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The gong rang. “Acari Drew advances to the final round. ”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Yasuo, Emma, and I stood together, ready to watch Lilac’s semifinal match. The winner would face me, that night, in the final round.
My body trembled. My ears rang, my hands throbbed, and pains and twinges riddled my body. And yet unspent energy coursed through me. I’d fought—truly fought.
“You okay?” Emma asked.
Her voice brought me back to myself. “Yeah, actually. I’m okay. ”
“You won’t be, if you have to fight her. ” Yasuo nodded at Lilac.
The fight hadn’t begun yet, but both contenders stood on the platform, stretching out, bouncing on their feet, psyching up. Her opponent looked nervous, but Lilac just looked ready.
“Lilac might not win. ” Emma sounded tentative.
I gave her a half hearted smile. “Thanks, Em. ”
“Not win the semis?” Yasuo shook his head in disbelief. “Are you kidding? Von Slut-thing’s going to butcher that girl. She’s owned every single one of her opponents. ”
He was right. Tracers had gathered by the platform, standing by.
Emma stared in wonder. “Where do they take them all?”
“You tell us, Yas,” I said. “You’re the vamp in training. What happens to the not-quite-dead girls?”
Emma grew preternaturally still. “I wonder if this whole thing isn’t just a way for the vampires to cull the weak from the herd. ”
Yasuo rolled his eyes. “Thank you, Farm Girl. ” He turned his focus on me. “Enough speculation. Now, listen up, D. All signs point to you fighting Lilac tonight. You need a strategy. ”
I nodded weakly, feeling ill. Strategy wasn’t good for much when your opponent didn’t feel pain.
“What’s her deal, anyway?” Yas asked, and we all turned our eyes to her.
Lilac was long and lean, with that maple hair pulled back into a sleek braid. She looked entitled, confident, and gorgeous, in a vanilla sort of way. I shrugged. “Rich . . . white . . . boarding school. I don’t know. ”
He snorted. “Maybe she learned all her crazy-ass moves playing field hockey. ”
“It doesn’t matter. ” Emma roused to life. “You could beat her. ”
Good old naive Emma. She had no idea what I would be up against if Lilac won the semifinals.
The gong sounded. It was time for Lilac’s match.
The girls stepped to the middle of the platform. It was Lilac versus a tall Valkyrie-looking creature with close-cropped hair, perfectly cut biceps, and cheekbones that went on for days.
The gong sounded a second time, and Lilac sprang from her corner, swinging her weapon over her head. My friends and I laughed nervously, seeing that she’d chosen a shinai, the long, bamboo sword we used in Japanese kendo practice.
My blood ran cold. “What the hell is she planning to do with that?”
“That won’t cut anyone,” Emma said.
“Duh. ” Yas shook his head. “But that thing’s got reach, and she’s got power. Sorry, D. I don’t get how any of your blades will do you any good. Not that girlie little switchblade, and not those stars, either. ”
A third gong tore my eyes from him.
We stared at Lilac’s opponent on the platform. By the way she writhed around, clutching at her neck, it looked like Lilac had just jousted her in the throat.
