Game of the Vampires

Chapter 33:

     "Come on. One more set," Blake cheered me on as I struggled with the heavy weight.

     I mentally groaned as I sucked in a breath while shakily lifting the weight above me. The weight shook with every movement I made because my muscles were already becoming sore. With each struggled lift, I would count down how many I had left.

     Five... deep breath. Four... three... two...

     I returned the weight back to its holding before becoming limbless on the bench. Blake laughed as he stood over me.

     "Just think; you have to do this every day we train," Blake said with a taunting smile.

     I grimaced. "I don't need bulking muscles. I did a pretty good job stabbing that vampire in the neck without any strength."

     Blake helped me up. "But that was only your adrenaline. And if I was you, I wouldn't always rely on adrenaline to save yourself."

     I pushed my hair back from my face, inhaling deeply. I glanced down at my puny arms and sighed when I failed to even attempt to show muscle.

     Blake smiled , giving me a pat on the back. "Give it time. This is only the first week of doing this."

     "And there's many more weeks to come," I muttered.

     Col came out of the one of the target rooms. He gave Blake a nod in greeting.

     "You go train with Val. I'll take over here."

     I could see the flash of excitement on Blake's face before he quickly hid it. He waved to me and left the room.

     Col turned to me with his arms crossed over his chest. I returned the gesture, awaiting his command.

     "I refuse to run laps," I stated before he could even think of saying it.

     Col raised a brow. "Is that right?" he murmured. Before I could answer, he said, "Well, I was thinking we could have a little one-on-one to see if Blake has been doing a better job than I have."

     I studied him for any signs of bluffing, but he was definitely serious. I nibbled my bottom lip in thought. I finally nodded my head in agreement. Col clapped his hands together, a smile forming on his lips. He unrolled a massive blue mat onto the floor and faced me.

     I walked over to the other side of the mat. Col got into a slightly crouched position. He flashed his teeth as he smirked.

     "Ready for this, Collins?"

     This time, I found my lips curling into a smile. "More than you know."

     With that, I ran towards him. Col only waited for me to come to him, and I knew better. I knew as soon as I tackled him, he would only toss me over his shoulder. Then, the fight would be over, and he would win.

     As soon as I came an inch in front of him, I side-stepped him and latched myself onto his back. My arms wrapped around his neck as my legs curled around his waist. Col put his hands up in mock surrender.

     "You got me."

     Before I could do anything, Col began to back up against a wall in an attempt to get me off of him. I jumped off just as he almost hit the wall. I smirked at my small victory. I quickly composed myself as Col and I began to charge at each other.

     I pushed my hands against his chest in order to get away, but he caught my arms. He then locked my hands behind me before spinning me around until my back was against his chest. One of his hands kept my wrists captive while the other was loosely cupping my neck in a choke hold. Neither of the positions hurt, it just angered me. I hated feeling trapped.