Page 24 of Chained

“Forcefield. I’d get fried.” He chuckles, pointing at a slight shimmer in the light.

I bat him on his arm, unable to stop my own laughter.

“But if you want me to.” He opens his great wings and stretches one out, inspecting the length.

“No!” I grab for him, burying my hands deep within the feathers until I feel the heat of his skin. “I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”

A strong arm wraps around my waist, pulling me close against his hard body.

“If you keep touching me like that, I will burn down the dome, the galaxy, the universe for you,” Maxym murmurs, his eyes half-lidded.

I dig my fingers deeper into his feathers and actually feel his knees dip. Could it be this is the way to tame a Gryn, even one as feral as Maxym?

He rumbles something which might be my name, his hand spanning my waist and his eyes completely closed as my fingers trip through the soft down I can feel next to his warm body at the base of his wings.

Somewhere far below, there is a sharp crack. His eyes open, and he snarls, pushing me behind him as he glares into the arena for the offending noise.

“We should go,” he says, suddenly all business. “They’re preparing the arena for the games tomorrow, and it won’t be good for our health to stay.”

I remember the conversations he had with Klynn about the upcoming matches. He is a veteran of this temple to violence, even if he doesn’t worship here.

“Perhaps we could eat?” I suggest.

My appetite is probably the only thing which has improved in the recent weeks. I find I’m hungry all the time and this is no exception.

The smile which spreads over Maxym’s face is the most genuine one I think I’ve seen on him.

“If that’s what my mate…I mean, my Cleo, wants, then that is what she will have.”

I’m herded by a huge wing away from the arena and back into the network of passages.

“How do you know your way around?” I grumble as we turn into yet another identical one.

“I’ve been here a long time,” Maxym says as we turn left and I suddenly recognize where we are, outside the dining area from yesterday.

I take a seat with a sigh of relief as Maxym goes, again, to get us some food. Klynn is lounging in one corner of the huge hall which is otherwise empty, picking at food on a platter. He avoids my gaze.

We eat and chat. Maxym, when he’s not doing the whole growly, brooding thing, is funny and sweet. He tells me about their rations, their training regimen, about his former colleagues who have left and whom I think he misses.

When the time finally comes, I feel like I’m dragging myself back to the armory because it means while I’m spending time with him, I can’t spend time with him due to the constant comings and goings of other gladiators, guards, challengers and clerks. And as is always the case with time, the nova-afternoon flies past, and before long, I’m done.

Klynn disappears just like he did before, leaving me to lock up the weapons which will be staying in the dome and clearing up those which will go back to Retah.

“I have to check the remainder,” I say to Maxym. “The ones which will be”—I check my vid screen—“available for the arena?”

“Those are the ones the challengers can pay extra to have available for them during their bouts,” Maxym says. “We’ll need to go to the ante-chamber.”

“Oh.” I check my screen again. “I’m to check those tomorrow, not today.”

“You’re going to be here, for the games?” Maxym growls.

“Looks like I don’t have any choice.”

CLEO

I stare up at the ceiling of my room. Shadows chase light across them as various air transport fly over Retah’s dwelling. Sleep is not coming easily tonight. I’m still turning over the events of the day.

I can’t get Maxym out of my head either. What I thought was a male obsessed with violence, possessive, dominant, and a bit of a wanker, has turned out to be nothing like I expected. A prisoner, accused of a crime he says he didn’t commit. Kind, easy to talk to, and fiercely protective.

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