Crossing the Line by Meghan Rogers Page B

throbbed. He hit me so hard I wouldn’t have been surprised if a rib was broken.
    He cut up and chopped at my collarbone, but I dodged it just enough to lessen the impact. My breathing was more labored than ever, and the pain in my ribs was making it worse. He pulled the staff back and pushed it toward me, aimed at my throat. I caught it just in time. The two staffs pressed on each other, and the pain in my side spread through my torso.
    I bit my lip hard enough to taste blood. It was the only thing keeping me from crying out. I struggled to push back as I realized my vision had started to blur.
    Then something flickered in Scorpion’s face and he lifted the staff. I was about to relax when he swung down, swiping at my legs and taking them out from under me. I slammed down onto my back, every muscle throbbing.
    Scorpion pressed the base of the staff into the ground and leaned over me. I could barely make out his arrogant face in between the stars. “Don’t you ever think for a second that I can’t take you.”
    He started to walk away from me, and I swung my staff, hitting his knees and bringing him down next to me. “And don’t
you
ever think that means you’ve won.”
    He pushed himself off the ground, still pissed, and strutted out of the room. I stayed down, trying to catch my breath and find the strength to move.
    I was way more out of shape than I realized.

Chapter Nine
   HOW THE DAY ENDS
    M y ribs hurt for the rest of the night. I knew I should go to Dr. March—especially after my talk with Simmonds, but it was that same conversation that held me back. I needed to get into the field to get closer to my mission. To do that, I needed to be training with Scorpion, and I needed to develop some level of trust among the other agents. That was never going to happen if I went to March with something like this. There wasn’t anything she could have done for me anyway. I knew enough about rib injuries to know they were only bruised.
    My room came with a small fridge, which had a freezer full of ice, so I strapped several bags around my torso to ease the swelling. The afternoon wasn’t a total loss. I had more power over Scorpion than he liked to think. I could push him, and I knew I could get to him enough to make him snap. I was close today. Scorpion didn’t want this on Simmonds’s radar any more than I did, otherwise I was sure my ribs would be broken. Getting my ass kicked wasn’t exactly how I wanted to use this power, but given time, I’d find a way to make it work to my advantage.
    I still had trouble sleeping in the bed, but that night it felt good to stretch out on something soft. I fell asleep propped up against the wall at an awkward angle and, when I did, I dreamed I was back at KATO.
    â€œFor some of you, this will be your last fight,” one of the other handlers said. I was thirteen and there were ten of us who had been training together. We were paired off. He circled us, barking orders, while the other handlers watched from the side. My handler, Chin Ho, stood staring at me, evenly. This was a fight designed to weed out the weaker trainees. The winners got to become field agents. The losers ended up dead.
    Chin Ho held out a vial for me to see, and I understood. It was more than just my life I was fighting for. It was Gerex.
    A whistle blew and the battle began. I was paired against Stinger, a girl from France. A girl who I had lived with for the past five years. We weren’t close, but we weren’t enemies either. At least, not until now.
    She made the first move, swinging and knocking me back. I punched her in her face, stunning her for a second, before she came back with a low roundhouse kick. She swept me off my feet, then kicked me repeatedly in the stomach. I’d let her get the drop on me. I couldn’t breathe and I knew this was how I was going to die.
    Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Chin Ho, still