Three Hours (Seven Series Book 5) (32 page)

In front of me stood a brown wolf—just like Ben’s. His eyes flashed briefly toward the bars around us, and then he pulled in a scent. That’s when his lips peeled back, revealing his sharp canines. I sat back on my legs and readied myself for him to lunge at my throat.

I was ready to die for Wheeler, and I didn’t feel any fear. The wolf took a step forward, his brow angled in an angry slash as if he had a frown. His eyes were wide and full of fight. I’d never seen anything more terrible and beautiful all at once.

Slobber dripped off one of his fangs, and a low growl rose in his chest until it cut off with a ferocious snarl. Wheeler lunged.

“
I trust you
.”

Wheeler’s massive wolf knocked me onto my back.
We were both willing to die for each other, and that’s when I knew he loved me back. Maybe I’d never be the woman who found out that kind of devotion by way of candy, roses, or a candlelight dinner, but having a man willing to die for me was the most resounding declaration of love imaginable.

Terrible snarls and growls erupted from Wheeler’s wolf as he hovered over me, shaking me by the neck.

But his teeth hadn’t punctured my skin. Somehow, Wheeler was still in control. I lay beneath him in disbelief that a wolf could be this tactical. I gripped the sides of his fur, buried beneath the weight of him. My hair tangled everywhere—in my face, around my neck, and even in his mouth.

Shouts erupted from the crowd—no—
cheering
. They would never believe this without seeing blood. All those manicures had finally paid off. I reached up with my sharp nails and dug hard into the flesh of my neck until it drew blood.

Now the wolf had blood in his mouth. I didn’t know how this would end, and I honestly didn’t care. I just wanted it to be over one way or the other. The wolf thrashed, his teeth touching my neck painfully, but not puncturing the skin. Then he lifted his neck and I saw blood around his jowls—my blood.

More cheers.

“It’s over, boys,” someone shouted. “I would have never expected that.”

“Over in less than five minutes. I get the bonus!” someone else said with a laugh.

They were not only betting on winners, but how long the fight lasted.

I gasped when the wolf lunged again, this time at the back of my neck. I turned facedown and my hair smothered my view. After a few efforts to grab at him, I quit moving.

What was the plan? Oh God, I had no earthly idea what to do next! Did Wheeler have a plan?

Movement sounded from all around us and trickled away as the crowd left the room. Then I heard Wheeler.

“You bastards!” he shouted.

“You’re the bastard,” the guard with the British accent said. “You’re the one who killed her. Don’t blame us because you have a dead woman at your feet. Were you like this in all your fights? The most savage warrior, my arse. Nothing but a crybaby.”

“She was
innocent
.”

The cage door unlocked and another voice sounded. A familiar one I couldn’t place. “Stand back so we can collect the body. You’ll be rewarded with an exquisite meal tonight. The boss gives the winner a choice between steak and lobster, so think it over.”

Wheeler’s hand pressed against my back and all the rough edges in his voice smoothed out. “You wouldn’t be laughing so hard if she were alive… in panther form.”

The last thing I remembered after my shift was Manny, the stagehand from Club Sin.
The bastard!
He’d worked for Delgado this whole time and had been spying on us at the club. It was
his
eyes I saw behind the mask when a stranger walked onstage during my dance and made me shift, and he must have been the one who had attacked me outside my apartment. Those eyes I’d never forget.

By a simple twist of fate, I was the last thing Manny saw.

“And boom goes the dynamite,” I heard Wheeler say.

***

Wheeler slanted his eyes at the guard, who was holding a black baton. They wouldn’t expect an attack after a match because the fighters were tired and wanted a reward instead of punishment.

Naya had impressed him with not only her cunning actions, but also the fact that despite what he’d told her about his past, she trusted him. Wheeler had thought for sure his wolf would kill her on sight once he shifted uncontrollably, but his wolf tapped into his own emotions about Naya. A Shifter’s animal was usually respectful of close bonds, but even so, she was a panther, for Christ’s sake! He should have attacked. Wheeler’s wolf was calculating and methodical—almost to the point where some had once compared his mind to that of a human.

When he’d lunged at Naya, Wheeler had tried to shift before it was too late, but his wolf refused to give up control of his body. Wheeler had felt his canines latch around her tender throat—her pulse beating furiously against the soft flesh. Yet he’d seen something in her eyes that stilled him.

Trust. Not acquiescence like he’d seen in the eyes of so many he’d killed, but absolute trust that she would somehow survive this. His wolf had put on a ruse so the spectators would think the match was over.

Usually when both fighters were in animal form only one survived, but a match officially ended when one fell unconscious. Wheeler’s wolf had thrashed until Naya quit fighting.

In a span of three hours—from the time Naya was placed in her cell until the moment she’d shifted in the cage—everything he’d known about trust had changed. Wheeler feared trust, because it had always led to grave consequences. Naya had tangled herself around his heart and made him feel like a free man—able to talk about the demons that haunted him without fearing judgment. She shared his cynical view on love, and he felt an undeniable chemistry with her. Until the moment he saw the guards carrying her in front of his cell, he hadn’t known how deep his devotion ran and how ruthlessly he was willing to fight for her.

When Naya had searched his eyes after he shifted, it was with absolute faith that he’d do the right thing. Christ, it made him want to fight for her even harder. This wasn’t infatuation, curiosity, or even about his past. He loved that woman with every breath in him.

Wheeler loved the smoky look in her eyes when she’d flirt, the tender way she spoke of her family, and the fire that burned on her tongue when anyone threatened her friends. He loved her imperfections—not that she had any on that voluptuous body of hers, but the ones inside her head and heart. The hidden insecurities, her temper, and even the way she loved that damn cat. Wheeler hated cats, and somehow that made this whole situation even more insane.

Of all people, he fell in love with a fucking cat.

As the guard approached Naya to drag her lifeless body from the cage, Wheeler waited to see if she had understood his suggestion for her to shift and attack.

Fucking hell
, she was a sight to behold. Her panther sprang at the guard and crushed his throat within her powerful jaws. Wheeler ran after the second man and a fight ensued outside the cage. They threw chairs, punches, and Wheeler found a discarded cigar and burned the guard’s face before taking him out.

Naya’s panther leapt through the open door, her body moving like black silk. He’d never beheld a panther so agile and muscular. She approached him and rubbed against his side.

Wheeler patted her shoulder. “You ready to take care of business?”

Delgado’s voice sounded from the hall beyond the open door. “Dammit, Manny. I told you to bring them back to the…”

Wheeler smiled with all teeth when Delgado appeared in the doorway. “Nice little party you put together,” he said condescendingly as he stroked his beard. “You know what I love about men like you? How smart you think you are, but how dumb you
really
are. Did you think a man who escaped all those years ago wouldn’t know how to do it again? I know all the flaws and weaknesses of men like you.”

“It’s impossible. Your wolf—”

“Killed her?”

Wheeler patted Naya’s side and her panther growled. The sound was acoustic and deep, rattling the bones of anyone within ten feet.

Delgado backed up a step.

“Wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Wheeler said. “You know what’ll happen if you run from a predator, and don’t think your puny little door will hold her back. If you were smart, you’d have steel doors with guards inside and out. But you send in Beavis and Butt-head to clean up your mess?” Wheeler clucked his tongue. “Not the brightest marker in the box, are you?”

“You want your freedom? Fine,” Delgado began, trying to smooth out the nerves that were shaking up his voice. “I’ve made a substantial profit tonight. I offered Naya a chance to work with me, and she was foolish enough to screw me over. I hope you have more intelligence than a stripper. There’s enough money to go around if you choose to fight for me. I can set you up with your own room, your own bank account, and we can partner in on this.”

Wheeler kept his eyes on Delgado, savoring how easily a man could be broken without a whip or cage. Naya’s cat rubbed her head against his side and he stroked her face, feeling the length of her canines when his fingers grazed over her mouth.

Delgado’s breathing picked up when he looked down at the panther.

Wheeler cracked a smile. “Don’t worry, Delgado. It’s not her you need to worry about. I told someone a long time ago that I wanted to put you in the ground, and maybe it didn’t mean so much back then, but it sure as hell does now. You put my woman in a cage.
No one
makes my woman a slave,” he growled through clenched teeth. Wheeler glanced down at Naya, knowing her animal would only understand his tone. He pressed down on her nose. “Stay.”

Wheeler heard the footfalls when Delgado took off, so he ran after him and glanced one last time over his shoulder. “Stay!” he shouted, holding out his hand. The confused panther paced in a circle and growled at him.

He sprinted down the hall, bounded up a short flight of stairs, and flew into an opulent living room. The shocking change of scenery took him off guard for just a moment. The only remnants remaining from the party were empty glasses and ashtrays on the marble tables. The ceiling lifted so high that he could see the second floor, guarded by an ornate iron rail. The house looked more like a hotel with its crystal chandelier and expensive décor.

A shot fired and pain seared through Wheeler’s right shoulder. He stumbled, blood trickling down his chest and back.

Delgado stepped into sight on the opposite end of the room, standing in front of a giant window with the drapes closed. “You didn’t really think you’d walk out of here, did you?”

Wheeler glanced around. “You only have two guards? That’s real interesting.”

“You can’t trust Breed,” Delgado said, taking a confident step forward, his arm still outstretched and aiming the gun. “So long as the guards follow their orders by keeping the cages locked, there’s no reason for excess staff. I prefer humans to do my dirty work, but in this new line of business, I needed to bring in a few morons I could trust, just to keep an eye on things when I’m away.”

“Fatal mistake numero uno,” Wheeler said, strolling forward.

Delgado narrowed his eyes but didn’t take another shot.

“You’re secluded, so no one will find you. You’re discreet, so no one will find out what you’re doing. You keep the animals caged so none will escape. But every time you hold one of your little betting parties, that’s when you’re weak.” Blood trickled down Wheeler’s arm and splashed onto the white tile. “Any time those cell doors are opened for any reason, including a fight, you’re showing your Achilles’ heel. If you were seasoned like the men I’ve known, then you would have had at least ten guards at different checkpoints in the room after the fight ended.”

“No one is ever stupid enough to attack,” Delgado said, his brows slanting down. “They know it leads to punishment.”

Wheeler chuckled darkly and ran his bloody finger across a white chair. “Not everyone is a good doggie.”

The gun cracked and this time Delgado missed. Intentionally?

“Shaky hands?” Wheeler asked. “Was this all about money?”

“Immortals don’t deserve the wealth they have. Why should I work my ass off for nickels and dimes just because I don’t live as long? Now that I’ve finally made a name for myself in your world, I found someone willing to turn me.”

Ridiculous
. Men like him always counted on a Mage or Vampire to bring them over, but few ever were. Maybe it’s the principle of things, but Wheeler had seen many humans simply disappear after they paid for immortality.

“I don’t think you could handle being a Mage,” Wheeler said. “You’d fucking electrocute yourself.”

“And that’s why I chose a Vampire. I don’t have to deal with a Creator, and I’ll be strong and undetectable. What a waste. I could have made you a rich man at the expense of a few worthless lives.”

Wheeler was closing in on Delgado, separated by only ten feet of air.

“So why don’t you kill me?” Wheeler asked, holding out his arms. “Here I am.”

Delgado gritted his teeth. “Because a buyer offered me five million for you, and that should cover the expense for my Vampire friend.”

“So all I am is just a meal ticket into immortality? That might put a damper in your plans if I bleed out from this hole in my chest.”

“Then shift.”

A smile crept up Wheeler’s face. “You sure about that?”

“Not here; in your cell.”

Wheeler stepped forward another pace. “And how do you think you’re going to get me in that cell? Because your sweet-talking sucks. I know you’re not going to shoot five million dollars in the head, so you just proved my point about exposing your vulnerability. You’re the one holding the gun, but who the hell is really in control here? That’s right. Why don’t you put the gun down, sweetheart, and let’s settle this like men.”

“Do you think I’m a fool? You’re a Shifter.”