Free Winter's Storm: Retribution (Winter's Saga #2) by Karen Luellen

stood arms tight at my sides in the ready-to-begin stance.
    “ Sure thing,” Alik stopped stretching and took his position between Evan and me. All three of us stood side by side facing the hospital.
    “ Hep,” I barked sharply as was our way of synchronizing our starting bow. Demonstrating respect for our imagined opponent, we bowed deeply while maintaining eye contact. Slowly, we righted ourselves and began.
    This kata was one of mom’s most basic. It was a training exercise promoting proper footing, form and technique. Each movement was to be executed with precision and synchronicity among the three of us. And after years of training, my brothers and I were so familiar with the movements we could do this kata blindfolded. Matter of fact, we had done it blindfolded.
    Each maneuver was performed twice. The first time fast enough to have missed if you blinked, then again slowly so the audience could study how we did what we did.
    We flew through a blurry-fast series of defensive hand-to-hand combat movements demonstrating exact form and footing then repeated ourselves in slow motion. We presented a series of kicks—front, side, rear, roundhouse—first fast, then repeated slowly.
    As I moved to the well-known kata, my body seemed to awaken with joy. I was completely unconcerned with the eyes watching me. Instead, all I thought about was how happy it made me to let myself move freely and not hold back. Whipping through these familiar motions, punching, kicking, blocking; it almost brought a giggle to my throat.
    My senses came alive during these moments, as though this is exactly what I was designed to do. I loved the tug of each muscle as I moved, the wind rushing past my skin as I struck empty air. Movement is joy to me.
    When the kata ended, my brothers and I bowed to a cheering audience clapping happily for us. I glanced over at my brothers, whose faces looked just as content as I felt. We all loved this.
    Mom taught us well. Knowing we would need to defend ourselves from Dr. Williams, she trained us to be warriors. Living back on the ranch with no other kids around, we didn’t know it was unusual to have the education we did from our mom. We thought lots of kids grew up with combat training. Like some kids went to soccer practice or took piano, I assumed some kids practiced and excelled in the art of guerilla warfare, like me. I was also unaware of our superior strength compared to an average human being. Only able to practice with my brothers and my mom, I thought everyone could do what I did.
    Though mom was a regular human being, she had skills and training achieved through years of service as a special-forces soldier. She had trained her mind just as much as her body. She taught us how to push ourselves beyond what we thought we could do; and being metas, we could do a lot. She conditioned us to become extremely controlled, precise and if need be, lethal.
    I was thinking about mom in the seconds that flashed just as we completed our kata. I felt a wave of gratefulness for everything she did for us; all the sacrifices she made to protect us. But my reverie was broken when I heard Alik call, “Ready, hep!” It was our transition signal to begin a different demonstration. I couldn’t help but smile in anticipation. All three siblings faced each other in a loose triangle.
    Just as we were about to bow, indicating to those watching that we were about to begin battling each other, something caught my eye.
    There, standing next to a tree in the grassy courtyard, was Creed. He was holding a couple drinks looking bug-eyed surprised. And if I were honest with myself, he also looked embarrassed. Oh, good grief! Of all the stupid things my brothers have gotten me into, this was the most humiliating! I glanced away quickly. C’mon Meg…focus.
    By the time I glanced back, Creed was gone. Maybe I was mistaken. Maybe that hadn’t been Creed and my eyes were playing tricks on me. I tried to convince myself that was the