Her Warriors' Three Wishes (Dante's Circle) (17 page)

The crowd roared, and Jamie turned to where Fury stood. Ambrose and Balin kneeled on either side of him, blood dripping down their faces and the cuts along their skin.

Her stomach lurched, but she stood strong.

She had to.

“Now, who will she fight? Or at least try to fight?” He laughed as he asked, and the crowd laughed with him. “Why, our strongest competitor for sure!”

The crowd started chanting, and it took a second for the name to register.

“Hunter! Hunter! Hunter!”

No, not him. Not the man she’d just met who could be her friend. 

She watched as he rose up from the cell below, chains around his arms, legs, and neck. He looked like a caged animal, but Jamie had seen the goodness in him.

Maybe they could work together to find a way out.

Jamie looked into Hunter’s gold eyes, and he clenched his jaw, defeat washing over his face.

“And to make the pot more tempting, whoever wins this fight gains their freedom!”

The crowd roared, and Jamie blanched.

Fury had his perfect fight—two competitors who didn’t want to kill each other but wanted freedom.

Hunter growled, attacking his chains, and Jamie shuddered.

No, this couldn’t be happening.

There had to be a way out.

“Begin!” Fury yelled, and Hunter snapped his chains.

He came at her like a freight train and, before she could take a breath, tackled her to the ground. She twisted, scratching at him with her nails, trying to free herself.

“Keep fighting me,” Hunter said, so low she wasn’t even sure she’d heard him at first.

“Why?” she whispered back.

“I can feel your new powers. You’re strong, Jamie. When Fury tires of seeing me not kill you, he’ll send in more demons because he can’t help himself. Then we’ll fight them together. I promised you I’d get you out of here. As soon as we find a way to escape, we’ll get your men and go.”

Relief hit her hard, but she still fought him off. He nudged his knee between her legs, and she shuddered. 

“I swear to you I won’t hurt you. I just have to make it look good.”

She nodded, still twisting as tears threatened.

“Don’t change yet,” he whispered again.

“Enough! This wasn’t worth the price of admission, not yet,” Pyro yelled.

“Bring in more demons!” Fury yelled, and the crowd cheered.

“Get up and change as soon as the first demon comes at you. You’re stronger than you think, Jamie. The rules state they can only have one competitor per competitor, so they can’t bring in more than one per person.”

She nodded as the floor shook beneath her. Hunter jumped off her with a grace that surprised her and waited for her to stand.

Her legs shook as two thick-muscled, long-horned demons rose from the ground, scars and cuts marring their bodies from long battles.

Hunter squeezed her hand, and she took a deep breath. She could do this. At least she could try. If they won, they’d be free; or at least she hoped.

“I can kill them both, Jamie,” Hunter said. “You just run and stay alive. Fight if you have to.”

Jamie nodded, not liking that Hunter would be doing the work. There had to be something she could do. She couldn’t just stand back and not help.

The crowd chanted, each curse more vile than the next. The two demons before her threw their heads back in unison and roared, and Jamie clenched her jaw. 

With one last roar, they charged, their bodies moving with a grace that she hadn’t expected as they came at her and Hunter.

“Now! Change!” Hunter yelled as he planted his feet, his eyes glowing.

Jamie closed her eyes, trying to concentrate on the power within her. She felt the djinn power wash over her, her body growing in strength.

“No! What the fuck is this!” Pyro yelled as she opened her eyes and saw that she had changed fully.

Like before when she’d changed in the cell, she felt empowered, stronger, like she could do anything. Her senses where heightened and she could feel other people around her like she hadn’t before. Ambrose had called it her aura. That would be something to get used to.

Pyro screamed again and she blocked him out. She didn’t have time to worry about him. When one of the demons charged at her, she feigned left then ran right as fast as she could go, far faster than she could have as a human. 

She felt the demon behind her, giving chase. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Hunter fighting the other one and winning. Blood spurted from a wound at the demon’s neck, and he went down to his knees. Hunter gripped its head and twisted, decapitating it with one movement.

Dear Lord, Hunter was strong.

She changed directions, sweat pouring down her back. She knew she must look like an idiot, running around with a demon chasing her. Hunter ran to her side and stopped her with one arm, wrapping it around her waist and bringing them both to their knees. The other demon lashed out, slicing Hunter down the arm.

With his scream, Jamie wiggled free and used her new strength to push the other demon back. The demon seemed surprised she fought back, but screw him.

She wasn’t just going to lie back and let him kill her.

As the demon roared and charged at her, she took off again, this time to the corpse of the other demon. Her heart beat in her ears, blocking all other sounds as she threw her body down behind the corpse and picked up the horn of the dead demon. She reached up and pierced this demon’s stomach. The now bleeding demon flipped over them, and Jamie pulled the horn out then stabbed him in the head.

Dear Lord.

How the hell had she done that?

Her new power coursed through her veins, strengthening her.

She’d killed a demon on her own.

Go her.

Bile rose in her throat, but she pushed it down. The last thing she needed was to throw up like a loser in front of the crowd.

“No!” Pyro yelled and shook his fists.

Fury yelled something in a language she didn’t understand, and the floor shook again. This time at least twenty demons rose from the floor.

“I thought they couldn’t do that,” she said, her voice breaking.

“They can’t,” Hunter spat then cursed.

“Cheat!” Balin yelled, and Jamie turned to her mate. He and Ambrose broke through their chains as Ambrose’s crystalline white wings burst from his back, spreading out, and he grabbed Balin around his torso and flew to the center of the fighting area. They dropped to her side, pulling her into their hold. She pulled back to stand on her own two feet, though she loved that they were close.

Their scents surrounded her, grounding her.

“You can’t be in there!” Fury yelled over the din as the other demons quieted. “You’re an angel; you’ve started a war.”

Ambrose shook his head as he brought Jamie to his side. “No, you have. If there will be a war, you have caused it. You’ve broken your own laws by bringing those demons in here. This game is forfeit.”

“Jamie and Hunter are ours,” Balin yelled. “We claim them in consequence of your deceit. Now, give us our freedom, and we’ll leave. You have no say here, Fury. You’ve lost by your own impatience and lies.”

Jamie wanted to cry in relief but held back everything she could. She didn’t trust Pyro or Fury, not in the least.

One of the other council members held Fury back before speaking.

“It is the law, my son,” he said, his voice old but strong. “Let them go, and they can
try
to leave hell.”

She wasn’t too sure she liked the emphasis the demon made on
try
.

Fury smiled, his teeth looking sharper by the minute, even if it was only a feeling. “Yes, you can go. If… no, when we find you, we’ll kill you.”

“You have no say and no jurisdiction outside of this realm,” Ambrose stated as his grip tightened on her hand.

“So be it,” Fury spat, and Pyro shook beside him.

Balin pushed her toward a side gate as the three men flanked her. “Let’s get out of here.”

Jamie wanted to sink to her knees and weep, but she didn’t think this was the right time. By the look on Hunter’s face, she wasn’t the only one warring with their emotions. The wolf looked as if he couldn’t believe his fate, as if he’d resigned himself to dying and now had a chance at life.

She didn’t know what came next, but whatever it was, she’d survive. She had to. 

Anything was better than what she’d just seen.

She knew the demons might come after them at any moment, but she’d take a breath because she could.

Because she had to.

At least she hoped.

Chapter 12

The fear slowly slipped from him as Ambrose led the way to a group of rocks outside the coliseum doors. He knew they weren’t safe until they were behind wards in the human realm—or really any other realm other than hell—but the jagged fear he’d had watching helplessly as Jamie ran for her life ebbed away.

As soon as he could, he’d take her in his arms and never let go, just to confirm she was really there.

He’d never been so helpless and so proud at the same time, watching her in the games. She’d never shown a hint of fear, though he’d been able to feel it through the bond. He and Balin had been forced to watch on their knees, chained to the ground.

Though he could have—and did—break free easily, he didn’t at first. If he had done that before Fury had cheated, it would have cost Jamie her life, and there was nothing in the world more precious than her. He’d had to stand back and watch, holding his own emotions in check while everything he’d ever wanted could have been lost. He’d had to wait for his moment—one he hadn’t been sure would come.

Now they had even more things to worry about. Namely, how to get out of hell. He could hear the crowd behind him and knew it would not be easy to make a portal and leave with them ready to give chase. 

“Balin!” 

Ambrose turned to find Fawkes running toward them, a huge smile on his face.

“Fawkes!” Balin said as they hugged each other, relief in the younger man’s stance evident from his sagging shoulders.

“I couldn’t watch, but I heard what happened. Congrats by the way on finding your true halves.” He turned to Jaime and bowed. “I’m Fawkes, a friend of Balin’s.”

Jamie hugged him tight, surprising him. “I know what you’ve done for both of my men. Thank you.”

Fawkes blushed and shook his head. “It was nothing. I do know that an angry mob is on its way, so I’m going to go make a distraction so you guys can divine a portal.”

Ambrose smiled. This young demon was a far greater man than he gave himself credit for.

“Can’t you come with us?” Jamie asked as Balin pulled her into his arms.

Hunter stood back, watching it all with that same fierce expression on his face. Ambrose was glad the wolf could escape, even though he looked more feral than sane. 

“I can’t go,” Fawkes said, a frown on his face. “I still have a bit of time until I’m in my maturity…then…”

Balin nodded, and Ambrose took the kid by the shoulder. “When you make your choice, come to us. We’ll find a way to help.”

Fawkes gave a wobbly smile then coughed. “I might take you up on that.”

Balin moved forward to give the kid one last hug. “You better.”

“Now I’m going to go blow up a couple things, but don’t worry, I’m faster than they think. Make that portal quick though.”

Balin nodded. “I’m strong enough now to be able to take my mates easily, plus another, so it won’t be a problem.”

The roar of the crowd grew louder, and with one last nod, Fawkes ran off.

Ambrose hoped to God that the boy would make a choice that could lead him back to their lives.

That wasn’t for him to decide.

“I don’t want him to get hurt,” Jamie whispered as Balin started to draw his rune to open the portal. Absolute glee at the new power he held shone on their lover’s face.

His lover.

He liked the sound of that.

Ambrose tucked a stray hair behind her ear. She still wore her leather costume, that he had to be honest looked sexy on her, and he knew she was uncomfortable.

“He’ll be okay. He’s stronger than most. And I have a feeling we’re not done with him.”

“Good.”

“Ready?” Balin asked as he stood in front of the portal, a swirly vortex of light and darkness that would lead them to, presumably, the human realm. 

“God yes,” Jamie said as she turned back to human. Ambrose had long since tucked his wings back, and Balin changed to his human form, which was still the same strong, good-looking man, just without horns and red specks in his eyes.

Balin took one of her hands while Ambrose took the other. Hunter grabbed Ambrose’s free hand, the desperation evident in his stance, and they made their way through the portal. Sharp pinpricks of pain danced along his body, but unlike last time, it wasn’t the flames of hell that greeted him, but the twilight of a setting sun in Jamie’s hometown.

They were home.

Well, not exactly home. At the moment, they were in an alley near Jamie’s home. He was pretty sure he’d heard Jamie give Balin the directions to where she lived before, but he’d been too caught up in making sure there were no demons following them, he’d missed it.

“Oh thank God,” Jamie whispered. He caught her around the waist as her legs gave out.

“Are you okay?” Balin asked, worry etched on his face.

“Was it the portal?” Ambrose asked, not knowing how she’d fare.

“I’m just glad to be home.”

Hunter came to her side and knelt before her. “Thank you, Jamie, and all of you for saving my life.”

Jamie shook her head as tears slid down her cheeks. “You saved mine.”

Hunter let out a breath. “I’m going to my Pack now since they’re close to here. I don’t know how long it’s been…” He closed his eyes, clearly struggling for control. “I will come back to all of you. I will never forget what you’ve done.”

“Nor will any of us,” Ambrose promised.

“You’ve found an ally in me, all of you,” Hunter explained as he stood. “I don’t know the state of my Pack, or even if I have a title anymore, but when I come back, I will find a way to repay you.”

“You owe us nothing,” Jamie said.