glide out of his office. Honestly, he was sick of the Anatoles. Sick of the fact that none of them respected Andarion life or the values their civilization had been founded on. He’d suffered it for years, but as his children came into their own, new fears haunted him.
He couldn’t allow them to meet Talyn’s fate. Nor that of his brother or sister. Never mind what had been done to the two females Talyn had tried to protect and had been banished over. Not if he could stop it.
Picking up his link, he called his best friend.
As soon as Kerell answered, Lorens spoke without preamble. “I have a new member for us to consider for our club. Talyn Batur.”
“The Ring fighter?”
“Yeah. Meet me for lunch. You’re not going to believe what I’m about to tell you. I don’t believe it, and I’m looking at it.”
Lorens hung up and sat back in his chair while he copied Talyn’s file before it mysteriously vanished like all evidence of the Anatoles’ egregious actions always did. And why not? The tadara had made her own grandson disappear. What was the medical file of an insignificant bastard in comparison to the Andarion royal heir?
And it was time for the Anatoles to start answering for their actions. Time for them to learn that the Andarions weren’t weak-willed ants to be trod upon.
For the one truth about Andarions, they were all fierce creatures.
Even their ants and mice were fanged and poisonous.
Grimacing, Talyn pulled himself up in bed. He’d just been released from the hospital that morning and was still in enough pain that he wanted to kill the tahrs himself.
And forget what he wanted to do to Chrisen and Merrell. He’d sell his soul to have them alone for five minutes. While they wouldn’t enjoy it, he’d get his jollies and then some.
Pain sliced him as his thoughts turned to Berra and Farina. Two more innocent lives lost over their cruelty.
Payback was coming…
And he intended to shove it down their throats with both fists.
“How you doing?”
He looked to the door to see Lorens hesitating. Anger splintered him at the sight. He still wasn’t sure Lorens hadn’t ratted him out about the report he’d made on Chrisen. The timing had been extremely suspicious.
“Fine. I had worse beatings in grade school… from Hyshian girls.”
At least externally that was true.
Emotionally was another story. Talyn was still having a hard time coping with the degradations they’d heaped on him. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever come to terms with that aspect of it all. And the fear he held for his mother and Felicia was tangible.
Lorens came in and gestured toward the padded chair in the far corner. “Mind if I join you for a bit?”
He frowned at the male. “Where’s Felicia?”
“I asked her to give us some time. There’s something I wanted to discuss with you in private.”
Every instinct in his body went off at that. “About?”
“What you’ve been through.”
Talyn curled his lip. He had no intention of talking about it with anyone. Least of all his commander and his female’s older brother and someone he suspected of having betrayed him. “I’ve already signed the nondisclosures, Commander. I’m well aware that if I speak about any of what was done to me that I’ll be put to death for it.” And he didn’t want to think about what they’d do to his mother and Felicia.
“That’s not what I’m here about.”
Talyn arched a brow.
“Well, it is, but it isn’t.”
“I don’t understand.”
Lorens moved the chair until he was so close that he could whisper. But first, he scanned the room for a bug and put up a static jammer.
Talyn arched a brow at his actions. “What are you doing?”
“I’m not the one who told the Anatoles about your report, Talyn. I stupidly trusted that information to the prime commander and asked for his assistance on how best to proceed. That was my stupid, naive mistake, and I can’t apologize enough to you for it. The gods know, I never meant for you to have that blowback.”
Lorens clenched his teeth before he continued. “He’s the one who went to Merrell, and Paers ezul Nykyrian, without my knowledge, and deleted the report I’d prepared against them. Had I known what he was about, I would have protected you and warned you. I swear on the lives of my children. I never meant to bring you harm, in any way.”
Either he was a damn good liar or he was speaking the truth. Even though trust