"Cory, for Pete's sake. I'm not a china doll on a shelf. I'm not going to break. Take me to your shop already!"
Cory held up both hands. "Okay, okay."
Opening the gate, the sound hit them like a wave crashing over the shoreline. Cory pulled her inside and shut the gate tightly. Leaning in close to her, he was almost yelling, "Stay close to me, hold my hand. Follow me."
She held onto his hand, as he led her around the edges of the field toward the barracks that housed the warriors, and where he had his shop. It didn’t take long before the warriors picked up the scent of a mortal and cast a glance in their direction. He knew Shade would have informed the warriors of her presence here tonight, but she was still a curiosity, and they’d keep their eyes on her. Cory saw a group of female warriors led by Aislynn in their path. Some of the females stopped their sword practice and turned to look at Madison, and Cory kept moving. Aislynn moved the group farther into the middle of the field, firing orders at them to get back to work.
Striding over to Cory, her long braid swinging on her back, she came to a stop in front of them. "Sorry, brother, I had no idea when you’d be arriving."
"Not a problem, Aislynn, thanks. This is my girlfriend, Madison. Maddie, this is Aislynn, she’s Lieutenant here at the camp. She’s in charge of the female warriors."
Aislynn reached out to shake Madison's hand.
Madison had to look up at the tall, statuesque female; her muscles toned and visible through the form fitting leathers, her coal black hair pulled back tight in a single braid that hung down her back. Madison extended her hand and felt the bone crushing strength in the woman's grip. Madison remembered seeing her when she stumbled upon them in Shade's office, but there had been a number of warriors present and she’d been too shocked to really take any of them in. "It's very nice to meet you. Aislynn, that's a beautiful name."
"Thank you. It’s very nice to meet you, Cory’s a good guy. You’re a lucky girl."
Just then, Shade's voice boomed like thunder across the field and everyone stopped and turned in his direction. "Cazzo, one damn mortal walks in your midst and you suddenly think this is a damn social hour. Stop your gawking and get your asses back to work. Now!"
Aislynn rolled her eyes. "The master has spoken. Enjoy your night, Madison."
As she strolled off, yelling at the females in her group, Cory led Madison quickly to the barracks. He could still feel their eyes on them. "This is the warriors’ quarters. They live here, everyone has their own bunk, there are some recreation rooms, and Dad has a lot of meetings in here as well. I used to live here until I found out Shade was my dad."
Marcello casually strolled out and smiled. "Cory, so this must be Madison. You can give her a tour if you want. Everyone’s out on the field. Just stay out of the living quarters, ground floor is fine."
Madison remembered this guy from the frat party where she first met Cory. He had rock star good looks with his long hair, and longer eye lashes. She was certain while he might arrive at a party alone, he never left alone. She stood a little closer to Cory, although Cory was clearly no match for any of these warriors if they decided to turn on her.
Cory felt Madison step in closer. "Thanks, Marcello, and may I officially introduce you to Madison. Madison, this is Marcello, he’s Second-In-Command here at the camp. Pretty much the boss."
Marcello grinned and shook his head. "The warrior that stands heads above everyone on the field is the boss, but I’m honored to meet you, Madison." Turning back to Cory, he excused himself. "I need to get to work, keep her safe here, brother. I can only control these warriors for so long."
Fist bumping Marcello, Cory watched him walk into the fray. "Come on, let me show you inside the living quarters really quick, then we can head to my shop, it will be quieter."
Madison followed him into the living quarters for the warriors, full of large open spaces designed to accommodate their size. Despite the masculine decor, Madison recognized Kate's touch in the design. The wood floors shined, and there was a huge fireplace on one wall. Madison could easily envision the warriors all huddled here around a large fire in the winter. A glint of light on steel caught her eye as she was drawn to a large sword mounted on the wall behind glass. She walked in the direction of the sword and read a simple brass plaque mounted beneath it that read: Fiamma. She touched the plaque and turned to Cory. “Fiamma? Is that Italian for something?"
Cory stepped up behind her. "Fiamma means fiery in Italian. She was a warrior from our coven. She was killed here at the Battle of Bel Rosso. She’s the only female I think Kate ever trusted around my dad. She spent most of her life fighting beside my dad and when she died, this place was like a tomb. Everyone loved her so much."
Reaching out, he placed his hand on the case and traced the line of the sword. "She always wore red. You could spot her anywhere in the field."
Madison looked at him quizzically. "The Battle of Bel Rosso? Am I in danger here, Cory? I don't understand."
"No. I’d never bring you here if you were in danger. Everything’s quiet now. This happened a few years ago when my dad had to fight for this territory. Bel Rosso used to sit in the middle of another master’s territory. His name was Maximus, and he was a warrior, like my dad. Dad tried to negotiate with him, but they ended up going to battle over the land. We were attacked right here at Bel Rosso. We won, of course, but we lost warriors in the battle, one of them was Fiamma. Dad has been rebuilding the ranks and is just now getting our warriors back up in numbers. But he defeated Max, and now, he’s the Master of Virginia.”
Madison listened to the loud clashing sound of metal against metal that could be heard inside the living quarters, as the reality for why the warriors practiced sunk in. She was still having a hard time imagining a battle here in this peaceful paradise. "Can we see your shop now?" She wanted to move to something where she’d be more familiar.
"Definitely." Taking her hand, they walked back outside, and he rushed them into his shop. "Well, here it is, this is where I spend a lot of my nights."
He opened the door, flipped on the light, and gallantly held out his hand for her to enter. "I make all the leathers the warriors wear. I design everything myself, cut the patterns, select the materials, and put them together. Each piece is custom fit to the warriors needs. I can make anything. When I met Kate, she was with my dad at a club in California. I didn’t know he was my dad then, and well, long story, but he wanted to give me a new life, get me out of the clubs. Kate noticed the leather jacket I was wearing and asked me about it. When I told her I’d taken several secondhand pieces and remade them into my own jacket, she was the one that actually had the idea of letting me try to make the leathers for the warriors. Dad agreed, and this is the end result. I think I was born to end up here doing all of this, almost like fate."
Madison could smell the leather as soon as he opened the door, and she inhaled deep, taking in the scent. She knew how the smell of the wet clay inspired her as she worked the clay into shape on the potter’s wheel, and she imagined Cory felt the same, working around these large bolts of leather. Most of the leather was in brown or black, but she saw occasional patches of color. He had huge work tables in the space, well-worn and scarred by the blade of a knife, where he cut the leather into the patterned shapes. She ran her hands over the well-used tools, the blades, awls, and small tack hammers. He had a large industrial sewing machine to accommodate the tough leather, and a wall full of spools of a very course thread, again mostly in shades or black or brown. She saw finished pieces hanging and pieces in various stages of production stacked on a bench. It was easy to imagine him here, working late into the night. "This is perfect, Cory. I love it."