Between mouthfuls, she asked, “So now what, Boss?”
“More of the same. We’ll continue your training. You ready to start learning another spell?”
Tess brightened at that. “Damn straight! Do you have one picked out or can I choose?”
“I have your first few tattoos picked out. I’m not against letting you pick which ones to do, but I want to make sure you have the basic requirements done before you start picking and choosing.”
“Okay, then which one is next?” She asked as she shoved the rest of the protein bar into her mouth.
“The next one is the healing tat.”
Tess cocked her head to one side. Then she swallowed and picked up her cup to wash down the remnants of the bar. She burped, quite un-ladylike and then looked chagrinned. “Excuse me. I don’t get it. I already know a healing spell.”
“Yes, and it’s a great spell for healing. But the healing tattoo will trigger any time you’re injured, even if you’re unconscious.”
Tess nodded. “Okay, that sounds like a good thing to have, but I thought the enhanced senses tat would be just as important. It’d be nice to be able to see glamours and move around in total darkness.”
“Yes, that’s why that tattoo is number three on my list for you to acquire.”
“Okay, then. The healing tat it is.” She finished her coffee and went to the counter to get the carafe. Bringing it back, she filled both our cups and sat back down. “What about my familiar. You told me you wanted me to summon one as soon as possible and it’s been three days and you haven’t mentioned it again.”
I nodded and grinned. “I was waiting for you to bring it up. I think you’re ready, but you have to ask to do it. This is not like memorizing a tattoo spell and burning it. This is a mental thing. You have to be totally ready before you cast the summoning.”
Her grin seemed to split her face from ear to ear. Tess nodded enthusiastically in the manner of a bobble-head doll. “Hot damn! Yeah, I’m ready.”
“Okay, then. We’ll do the summoning tonight.”
“Great! I am so ready.”
“Then get dressed. We’ll get breakfast and head out to our training site.”
Tess jumped up; she started toward the room’s only dresser, but then turned back and bent over me. She put her hands on either side of my face and pulled my lips to hers. We kissed, surprisingly passionately, and then she let go of me and went to the dresser.
I sipped my coffee and watched her pull out socks, panties, and a sports bra from the drawer where she kept her things. She pulled the Army nightshirt over her head and started dressing. I didn’t turn away. Tess and I were both comfortable being naked in the other’s presence. In truth, I enjoyed watching her dress. I enjoyed her undressing even more.
Chapter 10
THERESE
We spent the afternoon after my near rape–or should I call it my first real world training exercise?–doing still more training. Most of it with me memorizing the healing tat that Rafe said had to be my second tattoo. When I grew tired of concentrating on the pattern, Rafe had me switch to studying the familiar-summoning spell. That spell was seriously more difficult than the other ones I’d seen in his grimoire. Its saving grace was that it didn’t have to be memorized or turned into a tattoo. When I was ready, I could use the grimoire and cast it.
After breakfast, we bought sandwiches at a nearby Subway, and Rafe had cast a stasis spell on them when we reached the clearing. Near sundown, he called a halt to training, and we ate. The sandwiches were still warm and the lettuce still crisp. Even the soft drinks were still ice cold. That was one handy spell to know and just one more in a list I was mentally forming to decide what to learn next. It looked like my next decade, or two, was going to be spent learning and training, assuming we lived through Rowle’s Ragnarök attempt.
We ate slowly, even though I wanted to scarf down my food and get back to the summoning spell. Sitting cross-legged, back-to-back, we ate, and Rafe told me things he thought I needed to know. He did that at almost every opportunity. Some of the things he told me were truly surprising, and other things just seemed like daily life for him. The story of the serial killer was one that was surprising. I’m not sure why he brought it up because I had assumed that Wanderers stayed out of mundane affairs. At least I thought he did until he mentioned the serial killer and his victims.
Suddenly, I thought I understood some of his actions with the rapists. Wanting me to solve my own problems had been understandable, once I had considered his explanation last night. I did need to be able to stand on my own two feet, so to speak. Sure, I was ready to kill all three men without considering the consequences. In my defense, no one had ever attempted to rape me before. I could claim temporary insanity, but that would be a cop-out. I was angry, and I had wanted their blood.
Rafe had calmly put them in a place where they were unlikely to survive. It gave me some satisfaction and kept us from leaving bodies lying around. I was still tempted to ask him to take me to them so I could remove pieces of their anatomy, but heh, I was the wounded party. I deserved a little treat. My bloodthirsty thoughts gave me pause to wonder if becoming a Wanderer was also changing me. I’d heard the old adage about power corrupting and absolute power corrupting absolutely, but I didn’t get the sense that Rafe abused his power by doing things to people who didn’t deserve his attention. It was something I’d have to watch in the future. I didn’t want to end up
