Page 20 of Dark Cravings

"But I have other responsibilities," Castor protested.

"And I have the utmost faith in your ability to manage this one alongside them," countered Father Marius.

If looks could kill, the one Castor was giving me now would have solved all his problems.

"Yes, Father Marius," Castor said, bowing his head once more.

"It's settled, then," Father Marius said, seeming pleased with the outcome of the discussion. "His training shall begin immediately, and you will report to me weekly with the outcome."

"Yes," Castor said, his tone flat and icy. His eyes bored into me with such intensity that I felt a bit ill. As if the venom in them was somehow leaking into my pores. "I certainly will."

ChapterNine

CASTOR

The wolf had only been my charge for a day, and already, I could sense that my life had changed irrevocably. I still didn't know what the hell Father Marius had been thinking, but there was no point in questioning him any further. All that was likely to do was cement his decision.

The best thing I could do now was apply enough pressure to the cracks in his plan that the natural progression of this disastrous idea would take its course. Only then would he be swayed from this absurdity.

Even honor could be taken too far. This was one of those times.

If there was any silver lining to this farce, for as long as it lasted, it was that I would be getting a break from Arrow.

I had arranged for Eddie to be brought to me first thing in the morning, since the sooner we got started, the sooner it would be over with. If I couldn't make Father Marius see the error of his decision, I was just going to have to make Eddie's life miserable enough that he would recant his request. Or snap and give me an excuse to put him down. Either way, I would be rid of him.

It was a little past four in the morning, which was admittedly earlier than even I would've typically started the day, but when he arrived at the door to the training room, freshly collared and wearing the activewear of a new recruit, I was surprised to find him bright-eyed and bushy tailed.

The saying was a bit too apt when it came to him.

"Good morning, Father de Leon," he said eagerly.

"I see you've gotten your new clothes," I said, looking him over. He was fairly well-muscled, but being fit for a human and being capable of meeting the demands of a hunter were two very different things.

"Yeah, they're a lot nicer than my old gym clothes," he said, looking down with a chuckle. It died in his throat when he glanced back up at me and swallowed audibly.

It was hard to believe this was the same beast that had terrorized half the damn city.

I walked into the room, expecting him to follow. The training room was empty, which was one of the reasons I had chosen to start as early as I had. There was no point in subjecting the others to danger in the event that the collar malfunctioned, as unlikely as that was. It had yet to happen to date, but there was a first time for everything. This job had taught me that, if nothing else.

"Wow," he breathed, looking around the training gym as if we had just walked into a castle. To be fair, we were in one, and while the training room was hardly the most aesthetically pleasing portion of the Abbey, I supposed it was impressive enough.

I tried to remember what I had felt the first time I had walked into it. It was a vast room with high ceilings, and a running track wrapped around the open story above. The ceiling was made of glass to allow just enough sunlight inside, but it was UV tempered to prevent discomfort for those of us who had more vampiric leanings.

On the far end of the room, there was wall-to-wall state-of-the-art equipment—everything from traditional weight machines and treadmills to racks of the various types of weapons that were typically used on the hunt. There was a gun range down the hall, and while no firearms were permitted in the training room, there were still plenty of bladed and blunt weapons to choose from.

Eddie's gaze lingered on the section dedicated entirely to katanas.

"This place looks like something out of an action movie,” he murmured in awe.

I blew a puff of air through my nostrils. "We're not going to be using any of those today," I informed him, walking over to one of the open areas covered in leather mats for sparring practice. "Have you ever fought before?"

"Fought?" he echoed. "You mean like in a match?"

"I mean like fighting," I answered.

"Well, not exactly," he said, raking a hand through his hair. "I mean, I don't remember too much about my life before I was turned, but I'm pretty sure I worked at a bookstore.”

I sighed. "We'll start from the beginning, then. If you're going to be of any use to anyone, you're going to have to build a foundation from the ground up. You can't be trusted in your other form."