by Leia Shaw
Samantha asked Aedan, “What do you think our chances are?”
He stared at the ground for a few seconds then shrugged. “I’d say seventy thirty.”
She looked up at Geo with a shaky smile. “Seventy isn’t so bad.”
“Oh, no,” Aedan stated. “Seventy in their favor.” He nodded toward the ring where two faceless, gray shapes floated like specters of death.
Samantha gulped. Geo cursed under his breath.
“Tell me, little witch,” Aedan said, staring down at her. “Do you fear death?”
He could’ve killed the faery. She didn’t need to be thinking of death right now. Still, he was curious about her answer.
She fiddled with her hands for a moment then looked him in the eye. “I’d be stupid not to fear it. But only because I’ve barely begun to live.” She smiled slightly and shook her head. “But dying today doesn’t fit my five-year plan. These Shadowfolk may have fought creatures bigger and stronger than me, but they’ve never crossed swords with a stubborn redhead from the wrong side of the trailer park.” Her chin jutted out and her fists clenched.
Geo’s lips curved into a proud grin. In all his life, he’d never truly been awed. Until now.
“I hope you’re right, lass.” Aedan grinned then clapped him on the back. “Good luck.”
A gong rang out again and a shapeshifter in a green jumpsuit yelled out above the crowd, “Geo and The Red Phoenix!”
Bets were placed. Money exchanged hands. The crowd jeered restlessly for their next victim. Blood stained the ground and a few body parts sat in the dirt, leftover from the last fight.
He watched the barbaric crowd demand more flesh. Greedy faces all around them – merciless and cruel. They’d just love an encore of the long, painful death that preceded them.
“Give me strength, oh gods, that I might release your fury on these wicked souls,” he whispered then looked down at the small woman beside him.
With her eyes squeezed shut, she added, “And may the force be with us. Amen.”
“Amen.” He took her elbow and pulled her toward the ring. She was trembling from head to toe. He leaned in to her ear. “Get out your chalk. Protection circle straight away, do you understand me?”
She gave him a shaky nod. “Will you be okay?”
Maybe. “Of course.”
If, after thousands of years as a warrior in the god realm, he was done in by not much more than the boogie man, he was going to be pissed.
***
Samantha’s heart beat against her ribs like a bongo drum. As they stepped into the ring, the crowd murmured predictions of how long they’d last against the Shadowfolk. The longest guess was five minutes. She rolled her eyes. Well, maybe the competition would underestimate them and get sloppy.
An overweight bald man stood up and shouted, “Make the redhead beg on her knees to come home with me!” He laughed heartily and the rest of the crowd cheered.
“No, Victor,” a man a few rows away yelled. “Make her beg to suck your cock.” His eyes flickered to cat-like slits and a long, thin forked tongue slithered from his mouth as he grinned at her.
“She doesn’t look like a fighter,” someone else yelled from behind her. “She looks like a good fuck!”
“Oh, I like when they put up a fight in bed,” the fat man answered. “Makes the conquest all the sweeter.”
These were the type of people trying to win her sister? Anger poured into her, heating her veins and tightening in her chest. They wanted to throw insults around? They had no idea who they were messing with. She’d held her own against bullies her whole childhood. In fifth grade she’d been the only kid in their class to beat up Jimmy Hunter. She’d made him eat mud. And these guys taunting her now were nothing but overgrown Jimmy Hunters.
“I’m glad you said that.” She addressed the bald man then motioned to the giant standing behind him. “I thought you were the giant’s ball sac and I’ve been standing here wondering why he left it hanging out like that.”
The giant laughed while the man’s face shook with rage. Ignoring him, she turned to the other harasser. “And you…how far does that tongue reach?”
His lips curved up and he slowly licked them while running his gaze over her body. “Why don’t you come find out?” His tongue slipped down to his chin, then his chest, and even further down, down, down.
She shuddered. “All the way to your dick, huh? You and Ball Sac Guy could have a lot of fun – with you being an ass-licker and all.”
The Lizard’s grin faded and his eyes narrowed. He reached his hands out toward her and they morphed into large, scaly claws like a dragon. “You little –”
Geo stepped in front of her, cutting off his threat. She watched, curious where this was going. No one had ever stood up for her before. His confident and soundless stride, the furious set of his jaw, the unstable look in his eyes…God, he was frightening. And sexy.
“If either of you come within even three feet of her, I will tear out your spine and saw off your head with it. I have no problem ridding the world of your disgusting existence. Consider yourself warned.”
“Fuck you,” Lizard Guy yelled. “When these Shadow-fucks kill you, sleep easy in hell knowing my tongue will be all over your girl.”
She didn’t even see him move. One moment, Geo was several feet away, the next he had Lizard Guy in a head lock and his hunting knife clenched in his fist. With a swipe of his knife, the man’s forked tongue flopped to the ground.
She turned her head away with a grimace at the gushing blood and strangled scream.
“No,” Geo said calmly, “it won’t.”
He released the man’s neck and flung him to the ground. Without a backward glance, he sheathed his knife then turned around and headed for her. Though the brutality shocked her, she had to admit being the reason for that wrath thrilled her. The fat man didn’t say a word, but glared at her with such contempt she could almost feel it like a target on her forehead.
“We have enough enemies here,” Geo said in a low voice when he reached her. “How about you keep that pretty mouth of yours shut?”
Shock had her nodding her head in agreement.
He pulled her to a spot off to the side and gave her arm a little squeeze. “Remember, a dead witch is a useless witch.” He smiled but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.
She gave a nervous chuckle. “I’ll try to stay alive then.”
He kissed her forehead then took his place in the center. Samantha looked for their opponents. If she turned her head and gazed at the crowd, she could just make out two humanoid shapes moving like ghosts around the ring. But she couldn’t see their faces. They were so non-descript and their shape so dark, they looked exactly like their namesake – shadows.
Geo unsheathed his sword and gave her a conspirator’s look. Stay put, he mouthed.
In answer, she drew her sword from her back, holding it at the ready. Maybe she couldn’t move from that spot, but she’d swing at anything that came close. And if Geo started losing – well, he could yell at her for leaving the circle later. At least he’d be alive to do it.
The gong rang out and she quickly drew the chalk circle, chanting as she did. From the side, a gaunt, black shape appeared only a few feet away. Her heart skipped a beat and she flinched. Instinctively, she turned to look and it was gone.
It reappeared on her other side and she jumped. This time she kept her gaze ahead and watched it out of the corner of her eye. Covered in a black, flowing cloak, its face was hidden in the shadow of the hood. Faceless, dark, almost shapeless and hovering weightlessly off the ground – if she hadn’t already believed in ghosts, she did now.
Slowly, it reached for her, its sleeve falling back to reveal a gaunt, grayish arm. She held her breath, praying the spell worked. At the chalk line, the creature froze as if hitting an invisible barrier.
Take that, Shadow Freak!
It canted its head to the side slowly, like it was assessing her barrier. Then it reached o
ut again, pressing closer and closer toward her, his hand shaking with effort to breech the magic. Her arrogance began to waver when a finger inched past the chalk line.
As fast as she could move, she sliced her sword across his wrist. A hand fell in the dirt and an ear-piercing shriek made her cover her ears. Then he disappeared.
She scanned the crowd, trying to locate her opponent from the corner of her eye. Where did it go? More important, was the damn thing still alive?
To her left, Geo flew across the ring, landing hard in the dirt with a grunt. Her impulse was to run to him, but getting herself killed while trying to help was a classic too-stupid-to-live move. Plus, Geo would be furious with her – running off and dying like that. He was capable of taking care of himself. She hoped.
Two Shadows glided toward him.
So that was where her attacker took off to. “Coward!” she called out.
The handless one turned to face her. Its head cocked to the side and she could picture it giving her a chilling look through the hood of the cloak. The hair on her arm stood on end. Still facing her, it screeched something to its teammate in an eerie language she’d never heard.
The injured Shadow kept its head turned toward her while the other pummeled Geo over and over.
It was taunting her.
Though they disappeared from her sight, she turned to give Geo a full once-over. Blood flowed heavily from one arm. His mouth was bleeding. He was able to rise up from the ground, swinging his sword with grace, though she could tell it took a lot of effort.
He turned in a slow circle, his eyes narrowed in concentration. She turned away to locate the duo. A shadowy fist came out of nowhere and sent him flying again. The two figures circled him, floating eerily off the ground. He thrust toward them again, but missed. Another hit had him doubled over in pain.
He was getting his ass kicked. And the crowd loved it. She had a feeling the Shadows did too. They seemed to revel in the spectator’s excitement.
Shit. Shit, shit, shit. She paced her small circle. What do I do? What do I do?
She could try to conjure her familiar but that kind of magic was hard core and she’d never experienced more than a few fleeting seconds with it.
“Raise the ground, damn it!” someone yelled in an Irish accent.
She had to try it.
Inhaling a deep breath, she summoned the power of nature. Warm tingles spread over her body. She concentrated all her energy, every nerve and muscle, then threw it into forming a connection with the earth. Beneath her feet, the ground began to rumble.
Yes!
Geo, now settling on a strategy to dodge their blows, spared her a glance. And in his eyes, she saw his only hope.
Me.
She gave the dirt a little push, willing it to rise up around the Shadows. A cage, a cage, she chanted in her head.
A big chunk of solid earth flew up from the ground and smacked Geo in the back of the head, raining dirt in his hair. The crowd erupted in laughter.
He tossed her a frustrated look.
Sorry, she mouthed.
A gleam of metal slashed through the air, just inches from Geo’s neck. The Shadows were done playing around. They were bringing out the big knives.
Focus! This time she pulled as much power as she could from that deep place in her soul – the place where thousands of years of witch ancestry sat untapped like lava simmering at the bottom of a volcano. The dirt shook around her.
“Easy,” she coaxed herself. Using her hands, she made a sweeping motion away from her body.
The ground shot up underneath her like a pedestal. She lost her balance and fell on her ass. Now the crowd didn’t just laugh, they pointed too. This was turning into a Three Stooges routine.
“I’m so glad I could amuse you,” she growled, standing up and wiping her pants.
Not far off, Geo grunted and slammed into the ground on his hands and knees. One of the Shadows kicked him in the stomach.
Screw Aedan and Geo. She’d do things her way. She grasped the moonstone charm around her neck. If this didn’t work, she’d declare the situation an emergency.
Closing her eyes, and chanted. “Ten times pain, ten times weak. Suffer now, no peace you shall seek.”
When she opened her eyes, Geo was on his feet, swinging wildly with his fists at the figures. His sword lay abandoned several feet away.
Please work. Pleeeease work.
Nothing happened.
They were officially in a state of emergency. She gripped her sword and stepped out of the circle.
A tortured screech erupted from the one of the figures. Then another higher-pitched one. She turned away and focused her peripheral vision. The Shadows were hunched over, grasping their stomachs, howling with pain. She smiled inside.
Geo stood shell-shocked.
Suddenly, the Shadows arched backward with a strangled scream and their torso’s ripped wide open. Blood shot out like a water gun then pink, slimy intestines spilled to the ground like floppy, dead worms.
One at a time, they dropped, limp like handless puppets. She waited to make sure they didn’t rise. With supernaturals, you could never be sure they were dead until you saw heads roll. Even then, she didn’t trust them. A foot twitched but they didn’t get up.
The gong rang out. The crowd cheered. The giant came to collect the bodies.
They did it. It was over. They won.
Geo, his chest heaving, finally looked at her. His eyes burned with savagery. Straightening his shoulders, he lifted his sword from the ground, wiped it on his pants, and stalked toward her.
He’d never seemed quite so big. She shivered. His muscles bulged and twitched, likely still high on adrenaline. He shook his matted hair from his face. His gaze raked down her body, a fierce gleam starting in his eyes, then moved back up, growing hungrier.
She had to fight the impulse to flee. He was the scariest thing she’d ever seen – and in this world, that was saying a lot. He stopped just a foot or so in front of her, his sharp gaze piercing her so intensely she could almost feel it.
She was vaguely aware of the crowd hooting and hollering around them, but she couldn’t take her eyes off of Geo. It felt like the two of them existed in a world of their own – her savage protector and Samantha, staring wide-eyed up at him.
He muttered something in Greek then grabbed her hand, leading her quickly out of the ring.
Aedan stood, grinning on the sideline. “That was some stomach ache, lass.”
“I told you –”
Geo pulled her past him, ignoring Aedan’s smiling salute.
“Uh,” she said over her shoulder. “I’ll catch up with you later.”
Geo walked straight to the stairs, towing her behind him. The crowd moved onto the next match like a blood thirsty machine, chewing victims then spitting them back out.
All the way up to their room, he stayed silent. His shoulders were tense, his grip like a steel cuff around her wrist. Normally, she’d pull away and demand he chill out, but he seemed razor’s edge away from beating something into a bloody pulp. And she didn’t want to end up on the other side of that pent up rage.
He opened the door to Chateau La Freaksville, shoved her inside then slammed it behind them.
She backed up a few steps and watched him stalk her. His eyes burned a coppery flame as he crowded her. She felt the wall at her back and gulped. A heartbeat then he was on her. He pressed her up against the wall, threaded his hand through her hair then bit her neck.
Holy shit! He’s not playing around.
But damn if her body didn’t respond. Warmth slid through her, making her knees weak and soaking between her legs. His lips moved up her throat…to her jaw…mmm. She moaned and ground against him.
How could she want him so badly after all that violence – bloodied and beaten? He placed his hands under her ass and lifted her. She wrapped her legs around his waist. When he squeezed her ass cheeks and nibbled her ear, the lingering thoughts of blood disappeared.<
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He took possession of her mouth, crushing her lips like he owned her. Bracing her against the wall, he slid one hand between them and unbuttoned her pants.
“Mm…yes,” she encouraged against his lips. She bit and nipped at him, feeling more fevered every second. Whatever brought this on – the violence, the danger, the Chinese food – she liked it.
His hand snaked into her pants where the lack of underwear was suddenly a blessing. Fingers found that sweet center and she threw her head back against the wall.
“Ahh!” Quivering, she clawed at him, trying to rip through his shirt. She needed skin. Now. She ached to touch him.
But instead, he set her on her feet, pushed her hands off him and ordered, “Take off the pants.” He stripped out of his pants and boots as she did hers.
Naked and vulnerable, she shuddered. Then he shoved her against the wall again. The brick thumped against her back, his knee pressed into her groin. His unshaven face scraped her skin as their lips met in a frenzied kiss. Hands swept down her body once…twice…then he lifted her and she felt his member find her slit. A heartbeat later, he slammed inside her.
“Oh!” she cried at the suddenness. But her clit throbbed too much to care. She moved with him, thrusting herself up and down while he anchored his hands at her waist.
They were panting and sweating, bruised and bloody and desperate as hell. He looked into her eyes, a stark look of pure lust – dark and sensual but full of possession. He was taking his war prize. And she was it.
Growls tore from his throat as they moved faster. She felt it too – the urgency, the longing. It built in her belly, growing with intensity as they fucked harder and harder.
Then Geo bent his head and sucked her nipple into his mouth, tickling it with the tip of his tongue. Pleasure tore through her like a riptide and she went spiraling, drowning under the current of sensation.
Geo made a gruff moan from the back of his throat then spilled into her, his body rigid against hers. His breath stayed at her ear, heavy and warm while they slowed their racing hearts. He covered her face and neck with kisses while keeping her off the ground with an arm under her ass and the wall at her back. Though the kisses were sweet, she shivered, only now feeling the chill.