The morning sun hadn't even finished yawning its way over the horizon when Aunty Adeline was already up, brewing her special herbal tea that tasted like boiled tree bark—something only she seemed to enjoy. Daniel, of course, was already dressed in his training fit, doing a few warm-up stretches in the sitting room with a face that could curdle milk. His body was on autopilot, going through the motions, but his mind was still tangled in the argument he'd had with Rose the day she returned home.
Rose, on the other hand, was sprawled on her bed like a tossed throw pillow, completely unbothered by the time. She groaned dramatically when Aunty Adeline barged in with the subtlety of a fire drill.
"Up, girl. Training starts early," Addie said in her usual no-nonsense tone.
"Ughhh... I just slept like two hours ago…" Rose mumbled, burrito-ing herself deeper into the blanket.
"Early bird catches the assassin," Addie replied dryly, yanking off the blanket in one smooth motion.
Grumbling like a cartoon villain, Rose dragged herself out of bed and soon found herself standing beside her brother in the sitting room, both avoiding eye contact like two sulking cats. It had been a full day since either said a word to the other. The silence was so thick you could cut it with one of Addie's training knives.
"Suit up," Addie instructed, ignoring the tension. "We're heading out."
Daniel already had his on—black joggers, black tank top, and a whole vibe of 'I'm not in the mood.' Rose scowled and went to change into her sportswear, which she didn't even remember buying.
When she stepped outside, she instinctively looked around for Laurence's sleek black car, the one that always seemed to appear like a summoned genie whenever she needed to go out.
Addie caught her. "He's not here. Laurence only comes by 7."
Rose blinked. "Wait—he doesn't sleep in the car?"
"What in the budget James Bond world are you living in?" Addie chuckled. "He's a driver, not your guard dog."
Before Rose could form a comeback, Addie clapped. "Daniel, start your run."
Without hesitation, Daniel broke into a jog, disappearing down the street like he'd been programmed for this. Rose blinked after him.
"Okay… what just happened?" she asked.
"Your training's a bit different," Addie said. "Now, think fast."
Rose blinked again. "Huh?"
"I said—think fast!"
"What does that even—"
"Close your eyes."
"What? Why—"
"Close. Them."
With a suspicious squint, Rose shut her eyes.
"What's the color of the car parked at the bottom left opposite this house?"
"Oh, that's easy. Red," Rose said smugly.
"Now, what's the color of the car that passed just before you closed your eyes?"
Rose frowned. "Wait… a car passed?"
"No. A cat passed. A black one."
Rose opened her eyes, confused and slightly offended. "A whole cat? Where was it even going at this hour?"
Addie smiled. "That's what we're fixing. You need sharper instincts, Rose. A dull mind won't save you when it counts."
"Geez," Rose muttered. "Who wakes people up to play Guess the Cat?"
And just like that, her instincts training began.
Each morning followed a similar rhythm: Addie barking surprise questions about their environment, Rose getting things wrong (and sometimes right), and Daniel pretending not to be impressed when she improved. Addie threw in surprise punches for reflex training—one of which nearly made Daniel knock over the side lamp by accident. He'd grumbled about it for three days straight.
And when it came to body language, Rose was a total mess.
"She's crossing her arms," Addie said during a lesson, pointing to a stranger at the mall. "What does that mean?"
"That she's cold?" Rose guessed.
"She's wearing a jacket, Rose."
"Oh... then maybe she's constipated?"
Addie pinched the bridge of her nose. "We've got work to do."
Rose struggled with knife handling too. The first time she picked up a training knife, she held it like a butter spreader and looked genuinely horrified.
"I don't know if I want to stab anyone. What if I... hit a kidney or something?"
"That's kind of the point," Addie muttered under her breath.
But what Rose did excel at was instinct training. She grew used to identifying subtle changes in her environment. At the shopping mall, Addie would walk with her, pointing out behaviors of strangers. One time, she whispered, "What's off about the man to your left?"
Rose peeked discreetly. "He's wearing a jacket. It's like 34 degrees out here."
"Exactly. That's the kind of detail that'll save you one day."
Their driver, Laurence, was always in tow, watching over them like a stern guardian who said little but was definitely confused to what they are up to. Every time Rose tried to sneak off, he'd appear beside her like a ghost and say, "Miss Rose, that's not part of the route." At one point, Rose started calling him "Laurence the Shadow."
Despite the early mornings and constant complaining, the training slowly became routine. A month and a half passed. Rose had developed better awareness, stamina, and—though she wouldn't admit it—respect for Aunty Addie's intense methods. She didn't bother arguing with Daniel anymore either. They both ran in the mornings, did sit-ups and planks together, and even started silently competing on who could hold a plank longer. (Daniel still won, of course. He gloated for a week.)
Eventually, Rose returned to the Carter Mansion as Vivienne was back from her trip. Her weekend training sessions continued, and on weekdays, she practiced instinct sharpening during walks around the mansion. Sometimes she'd even spot a misplaced object or detect a staff member's mood before they spoke. It freaked people out—she loved it.
Now, she sat on the floor of Vivienne's room, helping the teen finish a school project. Vivienne, with her usual drama, had sprawled art materials everywhere and was dictating her vision like she was directing a film.
"I want the volcano to explode with emotion, not just lava—emotion!"
Rose blinked. "What kind of emotion does lava have?"
Vivienne sighed. "Ugh, you clearly don't get it."
Rose rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath, "I trained to detect assassins and survive kidnapping scenarios, but sure—let's emotionally explode this volcano."
Life had changed.
But somehow, Rose was handling it. One day, one ridiculous training exercise at a time.