Zara’s eyes widened as a familiar figure slid under the ropes with no fanfare or other buildup. Unlike his opponent, Johnno wore his normal training gear — black loose pants and a close vest with his hands in black wraps. The color scheme had earned him the nickname of the “Grim Reaper” in the Moon’s gym.

Relief flooded her for a moment at the sight of a familiar face, especially when he turned around and winked at her. The small curve of his lips was mysterious and she realized she didn’t actually know what kind of paranormal he was. A shifter for sure, he’d have to be to have registered with the SFL, but since the definition was wide ranging, he could be anything from a wereferret all the way through to non-were shifters like a gargoyle or a Valkyrie.

Not that she seriously thought he was either of those. Gargoyles were easy to spot with their slower speech and tendency to be slumberous during the day, and Valkyries were almost as rare as unicorns and usually female. Although, she had heard stories that the city’s Vampire Earl had Valkyrie blood.

She shuddered. One more reason to avoid the repulsive creatures. If one of them were to storm in here to save her, though, she’d willingly offer up a vein. Even being a vampire’s blood slave had to be better than whatever Niko had planned for her. The gleam in his eyes every time he looked her way made her feel sick and want to scrub herself in a month-long bath.

“You’re dead meat, kid.” Niko snarled as he climbed into the ring with Johnno. “I used to go easy on you at the Moon, but that’s done now.”

The smaller man just shrugged, rolling his shoulders as he danced on the spot — limbering up the same way he always had. Her heart ached as the relief she’d felt faded. He’d never been able to beat Niko in a fight — not properly — so how was he going to beat him now when it mattered the most? Panic and sadness fought in her heart. Niko was going to kill him because of her.

The bell rang to signal the start of the fight. She clung to the bars on the door of the cage, one hand on her throat as she watched. Johnno came out fighting, hard and brutal. He moved faster than she’d ever seen before, an edge in his movements that was new. As were a few of his moves, ones she recognized from seeing Logan train.

Hope began to filter through again. If he’d been training with Logan, was it possible he could beat Niko? Win the fight? That would mean she was his…but if he was Logan’s man…

Any hope she’d had for that outcome though, soon died a quick death. No matter how fast Johnno was, Niko was faster. Dodging and weaving around the smaller man, Johnno threw jabs that didn’t connect and Niko jeered.

“Come on then, boy,” he taunted, egging Johnno on with crooked fingers.

“That all you got? Thought you’d try harder, given all your locker room talk about fucking the boss’ daughter. She’s right there…” He motioned toward Zara’s cage. “But guess what, punk… she’s all mine. I’m gonna be the one taking her home and fucking her raw.”

Not if I have anything to do with it. She kept her comment to herself and focused on the fight. Johnno was really working for it, a fine sheen of sweat covering his chest and shoulders as he danced around Niko, trying to avoid some of the heavier blows and inflict damage on the big werebear. It didn’t help that he was shorter and of a slighter build than his opponent, but she had to give him points for courage. Every so often, he would glance her way, determination written on his features.

She worried at her lower lip. He was so young and determined, and if he got hurt it would be all her fault.

As she watched, he slid to the side and let loose a barrage of jabs and hooks that rocked Niko back on his feet. Holding her breath, she pressed herself against the bars, hoping beyond hope that it would be enough to end this farce.

Niko shook his head, obviously unsteady, but stayed on his feet, arms up to protect his head from the attack.

“Fuck’s sake,” she muttered to herself. “Just go down already, would you?”

As though he heard her words, he shook his head and straightened up. With a bellow, he went on the attack, hammering at Johnno’s defense with punch after punch until the smaller man was driven back against the ropes. He twisted to the side and slid under Niko’s arm. The werebear tracked him with a roar, which was when she felt it. That little prickle in the air that warned someone was calling power from their beast.

She frowned, confusion rolling through her. Normally, she had to be practically touching someone to sense the call and there was no one anywhere near her. Yet she could feel it. Could feel the buildup of power, like the feeling she got in her sinuses when the air pressure rose just before a storm. Her gaze cut to Johnno. Just because she hadn’t seen him shift before didn’t mean he couldn’t. Eagerly, she scanned his appearance for any clue as to what kind of shifter he was. Hopefully something big and mean enough to completely decimate Niko. Would a weredragon be too much to hope for?

The instant her eyes met his and read the expression there, she knew. He couldn’t shift. Something deep inside her knew that whatever he was, he wasn’t a were. She’d never felt that particular frisson from him and now she knew why. The buildup wasn’t him.

“Watch out!” she yelled the warning just as Niko lashed out, his hand fully shifted to beast. Johnno’s eyes widened and he ducked. The claws slashed through the air where his head had been scant moments before — a blow that would have decapitated him.

Denied his easy victory, Niko roared and laid into Johnno with renewed vigor. The smaller man managed to avoid the first couple of blows, but after that he wasn’t so lucky. A right hook caught him on his shoulder, spinning him around. He’d barely recovered when Niko slammed two heavy jabs right through his guard and into his face.

For a second he stood there like he’d been poleaxed, but then Niko’s claws sliced through the air and across the front of Johnno’s throat. Zara heard her own screams as red rolled down Johnno’s chest like an expensive scarlet cravat.

“No! Nononono!” She backed away from the door to the cage, hand covering her mouth as nausea rose, bile threatening to choke her. The scent of blood filled the air, and all she could do was look at the spreading pool under Johnno’s fallen figure. A wave of dizziness assaulted her, and she grabbed at the bars at the side of the cage, sinking to her knees as all hope deserted her.

She wasn’t getting out of this.

Logan wasn’t coming.

* * *

“Time to go, doll. Finally.”

Zara’s eyes snapped open at the sound of the key turning in the lock of her cage door. The scrape of metal against metal seemed to go on forever, the sound raw against her soul. But it was only seconds before she opened her eyes. The veil of her lashes revealed Niko stood by the official opening the door, the expression on the big werebear’s face filled with triumph and lust. Unbidden, a growl started up in the back of her throat. A small rumble at first, the merest hint of sound where there shouldn’t have been quickly escalated into something deeper as her lips curled back to reveal her teeth. It was a warning for the big man who stepped into the cage with her as soon as the door had opened widely enough for him to slide through.

She scuttled backward as far as the small confines would allow, snarling all the way. Her skin crawled the nearer he got. Throat closing over, she refused to give in to panic. Instead, anger rolled up from the dark recesses within her. He couldn’t touch her. She couldn’t bear even the thought of it. Her hands curled into claws, the need to rip the look off his face invading every cell in her body.

“You’re mine, bitch.”

He grabbed for her and she screamed, transformed in an instant from a cowering, terrified woman into a kicking, screaming hell cat. “Get your fucking hands off me, you asshole.”

The struggle was short but intense. Every time he tried to get a solid hold on her, she twisted and wriggled, kicking and punching whatever part of his body she could reach. They were solid hits, hard enough to hurt her own hands and feet. He hissed, grunting with each impact but didn’t let go. Tears of frustration escaped the corner of her eyes as she turned and tried to slam a knee into his groin. It didn’t work. He turned at the last minute and her knee hit his thigh, skittering off and giving him an opening to get a good grip.

Surging forward, he managed to pin her against the wall, the bars digging into her back hard enough to bruise. His hand closed around her throat in warning, and he snarled in her ear. “Play nice, bitch, or I’ll have to make you. And I got no problem doing that right here, right now. Understand me?”

She stopped struggling. He was too big and strong for her to fight. His bigger body pressed hers against the bars, and the hardness pressing against her upper thigh told her exactly how much he was enjoying herself. Nausea washed over her as he bent his head and kissed the side of her neck.

“You’ll loosen up,” he promised her, grabbing hold of her arms and yanking her out of the cage after him. Trying to keep up with his longer stride was impossible and she stumbled, falling against him. He growled in irritation, tightening his grip on her arm until a cry of pain escaped her lips.

“Keep up then, bitch. You’ll do best to learn to behave…I won’t allow the bullshit Reese did.”

He dragged her around the cage, the crowd roaring as the next fight was announced. Already their attention was on the ring rather than on her and Niko, their interest in the big fighter and his prize already waning apart from a few who watched with sick interest. She glared at them as she passed, knowing they were hoping for Niko to throw her down on the floor and do what they all knew he was going to as soon as he got her alone. They all knew it, knew it about all of the “prizes,” but not one of them would lift a hand to help. Sick bastards. Even if he didn’t get here in time to find her, she hoped that Logan and his guys did find this place…and gut each and every one of these assholes.

They passed her father, still on his dais like a lord. He turned away, refusing to make eye contact.

“Yeah, you fucking look away…” she yelled, making sure her voice rose over the music and the noise from the ring. “It’s not like you traded your own fucking children to get your worthless ass out of the shit. I hope you rot in fucking hell!”

Her voice had risen to a near scream but it made no difference. James still ignored her and in seconds they were past the main area and heading for one of the back doors. Fuck that noise. She dug her heels in, using her bodyweight to slow his progress. She no longer held out any hope that Logan was coming for her, but no way in hell was she hurrying toward her own fate.

She knew men like Niko of old. He wanted her and he intended to take her, no matter what she had to say about the matter. It would be bloody and brutal because she wasn’t going to give anything up easily. If she survived tonight, and that was a big if, beatings would follow when he worked out that he couldn’t control her. Ever. Within a week he’d get too heavy with his fists and they’d find her body dumped somewhere. Same old story she’d seen repeated over the years with fighters’ women.

In the league they tried to filter out the assholes, dropped them when they got violent and put the women into protection programs. She doubted her father had anything like that set up, or even cared. His shit-show here was just into money, not welfare.

A figure blocked their path for a moment, forcing Niko to slow down. She looked around him and her heart sank. The sleazeball from the function the other night stood in their way, a grin on his face.

“Look at how the mighty have fallen.” He chuckled, his gaze sliding down her body like oil. “Should’ve taken me up on my offer, sweetcheeks, because now you’re totally fucked. Doubt there’s gonna be anything left worth looking at after big boy here is done with y—”

She didn’t let him finish his sentence. Anger exploded through her and she surged forward, slamming a knee hard into his groin. Unlike Niko, he was no fighter and had no defensive reactions. The hard part of her knee connected squarely with his crotch and he dropped like a stone.

“Fuck you, asshole,” she spat, trying to kick him again as Niko hauled her off, hands hard on her upper arms as he dragged her out of the back door.

The door led to a dingy back corridor, which in turn opened out into the filthiest alley Zara had ever seen in her life. It wasn’t the stylized dirty look so popular in glossy magazine photoshoots with elegant models reclining in gorgeous gowns against fire escapes and walls. It was just filthy and smelly, no spray-on dirt required. Three of the lights were out, the fourth well in its way. It fizzed and popped, throwing intermittent light across the alley better than any club’s strobe lighting.

With a gasp, she tried to pull away from Niko and instantly regretted it. Not because of the hardening of his hand on her arm, but the fact the intake of breath flooded her lungs with an explosion of scents.

There was an overwhelming bouquet of urine and vomit, like all the local down-and-outs had designated this alley as the latrine, but even that didn’t quite mask the smell of the drunk by the dumpster. Or the fact he’d been drinking cheap whiskey. She lifted her head a little. There was a Chinese restaurant nearby and, her nose wrinkled in disgust, they weren’t too choosy about where they got their meat.

They were all scents she shouldn’t have been able to make out. Scents that she never had been able to before, smells and knowledge gathered in the half second it took her to take a breath as Niko shoved her toward the waiting car. Crap, he was organized.

It was a big, black SUV. All shiny and new, not at all like the clapped out truck she remembered him driving. A frown creased her brow. If they didn’t fight for money, where had he gotten the funds for such an expensive ride?

Immediately she answered her own question, the memory of the little silver packets being passed from hand to hand during the fight coming to mind. Niko and her father had always been as thick as thieves; he was obviously getting a cut of the drug money.

Shit. She hoped that crap had been Faery Dust and they were pedaling it without permission from the Vamps. If they were…forget Logan’s retribution, the fangers would hit them so hard that even their grandparents would feel the ripples.

She dug her heels in. “Nice ride, Niko. Just how far down the rabbit hole did you go?”

She was talking shit but she didn’t care. She had to delay them leaving. At least here, even out in a back alley, there was still a chance that Logan would find her.

Oh god, she wanted him to find her. Needed him to.

For the first time in her life, Zara was forced to admit that even badass bitches needed someone to lean on — needed someone to have their backs. Needed to let someone in and love them. Let them love her in return.

Crap. She was in love with Logan.

The truth made her pause for a moment as realization filtered through to every cell in her body. She was in love with the king, totally head over heels in love with Logan Reese. Had been since the moment he’d strolled into the Scarlet Moon and demanded to know how she was going to fix her father’s fuckup.

“In the car, doll. I’ve waited a long time for this.”

Niko’s smug voice brought her back to the present and she focused on him. Something dark stirred within her as, like her sense of smell, her vision sharpened...her gaze focusing on him like that of a hawk, in full-on high definition. Without allowing herself to think, she pulled her arm back, bunched her fist and punched him in the face.

The blow was left-handed but no less effective. Brought up in and around fight clubs, she knew how to throw a left hook. A good one, and it was certainly that. She felt the rightness of the effort as she moved, the small jolt as her fist connected and—as an added little bonus—the slight give as her new engagement ring sliced through the skin of his cheek.

Niko yanked his head back, roaring in pain. The little movement was all she needed. Tearing her arm from his grasp, she raced away down the alleyway, her feet pounding the broken asphalt and paving.

She’d done it. She was free.

She ran as fast as she could, heart pounding as fear and triumph drove her legs. A chill wind whistled down the alley, rifling through the short strands of her hair as though it sought to stop her. A growl burst from her throat and she dug deeper.

Screw the wind and screw Niko...she was no man’s fuck toy.

Not. Ever.

A roar and heavy footsteps behind her warned her the werebear had recovered. She hadn’t thought it would take him long. She didn’t have much time.

A gasp in her throat, she dug even deeper, reached for speeds she’d never even thought about before. She wasn’t a true shifter but she could move like one...was moving like one. But her shoes failed her at the last minute, her heel slipping on the broken surface as she splashed through a puddle. Before she could right herself and make good on her escape, he was on her.

Hard hands grabbed her upper arms and yanked her back, stopping her mid-flight. He spun her around, his expression a rictus of fury. The backhand swipe was heavy enough to make her ears ring and her vision go funky at the edges.

She gasped as agony sliced through her face and she stumbled, her descent to the filthy ground aided by the weight of a large, male body.

“No! Get off me!” She fought back but he was bigger than she was, crushing her with his weight.

“Fuck it,” he rasped by her ear, his breathing labored as he tried to get a knee between her legs to force them apart. “I was gonna wait, make it all nice with a bed…but it looks like you need a lesson in who’s boss, bitch.”

She couldn’t stop him. Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes as he wrenched her legs apart, shoving her skirt up higher to reach for her…

He stopped suddenly. He pulled his head back and ran his nose along her throat to take a deep breath.

“What the fuck?” The growl that emanated from his throat was low and dangerous, lifting the hairs on the back of her neck. She froze, every instinct within her going on high alert as he looked down at her. His eyes were black with fury. “You’re fucking pregnant.”