Girl Takes Up Her Sword Read Online Free PDF

father.”
    Jenkins grunted, his eyes fixed on the ring.
    Calder tried to gather himself one more time. A leg feint followed by a lunging jab, if she leaned in to block the kick, the jab would catch her on the cheek. But she didn’t block the feint. She stepped just inside his fist and hit him hard in the chest with a reverse punch before he could bring the hook around. It all happened so fast, two quick moves by Calder, but Emily’s counter was so direct that he still couldn’t catch up to her.
    He staggered back, struggling to catch his breath. And then, as if in slow motion, Emily crossed one foot behind the other to stick a side kick in the center of his chest. The force of the blow knocked him off his feet. He lay on his back at the other end of the ring looking up at the ceiling. It was a good thing he was still wearing a chest pad. Emily crouched next to him.
    “Are you okay?” was all Jenkins could make out from where he sat, though he had a clear view of Calder’s face. The midshipman who had been so arrogant moments earlier looked up as if he were seeing her for the first time only now. What would he find in her eyes? What wouldn’t Jenkins give to see it too? He stepped to the edge of the mat and her soft voice became audible for him.
    “I know it feels unfair,” she said. “Like the rules of the game are stacked against you. If only you knew how much the rules take away from me, you’d be glad of the exchange.”
    Jenkins didn’t understand what she was referring to. But Calder seemed much more amenable to whatever advice she offered. After a moment, she helped him up and let him bow to her. Without a word, he walked back to the perimeter and took a seat on the mat.
    Jenkins turned back to Crichton, his eyes wide.
    “Don’t tell me she’s not officer material,” he whispered, after he sat back down. “Did you see how she managed him? He’d follow her into battle now, I expect.”
    “So would I,” Crichton replied.
    “Her father’s a Marine, you say?” Jenkins reflected on this fact for a moment. “There’s no way we can let her go to West Point. We need to change her mind.”
    Wendy laughed when she heard this.
    “I’m pretty sure she’s going to Charlottesville,” she blurted out.
    Jenkins stared at her wordlessly, as if he’d only just realized she was there, then turned away.
    “Her father’s dead,” Crichton whispered, as he handed over a file. Jenkins flipped through it.
    “Does she have any other family? It says here she lives on Michael Cardano’s estate. That name sounds familiar. Who’s he?”
    “A State Department fixer. You know the type, bounced around a few embassies in Asia, various non-descript assignments. He’s not Navy.”
    “Oh, yeah. He’s married to Andrea Leone, isn’t he? You know, her father was a sub driver in the Pacific, three brothers, all Navy, one used to be a SEAL. We can reach out to her family, get them to work on her.”
    He stood up abruptly and turned to go, with Crichton jumping up after him.
    “Wait, don’t you want to see her against Hankinson?”
    “He won’t spar with her. He’ll know better. Besides, I’ve got some calls to make. I’ll let the Admiral know we need to keep that space open. Tell me again why she turned us down in the first place.”
    “She thought it wouldn’t be safe on the base.”
    Jenkins stopped and stared at him, dumbfounded.
    “Not safe,” he sputtered out. “What on earth...”
    “You remember, sir, that business involving Carver.”
    “Oh... yeah.” The details of an embarrassing investigation all came rushing back to him. “That was her file he leaked. I’ll need to discuss that with the Admiral, too.”
    Jenkins turned again to leave.
    “Wait, sir. Don’t you want to meet her?”
    “No. You stay and make my apologies, give her my regards.”
    He glanced at Wendy, whose red hair momentarily caught his attention again, and smiled.
    “Thank you, Miss. You’ve been very helpful.”
    She