Page 7 of Knot Quite Ready

They dance around each other and take vicious jabs with as much force as possible. A tooth flies out, causing a woman near it to shriek and recoil in disgust. A man next to her reaches out to hold her and rub her back in comfort.

Tristan is suddenly back at my side, his presence announced by the disgusted scoff at the actions of the shrieking woman. His nose twitches as he shakes his head. “I couldn’t be with someone so sensitive to blood and gore. It goes against my nature.”

I hum in agreement but don’t respond, concentrating on the two fighters. They’re pretty evenly matched and take turns getting the upper hand for the next few minutes until the buzzer sounds and the cage lifts, letting the two battle-weary men emerge. They give each other a huge grin, shake hands, and walk away with their arm slug around each other’s shoulders. Friendly rivalry it is. Understandable. Shifters are built differently; emotions flare high, but with quick healing abilities and level heads, we calm down as fast as those tempers flare.

“I got you in for the next fight with a little sweet talking, so let’s make our way to the front of the cage. They should be announcing you in….” His voice trails off as the mic cuts back on, and we turn our attention to the sound.

“That one was a tie, ladies and gents. So stay tuned for their round two and the deciding match,” the same, deep sensuous voice comes out of the well-placed speakers placed in various locations of the club, followed by a low thrum of music.“ Coming up, we have a new fighter tonight, but while he makes his way up to the cage, just a quick overview. The cage will dampen powers just enough to ensure there is no cat-tastrophe if some of your furry little asses decide to shift. ”

There is a collective groan at the pun.

“What? Can’t have you leaving here bear-ly surviving,” the voice chuckles.

Tristan huffs a laugh, “She’s funny.”

I nod with a small smile, “and well-loved, or feared if she can say jokes like that to a bunch of shifters.”

Shifters are notoriously touchy about insults to their nature, so I am interested to know who the announcer is if only to keep her far the fuck away from Tristan’s ass. I can’t imagine having two versions of him.

He spins on his heel and moves toward the ring with me on his heels. I tug off my shirt as the voice over the speaker changes to someone more lively, “Storm had to pop out, so I’ll be taking over for a few. Right now, we have …Pierce and Sir Snarls-a-Lot.” She chokes on a laugh, and I glare at Tristan, who shrugs a sly grin on his face.

“Just giving the people what they want, Alpha. Comedy with their daily dose of blood,” he says with a quick salute, snagging my shirt as he moves back to watch with the rest of the crowd. Fucking asshole.

I turn my attention back to the ring as the announcer starts running down a list of rules that fade into the background; I understand the basics. Don’t kill and make friends after. Fine.

As I step into the ring, I take a deep breath as I face my opponent, Pierce: Leopard and an Alpha. I observe him with new respect, but as the cage starts to come down and I immediately feel the dampening effect of my powers, Pierce briefly fades to the background as I test my connection to Monti. There, but just barely. It is…uncomfortable, to say the least.

“First time in the cage can be a mind-fuck. My Leopard doesn’t like it either,” Pierce says, his arms crossed against his heavily tattooed and scarred chest.

“Yeah, I can see why,” I nod as I meet his gaze, a striking golden hue that is so like his leopard counterpart; even if I hadn’t just scented him, it would be difficult for anyone to mistake him for anything other than a leopard. Just slightly shorter than my 6’3, he cut an impressive figure, and I wonder how my eyes looked him over when we first walked into the club. As it is, with the way his muscled rippled beneath his skin and his eyes followed every movement slight movement, it was clear that he would be precisely what I needed to satisfy my blood lust.

"You're a wolf, huh?" Pierce smirked. "Didn't think there were any wolves in Cabria Falls, aside from the owner…of course.”

I raise an eyebrow, intrigued by the mention of another wolf in town, even more so by the casual way he said it as if he knew that I wasn’t aware of the owners’ status. “Really? Well, it looks like Cabria Falls just got more interesting," I reply dryly, although I admit my curiosity is certainly piqued. A lone wolf allowedwithina mixed shifter community? Very interesting.

Pierce grins, reaching his arms up to tie his hair away from his face. “I think you’re right about that. I’m interested in seeing how quickly I can take down an Alpha Wolf."

The bell dings as I huff a laugh at the teasing note in his voice, laced with a hint of excitement as he moves around the ring. Following his movement, I let my arms fall to my sides and let my need to destroy come to the forefront.

In seconds, our bodies move towards each other, a fluid dance of power and agility. My shoulders shift as I throw a powerful punch at Pierce, who twists his torso to dodge it effortlessly before retaliating with a quick jab to my ribs. I manage to lean back just in time, avoiding the blow.

Moving back from each other, I see a note of respect in his eyes that I have to mirror.

“C’mon Casimir, stop playing with your damn food. I just made a bet, and I swear if you cost me more than your worth, I will tie you up, steal your blood, and feed your blood to a vampire clan. I hear Kibbles and Alpha-Bits are in high demand for the Coven of Capillary Connoisseurs!” Tristan shouts from outside the cage, and I roll my eyes.

“Your second in command?” Pierce laughs.

I nod, “ how can you tell?” I respond with a dry voice.

“Don’t listen to him, Casimir, lose so that I can make my money back. Pierce, get your whisker-licious ass back in there and stop having tea with your victim!” A voice shouts from next to Tristan.

Pierce winces and points toward the imposing figure, adorned in tattoos and shirtless, standing next to Tristan, waving his fists. “That’s Ramiro, my second-in-command….”

Another voice cuts him off, this time feminine but no less bloodthirsty, that slices through the din of the crowd, “Hey, Pierce! Did you come to fight, or should I grab you two furry-fuck faces, some beauty masks, and cheap wine while you chat about the fucking weather? Get to the heart-ripping already! Or let me in there!"

Pierce rolls his eyes with a heavy sigh, “And that’s my grandmother, Imelda.”

I can't help but laugh as I spot the petite older woman. I can feel her commanding presence and a powerful aura from here. Her long, silver hair is styled elegantly on top of her head, giving her a regal appearance that is in total contrast to the savage words spewing from her mouth. She shows off her fangs with a wild, gleeful laugh as she and Ramiro playfully shove each other around.

---