Page 74 of Bad Blood Panther

He walked toward the throne as the noise died down. Naked, covered in blood and dirt, he faced the Broken Hill alpha.

“I won,” he said. “Now come down here and fight me, you fucking coward.”

Alton rose to his feet. The clan was yelling for blood. He looked slowly around the arena, and then gave a short nod.

He began taking off his clothes.

Jenny couldn’t believe Alton was really going to do it. Fight Xander, in his condition, and then pretend it was some huge victory when he killed him.

“You promised him healing!” she shouted, concealing her handcuff key as everyone looked at her. “It’s dishonorable to fight a weakened opponent.”

Alton stopped and turned his gaze to her. The hatred in his eyes stabbed straight through her. He turned away.

“This traitor does not deserve healing,” he said to the crowd. He didn’t even have the guts to say it directly to her. She began working at her cuffs again, while everyone was watching Alton. “He’s a coward, afraid to kill.” The crowd screamed their support.

Alton kicked out of his pants, his magnificent physique on display. Huge and sleek and muscled, he oozed dominance.

“The traitor must be put down.” He jumped off the platform and strode into the arena. As he did, Jenny saw another panther streaking out from the crowd, growling, heading for Xander.

Fucking Cindi.

The lock on the cuffs sprang free. Jenny threw them aside and Changed, ripping out of her clothes. Before her guards could grab her, she gave two mighty leaps, and she was in the arena.

She hit Cindi broadside, knocking her away from Xander. The two of them rolled over, clawing and snapping at each other.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Alton Change and attack Xander. Then Cindi was on her again. Jenny slammed her into the ground, trying to knock the wind out of her or break ribs. She was hampered because she didn’t want to kill, or go for the lower belly.

No matter how unlucky Cindi’s unborn cub was to have her for a mother, Jenny wasn’t going to kill it before it had a chance to live. Cindi had no such inhibitions—she went for Jenny’s underbelly, her jugular. She was fighting to kill.

But Jenny was a Bad Blood, and she’d had fight lessons from the best. And what worked for Xander would work for her.

Blood streaming down her from half a dozen wounds, she stalked Cindi until she saw an opening. Then she dashed in, taking a bite to the neck, but managing to slash through the tendons on Cindi’s right foreleg, sending her to the ground. She followed with the back leg, and that bitch wasn’t getting up.

Cindi Changed back to human, the blood from her wounds darkening the ground.

“I submit,” she whispered.

Jenny stepped back, growling. Xander and Alton were still fighting, and Xander was holding his own, but just barely. She needed to help him.

She took one step toward them, and Cindi raised her voice. “Warriors of Broken Hill! As the alpha’s consort, I command you to attack!”

Immediately, panthers started Changing all over the arena. They flowed out of the bleachers, a terrifying sea of black, heading for her and Xander.

They were dead.

Then there was the rattle of machine-gun fire, and a row of bullets hit the ground at the warriors’ feet, sending up clouds of dust, stopping them in their tracks.