Roxie flipped her off, which made Sara laugh before she sauntered away. Roxie didn’t have to look hard to see the faces of Bloods who thought maiming was a great hobby. Crawl had invited the worst members of the Pack to this place. The assholes surrounded the cage, shouting at her and trying to douse her with their beers. She went to the middle of the concrete floor to stay out of reach of the hands and liquid, but she couldn’t deflect the jeers and insults.
A roar went up, and the crowd shook the cage, whooping and whistling as Crawl entered the battle zone. He didn’t wear a shirt. Typical. Like most Blood males, he wanted to show off his scars, tattoos, and muscles—a tactic designed to scare opponents.
And it was working. Roxie was terrified, but she’d grown up in the Blood Pack and had learned at early age to hide her fear.
Crawl spent precious seconds mugging to the crowd. After he’d whipped his confederates into a lather of hate-filled bloodlust, he joined her in the center of the ring.
“Ready, sis?”
“I can forfeit, right now.” She had a slim hope she could talk Crawl into a less violent solution. “You have a quorum. You win. No one gets hurt.”
Crawl grinned. “Aw. Now what fun would that be?”
He lunged at her. Roxie avoided the first punch, but the next one landed solidly on her chest. She was forced back, sucking in a breath from her protesting lungs. Crawl rushed toward her, grinning like the maniac he was, murder in his gaze.
Adrenaline surged. She wasn't going to die here, damn it. Roxie dropped down. Crawl couldn't stop his momentum nor could avoid Roxie's leg side-swiping him at the knee. He cried out, stumbling, trying to use his arms to break his fall.
He crashed to the ground.
Roxie popped up and ran to her downed brother. He curled into a ball to protect his head, but fuck that, she kicked him hard in the ribcage. He rolled to his knees and reached for her, but she danced away from his flailing hands.
"Bitch!" he screamed. "I'll kill you!"
She knew he would try. Before he could get up, she darted in and kicked him in the stomach. He took the hit, groaning, but in mere seconds, he was back on his feet.
Roxie's fear knotted her throat. She kept her gaze pinned to Crawl, trying to assess his next move. He was bigger, stronger, and more pissed off. How could she hope to defeat him—and save herself? And what about Jack and Grant? What would they do if she died at the hands of Crawl?
Well, Rox, don’t die.
They stared at each other, circling, waiting.
Crawl uttered a guttural cry that sent shivers right down Roxie's spine.
Then he began to shift.
Roxie had no choice. She started shifting, too.
It looked like the brawl would end with claws and fangs.
* * *
THE PEARSONS TOOK out two Blood Pack guards at the entrance to the bunker. Jack and Grant followed the bear shifters down the shaft. When Gabe had suggested embedding a tracking device into the base of Roxie’s neck, Grant was the only one to express reservations. But brighter minds prevailed, and thank God, because the SUV carrying their mate had disappeared into the vast canyons of Red Rock.
Whatever tech the bodyguards used apparently worked underground. No one was more surprised than Grant to find out Roxie had been scurried away five hundred feet under the desert soil. Worry threatened to destroy his self-control. Before mating with Roxie, he could’ve handled a situation like this without any problems. Now, however, adrenaline surged, making him feel anxious, shaky.
They crept along the corridor, which was dimly lit by red lamps. At the end, they could go right or left.
“We’ll take the left,” said Gabe. He and Mike took off.
Grant took the lead on the right, and Jack followed. Grant knew Jack well enough to realize that he felt the same urgency to find their mate. He couldn’t think about what life would be like without Roxie—she completed their triad. She was their heart now. And how could he and Jack live without their heart?
Within minutes, Grant caught the scent of Roxie. “She’s been here,” he said.
Then they heard the music. The shouts. The growls.
They followed the hallway as it curved to the left. At the end of the corridor, double doors were opened—and it seemed chaos itself spilled from the darkened area beyond. When Grant and Jack entered, the crushing mash of bodies, the scents of sweat and blood, and the horrible screeching music overwhelmed their senses.
It didn’t take long to figure out where everyone’s attention was located. A huge caged ring was the centerpiece of the space. Grant knew immediately where Roxie was—and terror sent jagged cold straight into his heart.
He and Jack didn’t even have to talk. They pushed and punched their way through the crowd until they got to the cage. Grant’s fingers curled around the wire as he watched a big, blonde wolf close in on a smaller, red wolf.
Roxie.
Their mate’s burnished coat was stained with blood. It looked like Roxie’s opponent had gotten in more the one vicious swipe. The bigger wolf, however, had sustained a facial injury and the beast was limping, which meant Roxie wasn’t making it easy for her psycho brother.
The entrance gate was five feet to the right. All Grant could think of was getting to Roxie before Crawl killed her.