My Second Chance Mate is a Barbarian (Sera and Fenris) novel Chapter 51

Sera

"Begin."

Taya looked at me and smiled. Her teeth were white against her bruised lips.

"Look around, Princess," Taya said. Her voice carried easily in the freezing air. "Take a really good look."

I did not look around. I kept my eyes locked on her collarbone.

"There are no palace guards here," Taya continued. She took a slow, heavy step to her right. The frost crunched loudly under her boot. "Your little servant girl cannot hide you. And the Alpha is not going to step in and pull me off you today. You are completely alone."

"Are you going to talk all morning?" I asked. My voice was steady.

Taya’s smile widened into a sneer. "I am going to take my time breaking you. I want everyone to see what happens when southern trash insults an Ironmaw chief."

She stepped forward, her heavy boots thudding against the dirt. The ground vibrated slightly. She wanted me to panic. She wanted me to back away.

I held my ground. I kept my weight centered on the balls of my feet. I remembered Yvara’s voice. Do not look at the hands. The hands lie. Look at the shoulders. Look at the hips.

Taya closed the distance. She planted her left foot. I saw her right shoulder dip a fraction of an inch.

The kinetic chain started. The punch was coming.

I shifted my weight to my left leg and ducked.

Taya’s right fist snapped through the empty space where my head had just been. The speed of the punch displaced the air. A sharp gust of wind slapped my ear.

The crowd let out a low murmur of surprise.

Taya recovered instantly. She used the momentum of her missed punch to spin her hips. A low, sweeping kick aimed right at my knees.

I saw her hip twist. I jumped backward. Her heavy boot swept through the dirt, kicking up a cloud of dust and shattered frost directly in front of me.

I landed on both feet. My heart hammered against my ribs. I did it. I actually saw the movements. I evaded her. She was incredibly strong, and she was fast, but she telegraphed her heavy strikes.

Taya stood up straight. She frowned.

"You learned how to dodge," she said. She sounded annoyed.

She stepped in again. Faster this time. She threw a rapid jab with her left hand. I saw the shoulder twitch. I slipped to the right. The leather of her knuckle wrap grazed my cheek. She immediately followed with a right cross. I brought my forearms up tight against my face.

Her fist crashed into my guard. The impact sent a violent shockwave down my arm bones. My boots slid back an inch in the dirt, but I stayed standing.

Taya growled. She threw a wide, sloppy left hook. She put her entire upper body into the swing.

Her right side was completely open. Her ribs were exposed.

This was it. The opening.

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