Page 24 of Celestial Combat

“Trevor!” I called through the noise, stepping forward.

His head snapped toward me, and in a second, he was shoving through the sea of people to get to me.

Something was wrong.

Trevor charged toward me, his girlfriend right behind him. His face was tight with fury, eyes burning as he pointed to the cage.

“Stop the fucking fight!”

A frown pulled at my brows. “What?”

But before I could say anything else, Trevor reached me. He didn’t shake my hand, didn’t smirk like usual.

Instead, he grabbed me by the collar, yanking me forward.

“You’ve got my fucking sister fighting men here without me knowing?!”

He yelled, voice laced with rage and betrayal.

I froze.

My mind blanked for half a second before I blinked. “Yourwhat?”

The world slowed.

I’d heard about his sister from time to time, but never actually met.

Everything – noise, movement, time itself – fractured into sharp-edged fragments as Mei–Kalimoved first.

Before Mortal could even react, she climbed the cage wall, her body a blur of raw precision. The crowd went feral as she leaped, her legs snapping around the bastard’s neck like a vice.

Her muscles flexed, her body twisting midair. Mortal clawed at her, his massive arms swinging in desperation as his face turned red, veins bulging against his skin. She held on, ankles locked, her grip relentless.

He staggered.

Dropped to one knee.

Blood smeared across the mat as he fell forward, his body twitching, growing weaker. The crowd’s screams intensified, voices merging into something primal, something deafening.

Kali adjusted her position with ruthless efficiency, tightening her hold.

Then–

It was over.

Mortal’s body went limp, collapsing. The referee hesitated, uncertain, but before he could step in, Kali shoved her opponent’s unconscious frame away. His massive body crumpled onto the mat.

She’d won.

Relieved exhales left Trevor and his girl.

I just stood there, jaw locked, eyes lasered in on thelittle killer.

But then I saw him – Tony DeMone, standing across the floor, gaze locked onto Kali.

In the cage, she stood over Mortal’s body; chest heaving, fists clenched and bloodied. And then she screamed. The sound ripped through the air, guttural, primal, filled with something unshakable. The crowd lost their minds, the entire club vibrating with their chants.

The cage doors swung open.