Free The Cage King by Danielle Monsch

got himself more under control, enough that he now gave a sneer. “Because you’re the Cage King, and we all jump when you speak?”
    Esh went closer. The guard was his height, a little broader, but the man still cowered, still had that sneer. “Because I’m the Cage King, and you know what I can do when I want. Don’t you?”
    “Yeah.” In a strange reversal, Esh’s words seemed to give the man determination, strength, because he straightened, meeting Esh’s gaze with a lot more fire. “Yeah, I know.”
    “Heard you had an interesting day,” was how Esh greeted Nalah as he entered their apartment, and the sight before him slammed into his chest and stopped him short.
    Nalah was doing nothing more than sitting curled in a chair, reading a book. It was how he’d often found her, always reading, her face mobile as she absorbed whatever words lay before her – frowns, smiles, sighs of pleasure, all normal and expected.
    And he missed it, maybe more than anything else, because it was the best part of her and showed who she was – smart and sentimental and willing to let their reality go and keep searching for something better, never settling for crap and saying there was no other choice. More than anything, she was what had kept him going those early days. He never wanted her to lose this part of herself, would protect it with whatever he had in him.
    “At least I made some new friends first. Tiffany and I are now besties,” Nalah said, not looking up from the book, but bringing her hand up, her first and middle finger twining together.
    Gods, this fondness, it bubbled up inside and damned if he could stop the smile overcoming his face. “C’mon. We’re going walking. Beylor ain’t going to say shit if you’re with me.”
    The bookmark went in and the book went down, the movement quick but protective. “Yay! I almost feel like we’re out of the Middle Ages.”
    With a quick, “Stow it, smartass,” he ushered her out of the building and in short work they were walking around, her hand engulfed in his, the low-level warmth bubbling within him as they walked and talked like they had before she left.
    They weren’t the only ones out, and Esh let Nalah take the lead so she could get whatever she needed. She studied everyone and everything, but there was never any look of real interest on her, nothing to say she felt anything more than he did. For that, he was grateful. They had enough dealing with this item she had to collect. He didn’t need any other headaches.
    “Have you met Rorth?” Her voice was quiet, careful not to carry.
    “Yeah, this morning. Did you get something from him?”
    She shook her head, which was what he’d figured. He’d never heard of an orc being anything magical. “Not like that. We spoke for a minute though.”
    “And?” Nalah wouldn’t have brought him up if there wasn’t something.
    “Does he seem like he belongs in the Cage?”
    Course she would pick up on that. Nalah was as connected to the fights as he was, even if she hadn’t ever stepped into the ring. “No, but damned if he’s not a fighter. He’s one of the few who’d made me take notice.”
    “I got that, but that doesn’t translate to participating in the Tour. The timing is suspicious.”
    He didn’t get that from the orc. Yeah, she was right, there was something more that had him here, but Esh wasn’t worried about other fighter. But what she was saying did bring up a question. “How many know about Beylor having this item?”
    “I don’t know. It’s a recent development, but it wasn’t exactly a secret transaction.”
    Esh swallowed hard against the spew of curses rising up. Why did the Guild send her in here without information? This was supposed to be some all-important magic, but the person trying to find it was flying blind. “The Guild ain’t impressing me much.”
    “I met my contact.” Nalah’s voice was so low it was barely above lip-reading, but he caught it.
    With a quick look