Page 10

I’ve heard about the tragedy that made Liam lose his eyesight. My heart hurts for the little boy, who obviously has grown up. He’s not a little boy anymore, but I can still see the pain in his eyes through this picture.
“Liam, just like Ethan, has a Eagle Wings tattoo with silver streaks,” Nico says. “That kind of tattoo belongs to the heirs of Carter, and they are Kings here.”
My pulse quickens. Their explanation makes me realize even more how powerful my client is. Doubts begin to cloud my mind again, I’m not sure that I can handle this job. Liam has already looked intimidating in my eyes even though I only saw his photo.
Something is not fitting, though. “You said that regular members are hired by Knights, and Knights are hired by the Kings,” I say. “So who hired you?”
It’s either Zane or Dante. But based on their explanation about those two people, it’s highly unlikely.
“Victor,” Tasha says. “He’s the other Knight. Even though he’s not our King, he’s no less than God here. Ethan, Zane, and Dante have been in France for years, while Victor runs things here. Most of us were recruited by him.”
“You wouldn’t want to mess with Victor,” Nico adds. “Even Ethan and Liam look up to him. He used to be their father’s right-hand man.”
After a moment of silence, Nico speaks again, “This is the kind of information you would take to the grave. Now that you’ve heard about our leaders, there’s no way that you will go back to wherever it is you belong.”
I turn toward Tasha, who gives me a knowing smile.
“I’m sorry.” She shrugs. “I wasn’t planning to spill you something that would cost your life, but your lies were terrible. Might as well shove the truth with all the consequences, right?”
Nico steps toward me, and his voice is filled with thrill and excitement when he says, “Now, the question is…” he pauses, eyeing me with interest. “What should we do with an intruder like you?”
I brace myself, straightening up. “Just bring me to Lia–”
Before I can finish my sentence, a loud voice echoes in the air.
“Boxing ring! Now!”
Then it all happens so fast. Someone shouts from upstairs. The music abruptly stops. Whispers of excitement fill the air. Footsteps pound on the ground. People are suddenly rushing in the same direction.
I can only watch what’s happening around me in shock.
Now what?
I snap my head around, and surprisingly, Tasha and Nico are already gone to follow the crowd.
While I’m trying to make my way out through the people, a guy bumps into me. I can’t help but ask, “What’s happening?”
“Liam is fighting, and you don’t want to miss it.” He glances back at me just for a second before rushing to the basement where everyone is heading.
I can’t help but bring my legs toward the basement. I push myself through the crowd, following the people who are way too excited to see what’s about to happen.
When I finally arrive, I manage to secure a nice spot, just a few steps away from the ring — thanks to my petite figure slipping easily between these bodies of strangers.
The moment my eyes are glued to the person standing on the ring, my heart skips a beat.
There, standing tall in the middle of it, is Liam Carter. His chest heaves up and down, as though he just finished running even though the fight hasn’t even begun.
He looks more masculine than the one I saw just now in the picture. His defined muscles look even more intimidating but also beautiful like a piece of art — does that even make sense?
He’s taller than I expected, so tall — the picture doesn’t do him any justice. His hair is dark and messy, almost close to jet black. And his eyes… My God, his eyes… they’re the most captivating eyes I’ve ever seen. They are grey — misty and mysterious and hold so much more.
He’s angry — I can see it from his expression — but there’s also something else. Sadness? Grief? Pain?
He’s very expressive, I almost can feel his emotions myself. Am I the only one who notice it? I don’t know, but I can’t take my eyes off him.
When Liam turns the other way, I see the massive Eagle Wings tattooed all over his shoulders and back. The tattoo is nothing compared to the other Eagle Wings tattoo I saw today. His is enormous, magnificent. It even looks like he has actual wings, which makes him look like an angel — not like the stereotype angel, but more like a dark angel. A dark, lethal angel.
I don’t know how long I’ve been staring at him, until our eyes suddenly meet. He frowns in my direction, and my heart thumps. It’s impossible that he notices me — he’s blind. But I swear, he does, somehow.
Those beautiful grey eyes can’t see me — he doesn’t meet my gaze– but he looks in my direction with such curiosity, that I wonder if my intense gaze has been affecting him.
His opponent steps onto the ring, catching his attention. The crowd cheers, but I notice some people shaking their heads, as though they’re underestimating what’s about to happen. Some of them even have pity written on their faces like they expect one of the fighters to be beaten into a pulp.
It seems that Liam’s opponent is around the same age. His body is also well built with broad shoulders, but he doesn’t look as intimidating as Liam. His nostrils flare while Liam’s chest heaves up. Liam takes a deep breath, a sign that he’s trying to calm his temper before the fight begins.
“I don’t understand why they never learn from their mistakes,” a girl watching beside me is talking to her friend. “How are they supposed to complete Victor’s task if they can’t even defeat a blind man?”
Her friend laughs. “I don’t care. We get to enjoy their practice session. We’re lucky Liam is the trainer for our fighters, and it seems that he always enjoys giving them a hard time.”
When another guy in the ring gives the sign to start the fight with his hand, my heart starts to race. Liam is blind — I don’t know how he’s going to win this fight.
The other guy attacks first, and I almost gasp as Liam dodges his punch. When he tries to land a kick, Liam blocks it, whirls to lift his opponent’s body, and then throws him harshly onto the ground.
Liam’s opponent groans in pain as the back of his head smacks the hard cement. I wince. I’m not used to violence, and a part of me wants to leave immediately. Yet, my feet feel like being nailed onto the ground. I’m being hypnotized by the sight before me — Liam, especially.
How could a blind person move so fast and so easily? It’s almost as if he can feel his opponent’s movement before the guy launches the next attack.
Watching Liam fighting is like watching a beautiful piece of art slowly being unleashed before my eyes. He moves so quickly, and gracefully, like he was the wind and that nothing could stop him.
Ironically, Liam also looks more composed when he fights. He’s now less angry and a lot calmer than he was before the fight, as though he finally gains control.
I read somewhere that losing one of your senses might strengthen the other senses, and I think it happens to Liam. He lost his eyesight, but his ability to feel and hear, as well as his reflexes, are better than normal people.
Liam lands a powerful kick on his opponent’s ribs, tossing him against the rope across the ring. A loud ‘Ouch’ echoes from the crowd. The poor guy snaps his head toward Liam. He glares at the blind martial artist, spitting blood from his mouth.
Anyone can see how much the guy wants to defeat Liam, but just as he storms again at Liam, Liam ducks and kicks him on the leg, making him fall. Before he can even get up, Liam aims another kick. The guy freezes as Liam’s foot stops mere inches from the pulse on his neck. It’s a dead end for him. Liam wins.
“If this happened in your mission, you would be f*****g dead,” Liam’s voice echoes. He then turns his head toward the other side of the ring and hisses, “Next fighters better not call me before you win a fight against him.”
The crowd roars at the victory of their king, and only then do I realize that I’ve been panting. This is crazy. I never thought that watching a real fight would make my heart beat so rapidly.
Liam steps down from the ring. While he’s making his way through the people who automatically step aside to let him walk, I rush toward him.
“Wait.” My voice is muffled as the crowd roars again to welcome another fighter stepping onto the stage to challenge the guy who just got beaten by Liam.
“Liam,” I shout, but my effort is to no avail because the voices around me are too loud.
Panic begins to consume me when I see him about to disappear into the crowd. He’s the only one who will understand why I’m here, and I’m supposed to assist him at all times inside this house, just as Zane told me to.
I quicken my pace, and the moment I see his back, I impulsively stretch my arm to reach him. I’m about to touch him when he suddenly whirls around. He snaps my hand off, pushing me backward and making me stumble until I fall to the ground.
I wince in pain, looking up to see him, only to find him glaring in my direction. His jaw tightens, as though his body is sending him signals that I’m a threat.