Chapter 352


    “Adrik


    She’d reached the point now that she could do very light sparring with him, which made her happy. Her


    upper body was still weaker than normal and with her ribs still causing her pain, they concentrated on


    her legs. She was more powerful there anyway. As the rest of us were finishing up, she and Andrei


    were off to the side practicing drills. Since she had to go slow, he was working on her form and making


    it perfect.


    My father and Aleksei walked into the gym, noticing Sephie and Andrei immediately. They nodded to


    us, but were watching her. Andrei gave her a break while they discussed something and he adjusted


    her form slightly. When she tried again, we could see the lightbulb moment she had. She practiced a


    few more times, then they had another sheat discussion. I could tell she was trying to talk him into


    letting her go faster. He would roll his eyes at her, disagreeing with whatever she was saying, but she


    kept at it until he finally relented. We all saw him tell her sternly, “one time.” He held up one finger to


    make sure she understood. She grinned, pping her hands. He gave her instructions, she nodded her


    head, then he gave her the okay to begin.


    After the ball, when she’d injured her hip, she lost some strength in her legs. It took her a while, but she


    gained it all back. This time, she lost strength in her upper body, but her legs were as strong as ever.


    Having to slow down and only being able to work on details was actually making her stronger and


    faster. Andrei was expecting each kick she delivered, but he still had to work to stay ahead of her to


    keep her from kicking him and not the pads.


    My father had walked over to me while he watched her. “That’s how she trains when she’s hurt?” he


    asked.


    Iughed, nodding my head. “We had her fight one of Armando’s security guys who had a problem with


    her having any kind of authority over him. We just wanted to knock him down a few pegs. She ki lled


    him,” I said, ncing at him. His eyes went wide. “Turns out he was working for Salvadori’s son, too.


    He was a nt. She knows things before anyone else most of the time.” I was curious to see how my


    father would react to hearing me say that out loud. After talking to Sephie about him the night before, I


    was feeling less nervous around him.


    Ivan had walked closer, hearing our conversation. “When they tried to kidnap her the first time, she


    killed more guys than the rest of us did. She saved my life that day,” Ivan said. “It’s one of the reasons


    Salvadori ha tes her so much. She has a tendency to ki ll his guys. Frequently.” Heughed at the


    thought of Sal being pi ssed.


    I watched as Vitaliy casually put his hand on Ivan’s shoulder as he responded. I could see the brief look


    of surprise when he touched him. I knew what he was doing. I think Ivan did too, as he saw it as well.


    “They all are. We just don’t know how Viktor and Stephen are yet. You don’t need to check,” 1 said,


    laughing at Vitaliy’s surprise that I had caught on to what he was doing. Sephie and Andrei had finished


    and were walking back toward us. She walked right to me, tucking herself into my side, smiling warmly


    at Vitaliy. She immediately caught on that something had just happened. She looked at me, searching


    my eyes. Sheughed, looking at Vitaliy.


    “You thought I was lying, didn’t you?” she asked, clearly amused at his guilty expression. He cursed


    under his breath. “We have much to discusster, old man,” she said, pulling me toward the door. We


    heard the guys’ughter as they followed us out of the gym.


    A few hourster, Sephie, Vitaliy, and I went for a walk. She managed to talk everyone else into not


    following us this time, although it was more difficult than she thought it would be. She ended up having


    topromise, promising that we would stay within sight. It made me smile to see how protective they


    were of her in new situations. Aleksei noticed too, asking me quietly, “are they always this protective of


    your girlfriends?”


    “Never. She’s the only one. I didn’t ask them to be this way, either. Not after the first day. They worry


    about her almost as much as I do,” I said.


    He was quiet for a moment. “I used to worry about your mother much the same way. That speaks to


    Sephie’s character.”


    “Give her time, Aleksei. She’ll have you wrapped around her finger too,” I said. Sephie was done with


    her negotiations and on her way to me. Aleksei smiled at her, telling her Vitaliy would be out in a


    minute. Her heart-stopping smile stretched across her face.


    “I don’t think she needs that much time,” he said before turning to leave.


    Vitaliy walked outside shortly after, his hardened expression softening when he saw Sephie. I’d seen


    my father’s rough features soften very few times in my life, but it was obvious when he looked at her


    that he waspletely defenseless against her. I was fairly certain that he would do anything she


    asked of him.


    She grabbed my hand, walking toward Vitally. “I’d very much like to walk with an old man, if you’re up


    for it,” she said.


    He smiled down at her. “How could I refuse?” he asked, offering her his arm. She slid her arm through


    his, while still keeping a hold of my hand with her other arm.


    “So happy I have two functioning arms right now,” she said, grinning up at me.


    Once we walked far enough away from the house that we wouldn’t be overhead, she elbowed him in


    the ribs lightly. “I can’t believe you thought I was lying to you about the guys being like me and Adrik.


    Rude,” she said, trying not tough. Even though she had her contacts in, I knew her eyes were solid


    green right now, which made me smile to myself. I watched my father actually blush as she chastised


    him.


    “Forgive me, dkaya. It’s been so long that I have convinced myself it was all a fairy tale. I haven’t


    found anyone like Adrik until you. And I’ve known Ivan for years. He wasn’t like you when I knew him


    before. He’s changed,” he said.


    “How did you know I was different?” Sephie asked him.


    He walked in silence for a few steps. We could see him considering how to exin it. “It’s like a


    judgment system, if you will. When I touch someone, I can tell certain things about them,” he said.


    “Whether they’re good or bad, you mean?” she asked.


    “Yes, on a basic level. Most people are both, as I’m sure you know, but some are ruled by good and


    some are ruled by evil. I can tell the difference. Salvadori, for example, is ruledpletely by evil. With


    you and Adrik, and now Ivan, it’spletely different. There’s an electricity there, almost. It feels like I


    can feel your power, if that makes sense,” he said.


    “You should touch Misha and Andreiter. You’ll feel it with both of them, too. Viktor and Stephen also


    have something, we just don’t know what it is yet. They’re both timid about realizing it,” I said,


    “Are they all like you, then?” he asked me.


    “No, not even a little. We allplement each other though,” I said.


    “How?”


    “Misha started with being able to predict oues. Like a gut instinct. It’s now evolved into him being


    able to see things as they happen or before they happen. Sephie helped him with that. Andrei is like


    her,” I said.


    “Like you how, dkaya?” he asked her.


    “I have a knack for reading people’s minds. Andrei just discovered he can do it too. He’s still a little


    insecure about it, but he’s getting better,” she said, smiling at him.


    Vitaliy walked a few more steps, mulling over what we’d just told him. “Ivan feels very simr to you


    two. What does he do?”


    Sephie chuckled. “That one is a little harder to exin, but he’s my protector.”


    “He’s her shield,” I said. “I never told you, but Ivan is built different. He feels no pain. I could sho ot him


    point nk and he wouldn’t feel it. It’s that ability that saved her life the first time they tried to kidnap


    her. It almost killed him, but she killed the guysing after them so he could get them to safety before


    he copsed. She also has a special ability to calm him. Ivan has a ho rrific past when ites to


    doctors. He gets stuck in his memories anytime he goes to the hospital. It usually takes the rest of us to


    hold him down so that he doesn’t hurt anyone or himself and we’re having to fight him with everything


    we have, but she can do it on her own just by touching him and whispering to him. Viktor’s still jealous


    of it,” I said,ughing.


    “Ivan was experimented on as a kid, wasn’t he? His inability to feel pain was a highly sought-after trait


    in Russia years ago,” he said.


    “You know about the facility?” Sephie asked, clearly surprised.N?velDrama.Org copyrighted ? content.