Page 22 of Broken Blood Ties

Katsuro lifts his arms in the air to ramp up the crowd, and they eat it up. I don’t miss the tic in his jaw, and I can’t help but wonder if he’s trying to keep from smirking at me.

We meet forehead to forehead, and while we’re both tall, he beats me out.

Joe slides a hand between us. “Fight fair.”

“Never,” I say.

“Don’t count on it,” Katsuro whispers.

The last thing on my mind when the bell dings is how much I hope I seeher.

Chapter6

Kieran

My brow bone stings, and I’m pretty sure several ribs already have a bruise forming. Lights, coupled with the sweat dripping into the corner of my eyes, obstruct my view of Katsuro doubled over after a particularly powerful body shot.

He pants and slowly rises to shake out his arms. He turns to me, bouncing on his toes. I scoff but internally wince. I’m feeling tired and old. However, I’m also desperate.

I haven’t taken a hard punch yet, nor has Katsuro hit me hard enough to bring about my visions of this unattainable woman I can’t seem to shake.

Katsuro’s attention locks on me as he advances and throws a quick jab aimed at my face. His fist sails past the side of my head as I dodge the punch and counter with a left hook. The thud of my glove as it smacks his ribs reverberates, cutting through the crowd’s shouts.

It doesn’t knock him off his game though. He grunts and retaliates with a right cross to my lower jaw that sends me staggering back. Floating white dots speckle my vision while the ring ropes blur around me. Sharp shadows cloud my vision before returning to normal.

Shite. I need to be hit harder.

Ihaveto see her.

There must be something wrong with me. I’m compelled to see a faceless woman I don’t know, even if it means taking a beating.

My fixation on winning has long subsided. At this point, I’m in this fight for her. To see her.

Annoyed with myself, my pace quickens. A jab, hook, cross—each delivered with precision to Katsuro, but he dances around each one, his footwork quicker than mine.

His expression is questioning but seems to pick up on my erratic round because he darts forward to throw a rapid combination at me. Pain blooms as he lands a jab to the side of my body. With zero hesitation, he follows up with a swift right hook to my jaw and, before I have time to react, a well-executed uppercut to my chin that snaps my head back.

Shockwaves move up my face, rattling my teeth. The impact is sharp and jarring, shortly replaced by a throbbing ache that radiates down my throat. I stumble back several paces, trying to catch my breath. Black creeps into the corner of my vision, and I glance side to side, disoriented. Laughter echoes to my right, and Cormac’s voice yells to my left.

But …

But …

Shadows flood my vision. It’s her. She’s there in front of me.

For a second, I’m confused. Katsuro’s good, but he didn’t hit me that hard, did he? I should see fuzzy lights, maybe a few stars—not a blackout.

Still, it doesn’t matter. This is my new conquest.

My stomach bottoms out when she turns. Her short figure walks toward me, but she gets no closer. I reach for her, and she shakes her head. Faceless, I can’t see anything but her silhouette and her short hair that brushes the base of her neck. An eerie, familiar feeling seeps into me.

I squint, bleeding pissed I can’t see her face. Is it possible to crave someone you can’t see? Desire throbs through me, and I’m drunk on her presence. It’s insane. I’m going insane. Too many knocks to the head for sure.

Her silhouette shimmers, and she already feels further away.

No.

No, No, No.