Fi’s jumpsuit was full of it by now, so Heaven’s must be, too. Sand might make the blood easier to clean up, but it also aggravated the crap out of the fighters. Maybe that was part of the point.

Heaven slapped Fi across the face and Fi tasted blood. She smashed her head into Heaven’s chin and was rewarded with a loud cry.

“Vaca.” Heaven dropped her and spat out a mouthful of blood, sand, and possibly a small piece of tongue. “You’re going to pay for that, human.”

“Blah, blah, blah,” Fi mouthed back. “Empty words, fleabag.”

They began circling each other, arms out, ready to strike. Heaven stumbled once as her ankle twisted, but she quickly righted herself. She shook herself and blinked a couple of times.

With a frustrated yell, Heaven attacked, her petite figure charging with all the power of her varcolai heritage. She took Fi to the sand hard enough that she lost her breath for a few frightening seconds. In that brief span, her eyes connected with Doc’s in the audience. She’d never seen him so afraid. Did he think she was going to lose? What little confidence she had drained into the sand beneath her.

Heaven jumped on top of Fi and punched her in the side of the head. Stars shot through Fi’s vision and the world wobbled. If she hadn’t already been down, she would have fallen over.

Shot after shot to Fi’s head and body pushed her deeper into the sand. She twisted away, earning herself a couple whacks to the ribs. Something cracked and pain radiated through her body with every breath. She clawed at the sand, trying to find purchase, trying to pull herself out of Heaven’s reach. Desperate to stop the punishment, she flung handfuls of sand at Heaven.

The shifter caught the first one square in the mouth. She coughed out the sand she’d inhaled, gagging and spitting. Fi dug her elbows in and dragged her aching body a few inches away.

The sand clung to Heaven’s sweaty face. She wiped a forearm across her eyes but only made it worse. Blinking hard, she crawled after Fi. Barely an inch remained on either of them that wasn’t caked with sand or sweat. Under the intense lighting, their crusted skin glittered.

Fi kicked, catching Heaven in the collarbone. Something snapped and Heaven howled, the sound eerily unhuman. Her eyes yellowed and she flung herself on top of Fi.

Panting and growling, she landed multiple shots. Fi curled into a ball. The stars swimming across her field of vision became black spots. Swelling shut her left eye almost entirely and her body burned with pain.

She shoved both feet out with what little strength she had left, but Heaven dodged the effort. The shifter grabbed Fi by the hair and yanked back, then shoved Fi’s face into the sand.

Fi jabbed an elbow back, catching Heaven hard, but the varcolai didn’t let up. Grit clogged Fi’s nose and throat with each hopeless breath. Heaven was going to kill her. The only way out was…

“Mercy,” Fi whispered.

Heaven tugged Fi’s head out of the sand and leaned in close enough that their cheeks touched. “What did you say, human?”

“Mercy.” The word tasted worse than the metallic tang coating her tongue.

“Hah!” Heaven flung Fi’s head back down.

Fi twisted enough to breathe clean air. Somewhat unsteady, Heaven pushed to her feet and slogged toward the edge of the arena. She brushed herself off, then raised her hands. The crowd went nuts, whether or not they understood what had just happened.

A sob tore through Fi’s chest. She couldn’t look at Doc. Couldn’t stand to see the disappointment in his eyes. Tears spilled down her face and she let them. At least they washed the sand from her eyes.

Heaven fell onto one knee, then tumbled onto her side. She rose slowly, leaning on her hands. She shook her head like she was clearing cobwebs and struggled to get up. Again, she fell.

This time she shifted to her jaguar form.

The crowd went still. Omur and Barasa ran into the arena and kneeled beside Heaven. Omur put a hand to her throat as he bent over her, his ear to her muzzle. He righted himself and gave Barasa a serious look. With a nod, Barasa jumped up and ran to Fi.

He brought her to a sitting position, then pulled her arm around his neck and lifted her to her feet. “Raise your hand.”

She bit down to keep from crying out in pain. Through gritted teeth, she asked, “Why? What happened?”

He reached around, grabbed her elbow, and forced her arm into the air, all the while walking her toward the exit. The crowd stayed silent, their stares amplifying her discomfort. Then he answered. “You won. Heaven’s dead.”

Chapter Thirty-Six

Lola hesitated. Her body wanted to lunge forward, to grab the comar before her and sink her teeth into his flesh without a second thought, but what was left of her heart and humanity kept her feet planted. She’d sworn she wouldn’t become a monster. “I don’t know if I can do this.”

Luciano frowned. “You can and you will or you will die. Permanently this time.”

The comar stepped forward. “It’s okay, my lady. My purpose is to provide you blood.”

Luciano nodded. “Listen to the pulse of his heart. It beats with excitement, not fear. He is here to serve. He wants to do this.”

A refocusing of her senses and she actually could hear the comar’s heart. The sound was vaguely reassuring. Her mouth watered and the muscles in her thighs twitched, trying to move her forward. “Maybe… I should do this alone.” She glanced at Luciano.

He settled into the club chair. “No, cara mia. You are a vampling. The chance that you would drink too much and harm the comar is too great. I stay.”