Here's chapter 10, please R&R to tell me what you think and if you think I need to improve anything. Hope you like it (:

"I told you to get her out of there!" Pritkin growled at me as soon as we got back to Mircea's mansion.

I didn't take much note of him though. It was something I'd known Cassie could do but it was amazing all the same. She'd shifted us sixteen miles! Only his hand on my arm brought me back to reality.

"I told her to go home!" I defended myself.

"And I told you to go with her!" he strode off in a swirl of his brown duster leaving me and Cassie alone on the lawn.

Cassie was lying on the floor catching her breath. Somehow she'd managed to bring all the clothes with her. They now littered the floor having fallen from the sky when she let go in mid air. I picked them up and waited for Cassie to catch her breath before walking back into the house with her. She didn't look at me for a long time but kept her gaze stubbornly ahead. I carried the baskets and didn't look at her either. The normally short walk to the back door seemed to take for ever as a cold atmosphere developed. When we got to the doors Cassie caught my arm.

"Ava, I'm sorry…"

I turned on her, fire in my eyes. "Next time I say 'go home', go home! Do you have any idea how much danger you put all of us in! Pritkin could have died." I growled. I turned away from her, yanked the door open and stormed inside.

I made my way to my room not really noticing what I passed on my way. I guessed Pritkin was right. I should have gone with Cassie because then even if she didn't go home I could have protected her and stopped the mages getting her in the car park. Pritkin was good enough to look after himself which should have been enough to make me go with Cassie first time round not after making a needless mistake. I mentally kicked myself all the way up the stairs and along the corridor to my room.

Pritkin was sat on my bed. I'd expected him to wait in the kitchen where he would probably guess I would go after putting some clean clothes on. It seemed to be the hub of the guards in this place probably for the reason that it was the only place where we could get food and the vamps mostly stayed out of it. It was the only space we could really call ours apart from our rooms. Yes we could use any of the rooms that weren't strictly Cassie and Mircea's but they weren't really ours.

Nor did it seem my room was just mine. I dumped my bags and waited for Pritkin to say something. When he didn't move his gaze from the window I leant on a chest of draws and crossed my arms over my chest content to wait for him to talk. Until I got unbearably hungry that is. When he still didn't answer I looked at the back of his skull to try and make him feel uncomfortable. It worked until I noticed a piece of paper near his hand which distracted me. If I hadn't have looked away I think he would have caved. Instead of kicking myself over another failure I took the piece of paper from behind him.

It was a timetable with his shifts on it as well as when we were going to train. Sometimes I would be with Cassie helping her with what she needed to learn as well as no doubt improving what I could already do. Most of the time I would be doing one-on-one training with Pritkin. The details of the lessons weren't on the paper so it looked like he was going to be planning what happened depending on how satisfied he was with my level of magic. Well, he knew I could almost kill him so it should be good enough.

I put the paper on the bed and indignantly said, "What do you want?"

He didn't answer me straight away. Instead he looked at his clasped hands and slowly turned to me. I knew he was annoyed with me and I knew he would be for some time but there was also something else in his eyes. Something I couldn't put my finger on.

"You should have gone with her at least then –"

"I could have protected her even if she didn't come here. I know. I've been kicking myself over it since we got back. Lesson learned whatever. When do we start training?"

"After you've had a healthy lunch." He rested a hand on mine for a moment before standing.

He wasn't sure what made him go easy on her. If it were Cassie who'd done something wrong he would have shouted at her or told her not to do it again. Maybe it was because he knew Ava had leant a lesson and it hit home with her more than it did Cassie because of her training. Ava had grown up learning to fight and had to learn the consequences of her actions very quickly. Something Cassie didn't do. Which was what Pritkin put down to going easy on Ava. Of course it was. There was nothing else to it. I can afford to treat Ava like that. That's all.

Satisfied his treatment of Ava was justified he carried on his way to the kitchen letting Ava take her time getting there.

"Salad?" I exclaimed the next day. "You're making me eat salad for breakfast!" I was so not impressed.

I mean, what the hell did this guy think I was? I was a teenager not a supermodel. I was a kid who liked pizza and roast dinners who occasionally had pasta salad. Yeah salad was alright but not when it was just lettuce and a couple of tomatoes.

I pushed the plate away from me and watched him fry some bacon. And then eat it right in front of me. I could feel my mouth start to water and the smell was just intoxicating. It wrapped around me like a blanket warming my insides like a hot drink on a cold day. I could feel my eyes going wide as he took the last bite of his sandwich.

I looked into his eyes intending to give him a glare of dislike but when I saw that he was amused it turned into one of loathing. Which made him smile. It was a wide smile that reached his eyes and lit up his whole face taking away the perpetual seriousness that made him look like he was always expecting something to jump out and kill him. It softened the tense line of his shoulders and made him look younger.

Stop it, Ava. It's just because he nearly died yesterday.

He seemed to notice something change in my thought process because he stopped smiling too and turned to the sink. I picked at my salad wishing the lighter atmosphere would return.

After a few silent moments I lightly asked, "When do I get chocolate again or are you putting chocolate prohibition laws in force?"

He tilted his head to the side. "The day I give up coffee."

I knew that would never happen. He was fixed on the stuff like a junky was their next hit. He'd have to go cold turkey. Cold turkey….

"What are you thinking?" he asked uncertainly as if reading my mind. His eye went to the coffee jar giving him away. When he realised this he walked over to the fridge.

"Nothing." I innocently replied. He closed the door with a chocolate bar in hand. I had no doubt it was meant for him not me. "But since you accused me of plotting to steal your precious caffeine fix," I got out of my seat and crossed the room towards him. He really didn't like where I was going with this and stopped un-wrapping the Twix. "when I wasn't, you'll pay up by letting me have that chocolate bar." I plucked it out of his hands and happily ate it as I left the kitchen.

He followed me intent on getting it back. I lengthened the stride of my steps and quickened the pace, looking at him from the corner of my eye.

"Where's training, coach?"

"Garden." He tried reaching for the chocolate but I snatched it out of his reach.

The door easily opened when I leant against it. Cassie was already waiting for us on and immaculately kept lawn. The same one I almost killed Pritkin on.

He was suddenly in front of me hand outstretched demanding the Twix. I, with a massive smirk, stuffed the last quarter in my mouth.

"That is not part of your diet, Ava." He said with disapproval in his eyes.

"Uh, too late." I said round a mouthful of food.

"Pritkin's late. I never thought I'd see the day." Cassie called from a few meters away.

Pritkin turned to her, no doubt a damn it she won't let this drop look on his face.

Cassie never beat him to training but recently she'd had an extra incentive. Yesterday when she'd gone into the kitchen she'd caught the tail ends of a conversation the guards were having. One of them jokingly said "I'll give her 100 dollars when she beats Pritkin to training". When they saw her enter the room they all quickly shut up and got back to eating or polishing their shoes. She smiled and extended the bet to include all of the people present and gave herself the deadline of the end of the week. When she left she sought Ava out and told her that if she helped her she'd halve the prize money giving them $250 each.

Pritkin made his way over towards her with Ava following him. Cassie thought of how they would make a cute couple. They offset each other perfectly – Pritkin was as broad as Ava was petite, he as fair as she dark, he as stoic as she was casual.

"I want you, Cassie, to show Ava what we've been doing over the past few weeks and then I want Ava to pick out where you're going wrong."

They'd been working on hand to hand combat. Cassie was slowly improving but she still had a long way to go according to Pritkin. She had a tendency to slow down her movements and leave herself wide open for attacks even when she defended. She just needed to bring it all in, tighten her defence and make her movements more controlled.

"And not be scared of hurting them – they're trying to kill you." Ava tacked onto the end.

Cassie knew she was right but she loathed to hurt anyone. She'd been hurt numerous amounts of times and many people had died for her sake and she didn't want to endanger anyone else. She had enough death on her conscience even if they weren't directly her fault.

"Maybe it's time to get some revenge for all those people." Ava shrugged.

That sparked a thought in Cassie. Maybe the ghosts of the people who'd died would move on more quickly if she avenged their deaths. Even if they weren't technically still alive she was glad she was helping someone.

The next time she hit Ava it was with more force even if there wasn't much accuracy and the blow was easy to deflect. Pritkin nodded in approval. She was finally making progress with her punches.

So what did you think? Let me know.

Oh, Karen Chance owns the Cassie Palmer Series... not me... unfortunately... bummer... ):