Taggert raised a brow but didn’t question it. He inhaled deeply, his chest expanding as he absorbed the scent, then nodded to her when he got it.
Greggory’s eyes narrowed in challenge, and Raven wedged herself between the two testosterone-driven beasts, maybe not the best action when both of them bristled.
“Taggert is a tracker. He has your scent now.” Greggory scowled and crossed his arms and she realized it sounded like a threat. Ignoring him, Raven turned toward Taggert. “There is a boy trapped underground in a coffin. His scent almost matches the doctor’s. Can you weed out Greggory’s smell and find out what’s left?”
Taggert didn’t move but lifted his eyes over her head. Raven turned in time to see Greggory nod. “I’ll keep her safe while you’re out hunting, but I’ve been all over the grounds and came up empty, so I’m not sure what you’ll find.”
Both eyed each other for a moment longer, then Taggert scanned her face as if memorizing it. “If he’s out there, I’ll find him.”
He wasn’t bragging, just spoke the truth.
She worried about sending him out alone, but wondered if it might be better for him to stay away from the circus and her for a while to give him time to recover. He couldn’t keep going at the same pace without cracking. So why did nausea twist through her at the thought of him leaving?
Taggert glanced into the woods, his mind already eliminating possible trails. “Is there anything else to narrow the direction down?”
Raven closed her eyes, and shivered to find herself immediately confined back in a coffin, her body slowly dehydrating in the heat. It was all she could do not to flick off the bugs on her arms even though she knew they were all a part of her imagination. “He’s buried at a base of a tree.”
Greggory snorted in disgust. “If you’ve noticed, we’re surrounded by forest.”
Raven ignored him. “The trees we want are infected with some type of ghastly smelling bugs.”
It sounded a lot easier said than done.
Taggert still had to be close enough to the source of the smell to find the kid. With thousands of acres to cover, it could take more time than they had.
Greggory lifted his face in the air and inhaled as if he could trace the scent himself. She expected him to charge off, but the muscles of his jaw hardened, and he turned away.
To send Taggert away would increase the danger for all of them, but she had to take the gamble. She couldn’t leave the kid to suffer alone, not when she could help. Taggert had the ability to find his prey given enough time. “You’ll find him, but take care not to get caught. He doesn’t have much time left, so you must hurry.”
As if her words were an order, Taggert brushed a hand across her cheek, stealing the touch, before dashing between the tents and disappearing. The instant Taggert vanished from her sight, loneliness wormed its way inside her. It made no sense. She’d been alone most of her life, so why did being alone now feel so wrong and desolate? With her emotion shaky, she wanted to crack open her senses and touch the cords tying her to her pack. The temptation surged so strongly, she nearly caved.
The dragon gave a little hum of comfort, reassuring her that she wasn’t alone even if it felt otherwise.
Greggory stared after Taggert, clearly torn, a bemused expression etched on his face.
“You really think he can find him.” It wasn’t a question.
She searched for any sign of happiness or hope, but his face gave nothing away.
Instead, he exuded menace like a dark fog that would consume anything that got too close. If anything happened to that kid, she had no doubt this man would bring down the whole circus and anyone who stood in his way, including her pack.
“Come, we don’t want to miss the match.” With one last look that betrayed nothing but impatience, he marched her into the tent.
Chapter Fourteen
The cheerfulness of the day had vanished, morphed into something dark and twisted. Raven reluctantly stepped over the threshold of the tent and stepped into a whole new world. They’d converted the Big Top. The bleachers had been shoved to the side to make room for the audience and the gigantic ring that dominated the center. The darkness of the tent made everything seem bigger and more intimidating and infinitely creepier when her eyes couldn’t pierce the wall of shadows and reveal what lurked beyond.
A small roar of voices rose and fell as people waited for the fight to begin. Raven noted all the exits, the placements of the guards, and frowned when she discovered a number of them were missing.
All she could do was pray that Taggert managed to sneak by them without getting caught.
The humans stood huddled together in small clumps under the dimmed lights. The shifters prowled around the edges of the room, almost appearing to herd them together for easier slaughter. She couldn’t help wonder if it had been done on purpose or by habit. Most of the humans appeared oblivious. A few of them moved restlessly, searching for the threat, but were never quite able to pinpoint what troubled them.
Harsh light filled the center of the ring, and the majority of the audience gathered around it.
To her surprise, the audience contained an equal number of men and women. She expected the violence of a fight to draw the men, a few of them carrying an air of superiority, a dark relish to see the beasts beaten to a pulp. But a number of the women seemed to be just as bloodthirsty.
Anticipation tinged the air, along with the smidge of danger of the forbidden.
Greggory pushed his way forward. While a few people grumbled, they quickly scrambled out of the way after a well-placed snarl and shove. Raven locked herself down hard and followed in his wake, envious of his ability to part the crowd. Durant had that ability, but much to her disappointment, she’d never inherited that gift. The only way a person parted for her was if she shocked them to get their ass moving.
Not too long ago, one touch from her could kill. She curled her very naked fingers into fists, wishing for the additional security of her gloves.
The scuzzy feeling of some of the looks she received made her want a shower. Some looked away when she met their bold stares, while others appeared intrigued by the challenge. Raven became distracted when the crowd parted, and she stopped dead.
Jackson boldly stood in the center of the ring wearing only a pair of skimpy shorts that had less material than some underwear, leaving nothing to the imagination. His bored, impenetrable expression was all business.
Possessiveness sliced through her as he stood on display for anyone to ogle.
What disturbed her more was that she could see Jackson, but couldn’t feel him through their connection. She blamed herself. She must have severed it when she shut down while walking through the crowd.
She tried to re-establish the link but ran into a brick wall each time.
She wanted to force the matter but couldn’t risk distracting Jackson before the upcoming fight.
Only then did she realize the truth.
He shut her out deliberately.
Hurt ricocheted in her with the force of a bullet, tearing her insides apart. It explained why she felt so alone and set adrift.
The dragon wrapped around her in comfort, the contact grounding her against doing something stupid … like going over there and physically reestablishing the connection.
She noted the instant Jackson spotted her in the crowd. He maintained his calm, remained in the killing zone as if completely unfazed until she noticed the slight tightening around his eyes and the subtle tensing of his body.
Goliath, the gorilla she’d met earlier, stepped between them and danced around the ring, throwing his monstrously long arms up in the air and roaring in challenge as he worked the crowd into a frenzy.
Jackson’s reaction was the opposite. He remained still, hands loose, shoulders relaxed, studying his opponent. While Goliath wore shorts and a tank top, it was Jackson who captured her attention.
His body glistened in the light, and she suspected that he’d oiled himself up on
purpose. Not to draw attention to the mouth-watering liquid way his muscles moved, but to make holding him more difficult.
Sleek and powerful, Jackson was the perfect compact fighting machine, while Goliath, with his exaggerated features and a body so hairy it could be mistaken for fur, had massive brute force on his side. She could all but see evolution in motion between the two, a primitive Cro-Magnon pitted against the smaller, more refined beast without all the flaws.
Then she noticed the thin leather strap around Jackson’s throat.
A damned collar.
Horror pierced her composure that shifters would demean one of their own in such a way. Outrage swept over her, heating her blood until all she wanted to do was reach out and rip it off his throat.
She must have moved to put thoughts into action when Greggory stepped into her path. When her eyes met his, what he saw must have spooked him. He lifted his hands in surrender and offered his throat in submission.
His actions gave her pause. He was such a strong beast, he should be furious at being made back down and surrender, but she detected no anger or animosity. Only when he saw that he had her attention did he speak. “They’re forbidden to use teeth or claws during the fight. Those collars prevent them from ripping each other’s throats out.”
Raven listened closely to his words, but they tasted wrong.
Not the complete truth.
Ignoring Jackson this time, she studied the ring. Everything looked normal, the same as it had when she’d been in there earlier.
All but the eight tiny boxes set up at the base of the circle. They were connected to a power supply, creating a type of invisible fencing. Trapping Jackson inside as some gladiator of old. She swallowed hard. Only one gladiator ever left the coliseum alive. “Then why set up sensors around the ring?”
Greggory’s mouth tightened at her accusation. “It’s to keep the crowd safe. As long as they don’t cross the line, they remain unaffected.”
“Place your bets here!”
Raven whirled at the shouts to see a large sign posting the odds.
Seven-to-one against Jackson.
The crowd yelled out their bets, money exchanged hands, and her palms tingled with the need to do something, the heat scorching her fingers. The dragon woke at the crush of people, and she struggled for balance as her wild emotions became tangled together.
A low growl vibrated at her back, and she tipped her head to the side to see Greggory standing guard and protecting her. She’d expected him to abandon her and sneak out to follow Taggert. The kid was obviously important to him.
Then his hard eyes landed on her. “Whatever you’re doing, you need to pull it back.”
Raven stiffened, rubbing her hands against her thighs as claws threatened to burst from her fingertips. “I don’t know what you mean.”
Greggory’s eyes lightened and he studied her, working out all her secrets as if she were a puzzle.
She shifted under his intent stare, leery of what he saw when he looked at her.
Curiosity never turned out well for her.
“You can’t protect your man this way. Just wait. Watch. Anything you do will just put Jackson at more risk. He’d feel the need to protect you.”
The soothing tone of his voice was almost hypnotic, and the raging emotions eased back a fraction, enough for her to know that he was right. She hated him for it, wanting to protect and spare Jackson despite knowing it was impossible. She turned away from his prying eyes to see a few of the circus women enter and scatter through the crowd.
Three women were dressed up … or undressed, their skimpy outfits making their intent clear. She recognized the women as the dancers by the seductive, boneless way they moved. Each quickly zeroed in on a man and hung on their arms like treasured wives. One woman stood apart from them. She was dressed up, her makeup subtler to draw a different clientele. Raven stiffened at what they were being forced to endure. Her gums ached as she struggled not to allow her fangs to descend. “They—”
“—are here voluntarily. They make more money here than on the streets. What better protection can you ask for than a whole pack of shifters?”
They fell into an uneasy truce, and she was surprised to find comfort in his nearness. He bristled anytime anyone brushed too close, guarding her without being too overt. He glanced at the door, only once, but rage was alive in his eyes.
“You don’t need to babysit me. Go. I would do the same if one of mine was out there.”
A muscle in his jaw twitched. “My presence here is mandatory. If you’re wrong and your man comes up with nothing, then the kid dies. That’s not an option.”
“Mandatory?” She spoke through clenched teeth as ideas ran rampant in her head. Doctors were redundant as shifters could take a lot of punishment. They had the strength to literally rip each other apart even without using teeth or claws. If they went down, they were dead and beyond help.
She thought the fight was a show for the crowd. She was beginning to suspect she was wrong. She gritted her teeth from saying anything.
Animals often fought to show dominance or gain status in a pack.
It was brutal and vicious, often ending up with both combatants beaten near to death, supposedly to teach them a lesson.
Raven twisted until her gaze landed on Clancy, and her spirit shuddered at his smug attitude. He wanted her men and would do whatever it took to keep them, even break the bonds between them in order to claim them for his own.
Chapter Fifteen
A bell dinged to start the match, the sound like a death toll echoing in her head, and Raven swallowed past her dry throat.
Goliath charged, his bulk moving incredibly fast, the earth rumbling at his approach.
Jackson narrowed his eyes and stood his ground, giving nothing away as the man bore down on him like a speeding truck.
Her whole body tightened, braced for impact when Jackson dove out of the way at the last second. But instead of getting to safety, he kicked out and smashed his foot into Goliath’s knee.
The big gorilla bellowed in surprise, lost his balance and began to tip like a felled tree.
The crowd gasped, the cheers dying down as the interest in the fight picked up. Probably the first real competition Goliath had ever had in the ring.
Jackson whirled and brought the side of his fist down on the back of Goliath’s skull.
The man toppled, the ground shaking under the massive thump.
Raven breathed a sigh of relief at the quick win, unable to tear her eyes away from the fascinating way Jackson’s muscles rippled with every movement. Her fingertips tingled to touch, wanting to run her hands possessively over him.
The perfect fighting machine.
The gorilla pushed himself to his feet and gave a massive roar, his incisors lengthening two inches. Her skin iced over as the crowd cheered, and the circus folks stopped casing the audience to watch the fight.
Jackson darted in, landing two quick blows before dashing out of range.
Goliath swung those tree trunks he called arms, and her breath caught.
One hit.
With one hit, he could put Jackson out of commission permanently.
Jackson dodged the first swing, then spun away from the second aimed to cave in his chest. He dropped to the ground, kicked out, his foot a blur slicing out to thump into Goliath’s ribs and unprotected side.
Even over the roar of the crowd, she heard bones snap.
Jackson rolled to put distance between them, but Goliath lunged forward and grabbed his leg. He spun, picking Jackson off the ground and slammed him face-first into the pole at the perimeter of the ring.
The brutal impact shot a jagged foot-long crack into the wooden pole.
Bile rose in the back of her throat, muscles tensed to dash into the ring, expecting Jackson to collapse. Instead, he grabbed the pole and wrenched himself out of the gorilla’s grip. He hit the ring with a thud that kicked up a plume of dust before he slowly rose to his feet.
> Her pulse raced, and her body shook as too much adrenaline flooded her system. Watching the battle was much more devastating than being forced to fight for her life.
She couldn’t stand being pretending to be human and helpless.
Blood ran down Jackson’s face, his brow and jaw already swelling from the impact.
His usual sharpness appeared lacking, and he stumbled for a nanosecond. Her heart withered and cracked when he didn’t seem to snap out of it. “Something’s wrong.”
Greggory grunted. “Concussion. He’ll need to push through it fast or he’ll only grow weaker.”
Raven wasn’t sure how much more she could watch, how much longer she could contain the simmering rage before the last thread of her control snapped.
Goliath came at him like a freight train, raining blows down on Jackson, his swings wild, but his aim true. Jackson dodged most of them, blocked a couple more, but not all of them.
A single blow grazed his ribs.
Even at the distance, she heard his lung wheeze as his breath rushed out, a bruise already forming.
Raven wrapped her arm around her waist, her own body aching with phantom pain. She wanted to charge in to help, but Greggory was right … any move on her part would only be a distraction. “He won’t be able to keep it up forever. He needs to go on the offensive.”
When a fist flew past his head, Jackson grabbed Goliath’s wrists and yanked, throwing the man off balance. Jackson took advantage of the weakness and hammered Goliath repeatedly in the ribs, one strike after another.
The dragon enjoyed watching the vicious battle, reveling in Jackson’s fighting prowess, and Raven forced herself to watch closer, grudgingly admitting that Jackson was good.
More than good.
As much as she hated watching, she trusted him to know what he was doing.
She was a wimp, more than willing to take a beating rather than watch him being thrashed.
Electric series- Raven Investigations BoxSet Page 14
