Page 52 of Gladiator's Captive
“Not yet.” She walked past me and I had to jog to catch up with her. “But he will be if we don’t put a stop to this nonsense soon enough.”
“Where are you going?” My brain swam in confusion and I struggled to understand. What did she know that I didn’t? What didn’t she know? I knew so little.
“Down in the Sandbox, that’s where we’re going.” Doc stopped and turned her head sideways to me. All I could see was the softness of her profile, contrasting with the hard shine in her eyes. I didn’t envy anyone who would try to stand in her way.
“What’s the Sandbox?” I asked even if a big part of me already knew. Rager had given me my mother’s necklace back, something for which I would be forever grateful, but it also meant he was left with little money to pay for our passage out of Valcan. Even if Rager decided to accept Sayk’s offer, it wasn’t going to be enough.
This left only one option for a man like him to earn as much money as possible in as little time as possible.
To fight.
Janet didn’t answer me before we arrived at a large door where a sullen-looking Ry stood next to a digital panel. She turned to me and all trace of humor had deserted her face.
“The Sandbox is our arena. Rager is fighting down there as we speak.”
Even if I knew what she was about to say, the shock of it almost sent me to my knees. Images of Rager fighting in the arena, bleeding, his swords bright with blood, rushed to my mind. I couldn’t let him do this. Never again.
“Let us through.” Janet turned to Ry. The man stood in front of the panel, his expression closed off and his eyes hard. It was clear he had been either warned of Janet’s intent of going down to Tartarus or had been expecting it.
“You know Sayk forbid you to go to the town without him. You’re free to move around the enforcers’ quarters, but nothing more.”
Janet leaned back on her heels and crossed her arms. She was short and much weaker than the six-foot-plus tall man, but he was the one who broke eye contact first. Ry looked down, his face hardening into a stubborn mask.
“Serena’s mate could die down there.” Janet spoke with a low, controlled voice, but there was no hiding the anger underneath her tone. “And you’re standing here, lecturing me on rules Sayk made up?”
“Rager is a Muharib warrior,” Ry answered, looking not at Janet, but straight at me. “He can take care of himself.”
“I’ve seen him fight before.” I spoke for the first time and I was surprised to hear my voice strong and even, even when I wanted nothing more than to cry and beg. Weakness would get me nowhere. I had to be strong. “He’s a great warrior, the best fighter I’ve ever seen, but he’s not invincible. He thinks he has to fight to get the money for our passage out of Valcan, but he doesn’t.”
Ry sustained my gaze and I saw the doubt in his eyes. My soft words had been more useful in convincing him than Janet’s blunt approach.
“He could get hurt down there. Killed even.”
Ry flinched and Janet took a step forward. She surprised me when she put a light hand on Ry’s shoulder. The man flinched at the contact, but didn’t recoil.
“You know better than anyone that Sayk would not want Serena to be left without a mate.” I had never heard Janet speak with such a soft, low voice. “And if you come with us, we won’t be in danger.”
“Please,” I added.
Ry pinched his lips so hard they became a thin, white line.
“If I do this, you have to promise to stay close to me at all times.” Ry inhaled deeply, then shook his head. “Sayk might just kill me for this, but you already knew that, didn’t you?”
Janet smiled, really smiled for the first time. “I know. I look forward to seeing him kick your butt.”
Ry smiled, too, but I could see in his eyes that he knew what we would find beyond that door. And that it would break my heart. I watched Ry press his palm to a holographic metal panel, frowning at the display of high technology in a place such as Tartarus. There was so much I didn’t understand here, so much hidden.
But none of it mattered more than saving Rager from the arena.
Ry moved silently as Janet and I stepped through the heavy stone doorway. She inhaled sharply as the view of Tartarus spread before us, her eyes widening and her face slack. I was lost in the sight of the sprawling city, the intertwined maze of buildings and narrow streets filled with exotic bodies. Never in my life had I seen something like this.
Then I shook it off.
“I can never get used to it,” Janet whispered, still entranced by the vision of Tartarus. “No matter how many times I see it.”
I understood her feeling, but didn’t share it. I was too preoccupied by my worries for Rager.
“Follow me. And no matter what happens, never leave my side.”
