4. Eshe #2
He reeled his finger back slowly and took another step toward me. My body urged me to step back, but I stood frozen at the sight of him. I slowly scanned his body and how large it was, how different he seemed.
The last moments I had seen Ezra came rushing to mind, the last moments of seeing my family alive.
“Isn’t that the Qahl’s name?” I spat.
“What about it? You’re still a woman in my arena. Get out. You have thirty seconds.”
Definitely Ezra.
I clamped my fingers against my palm to keep them from shaking. “If you can get me out of here, then I’ll leave and won’t come back. If you can’t”—a suggestive smile formed on my face—“then I’ll continue to fight here as long as I wish.”
“Oh, yeah? I don’t make bargains with delusional women who think they can fight in this bloodthirsty arena, nor do I want to. Get out.”
“Coward.”
He tilted his head. “What did you say?”
“You’re a coward.” I raised my voice so the surrounding men heard.
The men murmured in hushed voices, and the air turned heavy and violent.
Ezra stepped forward again, closer. His eyes darkened. “I’m not above dragging you out of here by the hair, woman. Be careful what you ask for.”
I swallowed. At this point, we were dancing, not in the literal sense, but in the sense that he took the same steps as I did.
Ninety percent of fighting involved stepping around the opponent.
We made a full circle around the segmented arena, with me in the inner circle and him in the outer, studying, observing, demanding submission.
“Finish her, Ezra, or I will!” Brakan stepped forward. “This is ridiculous!”
“Silence!” Ezra lifted his hand toward Brakan but kept his eyes fixed on me.
All the men went still. I advanced toward him, which took him by surprise, and I went with it.
I lunged and ducked as soon as his arm swung toward me—missed.
Swinging my leg, I rammed my bruised shin into his spine. He turned as if I had dusted some speck off his shoulder without a wince.
And I saw it.
His eyes were Ezra’s, the first Prince of Tehara and now the Qahl. His scarf fell from his face, and a smirk lay across his face.
That was all it took for his hand to reach for my head in the midst of the distraction, shoving his other elbow into my face.
I sprawled across the ground, but used it to my advantage, bringing my legs low on the sands.
I will kill you, my eyes told him. I was half his size, but what most didn’t realize was that my size was a weapon.
“I’ve never quite enjoyed hitting my women, even when asked. But I suppose there’s a first for everything,” he scoffed.
Inch by inch, knees bent, I brought myself closer. I could feel the silent rage in my pulse pulling me toward him. Controlled. Calm. “Good thing I’m not your woman.”
“You wouldn’t be even if you begged.”
The silent pulse exploded through every cell of my being. Kill, kill, kill.
I lunged into his side, and his large body plunged into the sand. I landed on top and rammed my forearm under his chin. Followed by my other fist meeting his jaw.
I was fast, but he was faster. His arm slid between us, yanking me off his neck, and brought me to the ground with a thump—
A fist rammed into the side of my temple.
Darkness.
For a moment.
Needling pain radiated through my skull. Ezra was pulling me by the neck toward the entrance of the training arena. That fucker!
“If I ever see you again, it’ll be the last thing you see,” he grunted.
With my heart violently pounding in my throat and my feet buried into the ground, I attempted to get loose from his iron hold. His hand squeezed my neck—or head. God, his hand was so large.
Looking up, wincing, I could see beautiful, bright red blood dripping from his jaw. Ezra was just as colorful as I was.
I started seeing spots that wouldn’t blink away as the sand in my mouth sputtered through strangled breaths in my scarf.
He was going to pay. Maybe I’d make his death even more gruesome since he caused me more than just emotional pain.
He finally let me go once we passed the gates. I tumbled onto the sandy street.
My eyes locked with his. “I’d be careful what you say, Ezra. Revenge is sweet, and I plan on savoring it.” Sand tickled my throat again, and it puffed up in my mouth.
Another man appeared behind him and threw my bag near me.
Ezra’s eyes flickered again before he disappeared behind the sealing gates. The lock clicked so loudly, I wanted to melt it down and then pour it into those dark eyes.
That sparked an idea of how I would destroy everything about Ezra.
There were so many ideas.
Too many.
Not enough.
Not enough for this man to get what he deserved.
I brushed the sand off my pants as I rose from the ground, grabbing my bag just in time to see a young woman dropping off a basket to one of the arena’s guards. They wore brown trousers with black tunics and a sash to secure them around their waists.
I could see the slight tremor of her hand as she let go of the basket filled with bread.
The front of the arena looked different now that the sun had set, and the crowd was inside, watching the fights. It was quiet as I approached the woman who stepped away from the guard.
She stopped as she took me in, her eyes wide. She glanced back at the closed arena door and scrunched her brows. “Did you just—”
“Do you know where I could find a Folendra nearby?” I cut her off because I was rude and grumpy from this fucking day. I yanked the scarf off my head.
“Y—yes, there is only one in the city, but it’s a bit far from here…” Her brows scrunched. “I was actually on my way across the city to drop off another basket. Would you like me to show you on my way?”
Hesitantly, I reminded myself not to trust anyone, but I was exhausted, so I smiled curtly. “That would be nice.”
She waved a hand, and her eyes skittered over my face. “Come. Follow me quickly.”
Realizing then that there was a wound on my face, and it sent a steady stream of blood down my arm. I scoffed as silently as I could.
I should have left before Ezra saw me. I shouldn’t have caused more trouble than was necessary because my emotions got the best of me.
But then I wouldn’t have known he was there.
I knew there was a chance he’d be there, but why was he mingling with bloodthirsty fighters? He looked like a completely different person from the one I’d burned into my mind years ago.
The streets were busy, swarming with people going in and out of the evening market stands. Each establishment had put out its torches to light the way through the cobblestone streets as we weaved our way into the sandy filled streets in the lower part of Urnaz.
“What did you do to cause them to do this to you?” she asked, pity in her eyes.
Oh, man, if only she knew I wanted the pain, what would this woman say?
I gritted my teeth. “I suppose they don’t like it when women enter their fights.”
Her eyes locked with mine. “You mean you went in there willingly?”
“Of course. I needed the practice. I have been traveling for weeks, and I couldn’t wait any longer.”
I could tell she had a million questions, but she bit her lower lip and remained silent.