“Bullshit,” I spat. “You and I both know that’s a lie.”
“We don’t have time to argue. Shift before it’s too late!”
The lights flickered. I slammed my eyes shut and bent forward with my hands covering my face. My hair created a dark veil, and I heard the crackling of the strobe like snaps of electricity. When it ceased, I slowly raised my head and peered through my hair.
In front of me stood a brown wolf—just like Ben’s. His eyes flashed briefly toward the bars around us, and then he pulled in a scent. That’s when his lips peeled back, revealing his sharp canines. I sat back on my legs and readied myself for him to lunge at my throat.
I was ready to die for Wheeler, and I didn’t feel any fear. The wolf took a step forward, his brow angled in an angry slash as if he had a frown. His eyes were wide and full of fight. I’d never seen anything more terrible and beautiful all at once.
Slobber dripped off one of his fangs, and a low growl rose in his chest until it cut off with a ferocious snarl. Wheeler lunged.
“I trust you.”
Chapter 23
Wheeler’s massive wolf knocked me onto my back. We were both willing to die for each other, and that’s when I knew he loved me back. Maybe I’d never be the woman who found out that kind of devotion by way of candy, roses, or a candlelight dinner, but having a man willing to die for me was the most resounding declaration of love imaginable.
Terrible snarls and growls erupted from Wheeler’s wolf as he hovered over me, shaking me by the neck.
But his teeth hadn’t punctured my skin. Somehow, Wheeler was still in control. I lay beneath him in disbelief that a wolf could be this tactical. I gripped the sides of his fur, buried beneath the weight of him. My hair tangled everywhere—in my face, around my neck, and even in his mouth.
Shouts erupted from the crowd—no—cheering. They would never believe this without seeing blood. All those manicures had finally paid off. I reached up with my sharp nails and dug hard into the flesh of my neck until it drew blood.
Now the wolf had blood in his mouth. I didn’t know how this would end, and I honestly didn’t care. I just wanted it to be over one way or the other. The wolf thrashed, his teeth touching my neck painfully, but not puncturing the skin. Then he lifted his neck and I saw blood around his jowls—my blood.
More cheers.
“It’s over, boys,” someone shouted. “I would have never expected that.”
“Over in less than five minutes. I get the bonus!” someone else said with a laugh.
They were not only betting on winners, but how long the fight lasted.
I gasped when the wolf lunged again, this time at the back of my neck. I turned facedown and my hair smothered my view. After a few efforts to grab at him, I quit moving.
What was the plan? Oh God, I had no earthly idea what to do next! Did Wheeler have a plan?
Movement sounded from all around us and trickled away as the crowd left the room. Then I heard Wheeler.
“You bastards!” he shouted.
“You’re the bastard,” the guard with the British accent said. “You’re the one who killed her. Don’t blame us because you have a dead woman at your feet. Were you like this in all your fights? The most savage warrior, my arse. Nothing but a crybaby.”
“She was innocent.”
The cage door unlocked and another voice sounded. A familiar one I couldn’t place. “Stand back so we can collect the body. You’ll be rewarded with an exquisite meal tonight. The boss gives the winner a choice between steak and lobster, so think it over.”
Wheeler’s hand pressed against my back and all the rough edges in his voice smoothed out. “You wouldn’t be laughing so hard if she were alive… in panther form.”
The last thing I remembered after my shift was Manny, the stagehand from Club Sin. The bastard! He’d worked for Delgado this whole time and had been spying on us at the club. It was his eyes I saw behind the mask when a stranger walked onstage during my dance and made me shift, and he must have been the one who had attacked me outside my apartment. Those eyes I’d never forget.
By a simple twist of fate, I was the last thing Manny saw.
“And boom goes the dynamite,” I heard Wheeler say.
***
Wheeler slanted his eyes at the guard, who was holding a black baton. They wouldn’t expect an attack after a match because the fighters were tired and wanted a reward instead of punishment.