Courtesan of War

11 - Washing Away The Stench

After a cordial coach ride, we arrived at the boxing pavilion and were met with the usual pomp and circumstance. True to form, the duke made sure I was attended in a respectful manner as he escorted me with his arm wrapped protectively around my waist, and the crowd parted, allowing us to take up a position beside the ropes.

Inside the boxing ring, the fighters stretched and bounced around on their toes like performers at a ballet. The captain's eyes widened when he noticed me, then narrowed as he surveyed the duke's hand resting on my hip. Honestly, did he still believe I was too fragile to attend a simple battle of fisticuffs?

The well-dressed man I remembered from my previous visit to the arena called for attention, announcing the two competitors and their fighting credentials. Although Captain Thompson had a meager three games to his acclaim, his rival, MacMillan, had none. That meant nothing to me. A fight was a fight, whether the captain thought his opponent was an easy take down or not. The bell rang, the crowd bellowed in my ears, and the two boxers started their dance.

Determined not to repeat my previous exploits, I steadied myself against the duke, who had not left my side since we arrived. Clearly, he was doing all he could to make sure he witnessed the end of the match. Straight away, the captain rounded on MacMillan, punching the burly Scotsman in the mouth. Fortunately, there was no blood to speak of. Although, strangely, I wished there had been. I wanted the captain to win this match swiftly and without too much damage to his person, for his sake as well as Alice's.

Despite the eager gleam in MacMillan's eyes, Jules appeared to have decided not to give the amateur any grace as he took every opportunity open to him. While both fighters exhibited competent battle skills, after the first round, the gleam in MacMillan's eyes was accentuated by a crimson gash through his left eyebrow, while Jules had no injuries to speak of. During the short break, the duke felt the need to check on my status, leaning into my ear so he could be heard over the crowd noise.

"How are you feeling, so far, Mistress Hayes?"

"I am perfectly fine, your grace."

"Very well. Should you remain so, you will be fine to stay for the main attraction, then?"

I blinked at him, probably looking like a foolish owl waking in the morning rather than the eve. "This is not the main attraction?"

"Certainly not. These fellows are just the warmup act. You didn't think these good people came all the way out here for one fight, did you?" Based on his silly smirk, he knew damned well I wasn't aware of it. But there was nothing to do for it now.

The bell announced the second round, and the two men returned to their skirmish. MacMillan managed to catch the captain in the gut straight off. When the captain dropped his arm to protect himself, his opponent threw a fist at the captain's chin. MacMillan must have hit the soft flesh of the captain's lips, because he spat blood from his mouth. My own gut tightened at the carnage, but I refused to look away. If I could shoot a pheasant dead, I could do this.

After a bit more brutalizing, the bell rang, and, once again, I composed myself while the fighters did the same in their respective corners. The captain had not looked at me since that first glance, but why would he? He needed to focus on not getting pummeled to a pulp, and I needed to keep my wits about me. The same two females I had seen at the last match stood near the captain's corner. Apparently, they favored him. I only hoped they would not distract him with their low-cut dresses and suggestive manner.

The next two rounds deteriorated into bloody bludgeoning, and when Jules forced Macmillan to his knees from a violent right hook, I became acutely aware of the duke's hold on my waist as the crowd flew into a frenzy. MacMillan took his time getting back on his feet, but due to his unsteady stance, Jules was able to promptly knock him down again. This time, MacMillan remained on his knees, and the bell rang, ending the fight.