Chapter Twenty-Four
Hunter
I stand a distance away from the ring. I’m as close to the ring as Garrett will allow.
My eyes are glued to Sherese. I wasn’t lying when I told her she’s got this.
She’s a good fighter. I’ve heard the rumors about Raechel, but Sherese is good.
She’ll be okay. I keep my focus on her face, so I don’t see the rest of her body.
I nearly had a heart attack earlier when I saw her walk in.
She always looks good, but tonight is the first time I’ve seen her dressed like this.
I have to admit, I’m a fan. A huge fan. She’s the sexiest woman I’ve ever laid eyes on.
I force those thoughts away and focus on the fight.
I watch as Raechel goes on the attack, but Sherese doesn’t do anything more than evade Raechel’s hits.
I know exactly what she’s doing. She did the same thing with me when I fought her the first time, but it doesn’t make me any less nervous, especially when she almost gets clocked in the face.
I keep all emotion off my face and watch her every move.
I'm starting to wonder if she’s panicking.
Maybe she wasn’t ready for this, and it’s all too much.
I take a step forward, ready to call it off.
But then she makes her first move, and it’s a doozy.
She goes on the offensive, and Raechel almost doesn’t defend herself in time.
But she’s too good a fighter. She recovers quickly, and they go at it, trading blow for blow.
I can’t look away for a second. I found myself taking it easy on her when we fought.
I knew I needed to be hard on her to prepare her for her fight, but I just couldn’t.
But watching her now...Man, she’s good. A sixth sense tells me the audience has gone quiet as well. They’re just as enthralled as I am.
The first round ends, and they both go to their corners.
I walk over to Sherese’s corner. I don’t care what Garrett said.
I’m not going to let her stand there by herself, alone in this room of shifters.
But then something catches my attention.
I hear Ava’s voice and tune into it over the noise of the crowd.
“Come on, Sherese. Finish this! Put Raechel in her place!”
“You’ve got this!” I hear Wyatt’s mate call out.
“Let’s go, Sherese!” Maverick’s mate adds.
I don’t go any closer, but I watch Sherese.
I don’t think she realizes at first that they’re cheering for her.
It's not until Raechel turns to them and flips them all off that she finally realizes. I watch her and go still. A real smile appears on her face. It’s only there for a second, but it lights up her face.
I feel gut-punched. I knew she was beautiful, but that smile is out of this world.
I realize how in trouble I am. If she ever turns that smile on me, I’ll be eviscerated.
Liam calls round two, and Sherese explodes from her corner.
The two of them go right back to trading blows, and it’s beautiful to watch.
They're like two skilled, talented dancers. I realize the talk of Raechel’s skills wasn’t hyped.
She's an incredible fighter, but so is my girl. The second round ends, and they separate once again. I watch Sherese carefully for signs of fatigue. I’m satisfied she’s good to go another round.
The third round starts. They both fight as if it were the first round.
I watch as the clock winds down; it’s going to end in a draw.
But then Raechel goes on the offensive. Sherese dodges every hit and returns a few of her own.
But one of them, she lands just a little off.
Raechel sees it. I hear Max say something, and then Raechel does her signature move—a sweeping kick that knocks Sherese’s legs out from under her.
Raechel pins her a second later. I hold my breath.
I know Sherese could use her vampire strength to get out, but she doesn’t.
She doesn’t move, and Liam calls it a moment later.
The crowd cheers, but I tune it out. I watch Sherese and will her to stand up.
When she doesn’t move, I start that way.
Liam stands next to Raechel and holds her hand up, but my eyes are glued to the girl who still hasn’t gotten up.
Liam must realize because he frowns and turns towards her, but I’m already there.
I reach her and drop next to her. Her eyes meet mine, and I see how dark her eyes are.
My breath catches in my lungs, and I don’t stop to think.
I grab her hand and haul her to her feet.
I wrap my arm around her side and pull her into me.
Raechel turns, and the smile slips from her face.
She starts towards us, but I give her a warning look.
She doesn’t come any closer. I can feel the tremor that runs through Sherese’s body.
“Come on. Let's get you out of here,” I say for her ears alone. Max holds the ropes for us, and we slip through. We don’t stop for her coat or her boots.
She walks beside me, and for that, I’m grateful.
Carrying her would invite a lot of questions, and that’s not something Garrett wants.
“Just a little further,” I tell her quietly.
She doesn’t say anything, and I speed up.
She’s still walking next to me, but she’s definitely leaning on me.
We finally make it to a closed door, and I throw it open, not caring what room it is.
I close and lock the door behind us, knowing it won’t keep out any shifters.
But it will give us privacy for a few minutes, and that’s all we need.
I pull a blood bag out of my pocket. I always keep one on me.
I take off the top and hand it to her. “Drink.” She takes it with shaky hands and drains it in seconds.
I curse myself for not having a second one on hand.
“I can go back to the house and grab another one.”
She shakes her head but doesn’t say anything.
Her head is lowered, and I can’t tell how she’s doing.
I’m just about to leave to grab another one when she lifts her head.
Her eyes aren’t as dark now. “I’m okay,” she finally says.
She takes a deep breath. “Thank you. I'm sorry. I didn’t realize how depleted I got.”
“That was a long fight.”
“I should have been in better shape,” she says, still catching her breath.
“You did really well out there,” I tell her honestly.
Her eyes meet mine. “Really?”
Something hits me then. There were all those screaming fans out there, and yet she wanted to hear from me that she did a good job. “Yeah,” I tell her in a voice that’s gruffer than I intend. “You held up against the Dark Angel. Nobody in this pack has been able to.”
Her eyes brighten at that. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
She shakes her head. “The last hit. I got my stance just a little off, and she took full advantage.”
“Yeah. Max called it out for her,” I say in a dark voice.
“She would have exploited it anyway; she’s really good.” She looks happy, and it makes my gut tighten.
“Did you enjoy it?” I ask quietly.
“I did. I really did.”
“Good.” I give her a few minutes to fully recover. “Are you ready to head out? I’m pretty sure your cheering squad will want to see you.”
“They’re all nuts,” she says, but there’s affection in her voice, something I’ve never heard in her voice before. Her eyes widen suddenly. “Oh.”
I instantly go on alert. “What? What is it?”
“Your fight. Are you supposed to be fighting right now?”
I shrug. “I don’t know.”
“Hunter, you need to get out there.”
I don’t look away from her bright eyes. “I’m right where I need to be.” A knock sounds on the door. “You good?” I ask softly. She nods, and I walk over to the door.
Wyatt stands there, looking between the two of us. “You good?”
I nod, blocking his view of Sherese, in case she doesn’t want to be seen yet.
I think her eyes are back to normal, but I’m not one hundred percent sure.
But then, she’s next to me. I realize I could move over and create space between us, but I don’t.
Her shoulder brushes against mine, and I make no move to pull away. “Are they ready for Hunter?” she asks.
Wyatt nods. “Yep.”
She turns to me, and she’s close. “Go.”
I stare down at her for a moment. I don’t want to ask her in front of Wyatt, but I need to know she’s okay to go out there. “I’m good.” She stands tall, and I force myself to focus on her face. A sudden urge to find her jacket hits me.
“I’ll be back.” My voice is harsh, but I can’t change it. I stride towards the fight ring, so I can grab her boots and jacket. But Raechel meets me halfway, carrying them. I reach for them, but she pulls them away. I fight the urge to growl at her.
“I’ve got them. They’re waiting for you in the ring.”
I stare down at her and fight my growing irritation.
She’s got my mate’s things, and I need them.
My mate needs them. I feel a growl building in my chest. Suddenly, the female is no longer alone.
Max stands next to her. He doesn’t say a word; he just gives me a look.
“See that she gets them.” My voice is rough, but I don’t apologize.
I stride over to the ring, thankful I get to fight.
I’m on edge, irritated, and ready to blow off some steam.
The fact that my mate was close to burnout is just now hitting me.
She couldn’t even get off the ground. If I hadn’t been here to get her out of here, to get her the blood she needed.
..My wolf growls in my chest, and irrational anger burns through me.
I don’t remember stepping into the ring; I don’t remember taking my shirt off.
And I certainly don’t remember Liam announcing the fight with his stupid nicknames and ridiculous banter.
I would be told about it later, much later.
All I see right now is the male who stood in the ring while my mate fought and almost burned out.
I don’t care that he’s the alpha of the largest pack in the country and that he fights on the regular.
All I can see is the darkness in Sherese’s eyes, the feel of her body against mine when she could barely walk.
All I can hear is her breathing heavy, trying to recover.
But none of that shows on my face. I keep my face blank, even as anger churns through me.
I don’t let the darkness inside me control me ever.
But there are times when I let a little of it seep out.
It makes me faster, stronger, and more powerful.
It makes the world around me slow down and brings everything into incredible focus.
I let that darkness out of its carefully made cage.
I let it fill me just enough, not enough to control me, but enough to make me who I am.
I stand perfectly still while all this happens.
I continue to stand still even when the signal is given to start fighting.
Somewhere in my subconscious, I realize that the enforcer is in the ring with us.
That does nothing but make me even more ready.
His mate was the one who took my mate down, who pushed her almost to her breaking point.
I don’t hear a word over the sound system, but I see the enforcer raise his hand and drop it.
I let the alpha advance and avoid his first few hits, following in my mate’s footsteps. And then, just like she did, I go on the offensive and attack.