Born of Defiance (8 page)

She laid her palm against his cheek as those words brought tears to her eyes. “Yes.”

He smiled at her. “Good. I don't want any pretense between us.”

She kissed his cheek before she worked on his shoulder and back, where the worst damage seemed to have been done.

“Talyn! It's time.” Ferrick joined them.

Felicia stepped back as Talyn sat up and took the ornate leather mask from Ferrick's hand. He slid it over his head so that all that showed of his features were his white eyes that held a tiny band of red around the outer edge of the iris.

“You look like an alien is eating your face.”

Reaching for the hand wrap covers, he laughed at her comment. “Erix has a seat in front, reserved for you.”

She screwed her face up at the thought of it. Okay, she totally understood now why his mother didn't come to these things, after all. “If you don't mind, I'd rather wait for you back here. I don't really want to watch you get beat on. But I am here for you, if you need me.”

Her declination didn't seem to faze him at all as he shadowboxed to loosen his muscles. “Okay. I'll be back in a little while.”

She walked slowly into his arms and hugged him. “Good luck.”

Talyn savored the sensation of being held. No one had embraced him like this since he'd been a boy.

“Hammer! Let's go!”

Reluctantly, he released her and headed for the Ring. As he reached the door, he glanced back to see her watching him. Damn, she was beautiful. Like an ethereal vision. He still couldn't believe she'd agreed to accept him, given his lack of birth standing.

That she had yet to run screaming for the nearest door to escape his presence.

All he had to do was not get killed tonight. That would seriously screw up his future plans where she was concerned.

Clamping down on his fang guard, he smiled under his mask and winked at her. He hadn't been kidding. To have her with him, he'd gladly get the shit kicked out of him.

The gods knew, he'd been beaten for a whole lot less.

*   *   *

Unsure and terrified for Talyn, Felicia chewed her nails as she paced the back room while she listened to the sound of the crowd. She heard hisses and boos and cheers so loud, they shook the stained walls around her. None of it told her how Talyn was doing.

If he was winning or losing.

Part of her was dying to know, but she'd meant what she said. She couldn't stand the thought of watching him be pounded on by another fighter. Especially not with the savagery that went on in the name of entertainment. Ring fighting was the most popular sport in Andaria.

And it was the most brutal.

Every year, dozens of fighters died in the Ring. Dozens more after the match ended, from the injuries they'd sustained during the fight. While they wore masks and taped their clawed hands to keep from being scarred, there were no real rules. They fought until only one was left standing. However long that took.

A loud, thunderous roar went up. It was followed by an alarm of some sort.

Was it over?

Biting her lip, she went to the door. She held her breath until she saw Talyn coming down the hallway with a furious light in his eyes. Blood dripped from the mask over his face. More bruises and cuts covered him. But his injuries didn't seem to bother him at all.

As soon as he saw her, he pulled the mask off, spit out his fang guard, and gave her a grim smile. “Still undefeated.”

Proud, and honestly, a bit terrified by this side of him that didn't seem to mind bleeding, she swallowed hard. There was an aura of death that clung to him now. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. I'll feel the burn later. Right now…” He picked her up with a terrifying ease and hugged her close.

She started to wrap her arms around him, until she saw all the bleeding welts on his back. They had to be killing him. “We need to get you something for your pain.”

He shook his head as he set her back on her feet and led her into his dressing room. “I can't take anything.”

“Talyn—”

He set his mask down and unwrapped his hands. “They'll test my blood as soon as I hit the barracks. If I have any drugs in my system, I'll be court-martialed and imprisoned for it.”

“An aspirin?”

“I'll be court-martialed and imprisoned,” he repeated. “I can't have anything in my system while I might be called to fly. It's an order my CO's dead serious about.”

Aghast, she stared up at him and the horrific marks on his body. It looked as if his opponent had not only managed to get the covers off and claw him, but bitten him, too. There were definite fang marks all over his left arm. “How can you stand it?”

He shrugged nonchalantly. “I have no choice, Felicia. Without a paternal lineage, I can't even work as a janitor. The military's all I have open to me. And I'm damn lucky that I was able to fight well enough to be allowed into OTS, given my caste.”

And the armada was the only solid income he could bank on. Ring fighting didn't pay for fighters.

While the promoters got rich, the fighters didn't. They were given a small stipend for each fight, and prestige, but no one could afford to live on a fighter's pay.

Not even a champion's.

Andarions fought for glory and military rank, not riches.

While humans paid their fighters exorbitant amounts, Andarions didn't. It was to be expected of their males that they could take a beating and not flinch. And because of their ferocity and size, Andarions were barred from human sports. Which kept Talyn trapped on Andaria, in this hellish existence.

She cursed the unfairness of it all as she helped him undress and enter the large shower so that they could wash the blood and sweat off.

Talyn winced as his adrenaline fled and left him in pain. He leaned with one arm against the wall while the water stung the various cuts on his body. In spite of the rancid physical agony, he hardened at the sensation of Felicia's hands sliding over his bare flesh as she soaped his skin for him. Her cheeks were bright pink, but she didn't say a word while she gently and carefully bathed him. In spite of the beating, his senses spun with bliss at being touched for the first time by a female's gentle hand.

Reaching out, he brushed his fingers along the line of her jaw and watched her pupils dilate in response to his touch. He still couldn't believe that she'd accept his caresses without flinching or insulting him.

Her nipples hardened through the fabric of her thin shirt. His breathing ragged, he was dying to know what she looked like naked. Because she was a virgin, her agency photos had been of her in skimpy panties and an exercise bra.

On the night they'd met, he could have forced her to disrobe so that he could inspect her body, but he'd refused to embarrass her in front of the others.

Now …

They were alone and all he wanted was to be inside her.

She hesitated as she neared the part of him that was most desperate for her touch. He was so hard, he could probably drive nails with his cock.

Feral with longing, he locked gazes with her and he held his breath, praying she wouldn't stop or pull back.

His hand trembling, he covered hers with his and slowly slid it against his hardness. The room spun even more as pleasure racked his entire body and drove the pain away.

Felicia couldn't breathe as she stared up at him and touched him for the first time. Dropping the cloth, she ran her fingers over his cock. Then down the length until she cupped him in her hand. He let out a feral growl. Biting his lip, he gently slid his hand beneath the hemline of her shirt until he could lightly touch and squeeze her breast through her bra.

A smile curved her lips as he slowly and gently rocked himself against her hand. He dipped his head down to kiss her with a tender passion that left her breathless.

Suddenly, his stupid band alarm sounded.

Cursing, he tore himself out of her grasp and turned the water off. He reached for a towel. “I have to go.”

“Seriously?”

He nodded. “It's my CO. He always recalls me as soon as he gets the results of a fight. If I don't head right back, it'll be worse for me.” His white eyes filled with regret, he cupped her cheek in his hand. “I probably won't be able to see you this week, after all.”

“Why?”

Talyn grimaced as that ferocious fury returned to his gaze. “He's going to be pissed that I cost him his bet. So he'll take it out of my ass. I'll call when I can, but if you don't hear from me for a few days, don't worry. It's normal.” His jaw ticcing again, he stepped past her so that he could reach his uniform.

She helped him dress as Erix joined them.

He rolled his eyes. “Bastard recalled you already?”

Talyn nodded. “Can you see Felicia home for me?”

“Sure. You need anything else?”

Talyn shook his head. “I'll call as soon as I can make training again.”

Erix clapped him on the back. “Take care, kid.”

Talyn gave her a quick kiss before he left.

Her heart heavy, Felicia watched him go. “Will he be okay?”

“Yeah. He's a tough little bastard.”

That description really didn't make her feel better.

She fingered the bloody mask Talyn had left behind before she handed it to Erix so that he could clean it. “How long have you known him?”

“Almost six years.”

That was an impressive length from what she understood about fighters and trainers. “You've been training him that long?”

Erix nodded as he washed the mask off in a small sink. “Ironically, I'd never heard of him before that. I'm a Vested trainer so I never paid attention to the Open leaguers. I considered them rabid mongrels, not worth my time.”

Because only those with prestigious lineages were allowed to fight in the Vested league, they, alone, could afford a coach's fees. Open was reserved for orphans, slaves, and bastards. Unlike Vested fighters, they had no equipment, protections, or reps. It was an all-out bare-fist-on-flesh brawl.

“So what made you take on Talyn?”

He sterilized the mask. “A good friend of mine had seen him fight and thought I should take a look at him. Talyn was going up against a much older, larger, and tougher opponent for the Mean Weight title. I thought it was a complete waste of time since I knew an Open leaguer couldn't afford me, but it was free ale and dinner with a friend so I agreed. Kid was only thirteen at the time. He came out alone and looked like a toy in comparison to his opponent. I figured he wouldn't last five minutes … three hours later, no breaks whatsoever, he was champion. In thirty-five years of coaching fighters, I'd never seen anything like it. He was fearless and determined. Skilled beyond his years. That giant bastard beat him half to death and still he stood strong and fierce—as if he was daring the gods themselves to try and break him. By the end, Talyn couldn't even open his eyes and yet there he stood. The youngest Mean Weight title champion in Andarion history. It took me two days to wrap my head around what I'd seen and to convince myself it'd been real. And then ten days to talk the kid into letting me train him.” He dried off the mask.

“Really?”

He nodded as he picked up towels and placed them in a duffel. “Kid didn't want to spend the money on a trainer when they don't use us in the Open league. Plus, he was trying to save up to help his mom buy her rank commission.”

Her jaw fell slack. “He paid for his mother's commission?”

“Yeah. He's always felt responsible for her. Told you, he's a good kid.”

“And yet she never comes to his matches?”

Shrugging, he put the mask and Talyn's wrap-tape and covers in a smaller bag. “She can't stand them. He was already a title contender before she found out he was even a fighter.”

Felicia gaped even more at what he was telling her. “How could she not know?”

“You've seen how the military treats its soldiers. She wasn't home much, and whenever she saw the bruises, she assumed they were from school fights. Talyn didn't tell her no different and she didn't ask.”

Felicia shook her head as she had an image of Talyn as a bruised little boy, tending his injuries with no help. Never had she hated Andarion customs more.

But at least he'd found Erix to watch over him. “So how did you talk him into accepting you as his coach?”

“Told him if he'd give me five years, I could get him into the Vested league. I did it in three.”

“Impressive.” She helped him gather the rest of the damp towels and Talyn's shorts.

“Not on my part. While I never admit it to the media, I know the truth. I couldn't have done it for anyone else. It's a testament to his abilities and heart that I was able to get him in. At all. Believe me, the Vested league fought me every step of the way. They only agreed to it originally as a joke. Thought it'd be funny to trot out the mongrel freak, and show a Vested leaguer trouncing him. For that first fight, the kid was ridiculously paired with a fighter who outweighed him by over a hundred pounds.”

“The Andarion Butcher?” Felicia asked, remembering what Fresca had said about her cousin.

He nodded. “He tried to break Talyn in half. Didn't work out so well for him. No one can deny that Talyn has a fire inside him no other Andarion can touch. You might get a shot or two in, but no one can take him down. He mangled the Butcher in under two hours.”

And that was what scared her. What if he turned that level of ferocity on her one day?

He sealed the bags. “C'mon. Let me see you home like I promised. Last thing I want is for the kid to kick my ass because I let you get hurt.”

She smiled at the tender note in his voice as he spoke of Talyn. “You love him.”

“Like a son.”

As they left, the media descended on them. Erix pushed his way through them, taking care to keep her safe through the crowd.