The Tainted (The Tainted Series Book 1) (8 page)

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you,” he said as he walked over and sat down next to her. His usual, almost cocky, smile was gone from his face, replaced with a look of concern. “You doing ok?”

“I’m fine,” Rebecca mumbled as she pulled her legs back up to her chest and rested her chin on her knees.

“Really? Because you’ve been sitting, staring out that window for the better part of two hours now.” Maverick reached over and lightly patted the center of her forehead, “You’ve got a rather distinct red dot from it right here.”

Rebecca reached up and rubbed her head, slightly embarrassed. “I didn’t realize it had been that long.” Shifting her weight, she turned and rested against the wall at the edge of the window and let her gaze drift back out over the woods.

“It’s just a lot to take in, really quickly…” Rebecca’s voice drifted off. She didn’t want to admit to Maverick how scared and unsure she felt. Even with everything that had happened, with how much Maverick had shared with her and done for her, she was still afraid to let him in. There was something about him that affected her so differently than anyone she’d met before. Even having him here now made her self-conscious and slightly nervous, and yet she felt strangely drawn to him. A part of her wanted to lean over and just allow him to hold her tightly until all her fears were gone.

Shaking away the thought, Rebecca dropped her gaze down. “I’ll be fine. I just need a little time to adjust.”

Maverick reached over and grabbed tightly onto one of her hands, causing Rebecca to look up at him. “I’m here, if you need anything. I’ve been through exactly what you’re going through, we all have.”

The intensity and sincerity in his gaze made Rebecca suddenly feel uneasy about their close proximity. She shifted herself, and quickly changed the subject. “I’ve been wondering something. It’s really not that important I guess, but I can’t help noticing that everyone has such unusual names. Is that a Truaillithe thing? And if it is, why is mine so common?”

Maverick laughed, “Well, by that standard, if your name is common then so is mine. They’re old Irish names. The Aillil originate from what is now known as Ireland, and, though they haven’t lived there for centuries, they’ve kept certain aspects of the culture. When a Truaillithe child is taken, the Aillil parent is still allowed to name it. Most choose a name from their Irish heritage. But, every once in a while, a name is chosen for other reasons.”

“Did you ever ask your dad why he chose Maverick?” Rebecca asked tentatively, unsure if she’d accidently crossed a line. But Maverick’s lips split into a soft smile.

“He told me once. Apparently, even as a baby I had been a handful, so it was more that the name chose me.” He fell silent for a moment, his tense face a mixture of love and pain.

Finally, he took a deep breath and allowed his usual smile to return to his face. “If you need anything, we’re all here to help, though Etain is usually the best one to go to if you have any questions.”

Rebecca’s stomach dropped. She had no reason not to like Etain, she was nice and seemed fun, but Rebecca couldn’t help feeling slightly envious of her.

“You and her seem very close,” Rebecca said cautiously.

“Yeah, she’s a good girl that one,” Maverick stood up from the ledge as he spoke. “We’re going to start training in the back woods in just a bit, you’re more than welcome to join. You don’t have to participate, but I figure it would probably be good for you to at least come and watch some of it.”

“What is training?” Rebecca looked back up at him.

“Come on out and you’ll understand,” he said, as his usual mischievous smile returned and curled up his lips. With a quick wink, he turned and walked out of the room and down the hallway.

Rebecca watched Maverick as he left. As much as she struggled to understand how she felt about him, it was even harder for her to get a read on how he felt about her.

Breathing deeply, Rebecca took a moment to clear her thoughts. Maverick didn’t matter in the long run, and neither did the others. She’d come here for one reason, and one reason only: to find her parents. No matter what, Rebecca told herself, it would all be worth it if she was finally able to be with them.

Rebecca stood up and walked over to the bed where her bag sat untouched. She wasn’t sure exactly what training entailed, but she figured she might as well dress in something a little bit more workout appropriate.

Rebecca could here the grunts and thuds as soon as she entered the garden. They were coming from somewhere in the woods, and, from the brutal noises, it sounded like someone was in trouble.

Her heart jumped up in her throat. All she could think of was that the uniformed soldiers must have found them. She felt her pulse race and her skin tingle with fear.

She took off at full speed toward the noises. She wasn’t sure how, or even if, she could help them, but she knew she had to do something.

“Ouch! Not so hard!”

Rebecca burst into a clearing amongst the trees and undergrowth. The whole crew was there, except Faolan. She looked around frantically, but not a single uniformed soldier was in sight.

Everyone turned and looked over at her as she slowed to walk and struggled to catch her breath. “I heard noises out here…I thought you all were being attacked,” she explained between gasps for air.

“No, just me,” said Aeden, who had to dodge a sudden right hook from Maverick.

“You’re fighting each other?” Rebecca felt so confused, and a bit embarrassed for getting so scared over nothing.

“Not fighting,” Etain said as she walked up next to Rebecca, “sparring.”

Maverick, with his fists shielding his face, threw a quick combination of punches, which Aeden narrowly avoided by ducking and weaving. As he danced to the side of the last punch, however, Maverick kicked out with his right leg and Aeden dropped hard to the ground.

“This is training?” Rebecca said with wide eyes.

“Don’t worry,” Owen called down from his perch on a branch about ten feet up one of the nearby trees, “You won’t have to fight Maverick.”

“Lucky,” Aeden mumbled as he pulled himself up off of the ground.

Maverick walked over to her, smiling wide, “I’m glad you came.” He put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it lightly.

Rebecca could feel the heat coming off of his exerted body. Her heart began to race as she stared up at him and she felt her breath catch slightly in her throat. Realizing the others were watching, she quickly stepped away from Maverick, her cheeks burning with embarrassment.

“Maverick that’s disgusting,” Etain said as she came over and playfully pushed him even further away. “You’re going to get your nasty sweat all over her.”

Maverick laughed and took another step back, then bent forward in a small mock bow, “I’m ever so sorry m’ladies.”

Etain rolled her eyes and addressed the whole group, “Ok boys, get back to training while I talk with Rebecca.”

Owen jumped down from the tree and stood opposite Aeden, ready to spar, while Trysten ran over to Maverick and adopted the same stance. Rebecca watched for a moment, extremely worried by the idea of little Trysten fighting against giant Maverick. Her fears, however, were instantly quelled when, as the boys began, Trysten suddenly disappeared and Maverick ended up flat on his back only seconds later.

“As crazy as it sounds, Trysten may be the best fighter we have,” Etain laughed, seeing the look of shock on Rebecca’s face. “That little boy has been through an awful lot for someone his age.”

Rebecca was about to ask what exactly she meant, but Etain quickly changed the subject.

“We train almost every afternoon, and most of that is sparring.”

“But why, what’s the point of all this? It looks so brutal.” Rebecca winced as she saw Aden dropped to the ground yet again, this time from a vicious right hook from Owen.

“To make sure we’re ready for the Aillil soldiers.”

“Ready to fight them?” Shocked, Rebecca looked back at Etain.

“Yes, but only in defense. Earlier, you asked me why Maverick and I decided to have the crew, remember?”

Rebecca nodded and Etain continued. “Over the years, Maverick and I have set up different safe houses for the other abandoned Truaillithe. While each house has four to five older Truaillithe for protection and management, for the most part they’re made up of young children who can’t defend themselves. Every few months, when we move, we help the other houses move as well, so we can keep everyone relatively close by. It was simple work at first, but more and more of the Aillil began hunting us.”

“Why? Why would they care?”

“They don’t like that we’re massing and finding each other. They’re threatened by it.” Etain took a seat at the base of a tree and Rebecca sat beside her. “It’s only happened a few times, thank goodness, but if we take too long to move the safe house the soldiers will attack and we have to be able to defend ourselves, and the others, until we can get them to safety.

“You’ve fought an Aillil?” A shudder of fear ran up Rebecca’s spine.

“My ability doesn’t really lend itself to combat as much as the others. I can still hold my own in a fight but, when there’s an attack, I’m usually too busy getting the young ones to safety to help the others defend.”

“I don’t know anything about fighting,” Rebecca admitted. “I’ve never been in a fight in my entire life.”

“Don’t worry. We’ll teach you the basics, how to punch, kick, and defend yourself effectively, but you’ve already shown you have the most important element.”

“I have?” Rebecca asked, unsure of herself.

“Earlier, when you thought we were in trouble, you ran toward the danger, not from it.” Etain’s face softened into one of respect, “You’re much braver than you realize.”

For the rest of the afternoon, Etain worked only with Rebecca. First, she taught Rebecca how to maintain a stance that not only protected her body, but allowed her to be ready to attack at any moment. Next, they worked on jabs, hooks, crosses, upper cuts, front kicks, sidekicks, and, finally, roundhouses. After over three hours of relentless training, Rebecca collapsed on the mossy ground, splayed out and panting heavily.

“I didn’t even know there were that many ways to attack someone,” she said between gasps.

Etain stood over her, also sweaty from their workout, but not nearly as physically exerted. “You did well today. Still, fighting a foam pad and fighting a soldier are very different. You’re going to need a lot more practice.”

Rebecca exhaled heavily and closed her eyes. She wasn’t sure she was ready for these training sessions to become a regular occurrence. At this moment, all she wanted to do was curl up in bed and pass out.

“Alright, let’s head back and get some dinner. I don’t know about all of you, but I’m starving!” Owen called out from somewhere off to her right.

Rebecca lay there with her eyes closed for a moment longer, listening to the others begin to leave the small clearing. After a few minutes, the forest around her fell into a calming silence, the only noise coming from the soft rustle of the wind as it danced through the branches above. It had been so long since she’d been able to just lie in the stillness of the woods and relax.

Her body ached from the workout, and she could feel the sweat on her skin begin to dry and cool, causing goosebumps to rise up on her flesh. But, at that moment, nothing seemed to bother her. Breathing deeply, Rebecca cleared her head of all the worry and fear that had built up over the last few days. Her sadness and anxiety melted away, and a sense of peace that only the forest could provide settled over her.

“That’s the first time I’ve seen you smile since we left.”

Rebecca bolted upright, her eyes flying open in shock. She sighed with relief, however, when she spotted Maverick standing over her.

“I’m sorry,” he said as he sat beside her. “I didn’t mean to ruin your moment, you just looked so peaceful and happy…I was worried I’d never see you like that again.”

Rebecca leaned back onto her elbows and looked up at the branches above them. “It’s the forest. I feel at home out here, amongst the trees.”

Maverick followed her gaze upward. “It’s the one place you feel safe. I understand, I’m the same. It comes from your Ailill side.”

“When I used to live in the city, I never got to experience nature, except for what I saw in small parks. In Cle Elum, when I finally got to run through the woods, I felt a peace I’d never known before.”

They fell silent for a moment, simply enjoying the beauty of the forest that surrounded them. Breathing deeply, Rebecca closed her eyes again, allowing the tranquility of the moment to wash over her.

“I’m glad you decided to come with me,” Maverick broke the silence, looking over at Rebecca.

She turned and met his gaze, her cheeks flushing slightly, but she didn’t answer him.

There it was again, the feeling as if she were being drawn to him, as if every fiber of her body was calling out for him. Though she fought against her urge to move closer, she made no attempt to pull away from him.

Maverick remained still as well, seeming equally immobilized. For a second, it looked as though he was just about to move his hand over toward her when, out of nowhere, something flew out of the trees and pounced on him.

Rebecca instantly rolled to the side and sprung to her feet. When she turned back toward Maverick, she couldn’t help but burst out laughing at what she saw.

Maverick was sprawled out on the ground with little Trysten perched happily on his chest, smiling down at his captive.

“Do you always have to do that?” Maverick groaned.

“Yes,” Trysen answered readily. “Etain says that if you both don’t come now, then it’s not her fault if there’s no food left for you.”

As quickly as he’d appeared, Trysten was gone.

After a second, Maverick coughed loudly and struggled to stand up, “I may love that little menace but, one of these days, that’s not going to stop me from giving him some payback.”

As they made their way back to the house, Rebecca and Maverick attempted to make small talk with each other, but eventually drifted into silence. It wasn’t the same comfortable silence they’d shared in the woods. This time, it felt awkward, as if both had things they were reluctant to say. The few times they made eye contact, Rebecca noticed something different about the way Maverick looked at her. There was pain and confusion in his eyes that she hadn’t seen before.