Page 24

Twenty-One Years Old

“Whatever is going on between the two of you, figure it out. Get in the ring.” Bridger pointed to the middle of the room, where a circular one-on-one fighting ring sat.

Marlena and Ivelle didn’t even have time to walk across the room before Vega was rolling her eyes at her sister’s presence.

It’d been over a week since their fight in Vega’s bedroom, and they hadn’t hashed out their disagreement about Vega’s life and how Bridger fit into it. In fact, they had barely talked.

Meaning, Marlena hadn’t been able to see Arlet either. She was busy. The months leading up to the transition of a Curia seat were exhausting. Even if Marlena weren’t also planning on overthrowing the current government, she would’ve been busy.

Every waking moment was either pretending to be fine or plotting her parents’ demise. There weren’t many hours left in the day afterward to do much with.

Arlet sat on a bench beside Khort, watching Marlena with intent .

Marlena scoffed. “I have no problem with her. Vega is the one acting like a child.”

Vega’s jaw dropped, but before she could storm forward, Bridger put his arm out in front of her. “No, we aren’t doing this. You want to train? We train. And if you need to beat the shit out of each other to do so, I’ll take it. In the ring. Now.”

Bridger Dimico was going to be a hell of a commander one day.

Marlena raised a brow, nodding towards the mat with a cocky smirk.

Vega stared at her with a look she’d never seen before. Of course they bickered growing up, but nothing usually lasted more than a night. Whatever Vega was harboring this time still hadn’t had the time to flicker out.

Vega let out a huff and leaned through the ropes, centering herself in the middle of the ring. Out of the whole group, Vega was the one most trained in hand-to-hand combat. And she should be, seeing as though she’d been fucking the commander’s son for a year.

Marlena could hold her own though. She’d taken the training they’d been doing the most seriously… because she knew when and how it would come in handy.

Marlena unsheathed the two daggers at her thigh and let them clatter on the table Arlet and Khort sat near.

“Don’t think you’ll need those, huh?” Vega asked, her tone cheeky.

Marlena stepped into the ring, leaning her head against both sides of her shoulders. The joints around her neck popped, loosening up the muscles. “I don’t plan on stabbing you in the heart, so no, I don’t think they’re necessary for me to win this match.”

Vega kept her daggers in place as Bridger began to talk again.

“You know the rules. No powers in the ring. Don’t make me intervene.

” He climbed the side of the ring, positioning himself high enough where he could see clearly, and he started counting down.

Before he got to one, the sisters had already circled around the mat, their eyes locked in a death stare.

Marlena raked her thumb over her fingers, popping her knuckles one by one, and waited for her sister to make the first move. She had to be on defense when in the ring with her, had to watch her every move.

Vega had been training with the greatest warrior Tolevarre had ever seen… and her new battle skills proved it. She faked a jump forward, causing Marlena to flinch. Her reaction made Vega laugh. Marlena’s blood boiled, threatening to spill over and scorch everything it touched.

She’s mad at me for telling her the truth. If she only fucking knew…

Marlena didn’t wait for Vega to lunge again, deciding to take a page out of Vega’s own book. “Strike first. Don’t give them the chance to outsmart you before the fight even begins.”

As if Vega was ready for it, she dodged Marlena with ease and used the forward momentum Marlena had been riding to trip her up. Marlena fell to the mat with a thud that echoed through the room.

“Nice!” Khort pounded on something from behind, leading in the hooting and hollering of the crowd starting to form around them. It was early morning, and soldiers were starting to trickle in for their training sessions.

Marlena hopped up quickly, not giving Vega enough time to land another blow. She clenched her teeth, realizing she had to get inside Vega’s head. It was the only way she could stop her from focusing on every single move she made. “Is that all you’ve got?”

Vega grumbled. “Shall I remind you how many times you’ve lost to me during a sparring session? Or do you not want people to know that the future leader of Amora can’t fight her way out of a corner?”

“Ooooohhhh,” people around the ring sang in unison, a few snickers mixed in .

Marlena barked a laugh. “Don’t get too cocky, sweet sister. It’s not a good look on you.” She blocked Vega’s next move, landing a blow to her face with the tip of her elbow.

Blood ran down Vega’s nose. She wiped it away with the palm of her hand, smearing red across her cheek while it continued to trickle to the mat underneath their feet. “Says the cockiest woman I know.”

It was working. Marlena was getting under her skin, which meant she would start to lose focus—it was Vega’s biggest weakness on the mat. Bridger had pointed it out a few weeks ago, and Marlena was honing in on that little piece of knowledge.

“I like to call it confidence.” Marlena leapt forward with a jab to Vega’s side. She hunched over, giving Marlena just enough time to swipe her leg under her feet and bring her to the ground.

Vega moved with a quickness Marlena hadn’t been expecting, twisting herself on top of her, forearm pressing against her collarbone. “Oh yeah? Who’s confident now?” she jeered, moving her hands to hold Marlena by her wrists.

Marlena bucked her hips, but Vega held strong, pinning her down in all the places she should be able to use to overpower her. Marlena was bigger than Vega, in height and weight, but Vega was smart… knew what to do to have the advantage in a fight.

Marlena screeched with anger, annoyed that she’d let her sister pin her. But she wouldn’t lose; she couldn’t. As a last-ditch effort, Marlena pushed her head into the back of the mat and reared as far forward as she could.

Her skull cracked against Vega’s and stars exploded in her vision, but when Vega’s grip loosened, Marlena fought against the pain in her head.

She wrapped one of her legs that had been pinned under Vega’s knees around her, using her weight to flip positions.

Marlena held her down, but what Vega hadn’t noticed was the dagger missing from her side.

Marlena pressed it against her throat, signaling the end of the match… but she wasn’t done. “You can’t be mad at me forever,” she spat.

Vega writhed underneath Marlena, never ready to give up a fight so easily. “I’m not mad, Marlena!” she screamed. “I’m sad! I’m sad that you think what everyone else is saying is true!”

The room around them quieted, and Marlena unintentionally loosened her hold on Vega. “Vega, I?—”

Vega didn’t let her finish, flipping out from underneath her to stand.

Marlena stayed crouched on the floor, looking up at the tears welling in Vega’s eyes.

“Shut up, just shut up!” She stomped her foot like they were children again.

“You can’t rule my life! You can’t tell me how I’m supposed to feel, how I’m supposed to react.

This is my life, my life! Not yours.” Vega was fighting back tears, wiping at the blood drying on her face.

Marlena stood, and Vega snatched her dagger back, then slid it into the holster on her leg. “I just want to protect you, that’s all.”

“You can’t protect me from everything. I don’t want you to.

” Vega’s words were soft, only loud enough for those who were closest to the ring to hear.

“I want to live my own life, make my own decisions, get hurt if that’s what’s going to happen.

If Bridger breaks my fucking heart, all you need to do is be there for me! Be my sister…”

Marlena bit the inside of her cheek so hard she could taste the metallic tang of her blood. “The world is changing…” She looked over her shoulder, noticing all the eyes on them. She took a step forward. “And I want you to be a part of the change. I don’t want you to get left behind, Vega.”

Vega squared her shoulders, blinking away any remnants of the sadness that had lingered in her gaze. “Have you ever thought about what I want? That maybe I just want to be left alone?” And before Marlena could respond, Vega stormed off and left her by herself in the middle of the ring.

A victor, and yet she didn’t feel like she’d won .

Bridger cleared his throat the same time the training room door slammed shut. “Marlena wins.”

Marlena scanned the room, eyes connecting with everyone who was staring at her. Some lingered, but others scurried away before she could scare them off with the anger sizzling behind her cold stare.

When Marlena’s gaze fell on Arlet, her stomach turned.

I won’t make it out with the people I thought I would… Strike first.