AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Exactly. There are three spots you should strike for maximum damage. Here,” —he held my hand with the dagger to his neck— “here,” —he moved it lower, to his gut— “and here.” He stopped with my hand below his waist, the tip of the wooden dagger pressed against his inner thigh.
My breathing hitched at the intimacy of the position, but he released my hand and stepped back.
I stared at the dagger, wishing my heart didn’t race with terror whenever someone stepped too close. “Shouldn’t I aim for the heart?” I asked, more to distract myself than out of a desire for an actual answer.
“Not if you want to keep your weapon. It’s hard to slip it between the ribs. If you hit bone, you could lose your dagger.”
“The neck, the gut, and the inner thigh.” I forced myself to meet his gaze. “Got it.”
“Let’s go through some exercises to get you used to it.” He took a few steps back and stopped, leaning toward me with his legs spread wide. “I’ll come at you, and you aim for my stomach.”
I nodded, took a deep breath, and held the wooden weapon out before me.
He lunged, sending my heart back into a panicky rhythm, but I ducked under his outstretched arms and shoved the dagger into his stomach, hard. He jerked back, holding a hand to the spot where I’d hit.
“Otets’ Blood!” I swore. “I’m so sorry. Did I do it wrong?”
He covered his face with a large hand, and his whole body shook.
“Fuck.” Was he having some sort of shaking fit? Had I hurt him? “Should I get someone?”
He dropped his hand, and I let out a sigh of relief at the laughter filling his face. Not hurt. Laughing at me, but not hurt. “I’m fine. It was my fault.” He lifted his shirt to examine the spot I’d hit. A bruise was already forming, a deep red on his dark skin. “You’re stronger than you look. I should have put on a vest before we started.”
“So I didn’t do it wrong?”
He shook his head as he strode back over to the chest and pulled out a large leather vest. “Not at all. You did wonderfully.” He shrugged into the vest and gave me a crooked grin as he tied the laces. “Now, let’s try that again.”
***
An hour later, I was sweating through my sarafan.
“I think that’s enough for today.” Alexey picked up a towel and offered it to me, taking the wooden dagger in exchange. “Lord Kazimir is expecting me, and I’m sure you didn’t plan to spend the whole day here.”
I wiped my face as I leaned against the wall, breathing heavily. “I didn’t mean to keep you from your work.”
His eyes twinkled. “This has been the most pleasant training session I’ve ever had. You’ve kept me from nothing.”
I flushed at the blatant flirtation, even if he wasn’t being sincere. “Well, I thank you for it. I’ve learned a lot.” Not enough to fight a battle, but at least enough that I wouldn’t feel completely unsafe when alone anymore. Tomorrow, I could go into the city market and buy myself a dagger.
He frowned at me. “I hope you don’t think you’re finished learning.”
“I…yes?” I tugged at my braid, twisting the coiled curls at the end of it. “I didn’t expect you to teach me everything. Or to teach me at all, honestly.”
He stepped closer. I could smell sweat and leather, and my heart, which had started to calm, began racing again. From fear at his proximity. That was all it was.
“And you think you can defend yourself now?” he asked.
I opened my mouth and closed it again, shaking my head slowly.
“Then I suppose you’ll have to continue learning.” He gave me a cocky half-grin. “And who better to continue to teach you?”
I bit my lip. Did he really want to teach me, or was he being kind, in his own vain, flirtatious way. “I don’t want to keep you from your duties or take up your leisure time.”
He leaned in, one arm on the wall next to me, and said in a low voice, “You can take up as much of my leisure time as you wish.”
Shiver ran down my back. I stepped sideways, putting distance between us, and swallowed. “It’s a generous offer, Alexey.”
He stood upright. “Then I’ll see you here tomorrow before supper. Say six o’clock?”
