A CROWN OF DIAMONDS AND DEATH

12. Target Practice

Rebel's alarm blared.

At the wake-up noise, Rebel groaned. It signaled an end to her peaceful sleep. It wasn't like she got much, anyway. Rebel had trouble falling asleep. She wasn't able to reach some state of rest until around 6 am.

It was barely 8:15 am, yet according to Azura, Silas's first training session would start in fifteen minutes. And it wasn't like she could miss either. Silas was expecting her to be there.

Tiredly, Rebel sat up and left her bed to get a start on her day.

It wasn't until 8:50 am that Rebel reached the training spot where Silas had gathered the pack's warriors. She found Azura's head among the crowd and slipped into a place next to her.

Unfortunately, Sangrea's weather proved how mercurial it was even during the Fall, and it was sweltering.

But hopefully, Silas didn't notice her late arrival as he was in front of the crowd, lecturing about what shooting exercise they would be doing today.

She noted some human-sized targets placed some distance away.

But, as her luck had proven repeatedly, she wasn't fortunate to skate by unnoticed.

"Smith, since you were the last to join us, you should go first. I've been waiting to see your skills up close." Without looking from his clipboard, Silas's fingers waved in the air, gesturing for her to come to him.

For fucks sake.

"Hey, I'm sure you'll be just fine, and Silas is understanding. If anything, he's mainly there to support you, and in the case, you're doing anything off, tell you how to correct it so you don't hurt yourself in the future," Azura encouraged from beside her and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "You got this, Rebel."

Despite Azura's encouragement, Rebel felt sick to her stomach. She knew she was a gifted shooter, but it had been far too long since she had last picked up a gun. If only she could have practiced by herself before being placed on the spot.

"Smith?" Silas tried again. This time, he lifted his head to find her in the crowd. When his eyes found her, he offered her a close-mouthed smile.

Begrudgingly, she walked over to where he was.

"Take a pair of shooting ear mitts from the crate over here and grab an M9 from the gun rack over there," he instructed, tossing his clipboard aside to focus on her.

An M9? She thought as she walked over to the rack. Unlike the rifle she expected to be given, it was a handgun with a small impact. A reasonable shooter would be able to hit the targets at the fifty-meter range they were placed at, but it still would be a challenge.

Perhaps this was all some well-orchestrated plan he made to humiliate her for failing to be on time. It wouldn't be a big stretch considering how he left their last encounter with the rest of his Inner Circle. Silas took off, and the Alpha seemed angry with whatever he read on his phone.

"Take your mark right here," he gestured with his foot where to stand.

Clenching her jaw, she followed his instructions, standing in front of the white line. She could feel his presence behind her, his eyes staring at her back. It was like her senses had been heightened because his breathing made her tense.

He crossed his arms, stared at the top of her head and at the targets waiting in anticipation to see her work in action.

Being the Alpha, Silas was both respected and feared by his pack. He was even more strict with the pack's warriors, knowing they were imperative in protecting the community he had built. He had to be a stern leader and push them to their limits to prove how capable each of them was and be successful.