by Black, C. E.
“The big one that usually stays at my back, I have been watching him. He always carries his gun on his back. I think I will start with him. His cocky ass attitude will be our saving grace.”
The steel door opened, interrupting our planning. I automatically sniffed the air, testing for unknown scents. Alexander’s cologne saturated scent hit me immediately, but under that a few others, my father, Paul and...I breathed deep, unable to believe the sweet smell beginning to engulf the room.
I had closed my eyes to savor the heavenly aroma when realization hit me like a two-by-four. My eyes popped open wide at the same time Alex growled. My gaze ignored everyone in the room except for her.
At first, I thought my eyes were deceiving me. Sam stood beside Paul, looking amazingly beautiful. My gaze ran over her like a hungry man. She wore loose blue jeans and a rumpled green tee shirt that looked a couple sizes too big. With her long hair pulled up into a messy ponytail, she looked like she just woke up and she had never looked more gorgeous.
When my gaze landed on her face, though, I felt my heart skip a beat. Her eyes were red rimmed and tears streaked her pale skin. I could only imagine what she had been going through. However, strangely, the expression in her eyes looked almost...happy.
The awe of finally seeing her again began to ebb and anger coursed through my veins. They had taken her and brought her to this hellhole. That was unacceptable. A growl slipped my lips as my eyes flashed down to Paul’s grip on Sam’s arm.
“Uh uh, save it for the trench,” Alexander said, smiling brightly.
I did not even look at him as he spoke. My stare was all for Sam. I wanted to grab her and run. I wanted to rip this cage apart and take them all down, kill every one of them so I could take her to safety.
“Jordan? Alex? Oh, God, you’re alive.” Sam’s voice hiccupped from her sobs.
She must have thought since we had not been home in so long that we had not survived. Bear should have let her know that was not the case. Had the whole team abandoned us?
“Sorry,” Alexander said, not sounding apologetic in the least. “Paul let everyone know you were never coming back. I thought it was best under the circumstances. In fact, after tonight, you probably won’t survive anyway.”
Sam whimpered, gaining his attention. “I heard you two were sharing this woman and thought she might do nicely at getting you both riled up. We want a good show after all.”
He nodded at Paul giving him some sort of signal. Paul pulled Sam harshly against him causing both Alex and I to snarl our displeasure. Sam tried to wiggle out of his tight grip, but it was no use. He was much too strong.
I saw red as Paul’s hand began to slide over Sam’s ass and up her back. I watched helplessly as he groped the woman that I loved. No amount of growls or warning could stop what was happening.
“Do not touch her!” Alex shouted.
When Paul’s palm connected with her breast, I almost lost it. I just about charged the electrified metal surrounding me. I knew that would not help matters so instead I met Paul’s stare.
I let him know with my eyes that he was a dead man. He was a walking dead man, because as soon as I got out of there, and I would, I was going to kill him. I was going to rip him apart, piece-by-piece.
I heard Sam gasp and knew he was hurting her, but I kept my eyes on him. My anger and horror over what he was doing to my woman was turning into confusion the more I looked at his dark features. His face was blank as usual. He masked his emotions better than I ever could, but there was something in the way his eyes stared at me. It was as if he was trying not to think about what he was doing.
Alexander’s voice caught my attention and I reluctantly turned to look at him. “Well, well, what do we have here?”
I followed his gaze to Sam and at first, I didn’t know what he was talking about. Then my eyes lit on the breast Paul had groped. Her shirt was wet, but I did not know what that meant. Was she hurt?
“How old is your child?” Alexander asked.
I looked over Sam again and noticed for the first that her rounded belly was missing. She had given birth and we had missed it. All I could think about was whether my little girl was okay. Where was she now? Who had her?
The questions race through my mind, but halted when Lee walked up to Sam and slapped her across the face. Only Paul’s grip kept her from stumbling back.
“I swear, if you lay another hand on her...” I said through clenched teeth.
“You’ll what?” My father sneered. “You can’t do anything from your cage.”
“Now, answer me,” Alexander said calmly. “How old is your child?”
“One week old,” Sam’s voice was soft, yet her chin lifted defiantly as she kept her gaze on Alex and me. I smiled at her bravery.
“And who is the father?”
When she refused to answer again, Lee backhanded her. Sam’s head whipped to the side and I growled. It felt so redundant to continue to hiss, growl and threaten, but it was all I could do.
My claws bit into my palms as my fist clenched tighter. My body had already begun to change. The fury heating my blood had triggered the onset of shifting.
Tears streamed down Sam’s face as she answered Alexander. “Jordan and Alex are the baby’s fathers.”
“Did you hear that Lee? We have a grandbaby,” Alexander said excitedly. “What is it, a boy or a girl?”
“A girl,” Sam whispered faintly, her head tilted forward as her shoulders slumped.
“Hmm,”
Alexander looked as if he was in thought. I absolutely did not want know what was in his sick mind, but I was sure he was going tell us anyway.
“A girl could be very useful. We are trying to get the bloodlines back into proper shape and another female would be quite helpful. With her weak blood, it will take generations to perfect, but once a female reaches puberty at what, twelve? They should be ready to breed.
That was it, I couldn’t take anymore. My head was ready to explode with the need to get out of that God forsaken cage. My body trembled with rage and my vision blurred red. I was ready to charge when the lights flickered.
I turned towards a moaning Alex. He was jerking and twisting violently against the electric fencing. He obviously had made the same decision I had. He had only made it quicker.
Alex slumped to the ground with a groan as his body continued to jump with aftershocks. Sam cried out and I turned to see her try to rush forward. Paul pulled her back and held her tightly as she twisted and turned in his arms.
“Tsk, tsk,” Alexander clucked his tongue. He looked down at Alex with clear disgust. “Why couldn’t you be more like your brother?”
Brother? Alex didn’t have a brother. I looked over at Alex as he sat up stiffly. His face registered his own confusion.
“Paul has been a model son. He listens to his father and does what he is told.”
Was he saying what I thought he was saying? Was Paul Alexander’s son too?
I looked at Paul and was surprised to see anger had lit his eyes. He was glaring at Alexander with pure hatred. As soon as he noticed me watching him, Paul pulled his emotionless mask back on, but I had seen enough. Paul was not the model son Alexander had thought.
“Of course his obedience could have come from his heritage. He is a full blood after all. I don’t know what I was thinking with your mother.” Alexander said to Alex, shaking his head.
“A filthy human, like the one you’ve been screwing. I will give you a little advice son. Just because you knocked her up, does not mean you need to stick around. I learned the hard way. I should have left you and your mother when I had the chance.”
“I wish you had,” Alex sneered. “We would have been better off and I am sure my mother would still be alive.”
Alexander raised an eyebrow. “So you have heard? Yes, I killed your mother. I had to do right by Paul’s mother, Angeline. She had been waiting on the sidelines for far too long and it just was not right. She did have my son, after all.�
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“Why did you not just divorce mom? You didn’t have to kill her!”
“Of course I did.” Alexander looked clearly amused. “Why go through with such a hassle when, really, killing Luanne was an act of kindness. She was a drunk and I could tell she was ready to leave this world.”
“She was a drunk, because of you! And you had no right to make that decision for her!” Alex shouted.
Alexander ignored him and turned to Lee. “It’s a shame when we make mistakes like that. I think we both learned our lesson, hmm Lee?”
My father smiled, showing off his yellowing teeth. “We rectified the problem, though.”
My stomach dropped at his words. “What are you talking about?” I growled.
His smile only brightened. “Your mother got her just desserts one too many times, I would say. I can’t help it if her head hit the kitchen counter on her way down to the floor where she belonged.”
Lee shrugged as if beating his wife to death was no big deal. At that moment, the fight went out of me. I had no idea the extent of those men’s twisted minds. To think of what they could do, with no remorse, I was sickened and scared.
“Paul, go back and get the baby,” Alexander ordered.
Paul let go of Sam and turned on his heels, leaving the room without a second glance.
“No!” Sam cried out.
Lee stepped up behind her and placed his arm around her middle. Leaning in, he pretended to whisper in her ear, but his voice carried across the room purposely. His eyes locked with mine.
“We are going to have a good time, doll.” Sam shivered and tried to pull away, but his arm squeezed her tightly against him. “You know what they say, like father, like son. I promise, you will have no complaints and if you’re good, I might share you. You’d like that, wouldn’t you? A whore like you likes to be shared.”
I swallowed hard as Lee licked Sam’s ear causing her to whimper in fear. She was trying to be so strong, but her fright was visible in her wide eyes. Her sweet scent was turning bitter with dread.
“Not yet Lee,” Alexander scowled. “We have a fight to attend first.”
Lee groaned. “Oh yes, I had almost forgotten. Well, my little slut, you get to watch your men die and then we get to play.”
Alex and I watched helplessly as he dragged Sam out the room. The guards came in ready to take us to the trench. Now that they had Sam, there was no way we could go through with the plan. We had to keep her safe.
My whole body was trembling and tears were beginning to leak from my eyes. Alexander did exactly what he set out to do. He wanted us furious enough to fight dirty, but so broken we would inevitably lose.
~ 35 ~
Alex
Jordan and I stood side by side as jaguars, in the center of the arena once again. It felt like we had been there one too many times and I was sick of it. I was sick of the dirt floors and electric fences. I was tired of the damn crowd and I was ready to go home with Sam and see my baby girl.
My gaze found hers just outside the enclosure. She stood between Alexander and Lee as they collected money. I wanted to tell her to run, but heavily armed shifters guarding the exits would prevent any attempt at escape.
Funny how you usually wanted the woman you loved to meet your parents, yet in our case, we would have much preferred if she had never laid eyes on our fathers.
My head was still reeling from all the information I had received. Sam had our baby girl, Paul was my brother and my father killed my mother. Let’s not forget, Jordan’s father beat his mother to death. What a charming family reunion, I thought sarcastically.
“Jordan,” I called my friend’s name with our mental connection and he turned towards me. “I don’t care what we have to do, but we are getting Sam out of here tonight.”
“Agreed and I have a plan.”
Jordan loved to make plans. The thought made me want to smile.
“We beat this mother fucker we’re about to go against and then we do what we were planning earlier. Only this time, I’ll handle the guards while you get Sam. Easy.”
“You know if it was so easy, why haven’t we done it yet? We could have been out of here by now.”
Jordan narrowed his eyes on me. I knew his ‘easy’ comment was only to lighten the mood. There was nothing easy about what we had planned. It was downright dangerous, but we had to try, for Sam’s sake.
“We have no choice now,” he said and turned away.
He was right, there was only one choice and that was Sam. She could not stay here one minute longer than necessary.
I looked around the cheering crowd and wondered what in the hell they were thinking. I could understand enjoying a good fight now and then, but these were not normal brawls. I saw nothing right about drugging someone or forcing him or her to kill. Did the crowd not know what was really going on or did they all just turn a blind eye?
“Have you ever wondered why they haven’t tried to drug us?” I asked Jordan.
“I have, a time or two, but I have no clue as to why not. Maybe the point of these fights is to match a drugged shifter with a sober one.”
“Ladies and gentlemen!” Alexander’s voice boomed through the microphone. “Tonight we have a treat! In the past you have witness your own kind, jaguar against jaguar, but tonight will change everything.”
The crowd was quiet as they listen to him speak. Did they not hear the bullshit coming from his mouth? His voice was annoying and I was ready to just get the fight over with.
“We are not the only community to enjoy such sporting events. I have found that shifters of all races like to come together in battles for supremacy and tonight we will see which cat is dominant!”
The crowd cheered until Alexander raised his hand for silence again. “Please welcome, the undefeated, Tye!”
The audience went wild, screaming Tye’s name as they jumped up and down. My gaze was riveted on the entrance to the trench. The door of the fence opened and in stepped our opponent.
I sucked in a breath at the sheer size of him. At about two hundred inches long and over six hundred pounds, he was one of the largest tigers I had ever seen. I had only met one his size before.
He stalked forward, his massive muscles rolled with each step, causing his orange and black striped fur to ripple down his body. His eyes searched the arena then stopped on Jordan and me. The gate closed behind him with a resounding clash of finality.
“Shit!”
I could not agree more with Jordan’s assessment of the situation. We separated and began to circle around our opponent. It may be two against one, but the odds were not in our favor. His size alone caused alarm and adding the drug could make things worse. Yet, as I looked him over, I could not find any visible symptoms of cocaine use.
“He’s not drugged,” I said to Jordan.
“I was just noticing that and I think we are in deep shit.”
“How’s that? At least he doesn’t have super strength.”
“That is a plus, but being sober also means he’s going to be a lot smarter and tactical.”
I sighed, yes, that was definitely not a good thing.
“So, boys, figured out how to kick my ass yet?”
Jordan I both froze at hearing the voice inside our heads and just stared at the tiger. It only took a second or two before Jordan was chuckling.
“Not yet, sir.”
Damn, he must have been using the scent eraser. I had not recognized his scent when he first approached.
“Teij, what are you doing here?” Both Jordan and I spoke at the same time.
Teij laughed as he began circling us. “Keep moving while we talk. I don’t want to cause suspicion.”
Jordan leaped first causing the crowd to scream louder. Teij of course dodged him only to swipe his paw at Jordan’s shoulder. Jordan rolled away and I lunged forward.
I landed on Teij’s back and held on, but was careful not to dig my claws into him too far. He reared back and twisted, sending me flying acros
s the arena. I landed on my paws and skidded to a halt before stalking towards him again.
“I’m not sure how fair this is, two against one.”
“Oh shut it, you big pussy!” I said as I twisted around just in time to miss a kick to the head.
Teij chuckled. “I’ll show you who’s a pussy!”
He charged the few feet between us. We both reared up at the same time and locked arms.
We were actually having a great time. It reminded me of the fight training the team did regularly. It was second nature and did not require much effort to continue wrestling as we talked.
“Alright Teij, so where have you been?” Jordan asked.
“When you both were captured, we sent out a team and immediately discovered what was going on. Paul got us most of the information and has been helping us out since.”
“No, Teij. You can’t trust that guy...” I began.
“I know everything he has done, Alex, he admitted it without force. I know you don’t trust him, but I do. If it wasn’t for Paul, I wouldn’t be here right now helping you guys.”
“How did you come to be here?” Jordan asked as he ducked a blow while swiping his own paw and catching Teij in the face.
“Damn, boy! That fucking hurt!”
Jordan only chuckled as he lunged again.
“So as I was saying, Paul helped a lot to get me in here. I had to fight quite a few of these matches before I was finally led here.”
“You’ve been fighting?” I asked, surprised.
“It was the only way to not only get to you, but to also really know what was going on. There are quite a few of these fighting rings across the southeast, but Alexander is the only one using the drug. Thankfully, word hasn’t spread yet about the side effects of cocaine on shifters.”
“So what’s the plan? They’re going to wonder why there’s no blood soon,” Jordan said.
As Teij and Jordan spoke, I looked out at the crowd and caught Sam’s eye. She was watching the fight intently and I could see the worry written all over her face. We locked gazes for a moment and everything began to fall away until it was only the two of us.
