“I don’t think I’m wrong about this,” the mage said, drawing my attention back to him. “We just need Elias and Cyrus to confirm it. The scout basically proves my point.”
“That’s only if Dante was reckless enough to take over Emris’s old fortress,” I replied evenly, pushing off the bar. “And that gives us nothing of use for that collar around her neck.”
The light disappeared from the male’s eyes. For a moment, I felt guilt over that reminder. But it was a harsh truth. One we all needed to hear.
If we found her, if we truly had her location, then that was only the beginning.
Dante still had her in a cage. Still put the collar around her throat.
None of this would matter if we didn’t have a way to get her out—and release her from his chains.
33
Ivy
The smell of blood, sweat, and ash coated my tongue when we entered what the demon calledthe Pit. I wasn’t sure what I’d expected when the words left his mouth, but it wasn’t a small stadium with a packed earth ground and a barrier between the arena and the hundreds of gathered soldiers cheering for what was coming.
I couldn’t fight against the soldiers carting me intothe Pit. I somehow kept the giant bear shifter and my Old World mate in the periphery of my vision, never taking my eyes off them as they were dragged towards the arena. They were both collared and chained, being held by at least a dozen soldiers each.
Part of me considered searching the sea of faces for Hawk. I wondered if he was nearby watching all of this unfold. If maybe he feltanythingfor what was happening right now.
But I couldn’t tear my eyes from the two males being thrown in the arena.
My mate stumbled across the earth with a growl as the chains dragged him to one side of the ring into a cage. There was blood on his teeth, matting his fur, too. What’d happened for him to end up in a cage? He’d been with Dante one moment, and then…
I eyed him for any sign of injury, but I couldn’t see anything with how low the lights were.
What had he done to betray his position with Dante?
The bear, Thor, was dragged to the other end of the arena and into his own cage. He was quiet, stiff. It was like he’d done this a thousand times before. And maybe he had. It appeared as though the soldiers were used to whatever game the demon was playing. They enjoyed it.
“This will be a fight to the death!” I flinched at the sound of the demon’s voice, curling in on myself at the resounding cheers that followed. For the first time since entering, I dragged my stare from the two creatures and finally took a chance to look around the rest of the huge space.
It was like we were in a cavern of sorts, which only made me believe further that we had to be in the mountains. The Luna Court was mostly mountainous, with forests that were so ancient, most hadn’t been explored. Somehow, Dante had carved out an entire underground compound, maybe using the old temple as part of his hideout.
With the pressure building in my belly, and the panic growing in my chest, more now than ever, I knew.
I had to escape.
And I had to find a way to get the others out with me. The Primal. Hawk, as much as I hated it. Even Thor, who appeared resigned to his fate. He didn’t deserve to be Dante’s. And for some reason, I couldn’t leave him behind. Something within me recoiled at the thought.
Maybe it was just knowing he didn’t deserve what was happening to him. None of the shifters did.
But for some reason, I couldn’t let him go.
A sharp tug on my chains drew me out of my thoughts. My gaze flickered over to the two guards who dragged me towards my newest cage. Apparently, Dante didn’t have a shortage of them. Especially ones designed for me. At least this one had a chair.
The false king himself sat upon a throne beside the new cage overlooking the entirety of the Pit. His eyes were on me, and I couldn’t stop myself from meeting his gaze. There was none of that rage from before.
Instead, there was amusement. Sadistic amusement, and that familiar flicker of insanity that came from the skull. His eyes flashed silver, and suddenly I was shoved inside the cage without so much as a word from either the guards or Dante.
The sound of the door slamming shut echoed through the arena. I hadn’t noticed the silence until now, too focused on Dante to care. But now, it was obvious. Stifling.
Dante, however, chuckled, clapping his hands as he settled back in his plush throne. “Let the entertainment begin!” he shouted, the sound so different to how the demon carried himself.
The demon was cruel in the way he spoke. So obviously vile and unsettling.
Dante was almost charismatic, smarmy. When he smiled, you could see the wicked glint in his eyes that told you that what was going to happen wouldn’t end well for anyone, but you still followed him anyway.
