Page 112 of Rise of a Fallen Man

“That is not a way to talk to a woman,” Salas gritted through his teeth.

The guy kicked his feet, dangling in the air and gasping for breath.

“Hey!” His buddy stepped forward.

A switchblade opened with a click.

“He has a knife,” I warned.

“Not anymore.” Salas knocked the knife out of his hand with a casual gesture, as if swatting a fly away. “Ari, where is the way out from here?”

“Um... This way.” I waved a hand down the stairs.

“Perfect.” He tossed the guy down the full flight of stairs. “Go work on your manners, boy. Next?”

The one who had lost his knife ducked after his weapon, but Salas caught him by the back of his pants.

“Let me go!” the man squeaked. “Hey, we didn’t know she was with you.”

“And what difference does it make? How is disrespecting a woman when she’s alone any better than when she is with a man?”

He tossed this one down the stairs, too, then grabbed another one.

“Women are our birth givers,” he lectured the thug, lifting him over the staircase. “They are the foundation of our society. The gods made them physically weaker than men, to give men a purpose too. What is our purpose as men?” He asked the guy.

“I... I don’t know, dude. Really—”

“Wrong answer.” Salas tossed him down the stairs like a trash bag.

The remaining two tried to sneak past him, but he caught them both, grabbing them around their torsos and lifting them both off their feet.

“Our purpose in this world is to protect our women, gentlemen,” he said firmly. “Will you remember that? Protect. Not attack.”

“Yes! Sure!” they yelled as he sent them both rolling down the stairs too.

“Do you think they got it?” he asked me, after they all scrambled away at the bottom of the stairs.

“Let’s hope they did.” I shrugged, feeling positive they got nothing.

I took a look down the stairs to make sure they were gone, then picked up the switchblade from the floor.

“I’m sure there is more of that down there. Be ready.” I hiked up my long purple robe of the Rorrim’s Council and took the first step down. “Well, for what it’s worth, welcome to my world, Salas.”

“Wait.” He placed a hand on my shoulder. “Can you return to the palace the same way we came?”

He gestured at the mirror on the wall. It remained dark, reflecting nothing but the dirty opposite wall of the landing. Maybe I could still see my mother and the throne room if I stood in front of it. But I wasn’t going to try.

It felt like an enormous weight fell off my chest. Salas was safe. His secret no longer threatened his life. And for once, I didn’t have to say goodbye to him.

Our future remained murky. But in this world, we could have a future. Together.

“No.” I shook my head. “The one thing I want to do in life I can’t do in Rorrim. I can’t be with you there.”

“Ari.” Placing both his hands on my shoulders, he turned me to him. “You had terrible things happen to you in this world. I know how much you despise it. I can never give you what you’re giving up.”

I took his face between my hands.

“But you give me what no one else can, Salas. You make me happy. They will kill you back in Rorrim. Here, we can be together. It’s a very simple decision for me, really. I’m no longeralone in this world. I have you. You will protect me. When society fails to look after one of us, we’ll look after each other.”

---