Page 11 of Knuckles & Knives

“Speaking from experience?”

“Always.” His smile is razor-thin. “What you plan to do about your admirer down there?”

I look back toward the ring, where Axel has been stopped by the crowd. He’s busy now signing autographs and accepting congratulations from fans and fellow fighters alike, but even in the middle of the crowd, his attention keeps drifting back to me.

“I’m going to do what I came here to do,” I say finally. “I’m going to infiltrate this world, learn its secrets, and use them to destroy my enemies.”

“And if Ghost decides he wants to be more than just an observer in that plan?”

I meet Marcus’s knowing gaze and let him see the predator lurking beneath my carefully controlled exterior. “Then I guess we’ll find out just how good he really is.”

The game has changed. The stakes are higher. And for the first time in five years, I feel truly alive.

Time to see what kind of chaos I can create.

CHAPTER 4

The crowd parts like the Red Sea as Kieran Frost descends from the VIP level, his presence commanding attention without him having to demand it. He moves through the sweaty, blood-drunk masses like he’s walking through his own personal court, untouchable in his perfectly tailored suit while chaos swirls around him.

Every instinct I’ve honed over the past five years screams danger, but I force myself to remain perfectly still as he approaches. Hunters can smell fear, and showing weakness to Kieran Frost would be like bleeding in shark-infested waters.

“Enjoying the show?” he asks when he reaches me, his cultured voice cutting through the noise like a blade through silk. Those ice-blue eyes sweep over me with calculated interest, no doubt taking in every detail from my fighting stance to the way I’m deliberately not backing down from his approach.

“It’s educational,” I reply, matching his casual tone even as my pulse hammers against my throat. “I’m learning all sorts of interesting things about the local… wildlife.”

His smile is sharp enough to cut glass. “Wildlife. How delightfully savage of you to put it that way.” He steps closer,invading my personal space with the kind of confidence that comes from never having been truly challenged. “Tell me, what have you observed about this particular ecosystem?”

The question feels loaded with landmines, but I navigate it carefully. “Predators and prey, mostly, though sometimes it’s hard to tell which is which until someone shows their teeth.”

“Astute.” Kieran’s gaze flicks toward where Axel is still holding court near the ring, signing autographs and basking in adoration. “And what category would you place our Ghost in?”

“Apex predator,” I answer without hesitation. “The kind that hunts for sport rather than survival. That makes him unpredictable.”

“And unpredictable makes him dangerous.”

“Everything here is dangerous. That’s rather the point, isn’t it?”

Kieran laughs, and the sound sends an unwelcome shiver down my spine. “Including you, as you demonstrated in the ring. Impressive bout, by the way.”

“Hmm. There are those who are less than pleased that I won.”

“I admire you for putting on that… show.”

I refrain from gritting my teeth. He’s one of the assholes putting an asterisk by my win.

“You really are Vincent’s daughter,” Kieran continues. “He had the same way of turning every conversation into a chess match.”

I keep my expression neutral. “Did you know him well?”

“Well enough.” He looks away. Regret, maybe? “He was… formidable. A worthy adversary.”

“Adversary.” I taste the word like poison. “Is that what you called him while your family was planning his murder?”

The temperature around us seems to drop ten degrees. Kieran’s smile doesn’t waver, but his eyes go arctic cold.“Careful, little bird. Accusations like that require proof, and proof can be inconvenient for everyone involved.”

“Truth has a way of surfacing eventually.”

“Does it?” He steps even closer, close enough that I can smell his expensive cologne and see the flecks of silver in his blue eyes. I swear I see a flash of real regret before he adds, “Or does truth simply become whatever story the survivors choose to tell?”