Page 74 of Bait Wolf
Aside from him and Asha, nothing else mattered. Not these fights, not winning, not money.
He grinned and pointed to the cage as though to say,Pay attention!and I laughed out loud.
There was no bait wolf used this time. I’d insisted on it and was glad to see that my request had been met.
Instead, our gates opened and we both entered.
I could see the fire in my opponent’s eyes, the ferocity and desire to win and that was when it hit me that I didn’t feel that way anymore.
Fighting couldn’t be my outlet anymore because, well, I didn’tneedone.
He lunged at me, tackling me to the ground in human form and landed atop me, hitting me repeatedly across the face.
And yeah, that hurt, so I made myself move and act. My body, primed to what I had done for years, acted quickly.
I struggled to flip him, but once he was on his back under me, I returned his strikes as hard as I could.
He thrashed under me. For a moment, I thought the ref would end this, but then, suddenly, he flipped onto his back and bucked me off.
I landed with a thud that winded me but rolled out of the way before he could land on me.
Suddenly, we were on each other, clawing and biting, fur flying.
Neither of us stopped.
Suddenly, Icouldn’t, because I could still see Ember out of my peripheral, watching with his hands over his eyes. He didn’t want to see me get hurt and I couldn’t let him.
So I kept fighting, relentlessly using my size and determination to crowd my opponent until he was in a corner, still fighting back weakly as the crowd roared around us, chanting my name—Redwood, Redwood, Redwood—until finally, he fell limp.
The moment he did, the ref moved to pull me off, but I was already stepping back, shifting to my human form and pumping a fist in the air.
I turned in a circle, arms out, soaking in the raving applause.
I appreciated it. The support I’d received from the people of Lunar City was unmatched. And I would never forget how good it felt in this moment, having won for the last time in front of them all. In front ofEmber.
When I opened my eyes, he was watching me, grinning happily. Our eyes met and I couldn’t look away until the commentator shoved a microphone in my face and a camera blocked my view.
“Congratulations, Coal! How are you feeling?” he asked enthusiastically.
“Great!” I said into the offered mic. “But I couldn’t have done it, and I wouldn’t even be here, without the help of my team and my friends. Especially Everest, Aurora, Aspen, and my buddy Seymour, who is currently in the hospital.”
“And your mate?” the commentator asked, giving me a cheeky smile.
I shrugged as the crowd laughed and jeered. Of course, they’d all seen our meeting, I couldn’t play it cool now. Nor did I want to.
“I would definitely be in a dark place right now without Ember,” I said, pushing the camera aside so that I could see him again.
He had a camera pointed at his face too and was bright red, but his gaze never left mine.
“Thank you for being here,” I told him.
He swallowed and nodded, mouthing,I love you.
I chuckled and shook my head.
“Love you too,” I said and the crowdaw’d.
“Who would you like to fight next?” the announcer asked.
