by LeAnn Mason
Grumbling under my breath, I hopped up into the ring. Well, I tried to but got my foot caught on the lowest red rope encasing the ring, sending me sprawling face-first into the mat, which should have been firmly beneath my feet. Sadly, it was not the first time I'd done that particular face-plant. It was an old favorite that I revisited often.
There were plenty of internal giggles and insults flung around at my flop, not the least of which emanated from my new opponent. Once I was upright again, Dev tossed me some sparring headgear that I quickly donned. I couldn't wear the customary red boxing gloves because of my cast, so I was betting my strategy would be evade and tire, only striking when I had a chance to do some damage. I'd only have a couple good hits, and then, I was sure I'd break my hand. Then, I’d be totally useless. Yay!
When Devlin gave the okay to start the spar, Brielle came in hot and heavy, charging me like a shot and throwing out a powerful straight-arm punch aimed right at my nose. Holy crap! She was a speed-blessed Primal, and damn, she was fast! That'd kill me if it connected. Luckily, her thoughts were quite loudly broadcasted, just as they had been since she began training with us, and I was able to maneuver so that she went flying harmlessly by, if just barely. Her speed would make the bout much more difficult, but maybe it would help in tiring her. As she followed her weight past me, I threw out my right, plaster-encased arm to connect across her lower back. Brielle’s momentum plus my hit sent her falling into the ropes in front of where our spectators stood watching, but it sent a deep ache reverberating up my arm. I was pretty sure I heard the plaster crack on impact. Probably should watch out for that, I thought fleetingly.
Her deep-brown eyes were black when she turned to face me across the ring, her anger completely clouding all sense. She came again with a direct punch that she thought about and a leg sweep that she didn’t. My back hit the mat, knocking all the air from my lungs and making my head spin. The moment it took me to make the world stop spinning was almost too long to evade the next arm coming my way as Brielle knelt over my prone body.
I rolled and connected my cast to the inside of her right leg as solidly as I could from my position, causing her leg to buckle as her fist impacted the mat that now only held sweat that had schlepped from my back. After those couple of failed attempts to take me down, she had lost all composure.
She was pissed now, her head a mess. She’s making me look bad in front of my training officer! Turning around, she stalked toward me again, but like that Primal girl on campus those months before, she wasn't seeing reason. She had allowed herself to flip, to go truly Primal, a being of instinct and aggression, and stupidly fast. Dangerous, but also easier to evade; there would be no trickery when she was like that. No fake-outs or half-punches coming my way.
Again, she was broadcasting her intentions before she ever made a move, allowing me to skirt out of the way as long as I was fast enough to get there. I'd gotten clipped with a fist a couple of times but never the full brunt, so although I hurt—especially in my ribs and jaw—I wasn't down for the count like she wanted. I'd delivered a few strikes of my own when she got close enough, but there wasn't enough force behind the hits to do much damage to her. I never had a clean shot at her face. We kept it up for a few minutes, like a round of boxing, until Devlin called it.
"What have you learned?" Dev shouted as Bree and I came apart at the bell's ding. I didn't know if he was talking to me, her, or both of us, but it didn’t matter. I removed the constricting boxing helmet and made my way toward the side of the ring where Jade, Dev, and a few other Primals had gathered to watch the show unfold. I noticed that I now held a little more respect in their eyes, their thoughts begrudgingly impressed.
Stepping on the lowest red rope of the ring, I lifted the others up enough to gingerly duck under to exit the arena with a wince. "That training with you and Holden has paid off," I said in answer to Devlin's question, a goofy smile plastered to my face, my sore ribs making it a bit more difficult. Brielle's angry thoughts and the chorus of shouts and gasps echoing around me had me halting my slow departure to look back over my shoulder.
Brielle was there, no trace of a rational and capable female, only an enraged instinctual being who had her fist coming down for a massive hit... right to my temple. I had no padding, my headgear dangling from my hand. The only thing I had time to do was raise my arm. A last-ditch effort to guard my head from the blow that would render me unconscious at the very least. All other sounds fled my mind as I watched certain doom descend upon me with the face of a demented angel.
The impact of her fist into my casted arm was jarring, but I didn't have time to analyze it before Devlin was in the ring, his sizable hand wrapped around Brielle's throat, using it to lift her athletic body inches from the floor. Apparently, it was his turn to flip. He was irate, his thoughts raging. I sat there dumbfounded with the ropes tangled around my body as I watched Brielle get her ass handed to her by our Field Training Officer.
Words were hard for Devlin right then, the sounds leaving his throat sounding much more like grunts than coherent words. "You. Do not. Fight dirty. Within the team." Each word was slow, deep, and purposeful, but I felt like that wasn’t on purpose so much as all he was capable of just then. He even shook her a little before she nodded frantically and wrapped her own hands around Devlin's larger one, a vain effort to get his fingers to release.
I disentangled myself from where I’d landed and cautiously approached them. "Dev, man, she's turning purple," I stated, finally able to comprehend what had happened. My words got me no reaction. Well crap, guess it's up to us Sages again. "Jade—"
"I'm on it."
And she was. I hadn't realized that she was standing just outside the ring, watching the drama unfold. There was a deep ache in my arm that I really didn't want to examine just yet, so I kept my attention on the dueling Primals in the ring with me. And Jade.
A moment later, as Devlin visibly relaxed, Jade started her soothing words but didn't try to touch him. "Devlin, Nat's all right. You need to let Brielle go. I think she understands now. Don't you, Bree?"
Brielle nodded frantically, as best she could. Her combative instinct had fled the moment she was in a compromising position with a stronger Primal. She was still running on instinct, but at least it was self-preservation, so a little bit of logic could seep in. That logic was telling her to show her belly to the stronger adversary, and she complied, dropping her hands as well as her eyes to show Devlin she wasn't a threat. Once he believed, he lowered her sneaker-clad feet to the mat. With great effort and uncurled his fingers from her throat, leaving behind an angry red mark with crescent-shaped indentations where his blunt nails had embedded into her tender flesh.
"Never again," he growled. "Or you're gone. I don't care that you're a female. You will adhere to the same rules—the same punishments—that every team member does. Nathalee is not my favorite person. We all know that. But she is team. Our team needs to trust others in the unit. Always. It's the only way we will function as a unit and be able to do our job. Now, go change, and wait for me in the CP proper." Then, he turned his back on the sweaty and flushed female. He didn't look to see that she obeyed. He didn't need to. It was her choice: comply or leave. She stalked off the raised mat and headed toward the steel door at the back of the large gym space without acknowledging anything or anyone along the way.
I'd never seen Dev act that way toward a woman, but I guess he didn't like anyone blindsiding an opponent. Or was it—dare I think it—because it was… me?
"Let me look at your arm, Nat," Dev said quietly as he crouched in front of where I’d placed myself, my mind reeling from that little epiphany. He lifted my arm and winced. All the while, his mental thoughts were flooded with growling complaints about being ready to kick Brielle from the training program. I finally looked at the cast I'd used to defend myself against her unsolicited attack. Seeing the results of my spar, a curse escaped my mouth before I was able to stifle it, while Devlin inspected the limb carefull
y.
My cast was broken. Dev turned my arm gently this way and that, much more attentively than I ever thought he would be toward me, asking if anything hurt when he did. It didn't; at least, the pain didn’t spike with any particular movement. The ache I was feeling was a continuous throb, but it wasn’t sharp and unendurable.
"Well, this cast is shot. I guess we need to get you to the hospital to get refitted." Jade raised her eyebrow in silent question to Dev's assertion, her mental chiding loud and clear. It was a moment of truth. I could choose to confide in my teammate or continue to fear the consequences of unveiling my secret.
After several moments of mentally see-sawing, I chose my path. Decision conclusively made, I complied as Devlin steered me toward our command post, Jade following closely behind. Knowing that Brielle was in there, I asked Dev to clear out anyone who wasn't a part of our team. If I was confiding, I was only doing it to a trusted few. Let's hope Boat Shoes wasn't in there. Though, once it got out… there'd be no stopping it from reaching anyone who knew I'd broken bones just a few weeks before.
"Recruits, clear out. Go shower and get out of here. We'll work drills tomorrow," Devlin commanded. Then, it was only my crew present. Commander James and Trent were huddled together by Trent's computer bay, their attention shifting our way with Dev's order to vacate. I didn't see Steve or Holden.
"What's up?" Commander James asked as he made his way toward the conference table where I now sat in what I thought of as my customary spot.
"I had Brielle spar with Nat, and when she couldn't beat her, she decided a cheap but brutal shot was the way to go. Nat blocked the strike with her casted arm, but now the cast is busted. I was going to take Nat to the hospital, and I’m really wondering if we should even keep the Brielle girl on as a recruit. We can’t have any of our elite enforcers flipping in the line of duty. It’s a liability, at the very least," Dev vented to Commander James and Trent heatedly.
“I have someone in mind for a recruit,” Jade put in. She hadn’t spoken quietly, but there was enough commotion in the room to keep anyone from paying any attention to something other than their heated discussion.
"There's no need for the hospital," I said on an exhale. I was wound so tightly I nearly jumped out of my chair—which hurt my ribs pretty good—as a small hand clasped around my own. Jade was giving me silent encouragement, encouragement I definitely needed. In for a penny, in for a pound, right? "The cast can come off."
Everyone not in the know thought I was talking about the cast being broken, which meant it could "come off." Try again, Nat. "No, guys. I know with the cast being broken, it would be able to come off physically, which would be bad… if my arm was broken."
"It is broken. I was there when it happened. I'll never forget that night. Never."
"You're right, Dev. I'm sorry. What I mean to say is, I no longer need a cast on this arm." I paused to see what reactions and thoughts were echoing around the room. They thought they understood. They just didn't believe me and man did that make this that much harder. The more I needed to repeat myself, the more time I had to second-guess this possibly horrible decision.
"Can I get someone to help me with this thing? I’m a little sore." I lifted the offending apparatus with a ridiculous sounding giggle that gave voice to just how terrified I was.
Jade, taking pity on me, grabbed my fingers to bring them closer so she could inspect the cast. When she found a crack, she tried breaking off pieces or widening the fissure and further weakening the plaster. The guys watched in dumbfounded silence for a few moments until it became apparent that Jade would not have an easy time removing the cast by herself.
"Here, let me… If you're sure." Dev did the same technique for finding weak points. He hesitated a moment before asking again if I was sure. I wasn’t but nodded anyway. With a shrug, he put a hand on either side of the largest fissure and rent the edges with minimal effort. The thunk the battle-torn and not-so-white-anymore cast made as it fell in discarded heaps to the tabletop was the only pervasive sound in the room. In its wake, silence reigned.
I was so worried about their reactions that sweat began forming in all the usual places: forehead, armpits, back. I hated stress sweat. It always seemed to be more than when created by activity, and it was more potent. I'd have to slather a bunch of deodorant on when I left there. In fact, I thought a shower and a nap were in order. Maybe I’d even hide away in my room, give things time to cool down a bit.
Commander James scrubbed a hand through his short, dark hair before clearing his throat, bringing me back to focusing on the people I'd revealed myself to. "Nathalee, why are we sitting around staring at your discarded cast? How did it break like that? How are you not in more pain? How are you—"
"I have a Primal ability. I've had it for as long as I can remember, in some capacity. I can heal myself. To an extent." I clamped my mouth shut to stop the nervous ramblings and moved my attention to focus on each of the men in the room with me; the remaining members of my team who I trusted with this secret. "Oh, and Dev? Thanks for having my back." I shot him with a finger gun and tossed him a wink for good measure. The guys had no words right now, and I was hoping a little levity would kickstart their minds. Maybe even ease my own.
Jade and I sat quietly while we waited for them to process the new information. I wasn't sure just how long that would take. People reacted differently to learning something big, so Jade and I just soaked in everything they didn't say out loud just yet. It took everything in me to stay upright and act unaffected. I was about two seconds from passing out. To hide that little detail, I wouldn't say any more until they found their voices. They needed time to get their thoughts in order without me throwing more information down their throats that would only gag any words trying to bubble outward.
After another few moments of stuttering speech and thought, Commander James finally broke the heavy silence that had descended taking his seat at the head of the conference table. It was his usual spot, and he carefully lowered himself into its embrace, his eyes glued to mine through the entire descent. "Who all is aware of this ability?"
"My parents, Jade, Holden… and now, you three."
"Wow," Trent breathed out in awe. "That's freaking awesome! How soon will your ribs recover, then?" I saw the wheels turning in that brilliant head of his and was quite sure that he would have plenty more questions for me as time went on. He’d need time to think of everything he wanted to know.
"So, Holden is aware that your arm is… mended?" Commander James questioned cautiously. I nodded, a stilted motion, in answer. "Did either of you think of the repercussions of keeping this information to yourselves? How long? How long has Holden known you have this ability?"
"About a month… when I broke my foot."
"Wait a minute," Dev broke in, his heavy brows drawn down in confusion and arms flapping downward. "Broke your foot? It wasn't just a sprain or bone bruise?"
I once again answered with a head motion, this one a shake. "No."
"How long has your arm been back to normal? How long have you hidden behind that plaster?"
"Hey now, Mister Judgy. I was taught never to tell anyone about my ability. I was told it was a matter of life and death for me, so excuse me if I didn't deem you worthy of having that kind of power over my fate."
"But Holden and Jade?" Trent asked, a hint of hurt in his tones, both mental and verbal.
"Holden found out because he was there when it happened. And Jade found out the night I broke this puppy." I raised my pristine arm, opening and closing my fist several times in an attempt to get blood flowing back through to my fingers. I could not wait to be at full capacity on drills again. "You guys are special, though," I said cheerily. I needed to get them on my side. I had just given them ammunition to hurt me beyond repair and needed to make sure they didn't. "You are the only ones I told on purpose."
"Your cast broke," Devlin deadpanned.
He had me there. "That's true," I conceded slowly. "But I could
have let you take me to the hospital and continued the ruse."
"Why didn't you, then?"
"Well, Dev, I feel like I can actually trust you guys and thought that maybe it would change the way you thought of me. Maybe if you didn't see me as breakable, I wouldn't be as much of a burden on cases. Remember, I'm not full Sage. I'm heartier."
A devilish glint entered Devlin's eyes, and an eerie smirk pulled up his full lips. I didn't really like his thought, but I'd known it would be there. He was all about roughing up recruits, as he'd demonstrated just a little bit ago with Brielle and me. He was going to push me that much harder now. Good. "You know that if I push you, Holden will flip his shit, right? I already know I’m going to catch Hell for those ribs… and probably the cast."
"He's gotten better, but yeah, if he feels I'm put in a bad situation, expect to see silver eyes." I shrugged. "We're working on it. It helps that he can train me a bit, too. Makes him feel like he knows that what he's teaching me could save my life."
"And what I'm doing doesn't? Holden's an ass." Dev was getting wound, taking the fact that Holden liked to work with me as being slighted. His jaw worked as he attempted to pull back his anger. I'd seen him do that before, and it still impressed me. Every time. It was a trick I hadn't mastered, though I hoped to one day.
"Okay, I don't want anyone offended and spouting off when they get into the same room, so just shake it off, and let's move forward. Please?"
"Devlin, do you think we need to modify her physical training at all?" Commander James asked, still thinking through the ramifications of my ability. Trent was off in la-la land, reminding me of my mother as he began running through tech possibilities. I was his new favorite project. Awesome.