He sighed and faced her, shutting the cooler door. “At the fight. We really should wait here—”
Her heart tripped.Dammit, Nate!“You do what you must. I will find my way to the damn arena!” Anger charging through her fast and furious, she grabbed her jacket and stormed outside.
“Ely, wait.” Aba hurried after her. “I told him you wouldn’t like being left behind.”
“Yes, because I’ll calmly accept that he’s simply going out there to die, so no biggie! Why trouble little frail me about something like that?” she snapped, yanking on her jacket. She’d give that stubborn demon a piece of her mind!
As her emotional frustration hiked, the heat within rolled to the surface in a wave.For hell’s sake! Give me a freaking break!
She gritted her teeth, scrubbing her prickling arms, aware she’d no more of the damn potion left.
“You know Nate can take care of himself?” Aba pointed out.
“Yes, but the symbiont within him grows stronger!”
“And if it emerges, he doesn’t wantyoucaught in the onslaught—”
“Well, I won’t sit by idly.” Dammit, getting mad wasn’t helping her problem. She forced herself to reel in her panic and calm down. “Aba, please, I need to be there.”
His chest expanded then he exhaled, mouth twisting a little. “Very well. Let’s go. Whatever happens, Ely, never leave my side. Promise.”
Ugh. He was worse than Nate. But in this place? “Okay.”
Aba nodded and flashed. Ely dematerialized, following him.
Moments later, she reformed in front of an arena ringed by dark mountains and immense dry heat, almost suffocating her. And trying to lower her temperature was like cranking a broken knob. She pulled off her jacket and tied it around her waist, not that it helped. But the constant noise in the place swarmed her like a mutiny of critters at war—
Raucous erupted, and her heart hammered. These fights tore at Nate, killing a little piece of him each time because the male she knew him to be abhorred the senseless killings. But these demons rejoiced in it!
Aba’s tight expression spoke volumes. “Stay close,” he said as he strode up to the massive gates guarded by a pair of granite-gray demons with hollowed features and spiky horns, crouched on tall pillars like stone gargoyles. Their anemic yellow eyes were the only thing that moved and now watched her.
Mouth tight, Ely lowered her gaze as they hurried through the gateway, shoving through the thick crowd. Some parted when they saw Aba. Others grinned.
“Come to seeSicaririp his prey apart?” A skinny demon smirked.
The glee and hunger for blood and violence in their maniacal grins had Ely grinding her teeth. A coppery odor hung over the pungent stench of sulfur, and it stung her nose.
Beneath the current uproar, eons of pain and gore abraded her sensitive psyche—her angelic nature unable to cope with the negative energy nailing her from all directions—draining her. Breathing hard, Ely slammed her protective shield shut, so she didn’t weaken in this dangerous place.
She came to a halt in front of the metal barrier keeping the crowd away from the massive fighting arena. Her throat dried out as she watched a bare-chested, barefoot Nate face his opponent, a mammoth seven-foot-tall, hairless demon with reddish-black skin and massive double horns sweeping back along his skull. His long, barbed tail whipped about in anticipation, causing dust clouds as he circled Nate.
Despite Nate’s heavily inked torso, Ely could clearly see the many wounds riddling his body.
The cacophony from the crowd grew. The bear-sized demon thundered toward Nate and lashed out with an enormous, clawed fist straight into Nate’s torso, sending him flying back to hit the arena barriers. He fell to his knees. Blood ran down his chest from the fresh slashes, drenching his pants.
Harsh breaths sawed in and out of her lungs as she watched, gripping the steel bars with a death hold.
The scaly demon thumped his chest and roared, eyes like flashing like black craters in the reddish, twilight day.
“Kill him, kill him,” the crowd chanted.
Nate, please, please get up!“Why isn’t he fighting back?” she demanded.
“I don’t know.”
Her gaze pinned on Nate, she watched helplessly as he stumbled to his feet.
Something was terribly wrong.
