Across The Divide by Stacey Marie Brown

I lifted my shirt to show him the deep scar from when the gas station blew up, and I was impaled on a magazine rack. Ryker had nothing to do with it, he actually saved my life, but I let Peter make his own conclusions.
    Peter reached out his, fingers stopping just short of my skin. “He did that to you?” Indignation rose in his eyes.
    “He tried to break me and weaken my mind through torment and control. And I can’t say he didn’t. It wasn’t until I tried to run from here—when you guys caught me—the words I said—did I realize what had happened to me.” I shuddered, shaking my head. “Then I realized something was really wrong with my mind. Seeing you all has now awakened the piece of me that was stronger than his manipulations.
    “I also have no excuse for my behavior when you saw me in Bellevue, running from the bank. The day before had been a difficult one.” I looked down, licking my lips. That was true. The day before we broke into the bank was awful because Marcello had forced me back into fighting. I also thought Ryker was dead. “But I played him, he bought my act, and thought I was on his side. In my heart I never forgot he was evil. I did what I needed to.”
    “Even fuck him?” Peter sneered.
    I forced tears to gather under my lids. “You can judge me, but I did what I had to do. You have no idea what I went through each day. Daniel taught me how to survive. He told me the story about when you both were taken prisoner in North Korea. How you had to survive one day to the next. And no one, until they’re in your shoes, can truly judge another on how to do that.”
    Peter stepped back, his face unemotional, but his shoulders appeared agitated and tense.
    I would never diminish what happened to them, the true hell they had to endure, which bonded them. When you go through something like that, no one completely can understand unless they are sitting next to you.
    But this was my war. Daniel made me read The Art of War at least a dozen times. “Become relatable to you enemy. Find out anything you can on them, use it. It’s how you become a person to them, Zoey. There’s a connection. It can end up being the one thing that saves your life.” He would be the first to tell me to use this tactic.
    Daniel’s voice faded from my head. Peter paced around, rubbing at his head. Finally he let out a long sigh. “You’re right, I’m in no place to judge you, especially when I’ve done the same exact thing.” He stopped in front of me. “I’ve been so angry over Daniel’s death, I pointed it at you. Blamed you. Let what happened after you ran discolor my thoughts of your actions. He would kick my ass for that.” A brief fleck of humor lit his eyes before turning serious. “I can’t say I agree with your choices, but if what you say is true, then I apologize. You’re more of a survivor than I thought.” He nodded. “Daniel would be proud of you.”
    I wanted to believe the Daniel I knew would be.
    Ryker would find this hilarious.
    “Can we start anew?” I held out my hand.
    The initial response was quick, but I saw him look at my hand, his nose wrinkled, before his expression changed and he clasped it. He didn’t want to touch me. Deep down, he still had a visceral reaction to fae. Tainted. Wrong.
    I could work with it. We had made huge progress.
    “Now. Let’s get you back in shape.” Peter pulled his hand away and proceeded to the mats. “If you thought Daniel was a tough teacher, just wait.”
     

     
    Exhaustion forced my eyes closed before I even hit the pillow. True to his word, Rapava forced me between training and tests for his study. By the evening I felt like nothing more than a pincushion between Peter’s punches and Rapava’s exams. Peter kicked my ass and took great pleasure in showing me what a tyrant drill sergeant he was. Then Rapava ran multiple tests and prodded me with every size needle there was. I had bruises and aches in places I didn’t even know had nerve