Three Hours (Seven Series Book 5) (31 page)

Delgado’s gaze drifted elsewhere as if he was considering it. “That’s a tempting offer, but I can’t use you for both. I’m guaranteed money if I put you in the cage.”

“I can earn you ten times that in other ways.”

Delgado’s brow arched. “Can you prove that? Can you
promise
that?”

“No, but I can’t promise I’ll win your next fight either,” he subtly threatened.

“I host the fights, so I’ll profit regardless of who wins or loses. I run an exclusive club where you pay to play, but some like to keep their hands clean and just watch, so they pay more. You’re the kind of starring attraction that would earn me a huge profit. I’ve made this into an upscale affair from the days in the dungeon. I throw a party; we have drinks, mingle, smoke cigars, and watch a good fight. It’s an elite club, and profitable. Some of the men pay extra for time alone with our girls. That’s an added perk.”

“Let her go!” Wheeler roared, kicking at the bars. “I’ll fucking tear off your head if you touch her.”

When Delgado chuckled, the line in his cheek deepened. “Oh, I’m not going to touch her, Mr. Cole. I’m leaving the honors to you once she wakes up from the tranquilizer. Save your energy for the cage. See you in”—he glanced at his watch and then winked—“three hours.”

From the time I came to consciousness, I only had a few seconds to look around before someone jerked me to my feet.

“Move your ass,” he barked. “Your three-hour nap is up.”

I followed, still half-asleep, struggling to understand what was happening. Bars. Rows and rows of bars. A flickering light. I had been stripped down to my bra and panties.
Maybe I’m dreaming
. When I closed my eyes and slowed down, I felt a sharp yank on my neck.

Ow!
My fingers clawed at a thick piece of metal beneath my jaw, and that’s the moment I blinked wide-awake. Not only did I have a heavy manacle around my neck, but a man was leading me forward by the chain attached to it. I resisted, gripping the links so he couldn’t jerk it again.

But he did, and when he picked up his stride, I stumbled and tried to keep from falling.

“Better wake her up,” a man with a heavy British accent said. “Here, let me.”

A cold splash of water drenched my face, and I choked in a series of coughs. Some of it had gone up my nose, and I shuddered at the icy contact with my skin.

“They like it when we wet the girls down before a fight.”

“Moreland?” I croaked, looking around for Lorenzo’s packmate.

When the guard jerked the chain, my panther snarled at me to fight back. I kicked the man in the lower back and he buckled, falling to his knees. When I got some slack on the chain, I pulled enough of it to wrap around his neck. He was tall, but I tried with everything I had in me to hang on.

The man who had splashed me with water snaked his arms around my waist and yanked me off. “Told you we should have shackled her hands,” he said. “Delgado said she’s a panther.”

The other man coughed and unraveled the chain from his neck. “I don’t get paid enough for this shit.”

“Let me go,” I growled. “I’ll shift and tear your limbs from your body.”

The man I had strangled choked out a laugh. “Just try it, honey. The collar is locked tight for a reason.”

I kicked at him while the man holding me started to move forward. He had my arms pinned against my body within his crushing grip.
Oh my God, this was Delgado’s psychotic house of horrors
.

“Moreland!” I yelled. And then something else occurred to me. “Wheeler!”

We passed a cell and a young woman with blond curls looked at me with frightened eyes. She backed away from the bars and sat down, holding her knees. Another cage held a pale man with scars all over his body, and the next cell contained what looked like a murderer. His eyes were vacant as he watched us move past. It was as if I’d witnessed the progression of a cage fighter in five seconds.

“I want to speak to Delgado,” I demanded. “Tell him Naya James is asking to see him. Tell him—”

“You can tell him yourself,” the man ahead of me said.

Bright lights pierced my eyes when we moved into another room. Wet curls of hair stuck to my face, and I fought against my screaming retinas so I could get a look at my surroundings. The room itself was dark except for the bright light straight ahead.

Terror swept over me when soft applause filled the silence of the room. Through my lashes, I saw a raised platform, similar to a boxing ring. Except it was a cage with shiny, narrow bars all around and across the top. Seeing that incited a visceral reaction in me, and I arched my back as far as I could and bit the guard’s bristly jaw.

He shouted in pain, and the metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. When his grip loosened, I spun around and punched him in the jaw. He tried to grab my chain, but I ducked and gave him an uppercut right in the groin. He fell to the ground like a bag of concrete, but my victory was short-lived when the chain yanked me onto my back.

Another soft applause erupted from all around, like the sound of gentle waves lapping against a shore. It sent chills up my spine, and that’s when I began to pull the world into focus. All around in the dark perimeter of the room were chairs filled with spectators. Men in suits. Men with cigars and glasses of whiskey or cognac. Some looked on with interest while others were making notes in little books.

The chain pulled and the guard led me up a small set of steps to an open door where he pushed me inside and slammed it. Before I could turn around, he pulled the slack on the chain until my back was against the bars.

Oh sweet Mary, no
.

Wheeler stood on the opposite side of the cage with his right arm pulled through the bars—a chain shackled to his wrist. They had stripped him out of his shirt and shoes, but he didn’t look hurt. I only saw his profile, but I didn’t like his despondent demeanor, and his eyes were sullen and downcast.

My heart raced at a wicked beat, and I searched the room for a face. All I saw was darkness and faint silhouettes—ghostly images of men hiding in the shadows and watching with anticipation. Bright lights illuminated the cage, making it seem as if the rest of the world didn’t exist.

Footsteps approached from my left. While I didn’t recognize the man, I immediately knew who it was when he began speaking, his tone friendly but controlled.

“Gentlemen, I have a treat for you this evening. Please use the devices you’ve been provided to place your bets. In the left-hand corner, we have a legend among legends. He’s been out of the circuit for almost two decades and is a returning champion. Strong. Powerful. Deadly. This Shifter is a wolf, but not just any wolf. He’s undefeated against any animal—including panthers. He’s fought them in both animal and human form. Those of you who aren’t familiar with his face will certainly recognize the name Striker.”

The crowd murmured and Delgado let them settle down before continuing.

“In our right-hand corner is something we don’t have the privilege of seeing very often in this day and age. Here we have a woman with fight, as most of you just saw,” he said with a chuckle. “Stripper by night, and she shares her body with a black panther. Jaguar, to be specific. I’ve personally seen her animal and it… is…
exquisite
. At least two hundred pounds of solid muscle.”

Colored lights blinked in the darkness, presumably from whatever devices Delgado had given them to place their bets with.

“As a reminder of the rules, you may change your bet at any time until the chains are released. Once that happens, your devices will be disabled and there’s no going back. Take a moment to consider your wager, and remember the minimum bet requirement. If you can’t meet that minimum, then I’ll ask you to leave the room. The price for watching without betting is two thousand. And as a generous offer, should the panther be the victor of this match, I will hold an auction. One lucky bidder will have time alone with our lovely lady in private quarters for the entirety of the evening. This is going to be a spectacular show, gentlemen. Place your bets.”

My eyes widened as I looked at Wheeler. I wanted to speak, but the cold shackle around my neck was biting into my skin and making me dizzy.

“Ease up on that,” Delgado said in a tight voice.

The chain loosened and blood returned to my head.

Delgado approached the cage from behind me and I looked to the left. He smelled like cigarettes.

“My apologies for the unnecessary force on your restraints. Wouldn’t want you going in at a disadvantage,” he said. “Sorry we haven’t formally met, but these things happen for a reason. I’m a strong believer in fate. Are you?”

If I had eaten anything, it would have already been all over the floor.

“Please don’t do this,” I pleaded. “Let him go.”

“
Him?
” he asked with surprise. “Not you?”

“Release him. I’ll do what you want. His pack will come after you and cause more trouble; I have no one to claim me.”

“Sorry, Miss James. As curious as your request is, that’s not good business.” He leaned in so his voice wouldn’t carry. “Whatever feelings you might have for that man, I’d reconsider in your last moments. He’s a ruthless killer; I’ve seen it myself. There’s nothing he wouldn’t do to survive, and if you trust him, you’re a bigger fool than I took you for. So do me a favor and put on a good show.”

When he stepped away, I tugged at my chain. I got four steps into the cell before they yanked me back.

That’s when Wheeler swung his eyes up to mine. Those pale brown beauties glowed like embers from a fire, and I didn’t recognize the man standing before me.

Slowly the colored lights in the darkness became less frequent until they stopped altogether. The air chilled my arms, which were still damp from when they had thrown the water on me. I wiped my wet hair away from my face and tried to make eye contact with Wheeler. Could I trust him not to kill me?

“Gentlemen, we are releasing the chains.”

When Delgado nodded, my shackle clicked and fell away. I stumbled forward just as Wheeler’s right arm swung to his side without the chain attached. He stood catatonic, his heavy-lidded eyes transfixed on my legs.

The longer he stared, the more tempted I became to look down. I didn’t see anything outside of the mosquito bites, so I reached down and scratched one. Someone in the crowd chuckled.

Now what?
No bell sounded. No announcement to begin. Just the sound of ice clinking in glasses, orange glows in the darkness whenever someone pulled smoke from their cigarette, and the sensation of my heart climbing out of my throat.

Wheeler walked along the perimeter of the cage. The fingers on his right hand touched the bars, tapping against each one as he approached me. When he inched near, he gripped the bars on either side of my head and leaned in so close that no one could hear anything but us.

“Shift.”

“No,” I whispered back, still trembling.

“Shift or else they’ll make us both shift.”

“My panther will kill you.”

His mouth grazed my ear. “That’s the point.”

My heart leapt to my throat. “I’m not going to do it.
You
shift.”

His face appeared in front of mine, hard as a stone. Shadows carved along his cheekbones, and I saw years of torment flickering in the depths of his eyes.

“My wolf will lunge at your throat before you can scream.”

“I can’t, Wheeler. I’m scared.”

“Do you trust me?” He brushed my cheek with the back of his knuckles in a predatory manner. “
Trust me
, Naya.”

Had he said that to all his previous victims? Wheeler’s eyes were devoid of fear, and his voice never wavered.

“Strobe lights are scheduled to begin in two minutes if the fight is prolonged,” Delgado announced.

A nervous flutter tickled my belly.

I cupped Wheeler’s face and whispered against his cheek, “I trust you.”

Every muscle flexed as my skin erupted, contorted, and I transformed into a black panther. I heard light gasps from the crowd as she circled the cage. She opened her mouth, smelling the spike in their adrenaline. Confused by her surroundings, she growled and paced anxiously. I waited apprehensively for Wheeler to make a move. I wondered how he’d killed panthers with his bare hands. He must have put them in a viselike grip, or maybe gouged their eyes out before gnashing at their throats with his teeth.

Wheeler knelt down in front of my panther and gripped both sides of her face. She trusted him—she lapped his chin with her rough tongue.

Wheeler suddenly raised his hand and slapped her in the face. He did it again, and then punched her in the mouth before sitting back with his arms spread wide and his eyes looking upward, accepting his fate.

Nooo!
I mentally screamed.

She growled ferociously, and before I lost consciousness, I forced myself to shift, falling over him. “No, no. Don’t you dare do this to me!”

The murmurs in the crowd became loud and argumentative.

“Goddammit, Naya! Shift back!”

“Not if it means this. You can’t choose
me
over you!”

He softly touched my hair with his hands. “Who else can I choose? There is
only
you and me, and I will always choose you.”

“Turn on the strobe!” someone shouted. “I paid good money for a fight.”

“Listen to me, Naya. There’s no way out of this. I’m going to make this easy for both of us.”

Hot tears streamed down my face. “Don’t you dare give up on me,” I said angrily.

He laughed. “You want me to fight you? Only my wolf will do it, because I’ll never lay a goddamn hand on you.”

“You have a family. You can’t do this to them.”

“Are you saying my life is worth more than yours?” He shook his head. “Are we really fighting over who lives and who dies? Naya, let me do this. It’ll be the only noble thing I’ve ever done in my worthless life.”

“Bullshit,” I spat. “You and I both know that’s a lie.”

“We don’t have time to argue. Shift before it’s too late!”

The lights flickered. I slammed my eyes shut and bent forward with my hands covering my face. My hair created a dark veil, and I heard the crackling of the strobe like snaps of electricity. When it ceased, I slowly raised my head and peered through my hair.