I was so fixated on the new construction that I hadn’t seen Regan approach. To my credit, I kept the shock off my face as I looked over at her. “You mean for our … competition?” I asked. She nodded and I turned back to the construction site and swallowed hard. “What is it?”
“An arena,” she said, folding her arms over her chest. I glanced over at her and found her mouth drawn into a deep frown.
An arena. Like the gladiators.
My stomach flipped. I looked at the clearing with new eyes. They were building the platform out of brick so it would stand up to whatever they planned on throwing at us. The bleachers were for an audience and, if Owen was right, it would be comprised of the pack and him and his family. The big fence was presumably to contain something—but there was no way to tell if it would be us, or something out to get us.
For some reason, it was the bleachers that made me feel the worst. They weren’t just going to test us. They were going to watch one of us fail.
A mental image of Regan standing over me dressed in Roman armor and a sword at my throat came to mind. I could already see Dad with his thumb turned up.
I banished the thought. They wouldn’t be that melodramatic.
Probably.
“When is the test?” I asked.
Regan shrugged. “They haven’t set a date yet. Just want to be prepared, I guess,” she answered and I suppressed my relief. “School starts day after tomorrow,” she added. “I’m supposed to tell you.”
I laughed. “Seriously? They’re building Thunderdome here and we still have to go to school?”
“That’s how it works. It’s kind of a year-round thing. We go every day for a few weeks, then get a couple weeks off.” At seeing my expression she added, “It’s good, though. You’ll want to attend a few lessons before we start with the tests. They’ll help you learn more about your animal strengths and skills and also about the pack, and … this isn’t making you feel any better, is it?”
“I feel great,” I lied.
Beside me, Regan shifted. “I wanted to apologize,” she began. I looked up, surprised. It took me a second to remember what for. “My mom’s … cause of death,” she went on. “I shouldn’t have lied about that. It’s just … we told that version to the local authorities to avoid questions, and when we met, you were still so…”
“Human?” I finished for her.
She blew out a breath. “I’m sorry,” she said again.
I shrugged, not nearly as upset now as I had been the night I’d heard Sheridan mention it. “I think I get it,” I said. “I wouldn’t want to talk about it either and back then, I had no idea vampires existed much less went to war with werewolf packs.”
“Right.” Regan blew out a breath. “Well, thanks.”
Carter passed by pushing a wheelbarrow full of concrete mix, his broad shoulders flexing under the weight of the load. Regan’s eyes tracked him as he passed. Did she look unusually pale? She swayed a little on her feet and her fingers reached up to brush her neck.
“Something wrong?” I asked.
Regan shook herself a little. “No. Everything is fine. Do you want to go to town today?”
The change in subject almost gave me whiplash. “What for?”
She folded her arms behind her back, all military again, although she had lost a lot of her confidence. “We could do some … shopping.”
My nose wrinkled. “Shopping?” I repeated.
“For shoes,” she said.
I floundered for an answer. I hated shoe shopping, and I was already late to meet Owen, but I didn’t want to be mean or raise her suspicions. “Or we could get coffee later, after my run,” I added, gesturing to my workout clothes and sneakers.
Regan tried one more time. “Or we could … see a stylist?”
I stared at her, trying to think of a polite response. She was clearly uncomfortable and I got the distinct impression she wanted me to turn her down—so why was she bothering to ask? “Is that the kind of stuff you like to do? Shoe shopping? The salon?” I asked.
“No,” she admitted, her shoulders dropping as she unclasped her hands. “But I thought you might.”
I looked at my wrist even though I wasn’t wearing a watch. “Maybe later. I was planning on going for a run today. Get to see a little more of the forest and surrounding areas.”
Her eyes lit up. “I could come.”
“No!” I said, and the light disappeared instantly. Her expression shuttered. “I mean, I just want to be alone,” I amended. “Not that I don’t want you to come. I’m just used to being on my own so … we can go to town later, maybe?”
“Sure,” Regan said, her tone chillier than before.
She started to walk away to join the line of people bringing supplies to the arena. The urge to fix whatever I’d just damaged was overwhelming. I bit my lip and after a second’s hesitation, I called after her, “I like antiques.”
She stopped and looked at me, brows raised. “Antiques?”
“Yeah. Are there any antique shops in Paradise?”
The corner of her mouth lifted. “There are a couple.”
I forced a cheerful expression. “I’d love it if you showed me.”
“Tomorrow then.” Regan gave me a small smile, and then disappeared around front.