My Second Chance Mate is a Barbarian (Sera and Fenris) novel Chapter 32

Sera

Mina’s hands were on me again, shaking my shoulder. I didn't want to open my eyes. My body felt like it was held together by bruises and stubbornness.

"Training, Sera. Get up," Mina whispered, her voice tight with nerves. "Yvara is waiting in the yard. You can't be late again. Not after yesterday."

I didn't move. I kept my eyes squeezed shut, burying my face deeper into the dark furs that still smelled faintly of the woods and snow .

"Sera, please," Mina pushed, her hands more urgent now. "This is important. You only have five more days. Taya isn't going to go easy on you just because you’re tired."

I snapped. I sat up so fast Mina stumbled back. "Get out!" I shouted. My throat felt like I’d swallowed glass.

"I'm just trying to help," Mina stammered, her hands held up. "You can't just give up. If you don't train—"

I swung my legs over the edge of the bed. My ribs barked, but I ignored the pain. I grabbed Mina by the arm—harder than I meant to—and started dragging her toward the door. She protested, her boots scuffing against the stone floor. She tried to plant her feet, but I was fueled by pure, unfiltered rage.

"If you're so interested in the training, you go," I told her, my voice low and shaking. "Go get kicked in the stomach for an hour. Go train with Yvara yourself."

I shoved her out into the corridor. She turned around, her eyes wide and hurt, but I didn't care. I slammed the heavy oak door and turned the lock with a loud, final click .

"Sera! Open the door!" Mina’s voice came through the wood, muffled and pleading. "Please, don't do this!"

I ignored her. I walked back to the bed and collapsed into the furs. I pulled them over my head until I was in the dark. Fenris could go to hell. Yvara could go to hell. All of Ironmaw could burn for all I cared. I stayed there until the sound of my own pulse in my ears was the only thing I could hear.

I slept.

When I woke up, the light in the room had shifted. The grey morning glare was gone, replaced by the long, deep shadows of late afternoon. I was groggy, my head throbbed, and every muscle in my body felt like it had been stretched and snapped.

"You sleep like the dead."

The voice was low and raspy. My blood went cold.

I turned my head. Yvara was sitting in a chair by the window, her legs crossed. She was watching me, her eyes like two pieces of flint. She looked like she’d been sitting there for a long time .

I sat up fast. My heart slammed against my ribs so hard it hurt . "How did you get in here? The door was locked."

Yvara didn't answer. She just kept watching me.

"Get out," I said. My voice was shaking. "Get the fuck out of my room."

She didn't move.

"I'll scream," I threatened.

Yvara shrugged, a small, indifferent movement of her scarred shoulders. "Go ahead. Scream. See who comes."

We stared at each other. The silence in the room was thick. I was trying to figure out if I could make it to the door, but she was blocking the only way out. She just waited, as if she had all the time in the mountain.

"Tell me about Kane," she said suddenly.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify