“You’ve clearly forgotten how we do things in Sin City. Either play to win or admit defeat and walk away.”
“I always win. You should know that by now.” A growl laced Arys’s words, an echo of my wolf that lurked in him. It was a remnant of my wolf that was, at times, a little too real for Arys to control.
Arys smacked Jenner with a jolt of energy that sparked with gold and blue. It was just enough to knock Jenner back a few feet. That was all it took to incite a violent reaction. The next shot landed along with a punch. Arys staggered back from the blow, his jaw bruised. His eyes were solid blue wolf when he lunged at Jenner.
The two of them grappled with both power and fists. They knocked over the chair Jenner had been sitting on before crashing into a small side table. A flurry of curses and uttered threats filled the air.
“My God, you guys, stop it!” Sloane shrieked, her voice shrill. “You’re acting like spoiled children.” With a wave of her hand, she lashed out at them in an attempt to pull them apart, but they carried on as if she’d never touched them.
The musky scent of vampire blood tickled my nose. Each of them was bleeding at this point, never ceasing in their assault of one another. Clearly, their issues went deeper than Arys’s return to the city.
“You’re a motherfucking traitor, Sindarys! You owe us.” Jenner’s use of Arys’s full name shouldn’t have been surprising. It reminded me that there were people who knew him from long ago. He had several lifetimes with these vampires, long before me.
“If I owe you anything, it’s an ass-kicking that finally puts you in your place.” With a tug on the power flowing between us, Arys flung a potentially deadly psi ball.
Either uncanny skill or dumb luck allowed Jenner to deflect the shot. He sent it crashing into the wall where it blew open a basketball-sized hole. Drywall and paint chips rained down in a pile of dust on the carpet.
I was done waiting. They were going to kill each other. I focused hard on both vampires and, with a flick of my wrist, flung them apart. Arys tumbled over the sofa opposite me and hit the floor while Jenner grunted as he slid down the wall next to the gaping hole.
“Now both of you just calm the f**k down. Don’t make me hit you again.” My words ended on a growl. Power thrummed through me. Looking back and forth between the two cocky vampires, I dared them to call my bluff.
Jenner regained his footing but remained where he was, leaning against the damaged wall. A slow grin lit up his face. Damn vampires. It took a lot more than a slap of power to intimidate or control them. He was going to test my limits severely before this night was through; I could feel it.
“Oh, please do,” he invited, going so far as to beckon with a finger. “If that’s a taste of how you’d kill me, I can safely say I will die with a smile and a hard on.”
“You’re a pig.” My lip curled in disgust. Though I might not say so aloud, Jenner and Arys were a lot alike in their smarmy conceit. I expected a comment like that from Arys; from him it was laughable, but from Jenner it was just gross.
“And you’re a little wolf playing vampire. It’s cute, really. But ultimately pointless. You’re not one of us.” A deadly glare replaced Jenner’s grin, and he advanced on me with slow, careful steps.
Arys was at my side, fingers alight with a golden-blue fire. “You’re right, Jenner. Alexa is not one of us. She’s more than we are. Why else would she have been able to kill Harley? You’ll be next if you continue this nonsense.”
“I’d like to make it clear that Harley is the one who taught me how to kill him,” I said. “You may want to chew on that for a bit.”
“Are you implying that my sire wanted you to kill him?” Jenner’s voice rose to a thunderous volume. “You think he wanted a hybrid mutation like you to take over his business? Not a chance in hell. You won’t make it out of town without paying for what you did to him.”
“I’m not implying a damn thing. Harley knew what he was risking by getting close to me. Do you?” I spoke through clenched teeth, finding it hard to hold the wolf back. I wanted to claw Jenner’s eyes out.
Sloane placed herself in front of Jenner. She touched his face, bringing his gaze to hers. “Jenner, be reasonable. Arys has never shown an interest in running Vegas. But he’s here for whatever reason. Maybe he can help us. Maybe if he knew—”
“Shut your damn fool mouth,” Jenner hissed. Grabbing her arm, he gave her a teeth-rattling shake. “I don’t need Arys to ride in here on his f**king high horse and save the day. My business is my business.”
Arys and I exchanged a look. Sloane was resistant, struggling against Jenner as she looked to Arys for help.