Page 4

When Declan told me about going on a simple mission to check out rumors of a trafficking ring, the last thing I had expected was getting dragged through a magic portal and somehow winding up in the middle of a fighting pit.

The whole area was set up like a colosseum, with a large, circular fighting arena with a dirt floor surrounded by tall walls. The walls ultimately morphed into stairs high enough that the fighters couldn’t clamber out. Because most of the fighters wanted to be here, I doubted that was much of a concern. Though, based on the shifter across the pit from me, currently giving wide smiles and waving to the crowd like a celebrity, I wondered if I wasn’t wrong about that part.

Everything about my opponent screamed danger: the broad, hulking shoulders, the crooked nose that looked like it had been broken at least three times, the sneer he gave me as he continued wandering closer. At one point, he stopped, winked, and blew a kiss to someone up in the stands. I followed his trajectory, only to see a shadowy viewing box, the inside of which I couldn’t see.

What the hell was I doing? I was in a fighting ring, preparing to go against this guy in order to win a slave. A slave I didn’t want in the first place.

But this was part of the mission, and I wasn’t going to go against that. If I did this, the more likely it was that I could learn more about the operation here. If I walked away now, then there wasn’t any use to me sticking around. I needed to fit in, and that’s what I intended to do. So, the instant the bell rang, I shifted, my body turning into a large wolf.

I stretched, my wolf relishing the feel of dirt beneath our paws. It had been too long since I’d just let go and run through the woods as a wolf or gone on a hunt. There’d been too much work to do so I hadn’t had the chance to get away.

I didn’t have the chance to relish it for long before I caught sight of my opponent—Pierce, according to Lucas. He ran toward me, jaws already open, preparing to bite into me the second he cleared the distance.

I dodged out of the way, claws lashing out, catching fur as I tried to drag them across his side.

Before I could readjust, he rounded and charged to the side. Pierce barreled into my side, shoving me backward. Stumbling, the force knocked me off my feet, and I went sprawling, dirt spraying in the air as I slid across the ground. I rolled, just managing to avoid Pierce’s next attack as he charged toward me.

The dance continued like that, me darting out of the way as Pierce charged repeatedly. We moved around the pit, the crowd roaring cheers and jeers alike as we did. Eventually, though, I got bored. I was here for a mission, not for the fighting pits. With a growl, I lunged forward, charging for him. I jumped, paws outstretched, and landed on top of him, my paw on his throat.

I could have killed him. Part of me wanted to kill him, if only because he was part of this horrible place. But I didn’t know what sort of clout he had here, or what sort of enemies I might make if I sliced his throat. If murdering him risked causing me more trouble in the long run or made it harder to complete the mission, then I had to move carefully. Instead of continuing the fight, I shifted back to human, my hand still clutching his throat.

“Do you yield?” I snarled, hovering over the wolf.

His jaws snapped toward me, trying to jerk his neck from my grasp. I growled, my fingers lengthening back into claws, their tips digging into the flesh beneath the fur.

“Yield,” I said. “You’ve lost. Or do I need to knock some more sense into you?”

The wolf snarled at me. His jaws lunged upward, snapping at my face until I slammed him back against the ground. He yipped, and my free hand slammed across his temple. The wolf growled, but I could see in his eyes that he knew he’d been defeated.

The fur melted away, revealing the scowling man beneath. He glared at me with hatred.

“I yield,” he said, spitting the two words like venom. Blood coated his teeth, and the area around one eye was already darkening into a bruise.

I nodded and stood to my feet. All around me, the crowd continued to cheer while Pierce glowered. I held out my hand, offering to help him up. He slapped my hand away.

“Asshole,” he spat through a mouthful of blood. He glowered at me. “You’re going to pay for this.”

“We’ll see,” I said as he staggered to his feet. He shot me a death glare as he marched away.

Surprised cries emanated from the stands, along with the angry jeers of people who had lost a bet. It seemed I had been an underdog, then.

A clapping figure emerged from one of the entrances. Lucas’s features came into focus as he strolled toward me with a lazy grin.

“Not a bad show,” he said. “I should be pissed. I lost a good deal of money on you. So did a lot of other people. Pierce is one of the regulars. Ruthless shifter, that guy. But I can’t be mad when you put on a performance like that.” He chuckled. “Next time you come around, I’ll know where to put my money.”

“Your mistake the first time around,” I said evenly, earning me yet another chuckle.

“Damn straight,” he said. “I can’t wait to have you back here. You know how to put on a show. Where the hell did you learn to fight like that?”

“Ex-military,” I muttered, still scanning the arena. Everyone was still waiting around. I would have expected them to trickle out, or for us to be ushered away to get ready for the next fight. But most of the people were still waiting, watching, as if expecting something else to happen.

“I should have guessed,” Lucas said, sizing me up again with interest. “You definitely look the type.”

I shrugged without saying anything. Glancing to the side, I watched Pierce get back to his feet and shake his head, dirt clinging to him from where he had fallen.

“You could have killed him, you know,” Lucas said, watching my opponent stalk off with mild interest. “Anything goes in the fighting pits.”

Shrugging, I said, “I didn’t feel like it. Seemed like a waste of energy. I’d already won.”

For a moment, I thought Lucas would press me on it. Instead, he shrugged with almost casual indifference. “Your fight, you decide. But I’ll go ahead and let you know that Pierce has never extended that same courtesy to anyone else.”

“Lucky for him that I’m not him, then,” I said, trying to sound bored.

Chuckling, Lucas said, “Bit of an understatement. But no matter, the fight’s over with now.” His eyes flicked past me toward something beyond. “And of course, here’s your prize.”

A large shifter strolled forward, guiding a tall, slim figure by a chain. A figure with vibrant red hair. A very familiar-looking figure.

I tried to keep my face impassive as the woman came forward, her jaw set, eyes staring straight ahead, refusing to glance over at me. It was the same woman I’d seen in the street, being guided by the same shifter.

My wolf stirred with interest. Up close, she was even more beautiful. I could see individual freckles on pale skin, and the anger burning in her eyes only seemed to enhance her features. Her scent was a mix of campfire smoke and chocolate, and I had to stop myself from moving closer and taking a deep breath.

All common sense seemed to fly out the window. For a moment, I couldn’t remember what I was doing. All that seemed to matter was her.

The guard handed the chain to Lucas. The woman glared at him with genuine rage, as if she had a vendetta against him. Something about that furious stare was both terrifying and erotic at the same time.

Ignoring the glower, Lucas pulled her forward with a tug. She shuffled forward two steps, then stopped. He shot her a warning look and jerked on the chain again. This time, she moved more freely, though the same anger and hatred radiated off her. I was surprised at how much fire she’d managed to retain in this horrible place. I had to admit I was impressed.

“This luscious little thing is Kendra,” Lucas said. He wrapped his hand lightly around her waist as he guided her forward. “Kendra, this is Will. Your new master.”

I kept my face impassive, but I wanted to punch the asshole in the face. I wasn’t going to be anybody’s master, and Kendra was about as far from a “thing” as possible. Instead, because I didn’t trust myself to say anything, I kept my mouth shut.

“You’re lucky,” he said. “This one’s half-shifter, half-witch.” He grinned. “Think of all the possibilities there.”

“I can certainly think of some uses for that,” I said cockily, even as my wolf bristled with rage. I had to keep up appearances, but it wasn’t easy when I was inches from murdering both of these assholes for what they were doing.

Kendra’s gray eyes blazed with undeniable fury, but she kept her mouth shut, though I saw her jaw tighten.

“Go on, show your new master a bit of magic,” Lucas urged Kendra, though I didn’t miss the warning edge in his voice.

Neither, apparently, did Kendra. She glanced over at him in a mixture of loathing and unease, as if debating whether or not to defy him. After a long, silent moment, she raised her hand. A spark came, and then a handful of flame spurted to life in her hand. Heat radiated off it, brushing against my face.

“Impressive,” I said. “Though I could see that being a bit dangerous to have around, considering everything.”

“Not to worry,” Lucas said with a dismissive wave of his hand. “She’s trained. She won’t use it against you.”

I got the feeling, based on the expression in Kendra’s gaze, that she would love nothing more than to use her magic against me. But the flame evaporated, and she lowered her hand.

Throughout the entire exchange, she hadn’t uttered a single word. All of her communication had been through glares and glowers.

“Does she speak?” I asked.

“Of course she does. At least when spoken to,” Lucas said. “Like I said, she’s trained.”

I turned to look at Kendra, one eyebrow raised. “I’d like to hear it from her.”

She didn’t respond, not at first. I watched as Lucas’s hand squeezed her hip in warning.

“I speak,” she said. Her voice was light and musical, though with a harshness to her that was more attractive than it had any right to be.

“So I can just take her, then,” I said, reaching out for the chain.

Lucas didn’t hand it over. “We do have the small matter of a sort of insurance policy,” he said. “We prefer our customers to marry our women.”

I blinked, letting the words wash over me while struggling to contain my anger. The idea of marrying a woman against her will made my skin crawl with disgust. This place was horrendous. I wanted to tear it down brick by brick. The last thing I wanted to do was marry a slave.

On top of that, I could see the rage and reluctance burning in Kendra’s eyes. She hated the thought as much as I did. And she was going to hate me for this. That is, if she didn’t hate me already. Which, judging by the death glare she was giving me, was almost certainly a given.

But I had to keep up with the pretense, even if I didn’t want to.

“All right, then,” I said.

Lucas nodded. “In that case, let’s begin.”