Wanted to be able to keep up with you.”
She reached up and pulled him down with her, then managed to get him into a headlock.
They grappled some more, and by the end they were both sweaty and dirty.
“I was hoping I would find you here. Hi, Dakota.” Carmen smiled at them both. “Anastasia, I was hoping we could work some on your magic today.”
“I'm pretty tired today, Carmen.” She smiled lightly and nudged Dakota. “We just got done practicing some combative.”
She saw the irritation on Carmen’s face just as she had been seeing for the past week she had been turning down the lessons.
“Anastasia, this is just as important as your physical skills, more so even on some level.”
“I’m just not ready.”
“It’s natural to be afraid after what you have been through.”
“I’m not afraid,” Anastasia said through gritted teeth, “just tired.” Then she stood to walk into the cottage.
“She needs to practice, Dakota,” Carmen said to him as he walked over to her, eyeing the cottage where Anastasia had just disappeared into.
“How long has she been refusing?” he asked curiously.
“A week. Each day it’s a new excuse, but I can’t stress it enough, she needs to be ready.”
“I’ll talk to her,” he said, looking back towards the cabin again.
“Thank you.” Carmen smiled at him, and Dakota noticed she was looking more weary than usual.
“You okay?”
“Just a little tired. It’s getting increasingly difficult to drag these old bones around.” She laughed lightly, but Dakota sensed something beneath it. “Just talk to her, please. It’s imperative she practice. The longer she waits, the more likely it will be difficult to control when the time comes and she needs to use it.”
Dakota nodded and walked after Anastasia.
“When was the last time you used magic?” Dakota asked her later that evening as they lay in bed.
“Why is everyone suddenly so interested in my magic usage lately?”
“Because it’s important Ana. When?”
She took a deep breath and stared at their linked fingers. “I haven’t used it since two days after I sent you through the portal.”
“It’s been that long?” he asked, shocked.
“Dakota, I can’t go back to the dark. I'm afraid of myself.”
“You have to use it, Ana, it’s the only way we will defeat Vincent.”
“It’s not the only way. It can’t be.”
“Ana, it will be okay.”
She stood from the bed and started pacing the room. “You don’t know that, Dakota. You don’t know how it felt.”
“How what felt?” He sat up on the edge and watched her.
“The power. I wanted more, was willing to do anything to get it.”
“Ana—”
“No, Dakota. You can’t tell me you knew how it felt because you weren’t there, it wasn’t you. I almost destroyed everything I am fighting for in order to gain it, and if I go back to that, if I embrace it again, what happens then? What happens when I don’t come back?”
Dakota stood and walked to Anastasia. He ran his hands down her arms and then tipped her face up so he could see her eyes. He saw the fear in them, and it made his heart hurt. He knew he couldn’t tell her with absolute certainty that everything was going to be okay, couldn’t assure her that the power wouldn’t be too much this time, but he could make sure she knew that she wasn’t alone.
“You have me,” he said calmly, holding her gaze, “and I will be here for you no matter what. Give yourself the credit you deserve, Ana. You are one of only two people to have ever embraced all the power at your disposal, and you still came back.” He kissed her lightly and then wrapped his arms around her.
“I will work with her.”
“Anastasia.”
She shot out of bed at the sound of the voice, her hand already holding her dagger.
“There is no need for that.”
“I don’t believe that for a second.”
“You know I’m not truly there. He still lives, doesn’t he?”
She looked down at Dakota, who was sleeping soundlessly on her bed. “What the hell do you want?”
“You. All I’ve ever wanted is to have a relationship with my niece.”
“You are no family to me, you bastard,” she said through gritted teeth.
“Watch your tongue, girl. I have been patient with you—”
“You call torturing me for nearly two months patience? You are a coward and a monster.”
“I did what I believed was necessary in order to show you the depth of your capabilities.”
“You wanted to use me to destroy everything so you could have more power.”
“I will have your magic.”
“You will not have anything. I will destroy you. Even if it takes every breath from my body I will see you take your last.”
“You think you have the power to destroy me?” His laughter filled her head. “Please, child, you don’t possess even an ounce of what is necessary to’ destroy’ me, as you say. I will kill him and every single person you care about unless you succumb to me. If you continue to fight against me I will show you just what I am capable of.”
“I’m not afraid of you.”
“Then you are just as stupid as Mitch claimed you to be.”
“Show yourself, you coward,” she growled into the darkness, but he was gone.
Anastasia crept out into the house and searched, making sure they were still alone. She walked out into the darkness of the night and looked up at the stars.
What if he was right? What if she didn’t possess what she needed to in order to see him destroyed? What if it was too late? He had beaten them so many times now that she wondered if it was really her destiny to defeat him at all.
So much sat on her shoulders, so many people relied on her for a future she couldn’t promise them. What if she failed?
“Shall we?” Carmen asked Anastasia when she walked into the woman’s cottage that morning.
“Where are we headed?”
“Just out for a bit. It’s much easier to focus without all these distractions.” Carmen pointed to the wall behind her, where floor-to-ceiling bookcases held hundreds of hardback books. “If I am here, I will want to read one and then there goes the day.” She smiled, and Anastasia followed her out into the crisp morning air.
“How did you move past the fear?” Anastasia wondered.
“The fear?”
“Of the dark.”
“Ah, yes.” Carmen shook her head. “That was a tough one for me to move past as well. Fortunately for me, I had much more time to gather myself before I had to use magic again.”
“I don’t know if I can do it,” Anastasia voiced her fears.
“Of course you can.” Carmen laughed lightly. “You have already done the hardest part.” At Anastasia’s silence, she continued, “You came back. You tasted the absoluteness of your lineage and you came back. My dear, you not only have your father’s magic in your blood, but mine as well. It is very rare that someone has two magical lines in their heritage.”
“Is that why I am so powerful?”
“That is one theory.”
“What is the other?”
“I believe that you were blessed with what you needed in order to complete your purpose.”
“My purpose.”
“You are meant for much more, my dear. Defeating Vincent is only a portion of your destiny, or purpose, if you will.”
Anastasia looked up at the sky as they walked. Birds chirped, and a light breeze carried the scents of the fires the villagers had built to keep warm.
She nearly ran into Carmen when the woman stopped near the edge of the fence.
They sat on a bench, and Carmen took a deep breath. “It is sure lovely here, isn’t it?”
“It is the most beautiful place I have ever seen,” Anastasia agreed.
“Close your eyes.”
Anastasia did as she was told.
“I want you to think about your happiest memory.”
Dakota came to mind, when they first stayed at the Parker cabin. It was such a wonderful trip, and for the first time in her life Anastasia had known what it was like to feel safe. She and Dakota had played outside for hours and she had climbed her first tree that weekend.
“Do you have it?”
“Yes.”
“Open your palm. Now your eyes.”
Anastasia opened her eyes and looked down at her open hand. Her eyes widened as she looked at what she held. A small ball of light sat on her palm, much the same as what Gregory had taught her to do, only this time her memory played back to her. She watched as she fell and skinned her knee on her first try of the climb, and instead of laughing at her, Dakota helped her back up and then gave her a boost onto the tree. Tears filled her eyes as she watched them play. Had Dakota always looked at her like that? she wondered as she watched him watching her climb the tree. How had she missed it?
“That’s amazing,” she finally said as she released the light and it disappeared into the sky.
“How do you feel?”
“I feel fine.” Anastasia smiled. She felt no deep thirst for power or bloodlust; she only felt happiness in her heart.
“Gregory wrote to me and told me that you have the power to freeze a moment.”
Anastasia nodded. “Yes, but I have only used it once, and I didn’t even know I was doing it.”
“I want you to try again. It won’t work against Vincent, as he has the same power, but it could help in a Brute assault.”
“I don’t even know how I did it.”
“Just close your eyes and focus. You need to be able to sense everything that is around you, or you could end up focusing your power on the wrong target. Use all of your senses and reach out.”
Anastasia did as she was instructed, but she couldn’t clear her mind. When she opened her eyes, she was staring directly into a smiling Vincent.
She flung herself backwards off the bench and felt the fence behind her. He faded away, and suddenly Carmen’s voice broke through her fear.
“Anastasia!” she yelled at her.
Eyes wide, Anastasia focused on her grandmother.
“Close your palm, Anastasia.”
She looked down and saw that she was holding a ball of flame in her palm; she had conjured it without even realizing what she was doing. She closed her hand and the fire sizzled out, leaving a small red mark behind.
“What did you see?” Carmen’s eyes were narrowed on her face.
“Vincent. He was here.”
“He was not here, not even projected, or I would have felt him.”
“He was here! I saw him!” she insisted.
“I think that is enough for today. We need to pace you.” Carmen smiled and reached for Anastasia.
“What is going on?” Tony and two Fighters came down the path towards them.
“I think Anastasia is just tired.”
“I’ll walk her home.” Tony held out his arm and Anastasia took it. “You two make sure Carmen gets back okay.”
“It’s not that far of a walk, Tony, I can see to it myself.”
“I know you can.” He smiled kindly at her. “I would just feel better if they went with you.”
“Well, all right,” she replied reluctantly, “if it will make you feel better. I suppose it has been a while since I’ve been escorted home by two handsome men.” Carmen winked at Anastasia. “Come on, boys,” she said on a laugh.
“Where’s Dakota?” Anastasia asked as they walked.
“Out on a scouting run with Argento and some of the others.”
“He’s out there? On the other side of the fence?” She stopped and felt panic begin to rise in her chest.
“Kaley is with him as well, Anastasia. He will be fine. They should be back shortly.” They began walking again, and when they reached the steps of the training cottage, he sat, and she followed. “Want to tell me what happened?”
“I saw Vincent.”
“He was here?” Tony’s jaw clenched, and he looked around them.
“Carmen didn’t see him.”
“I don’t understand, did he project himself? Like he did to you in Seattle?”
“I don’t know. She said she would have felt him, but she didn’t.” She covered her face with her hands. “I think I’m losing my mind.”
“Why do you say that?”
“There’s who I’ve been wanting to see all day.” Dakota and Kaley came up to the steps, and Anastasia smiled emptily at him.
“Just exhausted, Tony.” She pet Kaley lightly as she rubbed against her. “Have a good run, girl?”
“Hey, Tony,” Dakota greeted him and Tony nodded in response.
“Run went well?”
“No new camps.”
“Any sign of Brady?” Anastasia asked hopefully.
“Not yet. We will find him, though.”
“Well, I’m headed back to town.” Tony stood and walked down the steps. “I’ll see you two later?”
“We will be down in a bit,” Anastasia assured him.
“You know where to find me.”
He watched as they walked into the cottage, and he couldn’t help the worry that was settling in his chest. What if the training was too much for her to handle? She was the only family he had left, what if he lost her too?