Born of Defiance

“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 didn’t come easy, Talyn nodded. “I’m glad to know you’re not a rat bastard, after all.”

“Contrary to popular belief, and what my younger sister would normally say, I really try not to be.” His gaze haunted, Lorens swallowed hard. “You should also know that I’m here on behalf of another organization,” he whispered in a tone so low, Talyn had to strain to hear him. “Ever heard of WAR?”

“Yeah, it’s my stock and trade.”

Lorens gave him a droll stare. “Warriors Against Royalty.”

His blood ran cold as he thought back to Rhys, who’d been killed when their colony was overrun by the last group of scavengers – the old male had died protecting Terisa while Talyn had protected Berra. “I know of them.”

Lorens dropped his tone even more. “They’re not the traitors in this regime. They’re patriots who are sick of what’s being done to innocent Andarions on the whims of the royals. Andarions like you, who are minding their own business and are ripped from their homes and tortured for no reason whatsoever.”

Talyn shook his head. “We shouldn’t —”

“Listen to me, Talyn. My youngest brother was assassinated before his wife and children so that Merrell Anatole could marry into the lineage of his widow. My sister was taken and raped by Nyran Anatole. Like you, she was forced to sign a nondisclosure saying that if she ever mentioned it to a living soul, she’d be executed. Every day, Andarions are killed, brutalized, threatened, and taken for no reason whatsoever. The royal family is out of control and has never been smaller than it is, right now. They’ve virtually murdered each other into extinction, and now is the time to finally stop their bloodthirsty reign. The entire history of the Anatole lineage is written in the bloody feuds of their children. As soldiers, we are the ones who have sworn to protect our fellow Andarions from all enemies. Enemies that include a royal family drunk on its own power. Imagine an Andaria where males and females, like you, can live their lives without fear.”

Yeah, right.

He’d still be bastard-born and hated by all. Even if they brought down the entire royal family, nothing in this empire would change for him.

“It’s treason,” Talyn repeated in a whisper, even though he agreed that changes should be made. He still wasn’t sure this wasn’t some kind of setup.