CHAPTER 18

I feel my body get sucked forward like a vacuum and suddenly I find myself watching the image of my host rushing through the forest in the middle of the night.

Just like I did, my host stumbled into the same warlock and she bounced off his chest with a grunt. His entire form is coated with a dark aura, and the colours dance around his large frame violently. Staring at him, every instinct within me screams danger, but there is also a feeling of excitement and familiarity.

Catching her before she falls, the warlock wraps a hand around her waist and pulled her close to his chest. Tilting my head, I watch the both of them stare into each other's eyes for several long seconds as time seems to move slowly.

Frowning, I wonder why the hell I have to watch this when my host finally gets a hold of herself and pushes away from the warlock. "I'm so-so-sorry."

She keeps her head bowed and her eyes on her feet, while tense silence dancing between the two. Her submissive behaviour irritated the crap out of me, as a girl with a strong personality I find it difficult to allow my weakness to be so evident to anyone.

But, I guess she does have a reason to be scared. Here she stands in a forest late at night, with a dark warlock she has probably never had any experience dealing with.

"It's fine," The warlock speaks, startling the both of us out of our thoughts as we turn our attention his way.

The sound of his voice creates goosebumps on my skin, my spine stiffening as I vaguely thought about a person I haven't thought about in a long time. The memory of his face is hazy in my mind, but his voice, that voice still makes my heart jump.

"Just watch where your going next time." The warlock steps around my host and disappears into the night, the both of us left watching his retreating back.

Once the memory ends, I'm pulled back to the present and my knees buckle weakly beneath me.

Hands grab onto my shoulders and I'm pulled into a warm embrace, shaking my head with a groan I try to clear off my dizziness. "Penelope, are you okay?"

Startled, I glance up with wide eyes to stare at the warlock. Did he hear my conversation with my host's aunt? "Uhm, who?" I feign ignorance, stepping back cautiously.

For a while there, I thought he wasn't going to speak, so I began to wonder whether or not I could slink back into the practice room without seeming rude.

But before I can make up my mind, he lets out an amused chuckle before making his way into the practice room. His confusing behaviour puzzling to me.

Slowly making my way back into the practice room, I walked over to the bleachers and dropped my cellphone before hurrying to the mat where everyone is lined up.

The dark warlock stood in front with his legs braced apart and his hands folded behind his back, the tight stretchy pants he wore outlined his toned muscles and I wished he wasn't wearing a pair of shorts on top.

Although, he has on a sleeveless tank slightly big in size which allows one to see the pale skin of his prefect pecks.

His presence caused quite a stir, whisper of fear on everyone's lips as they stared at the male before them apprehensively. But despite all this, the male stood before us with an impassive face as his onyx black eyes circled the sea of faces.

"Hello everyone, I'm Kevin Hatch and I've just been appointed as the new trainer for your batch group." He states, causing the whispers to get louder.

Raising his voice, he shuts everyone up when he begins to circle around the room. And from where I'm standing, I could feel the dark energy that emitted off his body. Damn, he's hot.

"Under my supervision, you are going to learn not just physical combat, but mental combat as well. Our jobs as hunters don't comprise of just fighting and killing. It comprises of dedicated service and a willingness to protect." He stresses out, ensuring he had everyone's attention as he moved through each row.

Though I kept my eyes forward and my spine straight when I felt him brush against my body as he passed right behind me, I can't deny the slight hitch in my breathing nor can I deny the fact that I'm well aware of his every move.

"Under my watch, I need your focus, I need your strength, and I need your discipline. If anyone has a problem with the other, settle it on the mat. Is that clear soldiers?" He barks as he circles back to his position in front of us, and everyone nodded, answering simultaneously with loud voices.

"Sir, yes sir!"

"Good. From now on your no longer teenagers in training, your soldiers within an army. Act like it."