The Wasteland: Their Champion Book One

by K. A Knight

  Ivar laughs as he slowly twists the pliers in my mouth, pulling the tooth out from its roots. He shows me it clutched between the rusted metal prongs like some sort of prize. The blood fills my mouth and slides down my throat, almost making me choke on it. I refuse to cry or scream; instead, I offer him dead eyes, so lacking in the pain he revels in that he stops laughing and backhands me

  I grit my teeth against the memories. I can almost feel the pain and blood, but I manage to push them back.

  “I'm aware of his need to watch people suffer. I know how he gets off on other people's pain.” I say, Majors eyes flash with misery before they lock down.

  “I know, kid. Even his people are questioning his leadership.” I blink at that, in a stupor.

  “Impossible, they are completely loyal. They never even blinked before.” My voice is filled with the shock I feel.

  “True, but you push a man far enough, kid and they will eventually snap. I think he's done that to his people. Half of them are talking revolution with Noah’s father at the helm.” My heart stops at his name on Majors' tongue and I have to suck in a lungful of air before nodding again. At this point I don’t think I can handle any more surprises. He offers me an apologetic wince before carrying on.

  “The other half are searching the Wastes and leaving chaos in their wake. Raid after raid, uncaring whose territory they are pissing on.” His stare is intense, he's obviously making sure I’m seeing where he's heading. Although I know, I have to be sure.

  “They looking for me?” It's his turn to nod.

  “Yes. A Reever scav managed to capture one of their men and get him to talk. He owed me a favour so he told me what he could. This faction of Berserkers thinks finding you and offering you as sacrifice to Ivar The Mad will bring him back.”

  My eyebrows raise at the name, “Ivar The Mad?”

  “That’s what they are calling him now, no longer is he Ivar The Destroyer.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  The Hard Truth

  “So, let me get this straight. The Berserkers are split in two, with my ex-boyfriend's dad leading a revolution in their midst and the other half are hunting through the Wasteland, probably causing a war between all the clans, looking for me in hopes that returning me to Ivar will bring their ruthless leader again?”

  Major smiles at me. “Pretty much.”

  It’s my turn to rub my eyes.

  “Amazing. So that explains all the rumours of raids, but what does this have to do with Dray?” He cocks his eyebrow at me in question and I grin, I did, after all, learn that from him.

  “What about him?”

  My face freezes. “He said he had a job for me, then sent me a note to meet him here tomorrow.” Major pales and jumps up, pacing behind his desk.

  “Shit, kid you couldn’t just have one mad bastard after you, could you?” My mouth flaps open at hearing him swear.

  “It must be my winning personality,” I joke dryly. He stops pacing and snorts out a laugh. Slumping back in his chair, he steeples his hands under his chin.

  “I haven’t heard any rumours, well none out of the usual about him. If he’s meeting you here, at least you know he’s not going to kill you.” He murmurs, almost talking to himself.

  My lips twist in a mocking smile. “I don’t think he would anyway. He has a strange obsession with me, I think he both hates it and craves it. He offered me safe passage, so I'll meet him and see what the job is.” Major nods along.

  “I know, he always insisted about being informed about when your fights were.”

  I blink in shock. “You told him?”

  Major leans back and blanked his face, another thing I learned from him.

  “Yes, I did. There was no way was I going to deny a pleasant request from the man who killed his own father over leadership. He never caused issues, so I kept on informing him.” I look at the desk in thought, my brain has had too much shoved in it recently “I hoped he would save you…” Major’s words are quiet and make my jaw clench as a flash of anger heats through me.

  “I saved myself. I'm not a princess who needs rescuing, I didn’t need a knight in shining armour to ride in on a horse. I can take care of myself.” My voice is hard with a threat clearly running through it.

  “True, although Dray is more a madman on a motorcycle.” He wipes his hand through the air “So, these men you are with?” He sits back and waits me out.

  Stubborn bastard, why do I feel like I'm going to get a sex talk? Sometimes I think he imagines himself as my father, but other times I doubt he even cares enough. I mean how could he when he just walked away when I needed someone? What I told him was true, I can save myself, but as a young girl, Major put stars in my eyes. I yearned for his smiles and our meetings where he would impart fact after fact into my eager head. I thought he cared for me, and when he didn’t save me from the fights, it broke something in me, something I'm not sure I can fix. My innocence.

  “Are none of your business.” I could claim they are a job, although technically true, they have moved far past that now, and no matter how much history and bad blood between me and Major, I still will never lie to him.

  “Tazanna,” he warns. I sit bolt upright.

  “Do not start to lecture me about my life Major, you won’t like what happens. You are not my father, you are not my friend, you are a memory from a desperate girl clinging on to any hope in a dark world. One that she built up so tall in her imagination, the real him could never match.” I see my words hit home as he flinches like they physically hurt him with their malice.

  “I just don’t want to see you hurt is all,” he sighs and rubs his head as I lock down tight on my memories, unwilling to let them lift their ugly head. “I know what Noah’s death did to you, I also saw the way you look at these guys. This thing between you and them is serious, even if you aren't willing to admit it. You lean on them. You never did that with… Anyway, I just don’t want to see that again.”

  His face is open and sincere and it only ignites my anger further. It’s the side of him he only ever showed to me, the one we hid behind the walls where he was my mentor and I was a scared little girl. How dare he pretend to care? His words break through the barrier to my past, bringing all the hurt and betrayal back like a freight train. The peace I built between us in the name of work shatters audibly.

  “Don’t pretend you give a shit about me, Major. I was an investment to you, and a good one at that. Don’t let my casual manner fool you, I’m old enough to know now that you could have helped me. You could have saved me. You chose not to. You put your life and business first. I don’t blame you for that anymore, you did what everyone does in the Wastes. Put yourself first. But those guys out there? They don’t. They have my back and have risked themselves for me. Which is more than I can ever say for you.”

  He winces at my harsh words as his lips tug down.

  “I might not be an amazing person Tazanna. I might not be the man you thought I was, but I did try to help you. It might not have been the open rescue like you wanted, but I was always there behind the scenes. Selecting your fighters so I didn’t have to see you lose a piece of your soul again as you fought some weak innocent slave. It made your fights harder but I knew you could handle it. Or stopping Ivar from punishing you within my walls; I made that rule to protect you. Or telling the leader of The Berserkers that you needed training, training that only I could offer.” His voice is rising with his words. They drag over old wounds, making my heart smash against my chest. “You were the child I lost, Tazanna and it killed me to watch you every day, but I promised myself if you could live through it, then I could watch it. Those meetings where I tried to teach you everything you needed to know to survive this world were the highlights of my day.” He stops, his chest rising and falling hard.

  “Then why did you lie to me? Why not tell me this?” My eyes want to fill with tears of hopelessness, the ones I never shed when I realized that the man I looked up to wasn’t the one I thought he was
.

  “Because I loved the way you looked at me, so much hope and trust. You hung on my every word, it made the shit I had to do worth it. I’m a selfish bastard kid, I couldn’t stand watching that melt away into hatred. But it did anyway. By not telling you I couldn’t save you, I watched the last part of you that was still a child wither and die,” he slaps his palm against his heart. “That broke my heart Taz. So, you can build me up into the villain in your head, but know this: I am always here, I always had your back, and I always will. I’m not perfect, what person ever is? Isn’t it enough I fought that part of me for you? The one which worried about nothing but myself or screamed at me to stop getting involved.” His eyes fill as he watches me with hope. The distance between us seems bigger than ever as all our lies, half-truths, and memories drop into it. I wish I could trust him again, that I could fling myself into his arms and cry it all out like I used to. I wish I could find shelter in his arms, but I’m not longer that child. I know being in his arms doesn’t mean I’m safe and I know that my tears won't change anything. So I push them down and he watches me do so with a heartbroken expression, the Major he shows to the world cracking to reveal the man underneath.

  I know to survive this world he must have done things which changed him. Maybe I would have loved the old Major, or maybe I would have never known him. But we are both not the people we want to be, we are both damaged by the choices we made. I hide it beneath layers and layers of sarcasm and control. Maybe he’s right, isn't it enough that he- we- are trying to be more, to be better?

  We watch each other for a long time before he breaks the silence.

  “I hope one day you will forgive me enough to allow me to earn your trust again. I will never forgive myself, but I want you in my life in whatever way I can have you, and know that I am so proud of you. You are the most resilient, stubborn, caring person I have ever met. We all make mistakes Taz, maybe it's time to start moving on from them.” He steels himself, rebuilding himself before my eyes until my mentor disappears and in his place sits Major, leader and executioner of The Ring. I nod and stand to leave, done with this hole day.

  “I asked about those men because I do care, and you forget that I witnessed your darkest days. I don’t want you going back down that path, it’s good to see you smile. Just be careful you don’t lean on the wrong people. Ask yourself what do you really know about them?”

  I want to scream and shout and defend them, I want to fling his words back in his face. After all, I leaned on him. Instead, I turn calmly to the door, not bothering to reply. I stop when I hold the handle, the metal rough under my hands. I grip it tightly and force the words out. If there is one thing I have learned, it is that you never know when your words to someone might be the last, so they might not be the ones he wants to hear, but they are all I can offer him.

  “I don’t know if I can ever forgive you, but I want to.” I flee before he can reply and I let his words follow me, darkening my steps and making me question the guys. I can see the building in the distance and part of me wants to run into their arms and claim he’s wrong. The smarter part of me knows I’ve been betrayed before.

  Is he right? What do I know about them?

  ◆◆◆

  I drag my feet on the way back to the room. I decide to see what they say when I tell them the news, and if need be, question them later. My insecurities and trust issues make it hard for me to clear my face but I manage it by the time I open the door.

  Drax’s head drops back on the sofa so it faces me upside down. He grins, making him look strange. Thorn smiles at me from the floor where he is sorting through his bag. Their smiles wash away my doubts, I can still feel them niggling in the back of my head but it’s easier to ignore.

  “Hey baby cakes,” Drax calls happily. I raise my eyebrow at the nickname and wander through the room aimlessly.

  “Where’s Jax and Maxen?” I end up at the table and frown at the cloth covered lump laying there. I finger the edge as Thorn comes to stand next to me.

  “Still with the bikes, apparently one had a problem. That’s for you, by the way.” He nods at the lump and then darts in and kisses my cheek. With a little grin, he walks off back to his bag. I watch him go, still feeling out of it. Drax meets my gaze and frowns at me.

  “Where's my kiss?” he sounds so put out that I laugh. I saunter to him and lean down. Major’s words stop me from kissing his lips, but I kiss both cheeks. When I pull away his smile is huge and he watches me tenderly.

  “Thanks, baby.” His strokes my cheek before I pull away with a deep breath. Heading over to the table, I ignore everything and just concentrate on not blurting out questions at them. I lift the cloth and only get more confused. A denim pair of shorts, a sword very similar to my own but with a skull as the hilt, and a folded letter. I glance at the men but they are talking between themselves, happy enough. I gently touch the skull and run my hand down the blade. It’s beautiful. It shines in the light, obviously well looked after. At the bottom of the hilt, there are some bumps and I lean in closer. I squint at the small engravings on the blade.

  My destiny

  The words are small, but perfectly carved, only adding to the beauty of the blade. Even more curious, I drag my reluctant hand away from the sword and pick up the letter. The writing is neat and the same as the note from the other day.

  Thought you might need these – D

  Dropping the note, I finger the denim shorts. I’ll admit the idea of letting air get to my legs is appealing, I just never wanted to cut my jeans before. Why would he give me these though? And the sword? More questions than answers pile up about Dray.

  The door bangs open as Maxen saunters in, Jax on his heels. He flicks me a smile before flopping on the floor near Thorn. Jax nods at his brother before making his way to me. He blinks down at me, his lips curling in a private smile before they look at the sword I’m caressing. The smile grows and he leans in and kisses my head quickly before turning away and yanking his brother's feet off the sofa so he can sit.

  Each kiss, each smile, and each little word is pushing them deeper and deeper inside my guard and if Major is right, if they betray me, I don’t think there would be anything left of me to fight. I slump hard into one of the chairs surrounding the table and watch as they laugh and joke between themselves.

  My mum once told me that she knew as soon as she saw my dad that he was the one. I never believed in love at first sight. What Noah and I had was a friendship that turned into caring and I was just growing to love him when it all happened, but these four? There's no growing, and time only seems to make it stronger. I was drawn to them that first day I met their eyes and no matter how much I fight against it, they are slowly becoming my reason to smile. The bits and pieces of my broken cold heart are slowly stitching back together again and they are the reason why. So do I trust them or do I let Major’s words break this fledgling thing?

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Stripped Bare

  After I pull myself out of my funk, I decide we should go for food instead of eating in our room again. They are happy to follow me, so now I find myself surrounded by my men. The mess hall is full, the fighters and masters winding down for the day over a meal and drinks.

  At least twenty tables in all shapes and sizes are scattered throughout the utilitarian room. The floor is a mixture of mismatched cracked tile and stone, and the walls an unappealing grey. A serving hatch sits at one end of the room, and a table with trays and cutlery next to it. A makeshift bar sits along the back wall, with opened bottles of spirits ready to drink.

  I’m waiting for Maxen and Drax to come back with the food when a voice comes from behind me. So far, the others in the room have kept a polite distance. I ignore it, hoping whoever it is will go away. It seems I'm shit out of luck when they round the table to stand in my eye line. My eyebrows rise when I realise it’s the slave I saved today. She offers me a shy smile.

  “Hi, I just wanted to thank you.” She eyes Drax and Thorn appreci
atively before sitting down opposite me in the spot between them that Jax had just vacated.

  “You’re welcome. Was there something else?” She pulls her eyes from Thorn’s muscles with effort to focus on me. Jax sits down next to me and pushes some food in front of me. Maxen sits on my other side, eyeing the girl as he adds a drink in front of me. Her eyes rove over them both before stopping on Jax. His face loses all emotion, making me realise he had started to show more around the guys.

  “Erm, yeah. I erm-” She looks back at me, “Major told me it’s you who I thank for getting me set free, so I guess I owe you a double thanks.” I tilt my head in confusion.

  “He didn’t tell you?”

  I shake my head “Oh, well he said he set me free for you and he offered me a job as well. So, I owe you my life. You can’t imagine how horrible it was being that pig’s slave.” I don’t correct her, but offer her a nod. She smiles at me before her eyes are drawn back to Jax.