Page 113 of Heroes & Hitmen
The words hang in the air, ancient and heavy as everyone looks to me.
Alpha Gage blinks. Then he laughs, but it’s nervous. “Mate challenges are obsolete, Raines. This isn’t the Middle Ages.”
“It’s shifter law,” I fire back. “All Alphas are bound by it, even progressives like you.”
He hesitates, sweeping a calculating glance over his captivated audience. I swear I can see his wheels turning as he searches for some way to refuse me, but his pack’s hungry for blood– he can’t back down without looking weak. He’s the one who riled them up in the first place, and now he’s left with no choice other than to give the people what they want.
Gage turns to Elias with a frown. “Do you accept?”
Elias stretches his arms in front of himself, cracking his knuckles. “Gladly,” he replies, shrugging out of his suit jacket and passing it off to the enforcer behind him.
The mob erupts, howling for violence.
“Ares,no…” Miley breathes, eyes going wide with horror.
But there’s no going back now. I declared the challenge, so I’ll see it through. Wipe the floor with Elias Burke and claim my mate.
I somehow doubt she’ll consider me a hero for offering to fight over her like a piece of meat, though, and luckily, I’m hit with a stroke of brilliance to sweeten the deal.
“If I win, her sisters are off limits, too,” I tell Elias. “You don’t take a mate from this pack.”
He scoffs an arrogant laugh. “What difference does it make to you?”
“Afraid to lose, Burke?” I ask, baring my teeth at him.
He shakes his head with a low chuckle. “Not happening, tough guy. But sure, you’ve got a deal. It’ll only make my victory that much sweeter.”
I nod in satisfaction, glancing toward Gage again. I’d never trust a word out of Elias Burke’s mouth, but with so many witnesses here, Gage would be hard pressed to allow him to renege on our deal. It’d call his integrity into question, and one of the few things Gage Morgan actually gives a shit about is his image.
“Let’s go,” he huffs impatiently, barking out orders to his enforcers as he marches toward the trees.
The goons holding my arms force me to follow along after him, the crowd parting to let us through, then falling in behind our procession down a dirt path into the woods. The trees close in around us, the entire forest seeming to hum with anticipation. I try to catch sight of Miley as we walk, but she’s surrounded by enforcers obstructing my view. So, naturally, I memorize their faces and add them to my mental hit list along with Ross, Elias Burke, and Gage fucking Morgan.
The list may be getting long, but Iama professional hitman, after all.
When we’re deep in the woods, a clearing opens up and Gage stops, barking out more orders. The enforcers shove me forward, Elias takes a position across from me, and the crowd circles in around us. I’m finally able to lay eyes on Miley again, and she’s still holding strong– or at least pretending to.
Good girl.
“You know the rules,” Alpha Gage barks out. “Shift to fight, and secure victory by incapacitating your opponent or forcing them to yield.”
I give Miley one last, lingering look before turning to face Elias with a slow exhale, preparing to get in the zone. He starts stripping off his clothes like it’s a race to get undressed, while I take my sweet ass time, planning my strategy and psyching myself up for the fight. My heart’s pounding, muscles coiled with fury and need. My wolf’s clawing to get out, and I’m all too eager to set him loose on this scumbag.
Elias starts shifting before I do, bones cracking, fur tearing through his skin. His wolf bursts free, and he’s bigger than I expect– all muscles and teeth with silver fur that ripples in the moonlight. He wheels on me with a snarl that’s probably supposed to be intimidating, but I don’t flinch.
He may be big, but I’m bigger. Definitely meaner. I brace myself for the shift, heat ripping through me as I take on my animal form.
Something’s off.
Shifting doesn’t usually hurt, but I swear I feel every bone pop, every muscle stretch and re-form. When I land on four paws my body feels strangely sluggish, like I’m running on a drained battery– which doesn’t make any sense, given the light of the full moon shining down from overhead. It should be making me feel even stronger.
Fuck, was it the procedure? Did the serum extraction weaken my wolf somehow?
My mind races with the possibilities, but in the end, it doesn’t matter. This is my fight to win, and weakened or not, Iwillwin this.
For Miley. Forus.
Because it’s the only chance we’ve got left.
