CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR: ANOTHER CHANCE.

    ANOTHER CHANCE.

Daniel and I walked across the field in silence. The grass brushed against my boots and the air smelled like sun-warmed dirt. Warriors were already gathering, stretching their arms and talking like this was the most normal thing in the world.

Inside me, my stomach tightened in a way I did not want to acknowledge. I kept my face neutral and hoped it stayed that way.

Daniel glanced at me. “You slept well?”

“I slept,” I replied.“That does not sound like a yes.”

“It is close enough.” I shrug taking in the morning air.

He let out a short laugh. “Alright. Close enough.”

It was easier pretending this was casual. Easier pretending my pulse was not trying to break my ribs. I kept my hands loosely at my sides so he would not see the tension in my fingers.

A group of warriors waved at him. One of them, a girl with cropped hair, whispered something to another. They both looked at me. Not with hostility. Not with anything obvious. But the past had trained my body to read looks and imagine tell-tale signs of possible bullying.

Daniel noticed. “Ignore them,” he said. “They are curious. New faces make people curious. Especially new family of their beloved Alpha.” He winked at me

“Right.” I returned his carefree smile with a fake one of mine.

Daniel stopped near the training mats. “Do you want water before we start?”

“I am fine.”

“You sure?”

“I said I am fine.”

He nodded slowly. “Alright. I hear you.”

He stepped forward to greet the instructor, leaving me standing alone. My fingers curled slightly. I tried to shake them out but stopped halfway, worried someone might notice. I knelt and tied my bootlace even though it was already tied, just to have something to do with my hands.

When Daniel returned, he had that relaxed posture warriors seemed to be born with. “Instructor Era is leading today,” he said. “She is strict but she is fair. She works well with beginners.”

“I am not a beginner,” I said automatically. “I just do not know how to do anything.”

Daniel snorted. “That is literally the definition of a beginner.”

I rolled my eyes, grateful for the tiny distraction. He smiled like he had achieved something.

Instructor Era approached. Her movements were smooth and calm. She looked me up and down, not in a judging way, more in the way someone checked what size equipment you might need.

“You are Emily,” she said.

“Yes.”

“Good. We start simple.” She gestured to an open space. “Warm up. Jog from one end to the other.”

My heart jumped, but I nodded. “Okay.”

Daniel leaned closer. “I will go with you.”

“You do not have to.”

“I know.”

He jogged beside me like this was a casual morning exercise. I focused on the ground rather than the people watching. My throat tightened, but I swallowed it. My pace stayed steady.

When we reached the far end, Daniel slowed. “How is it?”

“It is a jog.”

“That is not an answer.”

“It is the only one I have.”

He studied me for a second. I kept my face blank. He let the topic go, probably because he realized I was not about to elaborate.

We jogged back. Instructor Era nodded, satisfied. “Good. Stretch.”

I knelt down and reached for my toes. My muscles felt tight, but I refused to wince. Daniel stretched beside me, making small talk with the warriors nearby.

“Is she joining our rotation?” someone asked him.

“Yeah,” Daniel replied. “She is here to train.”

A warrior whistled low. “That is unexpected for the Alpha's granddaughter.”

Daniel shrugged. “A little work never hurt anyone.”

Unexpected.

I kept my gaze on my shoes and pretended I did not hear it. Complaining or reacting would draw attention, and attention had never been safe.

Instructor Era clapped her hands. “Pair up.”

Daniel looked at me. “I am with you.”

I frowned. “I can find someone else.”

He gave me a look that said I was being ridiculous. “I brought you here. I am pairing with you.”

I sighed quietly. “Fine.”

We moved to a mat. He positioned himself across from me. “We start with stance,” he said. “It helps with balance.”

He stepped forward and adjusted my feet with two gentle taps of his boot. “A little wider,” he said.

I shifted.

“Good. Now keep your hands up. Like this.”

He demonstrated. I copied him. My hands felt awkward and floaty, but I kept them up.

“That is fine,” he said. “You do not need to be perfect. You just need to show up.”

Something tightened in my chest. I pretended not to hear the softness in his tone.

He continued, “Now shift your weight. Left. Right. Easy.”

I mimicked him. Left. Right. Left. Right. My muscles remembered something so blinked it away quickly.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“You sure?”

“Yes.” I forced my shoulders to loosen. “I am keeping up, right?”

“You are doing more than keeping up,” he said.

A wave of conversations drifted from the other mats. Warriors laughing. Instructions being shouted. I tried not to listen for insults or snickers or whispers. My mind kept scanning the noise out of habit.

Daniel tapped my elbow lightly. “Focus on me,” he said. “You are drifting.”

“I am not drifting.”

“You are thinking too much.”

“That is not drifting.”

“In training, that's drifting.”

I let out a short breath that almost passed for a laugh. “Fine. Teach me the next step.”

He grinned. “Now we block.”

He raised his hand slowly. “I swing here. You block here.” He mimed the motion in slow motion. “Ready?”

“Go.”

He swung lightly. I blocked. It felt stiff and clumsy, but I did it.

“Again,” he said.

He swung. I blocked.

“Again.”

Swing. Block.

Over and over.

Slowly the rhythm formed something steady. Something my body could recognize even if my mind rebelled against it.

Daniel lowered his hand. “Good job.”

I felt heat crawl up my neck. “It is not that good.”

“It is,” he insisted gently. “You are learning faster than you expected.”

I looked at his face and realized he meant it. No hidden mockery. No secret smirk. Just a straightforward statement.

The field looked different for a moment. Not safer. But… manageable.

Instructor Era walked past and glanced at us. “She is doing well. Keep going.”

Daniel smirked proudly. “Told you.”

I rolled my eyes but did not argue this time.

He lifted his hands again. “Ready for the next round?”

“Ready.”

And even though my pulse trembled, my stance stayed firm.

Even though my past clawed at the edges of my mind, I moved forward anyway.

Even though no one knew how anxious I felt, I kept my voice steady.

Daniel grinned. “Let us go.”

And we continued training as the sun climbed higher over the field, each movement chipping away at a fear I allowed control me.