Chapter Fifteen
The entire jamboree crowded inside the gymnasium owned by one of their members where the ring had been set up. The air was filled with a macabre excitement as the stands filled with shifters. Several cats she hadn’t known very well had approached her to speak. Some to wish Gibson well, some just to say hello and introduce themselves to her.
It would have seemed odd to an outsider, but it was uplifting to be so welcomed, especially at this event. The crowd wanted to see Alberto get his punishment for attempting to harm their own. And Gibson had been right to do it this way, though she’d wait to tell him until after it was all over.
Mia looked for her parents and found them not too far away. She made her way through the crowd to them where her mother hugged her tight.
“Will you sit with us?” Then Ellen’s eyes landed on the mark on Mia’s neck. Marks were serious enough, but marks given to be seen, deliberately placed on the neck, were declarations of intent. Gibson was telling the entire jamboree that she was his. It tingled as she thought about it, and she looked over her shoulder to where he was speaking quite intently with Max.
Her mother sighed. “All right. I can accept that. Does he make you happy? Really?”
“Yes.”
“All right. Grandchildren would be nice, by the way.”
She kissed her mother as her father gave her a hug from the side.
“I can’t sit with you. I’m his second. I’ll be at the edge of the ring.”
Her mother’s brows flew up. “Young lady, you’ll do no such thing.”
“If it was Dad down there, what would you do? If you had the skills to protect him, wouldn’t you use them?”
Her mother huffed and threw her hands up. “Yes, yes of course. Damn it. Mia, you’re going to give me a heart attack. You know that don’t you?”
“I’m safe. I’m not the one in the ring. But if that gutless fool of a cousin of his tries anything, I will take care of it. If he plays by the rules he’ll be fine. But he won’t. Because you can’t turn your back on a gutless man.”
Her father nodded.
“I have to go. I need to be there when they recite the rules. Stay up here. No matter what happens, don’t rush down there. You’re safer up here or out of the building. All right?”
“If you think I’m leaving this building when my baby is in danger, you’re out of your head.” Her father said this seriously and she squeezed his hands.
“I’ll feel better if I know you’ll do it. It won’t happen, but if it does, I can’t be worried about you all at once. Please.”
Her father put an arm around her mother’s shoulders. “We’ll do it.”
She heaved a relieved sigh. “Thank you. Thank you really. I love you both. Thank you for being here.”
She made her way back down the stands, pausing when she caught sight of Grace and Cade.
Grace hugged her. “Just here to give you moral support. We have no doubt Gibson will be victorious. But I know what it feels like to be in your shoes right now.”
She swallowed hard. “Maybe I’m a hopeless fool, but I’m not worried he won’t win. I’m just... I hate this and I hate that it’s his own blood making him do it.”
Grace sighed. “I know that feeling. We’re still on for lunch day after tomorrow, right? I’ll tell you the story then, and you can tell me about that.” She tipped her head to indicate the mark on Mia’s neck.
Mia grinned, blushing. “Well.” She cleared her throat. “Yes to lunch. I want every detail of the challenge you were in with Cade. I’ve heard rumors but the truth is always better. I am to understand he was nearly naked.” She winked and Grace laughed.
“He was! By the way, did you know that if you shoot a shifter in the kneecaps, it’s very hard and very painful to heal? Shattered bone takes a lot of energy to heal. Could take a year or two to fully get back to normal.”
She squeezed Grace’s hand. “No I didn’t know that. Very interesting information. Always good to have that kind. Now keep your eye on that cousin of Gibson’s.”
And his kneecaps, apparently.
Mia hugged Grace again and turned to head back to the ring.
It was Gibson she watched as she approached where he stood with Dario, Max and the referee, an elder of the jamboree. One of the wolves would serve as a spotter as well. Not Jack as he was too closely allied with Gibson. But Dave, who listened with a serious face.
“This is my second.” Gibson held a hand out to her as she approached. The referee looked at her long and hard and then down at the weapon.
“You may not have that in the ring.”
“I have no plans to use it unless the opponent cheats. At which time I will invoke the right to use it to prevent the cheating.”
“No weapons.”
Galen approached. “With all due respect, a second may have a weapon as a means of warning. I can get you the pertinent passages if you’d like, sir.” He held up a sheaf of papers. She had the best brothers-in-law ever.
“If you use it unfairly, do know your champion will be disqualified.”
“Understood, sir.” She averted her eyes, giving him her respect and he let it go.
He went over the rules. First man to hit the ground of the ring for longer than twenty-five seconds would forfeit, and the deal they’d brokered would go into effect. She hated this part. In her opinion, Alberto should go to prison at the very least. But it wasn’t for her to decide.
The referee told them to get into positions and moved to go give the rules to the other challenger.
Gibson took her aside. “I love you. Be careful. Dario will be right next to you. If anything happens, let him take over. He knows what to do.” Gibson smiled when he saw the mark on her neck again. She’d worn a shirt with a wide neck so it would be easily identifiable. “I like that.”
She grinned, tiptoeing up to kiss him. “Me too. I’ve got your back.”
He took her hands. “I know. It’s a miracle to me.”
And then he took his shirt off and moved to stand in his spot. She heard the whispers about the marks. Heard the disappointment of a few females. Tough luck! He was hers and she wasn’t giving him back, sharing him or letting anyone kill him either.
Alberto came out wearing a sneer. Stupid move given his already tenuous situation. The crowd, which had been curious, was repulsed and the hum of conversation went in a negative direction. She rolled her eyes.
Tension in the room made her cat nervous and she focused on Gibson. The scent of sweat and fear only made things worse. Her cat wanted to jump on Alberto’s back, beat him to shreds and grab Gibson and get out of there.
The woman knew better, though it was easier not to kill anyone because she knew she could shoot Alberto when he cheated.
The referee made the call and the challenge opened.
Gibson stepped in and delivered the first blow. So hard it knocked Alberto off his feet and to the floor. Sadly he got up after five seconds, brushing himself off. He circled but Gibson eluded all his attempted strikes, landing several more of his own.
Gibson had so much focus it was impossible not to be impressed. Mia watched him, knew he didn’t miss a single thing about how Alberto moved and attempted to strike.
She shifted her attention back to Alberto. He might have had the blood of leadership in his veins, but he’d grown soft. He was slower than Gibson. Like by a mile. Gibson’s movements were fluid and graceful. A man who spent time training. Alberto was a big cat, but he wasn’t hard.
Alberto shifted and leapt at Gibson, who’d already shifted and slammed Alberto down to the mat, his cat snarling. Alberto’s cat had a long set of scratches down its side where Gibson had caught him. He tried to shift back but it was slow. Gibson was already there and punched him in the face and then the side.
Alberto was outmatched on every single level. He wasn’t faster. He wasn’t harder. He wasn’t stronger or smarter. Mia saw the exact moment when this realization came over Alberto’s face. He’d only landed two blows to Gibson’s dozens. He stumbled but kept his feet. And then he dipped and grabbed something his second had thrown him.
Her weapon was out of the holster, and she’d thumbed the safety off before he’d even straightened.
“I call a cheat!” She projected her voice loudly, knowing both Alberto and the referee had heard.
But Alberto didn’t stop, he made to lunge at Gibson so she shot the ground once at Alberto’s feet.
“I said, I call a cheat. Hold!”
It all seemed to happen in slow motion as Alberto turned with a full-throated roar and lunged toward her, clearing the ring.
She planted her feet and kept her cool, squeezing the trigger once, twice, three times. Alberto hit the ground.
“Don’t kill him!” Dario shouted over the ringing of her ears.
She wanted to so very badly, but she obeyed as the crowd all around them went wild, screaming and shouting.
“She’s broken the law. This challenge is forfeit!” Alberto choked from his place on the ground. Blood oozed from where she’d shattered each kneecap.
“You have attempted to cheat in the full view of the panel and the referee. You were told to cease by the second, who fired a shot into the ground, not at you. You not only refused to stop, but you broke the ring and attacked a second along with the spectators directly behind her. You have broken our laws, Alberto de La Vega. The forfeit is yours.”
Dario hauled Alberto to his feet. “You’ll heal. Consider yourself lucky she didn’t aim for your head. Now you and yours have some ground to make. Remember de La Vega territory stretches several hundred miles in all directions. You have two hours, and this time, we’ll know if you come back.”
“So what? What do I care about a spell?”
“You’ll care because the spell is now keyed to your DNA. If you step foot into de La Vega territory again your heart will explode.” Kendra said it in a low voice, laced with menace. “Stay off my land or your life will be over. And anyone else associated with you.”
“You wouldn’t!”
Kendra smiled. “Oh I would. You see, I have a pretty big hate-on for you and yours and all those who attack us for being different. You not only tried to harm my cats, but you consorted with those humans who seek to do all Others in. I am Alpha of the de La Vega jamboree and you are beneath contempt. So just try it. Come back and see if I’m lying, and you’ll no longer be a problem at all.”
White-faced, he allowed his sons to take him away.
“I’m on it,” Dario spoke to Gibson, who simply pulled Mia into his arms.
“You saved my life yet again. Clearly I need to keep you around just for that.”
She hugged him tight. “I wanted to kill him. Dario wouldn’t let me.”
“My lovely Mia, covered in blood, gun in your hand, death threats on your lips. My perfect female.” He stepped back and the crowd hushed as he addressed them. “It is my sincere hope that this chapter of our history is done. Alberto and his compatriots are banned from our lands and from the lands of his other jamboree. We will fight to the death to protect our cats and our land. I will continue to do so with this female at my side. And I hope to do it with her not only as my mate, but as my wife.”
Her hands shook from the adrenaline still in her system, and she used the back of her hand to wipe the blood from her face. Her father appeared and handed her a handkerchief.
“What do you say, Mia? Will you be mine for the rest of our lives? Have my babies? Keep me in line and out of trouble?”
Her voice shook as much as her hands did. “I—I’m not sure even I have the power to keep you out of trouble, Gibson. But I’ll marry you and give it my best shot.”
He fell to his knees and she went with him, hugging him because he was real and all right and all hers. Relief rushed through her, bringing tears to her eyes.
“Shhh, don’t cry. It’s over now.”
“They’re relief tears. It’s the adrenaline,” she lied. “I love you.” And that was the truth.
“Me too, you crazy female. Glad you didn’t kill him. I was worried for a moment.”
“I wanted to. Really badly. But I figured we needed to have the referee make the ruling while he was alive. But those kneecaps will be hard to grow back. Learned something new today. Shattered bone can’t be reknit like a slash in his skin. It’ll be painful. And he’ll probably feel it for a few years. I hope he thinks of me every time he gets a twinge.”
He grinned, kissing her soundly. “You’re so hot when you’re vicious. Come on.” He hauled her to her feet. “A shower and then an engagement dinner is in order. Followed by rigorous sex once we’re alone.” He whispered the last part.
“Rigorous? Will there be a test?”
He laughed. “You make me laugh. I love that about you. I’m happy to test you.”
“Only if there’s discipline if I don’t get it right.”
“You’re playing with fire, missy.”
She laughed, taking his hand. “Come on then, my beautiful handful of a mate. Let’s wash off the blood and celebrate our victory and our engagement.”
“You got it.” He held her hand and drew her through the crowd of well-wishers and out the back door.
* * * * *
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