“Got it,” I say. “What are the rules?”
“No killing. Other than that—impress me, angel.”
I flinch at her use of Alistair’s nickname, and he freezes at my side. My skin prickles. I glance to my right and swallow a curse.
Gone are Alistair’s crystal-blue eyes. They’ve been replaced with crimson slits. He’s fully vamping out, fangs bared menacingly at Resker. I ignore how the raw possessiveness in his expression makes me burn and bump him with my hip. “Snap out of it,” I whisper.
“Yes. Unless, of course, you want to work that aggression off in the ring,” Resker coos. There’s an undercurrent of cruelty as she speaks to him. I’m not sure how Alistair knows her, but there’s a sinister rivalry boiling beneath the surface. Another secret it would have been nice to know about in advance—like his disdain for strippers.
“Five minutes, Resk,” a big, beefy man shouts from the floor of the ring, his misshapen face disappearing from the trapdoor above the stairs.
“Wonderful.” Resker claps her hands, her conniving expression nowhere in sight. “I’ll leave you to get ready, Celine. I can’t wait to see what you bring to the table. I have high hopes.”
“Me too,” I mutter, doing my best to shake off my trepidation.
She walks away, and I focus on loosening myjoints and stretching my arms and legs. Adrenaline from the fight will take me a long way, but it won’t give me the win by itself. I’ll have to stay calm, strategic, and brutal, which means I can’t waste focus worrying about what Alistair is doing with those fangs.
“You good?” I grunt, not bothering to look at him. He’s paying attention; I can feel his eyes on me.
“I’m fine,” he barks.
“Don’t fuck this up for me, Alistair. Your temper?—”
“Is under control. I apologize.”
I nod, not pushing him harder. If he says he’s fine, that’s good enough for me. Just because I no longer want him in my bed—liar—doesn’t mean I think he would betray me.
Unfortunately, there are miles of ground between trust and its opposite. That gray area is where we all live, breathe, and eventually die. Finding the limits of your tolerance is key to forming any kind of alliance on the Fringes.
“Luca?” I ask, bending to stretch my right calf.
“I’m great, baby.” He cracks his palm against my ass, and my fingers curl around his throat before I realize what I’m doing.
“Great reflexes,” he wheezes, winking at me. “You’ve got this.”
“Celine and Dominic—you’re up.” Resker’s voice echoes off the concrete walls of the warehouse.
I kiss Luca hard, then release his throat to crack my knuckles. After a measured inhale, I walk to the narrow staircase and climb. My wings are stowed, but I have a few situations I might bring them out for. The element of surprise is worth its weight in gold.
I’m two steps from the top when the staircase shudders. I’ve got company, and something tells me Dominic is a brick house. Good for him and better for me. The big ones always fall harder.
“Nice ass.” His voice sounds like a godsdamned landslide, but it’s the amusement in it that sets my teeth on edge.Whatever.He’s free to underestimate me all the way to the morgue. We’ll see if he’s still laughing when I make him gargle his own blood.
“Thanks,” I say breezily, reaching the top of the stairs and winking at him.
He pops out of the trapdoor, his shoulders grazing the edges as he squeezes himself through. Good grief. He’s bigger than big. Less brick house and more brick hotel. Adding to the visual, Dominic is also the most rectangular person I’ve ever seen—his body might as well be made from a pile of cinder blocks.
If he manages to get me on the ground, I’ll be toast. But I’m hoping a man of his size has spent most of his life relying on intimidation to discourage others from challenging him.
Dominic checks me out too, but his stare is less assessment and more interest, like he’s window-shopping for something he wants to own but can’t afford. I can work with that. Stretching my arms over my head, I arch my back so he can get a better look at my cleavage.
He licks his lips.
Internally, I vomit. Externally, I toss him a shy smile. “Be gentle,” I whisper, doing my best to set him up for a humbling he won’t forget.
“Sure, sweetie.” His grin is wide and eager, and I catch a glimpse of blunted fangs. Some kind of shifter? Or maybe a vampire. Either way, I plan to stay away from those teeth.
“Fighters ready?” Resker pops her head out of a tube on the right side of the cage, magic flickering around her face as she penetrates the protection barrier.
