“Yeah, let’s,” Jericho said quietly, finding his stance.
“Jericho!”
The shout came from behind him, but he didn’t move, didn’t turn his attention from Mars.
He wanted to live, thank you.
And that thought blew through him, fresh, alive.
He hadso muchto live for.
But not looking over his shoulder.
Yes, time to end this.
“Go back to the house, Harley,” he said, his gaze on Mars. “Take Orlando with you.”
He expected a fight. Instead, her breaths fell in and out, hard. Then, “I’ll be back.”
She took off, calling Orlando, the bell jangling distantly.
He could hardly believe it, the sense that she might just beleavinghim here, in the forest, to fight Mars.
Except, without her to worry about—“C’mon, man, let’s do this.”
Mars rushed him.
He ducked and grabbed the man around his waist, lifted and tossed him aloft, over his shoulder.
Mars landed with awhuff, just as Jericho turned around and sent his boot into Mars’s gut.
The man huffed out a breath but rolled away from another kick and found his feet.
And in the action, he whipped out a hunting knife. He wielded it now, with a grin. “Haven’t killed me a Bowie in years.”
Jericho let the words slide through him, ignored them.
The jangling of the bell fell away in the wind, just he and Mars in the dim circle of light.
Mars came at him, and he dodged, then whirled around.
The man came at him again, and he jerked back, the knife catching his jacket. No skin contact, but the sense of it shook him.
Mars would kill him.
Unless he killed Mars first.
He wasn’t that guy. Or, at least, he hadn’t been the first time they’d fought. But he’d been required to be that guy a few times in Afghanistan.
So round two would look much, much different.
Mars came at him again, and he slapped his hand away, stepped into the void, and slammed his fist into Mars’s chin.
The man’s head snapped back.
Jericho grabbed his wrist, turned his shoulder into him, and got both hands around his arm.
Then he bent and jerked the man over his hip, onto the ground. Mars landed hard on his back. His grip loosed, and Jericho slammed the man’s arm on the ground.
