Page 82 of Darkness Defined

“What, you got a hot date or something?”

“No.” I had a roommate that was probably gonna tan my hide for making out with him, then disappearing without so much as a note.

“Then you can fight.” Neese grabbed the front of my shirt and jerked me deeper into the warehouse.

I tried to pull his hand off, but only managed to put holes in my shirt. “I have other things I have to do.”

“Like what?” he asked, dragging me towards the ring.

Digging in my heels wasn’t helping in the least. I thought about trying to shadow, but that wasn’t as consistent as I let Alex think it was. Someone ripped my backpack off. Panic spiked through me, and I fought harder to get free. I couldn’t stay here. I had to get back to Alex. Why had I ever joined this club in the first place?

“Alright, you little shit. What’s the deal? Where do you have to be that’s so important?”

“I… I…” I couldn’t say it. My issues with Alex were none of his damn business.

“That’s what I thought. Give you a few days’ reprieve and you go soft on us. Just for that, you get to go first.”

I shouldn’t have swung at Neese. I knew better. He easily avoided the assault, and I fell forward. The people I bumped into were more than eager to help me the rest of the way until I landed in a heap of limbs in the open space and left to my fate.

“Hey Granite, you ready for a rematch?” Neese called, his voice rising over the jeers from the crowd.

“You bet your scaly ass I am.”

The distinct rumble of knuckles made of stone cracking came from behind me. I spun around and cursed. Granite looked more imposing than ever as he stepped into the ring with a leering smile. This was so not going to be my night.

“I’ve been waiting for you, you little brat.” He walked around me and I kept turning to keep him in sight. “Let’s see how you do when I actually know what I’m up against.”

Double—no—quadruple shit. He’d finally figured it out. I spied the metal door behind him, having gone full circle, and my pack beside it. The only way out was through Granite and I needed out. I walked to the edge of the ring and Granite’s rumbling laughter followed me. At the edge, I heard Neese’s own hissing chuckle. I ignored both of them and reached out to push people out of the way.

Inches from the nearest person, my fingers met resistance and the air between us flashed a brilliant blue. Mind-numbing electricity ripped through my arm. I yanked back the appendage and cradled it against my chest while Neese, Otto, and pretty much everyone roared with laughter.

“What the hell?” I flexed my hand and winced against the pain. This definitely hadn’t been here before.

Neese ran his long tongue over his pointed teeth and smirked. “We had a feeling you might run, especially after you no-showed on Thursday. So, we invested in a witch.” He glanced over his shoulder at a girl dressed in spiked boots with black lipstick. “The spell may not be demon-specific, but it’ll hold just about anything. Even you.”

I swallowed back the bile crawling up my throat and hoped like hell terror wasn’t written all over my face. The last time I’d been this scared, I’d been trapped in an alley with a bunch of masked guys wearing white, military-like jackets. “Please, Neese. Let me go.” Despite my best efforts, my voice still shook.

Neese rewarded my desperate plea with a grin straight from the deepest depths of hell. “You can leave after the fight.”

I stared at him for a long second in which neither of us blinked. He might as well have issued a death sentence. Granite knew I was a Shadow Demon. Whatever advantage I had before was nonexistent now. Braced for defeat, I turned toward Granite and a fist like an avalanche plowed into my face. The hit sent me reeling into the electric boundary so hard I bounced back and fell to the ground. I struggled to my feet and intentionally did not touch my face. The cheap shot had definitely broken my nose.

Angry, I raced towards him. He easily danced out of the way, and his fist crushed into my side. The bile I’d swallowed earlier threatened to return with a vengeance as pain washed through me and a disturbing crack filled the air. I grunted and stumbled, clutching my aching side and swinging wildly with my free hand.

If I could focus, get my head in the game, I might stand a chance, but with every hit, all I could think about was Alex. The way he smiled when I got a question right. How he always had an encouraging word no matter how down I was feeling. The hint of lavender that infused his skin. How his hair always did whatever it wanted. The soft press of his lips as he kissed me in a way I’d never known I needed.

Granite grabbed me by the ruff and threw me into the barrier again. The electric charge surged through my body and I curled into a ball as I hit the ground. Without focus, I was nothing but a rag doll. Small, inconsequential. Nothing. All the things I’d been before Alex.

Ringing filled my ears as I pushed up from the grit covered floor. No sooner was I upright, then yet another solid wall of rock knocked me back down. I shadowed out before he could kick me in the ribs. When I re-materialized, though, it was in exactly the same spot and just in time for the second attempt.

Pain ripped through my side yet again and I fell to my hands. I wanted to tell him to stop, that he’d won, I just wanted to leave. But I could barely breathe, let alone beg. I tried once again to stand, only to have an elbow crack into the back of my neck. The world went dark as I slammed into the ground.

When I came to, someone had dragged me over by the door. Feeling like a giant bruise, I pulled my backpack closer and carefully slipped it on. I eased my way up the wall while waves of pain threatened to make me vomit right there on the floor. I forced the nausea down and staggered out of the warehouse. If I could’ve shadowed to the dorm, I would’ve, but that was substantially beyond me at the moment. So, I walked. It was slow going, but one way or another, I’d get back to Alex.

Chapter 24

Tequila Straight

A