Page 49 of Tribute
“You’ve got a temper, haven’t you, Price? I like that.”
“I’m glad to hear it, sir.”
“Put on your shorts.” He walked over to the group of trainers, leading Price behind him. “What’s up first, Malke?”
“Endurance. Then medical wants to see them all.”
He sighed. “Haven’t they been cleared already?”
“There are a couple of new blood tests Palk is insisting they all have.”
“Palk? Shit. He’s not around, is he?”
“Nope.” Malke grinned at him. “Seeing as his favorite’s gone, you’d better watch your ass.”
“Strangely enough, Palk’s not real fond of me after I almost bit his dick clean off.”
“Good for you. He’s fucking insane.” Malke cleared his throat and looked out at the trainees. “Okay, listen up! Line up at the side of the arena and wait for my signal, then run in your lane for as long as you can.”
Kai and the rest of the trainers leaned on the barriers to watch the trainees run, amusing themselves by placing bets on who would be the first to stop and who the likely winner would be. He also kept a close eye on Aled Price, who ran well, with a natural grace that made him wonder how long Aled would last in bed. That at least, Kai had every intention of finding out.
Aled glanced across the arena at the other male who was still running. Everyone else had dropped out. One guy had passed out, but whether from fear or lack of fitness Aled didn’t know. For some reason, he wanted to win. He wanted to show thatbastard Mexr he wasn’t just a walking fuck toy, but a soldier who deserved some respect. The other trainers had all gone, leaving Mexr and the one called Malke watching.
He almost stumbled when the two men vaulted over the side of the arena and came toward him. His wary gaze shifted between the grinning males. Malke jogged up to him and Kai went to the other guy. Just to add insult to injury, Malke ran backward in front of him, his breathing unaltered.
“If you lose this race, Price, do you know what’s going to happen to you?”
Aled just kept moving, his gaze fixed somewhere over Malke’s head.
“You’re gonna get fucked.”
“And . . . what about . . . if I win?” He managed to grind out the answer.
“You think you’ll win?” Malke smiled. “Dream on, buddy. My guy? He’s an ex-pro athlete. You don’t stand a chance.”
Aled set his teeth and just kept moving, wiping sweat from his eyes and ignoring Malke as he strolled back to the sidelines. Time passed in a blur and his feet felt like lead and lifting each knee was agony. He heard a groan beside him and risked a glance to his left to see his opponent stumble, fall to the ground, and not get back up. He set his sights on the far wall. The guy might still recover. He couldn’t afford to stop.
He put his head down and slogged onward, unaware of where he was in relation to anything and all too aware of the searing agony in every part of his body.
“Hey.”
He collided with something solid and tried to swerve, but he no longer had the ability. Two big hands clamped around his upper arms, holding him still.
“You won,” Mexr said.
He tried not to sag into the arms of his trainer, but it was impossible. With a chuckle, Mexr lowered him to the ground and pushed his head between his knees.
“Rest up a minute. Malke is coming over with his trainee.”
He focused on breathing in air and was only just aware of the other man who slumped down beside him.
“This is Graif, Price,” Malke said. “As the winner you get to fuck him.”
“I . . . can’t,” Aled managed to wheeze out.
Mexr nudged him in the ribs. “Not an option, Price. You didn’t really think we cared who won, did you? You’re still just meat, and right now your dick is closer than us having to drag Graif to the lab for a nice long session with a dildo. So shut up and pick a hole to fuck.”
“I don’t want . . .” He shut up as Mexr yanked his leash, making his neck snap back.
